Beauty business sheds a green light on City of Windsor

Employees of a Windsor business say they are creating a positive atmosphere with their cruelty-free and eco-friendly beauty products.

Esthetician by trade and business blogger Melissa Menard, an employee at ShopEco on Wyandotte Street East, said the business began seven years ago to make consumers lives easier by providing safe and comfortable products. Menard said the products in the store are never tested on animals and contain natural ingredients such as minerals and botanicals which are substances obtained from plants. These products include organic lip balms sold for around $4 and shampoos and body washes which  both cost about $15.

Menard said the majority of products sold are Canadian-made or locally produced from locations including Harrow, targeting all age groups.

“We do all the research on the products and ingredients so that you don’t have to,” said Menard. “I think cruelty-free really, it’s the future. I feel like it’s just evolution.”

Store manager Victoria Symons has encountered people who are against cruelty-free products. Symons remembers a customer who came in the store complaining their son had a reaction to a cruelty-free product. Symons said she had told the customer it is still possible to have a reaction even if the product is tested on animals.

“Humans and animals don’t react to things the same way. So even if the animal tested on didn’t have a reaction and it was put on the shelves, someone could still have a reaction to it afterwards,” said Symons.

Menard said their cruelty-free business has a positive effect on Windsor because it makes human beings more caring and respectful to the creatures and the earth around us.

“It’s making Windsor better, it’s making Windsor great,” said Menard. “It’s allowing us to highlight something that really is the direction we should all be in the mindset of.”