Inclusive wellness

Companies such as Brandless, which launched in 2017, are already disrupting the grocery space with certified organic, vegan and non-GMO products priced at $3 or less. Direct to consumer startup Public Goods uses a similar model, offering low prices for premium products with a $59 yearly membership. The company, which originally launched as Morgans with a range of clean bath products in 2015, entered the grocery space in March 2019 with a line of organic pantry products including olive oil, pasta and granola.

Inclusive nutrition is now extending beyond grocery and pantry items to incorporate high-quality nutritional supplements at approachable prices. Bobbi Brown is working to bridge the class divide plaguing the wellness category in a new partnership with Walmart. Evolution 18, her line of wellness supplements, launched in over 1,500 of Walmart’s US stores and online in April 2019. The products include gummies, teas, pills and powders. Brown explained that the motivation behind the line is “not just about a product, it’s about a platform to educate consumers on health and wellness.”

In March 2019 Brandless also began branching into the wellness supplement category. New introductions include gut cleansing kits for $15, essential oils for $4 and organic gummy vitamins for $9. “Wellness truly is for everybody, so we’ve made it easier to access high-quality products for less,” the company explained. “Our latest supplements, vitamins, and superfood powders are simple additions to modern life.”

Inclusive baby care

A host of new brands are bringing this approach to the baby care category, democratizing premium baby products. In January 2019, Brandless expanded their offering to include premium diapers, organic baby food and clean and cruelty-free baby care products. The line, priced at $9 or less, supports Brandless’ ethos that better doesn’t have to cost more. “With this collection, we aim to lessen the need for parents to choose between the high-quality stuff they want and what they can afford,” said Brandless CEO and Co-Founder Tina Sharkey.

Two celebrity-led companies are also working to eliminate the cost barriers in the baby care category. Hello Bello was released in February 2019 by husband-and-wife duo Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard. Sold exclusively at Walmart, the brand offers high-quality organic and plant-based baby care at an affordable price. “It’s really unfair that most of the organic, plant-based products that are good to the planet aren’t cheap and they’re not available for everyone all around the country,” said cofounder Shepard. In contrast, Hello Bello’s products were created “to eliminate the choice many parents have to make [of] deciding between what’s best for their kids and what’s best for their budget.” The products – which include diapers, wipes, shampoo, laundry detergent and sunscreen – range in price from $1.88 to $23.94, with most priced under $8.

Once Upon A Time, launched in 2017 with help from cofounder Jennifer Garner, offers healthy and organic “farm-to-high chair” kids food starting at $2.99. The company is also working to make the products available to low-income parents who receive assistance through programs like USDA’s supplemental nutrition program and WIC, which provides federal grants to states for supplemental nutrition and education to women who are pregnant, nursing or have kids under five. “We’re disrupting the category,” said Garner. “We can’t just talk about feeding the top 10% of kids, or 50% of kids. We have to talk about how to give that nutrition to the bottom half.”

Inclusive spas

Public spas and baths are staging a contemporary comeback around the world, making old-school wellness traditions accessible and affordable to local communities.

In 2018, multisensory experience design studio Bompas & Parr created Paradise Now, London’s first “wellbeing playground.” Hosted by Belgravia’s Eccleston Yards for two weeks in September 2018, the outdoor urban spa offered visitors a pink mist waterfall enriched with energizing minerals, an immersive meditation zone with anxiety-reducing aromatherapy pebbles, and a light installation emitting a warm, soothing glow.

The spa even featured an electrolyte aqua bar, where visitors could sample “water cocktails” from around the world, served by a water sommelier. Harry Parr, cofounder of Bompas & Parr, describes the experience as an attempt to integrate spa culture into the everyday. Parr says the installation “not only showcases some of the leading trends in wellness but also offers access to them in a ground-breaking way, not as a special occasion or as a destination in itself but as part of a normal daily life.”