Is Fenty Beauty Cruelty Free?

I have been asked over and over: Is Fenty Beauty is cruelty free? I have seen many people on social media saying they are cruelty free. Unfortunately, the brand hasn’t been very forthcoming on the issue.

Although Fenty Beauty has a really amazing shade range, and everyone is buzzing about the new line from Kendo, they will NOT get back to me to confirm that they are cruelty free. Kendo also owns Kat Von D Beauty, Marc Jacobs Beauty, Ole Henriksen, and Bite Beauty, which are cruelty free, so I’m hopeful that Fenty Beauty is actually cruelty free as well. Kendo is a brand incubator – it once was a division of Sephora, but is now owned by LVMH.

Yes, I know that Rihanna, has spoken out and said they are cruelty free, but until someone can answer my questions about ingredient suppliers and distribution, I sadly, cannot add the Fenty Beauty to my cruelty free brand list. I have reached out to them on Facebook, Twitter and via email. The customer service team eventually replied to my emails – and directed to me to their FAQ, which unfortunately doesn’t cover all the bases. I asked four more times, and each time I was ignored. I also contacted their PR team, and didn’t get a response.

Their FAQ says:

Does Fenty Beauty test on animals? Never. Fenty Beauty is a cruelty-free brand. We never test products or ingredients on animals, nor do we allow suppliers or affiliates to conduct testing on our behalf.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t address the fact that their ingredient suppliers and labs may be testing the ingredients for other brands (or testing ingredients to follow federal laws). Buying ingredients from labs that test on animals means your products are not cruelty free – even if they aren’t testing on your behalf. I also would like confirmation that the products are not distributed in mainland China or areas of Brazil that require animal testing by law.

Some of their products are vegan, however. From their FAQ:

The following products are considered vegan-friendly: Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation, Match Stix Matte Skinsticks, Invisimatte Blotting Powder, Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer, and our Brushes & Tools.

I feel that there is a strong chance that Fenty Beauty is cruelty free, but until they answer my questions, I can’t be sure. It seems slightly suspect that they won’t reply, but in all reality it could just be that the customer service team is not trained to answer my more in-depth questions, and my question hasn’t made it to the top brass yet. If that’s the case Fenty – if you’re reading this, please contact me so we can set things straight!

For those of you who would like to try contacting them, here are the questions I ask to make sure a beauty brand is 100% cruelty free:

1. Are the finished products tested on animals by the company, a parent company, a third party or an affiliate company?

2. Are the products tested on animals during the production process by the company, a parent company, a third party or an affiliate company?

3. Do you have documents from your ingredient suppliers to show that they are not testing on animals for your brand or any other brand?

4. Does your manufacturer purchase any ingredients from laboratories that conduct tests on animals? Do you have documents to support this?

5. Are the products sold in any markets where animal testing is required by local law and regulations (China, etc)?

6. Are the products vegetarian? (no animals killed for the products – i.e. some forms of collagen, squalane, etc.)

7. Are the products vegan? (i.e. product ingredients that come from animals like lanolin, keratin, honey, milk, etc. – being vegan is NOT necessary for my blog, but a bonus for my vegan readers)

8. Is your company certified by Leaping Bunny? (It’s easy to get certified by Leaping Bunny and it’s free to join without licensing the logo.)