Urban Decay's controversial move to China

I've seen a lot of ranting and upset about Urban Decay's latest business expansion to China. For those of you that don't know, the sour thing about the move is that the country reserves the right to test any product on animals before it hits the market and is available to Chinese citizens. The Chinese Government has not yet made it clear if they have exercised this right or not. As a cosmetic enthusiast who genuinely cares for the welfare of animals and only buys cruelty free products, I myself was concerned at first. However, I feel like a lot of bloggers are jumping the gun.

I'd firstly like to talk about one of the most well known cruelty free companies in the u.k, Body Shop. Anita Roddick, founder of the Body Shop, was a well known animal right activist and game changer of the cosmetics industry. When Roddick decided to sell her company, talk of betrayal within the activist community was rife. Roddick sold the business to L'oreal, a company that had been linked with animal testing and was part owned by Nestle, a company not known for it's ethical choices. Roddick justified her move by saying the Body Shop would act as a "trojan horse", bringing awareness and ethical sources to the companies that are not already using them.

I'd like to think Urban Decay has the same kind of plan. Many people have accused the company of money hunting. Let's be honest, every business has that in mind, but UD could have easily set up business in another country where animal rights is higher on the political agenda. They chose to take a risk and teach China about animal welfare.

In a statement made by UD posted on Temptalia, the company explained their motives. "Yes, we are a for-profit company. And yes, we would eventually like to make money in China. But we don’t stand to turn a profit in China for quite a while, partially because the market isn’t quite ready to sustain an untraditional brand like ours. If it were only about the money, we would wait a few years. But our foray into this market is also about participating in an amazing time of change in China."


I'm the first to admit that I am usually a cynical person. I feel like we need to wait this one out though. UD are supporting a nobel cause and I believe they are trying to make a difference, just like Anita Roddick. If anything, beauty bloggers need to stand by the brand and join the fight to protect animals.

Well, that's my opinion anyway. What's yours?