Rosie Huntington-Whiteley on Her New Beauty Line and Her Favorite On-Set Makeup Hack

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Rosie Huntington-Whiteley has delved into the business of beauty with her streaming series About Face, but her newest venture puts the Transformers star in the director’s chair. After teasing the news last fall, the model and actress has unveiled her first skincare and cosmetics brand, Rose Inc, which debuted online and in Sephora in August.

The former Hourglass Cosmetics ambassador is the founder and chief creative director of the vegan and cruelty-free line, which takes the same name as the editorial beauty platform that Huntington-Whiteley launched in 2018.

“For me, since day one, it was essential Rose Inc was a brand founded on effortlessness and visible effectiveness,” Huntington-Whiteley tells The Hollywood Reporter. “A brand that delivers clean formulas and clinically proven results. One that values the sensual and is committed to sustainability and transparency. Not only was this something I craved for from my beauty products but one I saw my audience really asking for too.”

To achieve that mission, the 34-year-old entrepreneur teamed with clean beauty industry veteran, CEO Caroline Hadfield, and California-based biotechnology company Amyris, which recently acquired influencer marketing firm MG Empower. The brand’s products feature non-comedogenic formulations (meaning they won’t clog pores) and contain bioengineered botanicals developed exclusively for Rose Inc, such as vitamin E (known for its skin-protecting properties) derived from non-GMO sunflower seeds and a vegan squalene (known for its deep hydration benefits) from renewable sugarcane, to name a few safe and synthetic ingredients. And since Huntington-Whiteley has acne-prone skin, the brand is also suitable for all skin types and tones.

Huntington-Whiteley says the brand will offer regular drops every 10 to 12 weeks, starting with the Modern Essentials collection. Priced from $18 to $72, the 10-piece line includes the alcohol-free daily Skin Resolution Toner that brightens and gently exfoliates, the hydrating Radiant Reveal brightening serum, and the Softlight illuminating hydrating concealer available in 20 shades.

The debut line also includes beauty tools such as blush and concealer brushes; a hydrating lip and cheek cream color that comes in a refillable compact (available in six shades), enriching tinted and clear brow shaping gels and reusable organic bamboo rounds. Last but not least, those looking to get the Mad Max: Fury Road star’s signature plump lips can swipe on the smoothing and conditioning Lip Sculpt long-wear matte lip crayon.

We recently sat down with Huntington-Whiteley (who recently announced that she and partner Jason Statham are expecting their second child) to chat more about how she connected with her Rose Inc collaborators, which of her beauty products are her fall staples and more. Read on below, and shop Rose Inc at Sephora in stores and online and at the brand’s website.

First off, congrats on baby No. 2! How are you feeling?

Thank you! I’m feeling good. I feel I have finally resurfaced from those early foggy and rough few weeks from the first trimester and feeling happy and healthy! Rose, Inc officially launched yesterday [Aug. 25] and is off to a great start, so I’m feeling really energized and looking forward to this next chapter of my career.

What drew you to work with Amyris and Caroline for Rose Inc?

I have been working with Caroline Hadfield and Amyris since late 2018 partnering with them as the spokeswomen for their mother and baby skincare line Pipette, so I knew first-hand the capabilities and innovation for creating sustainable proprietary ingredients. As the world’s leading manufacturer of sustainable ingredients made with synthetic biology, I was truly impressed by Amyris’ no-compromise pledge, which allows millions of people, whatever age, to enjoy environmentally-friendly products that are made with sustainable ingredients.

Caroline contacted me in the summer of 2019 after hearing I was looking for a partner to launch Rose Inc beauty with and asked if we could take a meeting. I knew immediately partnering with them would provide Rose Inc with a unique point of difference on the marketplace with best-in-class formulations backed by science using fermentation to deliver high-performing ingredients that are economical and sustainably-sourced.

Which Rose Inc products do you expect to be your go-tos for fall? 

The products you see for our launch is called our Modern Essential collection, which for me are the six most essential products that give me instant visible and effortless results. I think the one stand-out product for me is our Softlight Luminous Hydrating Concealer which comes in 20 shades. It’s a does-it-all concealer that brightens, blurs and contours while nourishing the skin. It delivers comfortable wear with buildable coverage and is enriched with hydrating squalane, protective vitamin E and color-corrective botanicals.

When developing Rose Inc, what were some non-negotiables?

I have always been diligent about my skincare routine since I have acne-prone skin, but I’m all about making my day-to-day beauty routine as simplified and as effortless as possible. All the Rose Inc. products are multi-purpose, incorporated with skincare benefits and non-comedogenic. Since I do have acne-prone skin, this was non-negotiable for me.

What are some of your favorite beauty/skincare and life hacks that you’ve learned on sets and backstage throughout the years?

One tip I received from my makeup artist when filming Transformers in 2010 was to pop a bit of blush into the sockets of your eyes. I love how it softly contours and defines your eyes while incorporating the color into other areas of the face, which adds to a more overall natural look.

[Off set], my everyday look is all about having healthy, luminous-looking skin whilst wearing flattering and versatile shades. I love that our Blush Divine Radiant Lip and Cheek color gives me instant radiance and a simple monochromatic look, which can be worn on the lips and cheeks.

We know that Rose Inc. has just launched, but what other products are you looking to expand the brand with?

I’m excited as we have our first year’s launch products all complete in NPD and I am looking forward to new products dropping in a 10- to 12-week cadence. I really took the time to study the data and analytics from the editorial site that Rose Inc first launched as in 2018. It was incredibly insightful to see what products, brands, articles, price point and colors my audience and community were converting at so that informed many of the products you will see launching in the coming months.

In terms of products to come, you’ll have to stay tuned, but you can expect thoughtfully curated and high-performance, beneficial essentials coming soon!

Beyond beauty, can you share details about any other projects that are in the works?

After nearly 20 years of working in the fashion and film industries and having had many ups and downs over the years, I feel incredibly privileged to be where I am today. I’m so fortunate to have worked alongside so many brilliant brands, companies, founders and experts over the years all of, which have paved the way and inspired the launch of Rose Inc. Fashion and beauty have always been at the heart of everything I do career-wise so I hope you can expect lots more to come!