As a small, self-funded brand, sourcing cruelty-free ingredients can be very challenging. In Malaysia, there are currently no ingredient suppliers that specifically operate as cruelty-free suppliers. Most local suppliers do not prioritize or verify cruelty-free sourcing, which means we have to research every ingredient individually as much as possible.

Importing ingredients directly from overseas manufacturers that are known to be cruelty-free is often too costly for a small business like ours, especially when producing in small batches. If we sourced everything this way, the cost of our products would become much higher.

At the same time, the cruelty-free beauty market in Malaysia is still relatively small. Many consumers are understandably more influenced by pricing and established brand names, which makes it difficult for small ethical brands to absorb these higher sourcing costs.

Another challenge we face is the lack of transparency within the supply chain. Local suppliers are often reluctant to share detailed information about where ingredients come from or who the original manufacturers are. Sometimes our questions are dismissed or answered vaguely, making it difficult for us to properly verify whether certain ingredients have been tested on animals.

For some ingredients, we are able to find reliable information and confirm that the manufacturers do not test on animals. For others, the information simply is not accessible.

Because of these limitations, we are not always able to follow the standard cruelty-free verification process often outlined by platforms like Cruelty-Free Kitty. The reality is that small brands in Malaysia have limited access to transparent supply chains and cruelty-free raw material sourcing.

Even so, we continue to do our best. We carefully research our ingredients, ask questions, verify what we can, and make thoughtful choices wherever possible. Being cruelty-free is a value we genuinely care about, and we are committed to navigating this journey as ethically and honestly as we can.