Behind the Brand: Undone Beauty Is a Clean Brand that Combines Minimalism with Affordable Luxury
Undone Beauty Water Bronzer ($10) features innovative water-based technology that softly melts into skin and blends perfectly for a natural-looking tan.
Ann Somma wanted to create a line of beauty products that was minimal, simple, and clean while appealing to a broad range of people. She also wanted them to be affordable yet still offer luxury quality products that do more for less. Thus, Undone Beauty was born—a line of unique makeup products that are designed to create flawless everyday looks on a range of skin tones and can easily build for a more sultry evening look.
Somma started her beauty career at Estée Lauder Companies, where she worked on incredible woman-founded brands including Bobbi Brown, Jo Malone London, and DKNY Fragrance. From there, she did a lot of innovation and product development work in the mass market, and really developed a passion for offering great design at a price point that made sense for a wide range of consumers.
She was employee No. 2 at an incubator where they started the EOS brand, and after that experience Somma developed a taste for startup life and never looked back. At Tru Fragrance & Beauty, where Undone was founded, they combine an experienced beauty manufacturer and distributor infrastructure with an incubator mentality. Another important aspect of the company is giving back and helping others.
“We’re really proud of our partnership with the incredible team at Project Heal, a nonprofit organization that works to break down barriers in eating disorder treatment, serving the many people seeking treatment for whom the system is failing,” says Somma. “80% of people with eating disorders can’t access treatment and they’re working to create equitable access, because these illnesses do not discriminate in terms of who they affect.”
We chatted with Somma, who shared the inspiration behind the brand, what’s next, and more.
When was Undone Beauty founded and what’s the meaning behind the name?
Undone launched in August 2018, but I had been working on the brand and had the name picked out for about two years. The name “Undone” embodies our desire to undo outdated norms in the beauty industry— around aesthetics, price points, quality, transparency—and undoing what you can expect out of a single beauty product.
Tell us more about your products and what makes them special.
All of our products are clean, vegan, and cruelty-free at a surprisingly affordable price (most are around $12-$14). Every item, whether for face, eyes, lashes or brows is infused with skincare benefits from trusted natural ingredients like castor oil, coconut extract, and rose. Our products also offer easy, multitasking solutions with real innovation, like cream products that offer three levels of color intensity in one pan or a brow product that combines both a longwear pen and a buildable gel.
Ann Somma.
Do you have a hero product? What’s your favorite?
It’s impossible to pick your favorite child, but our fans love our Lip to Cheek palettes and they do say everything about the brand in one item! They use a fill technology that allows for three intensities in one pan— deep like a lipstick; medium like a cream blush; and dewy like a highlighter. They’re packed with coconut extract to promote balanced skin and they give a beautiful, naturally-you glow. And they’re only $14, which is a steal for a cream blush of this quality!
Where are your products sold?
Undone Beauty Flawlush Brow ($12) is a 2-in-1 fill and fluff micropen and spoolie that creates full, naturally groomed brows.
What's next for the brand?
We’re so excited to be branching into skincare-makeup hybrids, as well as some incredible new lip, eye, face and body products! We’re always listening to our consumers, who keep us accountable to our shade expansion goals, and we’re excited to continue to offer more choices.
For more information and to purchase, visit the website and follow on Instagram: @undone_beauty
[Images courtesy of Undone Beauty]
Kamala Kirk is a University of Southern California graduate and has been an editor/writer for more than a decade. She has written for E! Online, Total Beauty, TravelAge West, Malibu Times Magazine, and many more. She resides in Los Angeles and is a proud pug mom. Follow her on Instagram: @kamalakirk