Analysis of Selfless by Hyram's ESG Compliance

At a first glance, Selfless by Hyram is like every other skincare and beauty brand with the typical product lineup. However, unlike most companies in the industry which struggle with ethicality and sustainability standards, Selfless has constructed a unique business structure that is dedicated to ESG in all aspects.

Every year, the brand publishes an impact report summarizing its carbon footprint and the impact of its donations to the Rainforest Trust and the Thirst Project. The June 2022 report outlines that donations to the Thirst Project between 6/24/21 and 4/30/22 funded the construction of 16 wells in eSwatini, Africa, allowing 9237 people to have access to clean drinking water for 50 years. Additionally, donations to the Rainforest Trust in the same period funded the protection of 192,915 acres of land in Bolivia and safe storage of 35,178,050 tonnes of CO2.

Beyond these philanthropic initiatives, Selfless has established itself as a net zero company as of December 2021. A summary of the brand’s carbon footprint by source and scope is available to the public; it outlines the impact of its business operations for the 2021 fiscal year. The scope of their admissions is a broad categorization of the different aspects of their business that are the key generators of greenhouse gases. On the other hand, source is a more detailed and in depth division delineation of the different activities that produce the greenhouse gases.

The biggest part of the business’ structure that lends itself to sustainability is how it sources many of its ingredients. Selfless publishes where it sources each product's ingredients (including the region of a country and sometimes even a particular farm or location). The brand also publishes the level of sustainability of its ingredients and products, with the majority of them being sourced from carbon zero, or negative, sources that are run by local communities rather than a large corporation. In fact, some of its ingredients are not sourced from farms but are upcycled and purchased from manufacturers in the food industry. For example, its maracuja and passion fruit are sourced from juice companies in Peru.

Selfless’ packaging is made from sugarcane that is sourced from a Bonsucro certified source in Brazil, meaning that all of its product packaging is 100% recyclable. The brand even goes as far as to use vegetable inks rather than synthetically produced options to further their commitment to sustainability.

Evidently, there are many different ways businesses can be ESG conscious as they build their company and expand. And as part of this, standards for sustainability and ethical sourcing constantly change and become more rigorous as industry standards change. A common difficulty startups face is integrating ESG into their core business practices due to the cost that arises to maintain a rigorous standard for ESG. And although not much is known in regards to Selfless’ governance practices, the new brand promotes ESG in all major aspects of the business - from the ingredients to delivering the product to the customer. In fact, one of the key reasons why it has been so successful is largely due to its founder’s vision to give back to the environment and small communities. This sets it apart from all competitors.

It is critical that we, as consumers, make conscientious decisions about the companies we purchase from. And conversely it is important that we give credit where it is due. If you are interested in purchasing from Selfless or learning more about their ESG practices, I recommend that you visit their website for more information.

https://us.selflessbyhyram.com/