When Mark Eve and Pablo Rivera, the founders of 3INA (pronounced Mina), started talking to their friends and family about how they buy, use, and think about make-up, they knew next to nothing about what it takes to start a cosmetics brand from scratch. But they were convinced about one thing.
“It was obvious to us that the traditional make-up brands were still approaching the concept of beauty the same as they always had,” Rivera says. “It was this aspirational thing, and we felt that there needed to be a shift in the approach. Each individual is different and our objective is to celebrate this diversity. Consumers have been told over and over again that there’s this one accepted idea of beauty, and we want to show people that beauty is relative.”
And so customers came to meet 3INA; first in Europe and now in Australia. With prices averaging at $12 on their products, beauty fans won’t have to fork out a pretty penny for products. Thankfully, this has come at no sacrifice on their ethics, product range and quality. None of 3INA’s 450-plus products are tested on animals. The brand’s range of foundation shades – from very fair to dark – have been praised by customers who have long lamented the lack of affordable options for darker skin tones. And this no-holds-barred approach to colour is applied throughout 3INA – just look at the blue and green lipsticks.
“We’re actually not satisfied with [the shades] we’ve got so far,” Eve adds. “We’re developing even more shades in the foundation and other product categories. As we’re moving to South Africa and countries where the consumer has darker skin tones, we want to make sure that we get this right ahead of time.
The pair describe their outlets as “cosmetic candy stores”, and 3INA's Melbourne Central and Southland outlets, where products are displayed like paint swatches, are no exception. The 3INA founders promise further expansion into other Australian cities, with stores planned for Sydney and Brisbane.