Leveraging influencer marketing: How Indian beauty brands are embracing sustainability to connect with Gen Z

Indian Gen Z not only shares their favourite products with their inner circle, but they are also conscious when it comes to choosing those products. Why?

A report by youth impact organization Yuvaa reveals that 71% of Indian Gen Z consumers prioritize brands that are environmentally friendly, and 63% are more likely to purchase from brands that support social causes.

D2C beauty brands in India take this very seriously and are leveraging influencer marketing.

To know how Indian beauty brands are embracing sustainability to connect with Gen Z, just scroll down.

Why is sustainability important in the beauty Industry?

In India, influencer marketing is projected to reach INR 3,375 crore by 2026. Also, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan stated that in the next two years, YouTube will invest over INR 850 crores to accelerate the growth of Indian creators. So, beauty brands in India have a great opportunity to promote their beauty products through influencer marketing to attract Gen Z customers. Also, a BCG and Snapchat article stated that Gen Z is the new customers for the upcoming future. Gen Z is conscious of what they are consuming. It's important also to know: Why is sustainability important in the beauty industry?

  1. When we choose sustainability, it reduces waste—beauty brands go for environmentally friendly packaging.

  2. When sustainability is chosen by a brand, they go for cruelty-free practices; they don’t test on animals to make people beautiful.

  3. Sustainability practices by beauty brands don’t involve child labour for collecting beauty ingredients.

  4. When sustainability is chosen by brands, they offer something green for the environment in return and also avoid using harsh chemicals.

  5. They don’t waste Earth’s resources to make their beauty products.

So, choosing sustainability by an Indian beauty brand is a conscious choice in 2025 to attract Gen Z customers.

Example of sustainable beauty brands in India

When we are discussing leveraging influencer marketing and how Indian beauty brands are embracing sustainability to connect with Gen Z, it's important to know how some Indian beauty brands are promoting sustainability to attract Gen Z through influencer marketing:

  1. Plum is a famous beauty brand in India. Recently, it launched a product called Vegan Mucin Essence. The story is—COSRX Snail Mucin is very popular in the global market, but Gen Z, who support sustainable practices, don’t prefer to use the product, although they crave it as the beauty world is going gaga over snail mucin for its texture and feel. So, Plum—a cruelty-free brand—launched the Vegan Mucin Essence with Cica and Hya-Betaine. It delivers the same texture and feeling on the skin, and it became famous overnight in the beauty world, not just for its similar feel but also for being vegan.


  2. The second example is an OG brand— Aqualogica. Everyone loves their sunscreen. It blends like a dream, and every Gen Z consumer has it in their skincare pouch. Aqualogica's social practice around water centers on providing access to clean drinking water in underserved communities and promoting water conservation. They collaborate with organizations like the Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR) to implement initiatives like water budgeting, groundwater mapping, and water harvesting in remote areas. For every product purchased, Aqualogica also contributes to providing clean drinking water to someone in need, according to Indian Retailer.


  3. Mamaearth—a brand everyone knows about. Their social practice for the environment is also unique and interesting. Mamaearth has a social cause of tree planting, partnering with the SankalpTaru Foundation to plant trees for every product order, contributing to environmental benefits like cleaner air and improved livelihoods for farmers.


    Indian beauty brands are making huge moves when it comes to sustainability and social causes.

CONCLUSION

If you’ve reached the conclusion about how Indian beauty brands are embracing sustainability to connect with Gen Z, then you understand the importance and the examples of how Indian beauty brands are evolving. Influencer marketing is not only a social media tool for promotion; it also needs to be a part of the strategy for product development to attract Gen Z.

Sustainability is the new standard that needs to align with all beauty brands to capture the attention of environmentally conscious Gen Z consumers.

If you want to promote your beauty brand through sustainable influencers for a campaign, then SocioPuff is a well-known influencer marketing agency that has already worked with Mamaearth, Aqualogica, Hyphen, Dr. Sheth’s, BBlunt, Beardo, mCaffeine, and many more.

It’s time to get noticed by Gen Z consumers and accelerate your growth.

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