Millie Kendall OBE is a pioneer in the beauty industry

Millie is a pioneer in the beauty industry. Alongside Ruby Hammer she was co- founder of the innovative and diversity driven Ruby & Millie cosmetic range.

 

She has been honoured with both an MBE and OBE from Her Majesty for her role and contribution in the beauty industry.

 

I talked to Millie about the British Beauty Council that she Co-Founded in 2018 which plays such an amazing role in uniting the various sectors of the beauty industries to pull in a common direction. The British Beauty Council also seeks to raises awareness of the financial impact that the beauty industry plays on the economy.

 

  1. What inspired you to go into the beauty industry?

I grew up in the industry so it was less a case of being inspired more a case of being familiar with it. I have always loved the people the products and the collaborative nature of the industry

 

  1. When did you first start the British Beauty Council and why?

We formed the British Beauty Council in 2018, it was really quite obvious to me that we needed to represent the hair, beauty and wellness sector as a whole, communicating the multi-faceted and multi-dimensional role it the plays both socially and economically, in order to challenge and eradicate the dated, linear perception of our industry.

 

  1. Beauty has a profound effect on us mentally, do you agree?

Oh yes definitely, I find a lot of joy in skincare and a lot of power in make up, and everyone knows a good hair day works wonders for your self esteem.

 

  1. Give us a little insight into how the beauty industry has an impact on the economy:

Our sector contributes £28.4 billion to the UK’s GDP and our tax revenues total around £7billion which would cover the salaries of almost 80% of the nurses and midwives working within the NHS. It is an entrepreneurial sector employing 600k people, that is 1 in every 60 jobs.

 

  1. Do you see the industry and products changing into a circular economy?

I believe until the bigger multi national corporations agree to work together that this will be hard to achieve, but we are definitely pushing for this to become a reality