Kitsch has been named to Fast Company’s prestigious list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies of 2024. It has ranked one of the top three beauty companies in the world, and only 10 beauty companies were named in 2024.
This year’s list shines a spotlight on businesses that are shaping industry and culture through their innovations. These organizations are setting new standards and achieving remarkable milestones in all sectors of the economy.
Fast Company recognized Kitsch for its groundbreaking impact on the beauty industry and “setting the bar on packaging-free haircare.”
“The most innovative beauty companies are finding novel ways to address both individual concerns and the collective impact of their products, often looking to science to improve upon nature,” says the Fast Company story. “With Kitsch’s package-free bar shampoos and conditioners, we can look great without feeling guilty about what we’re putting on our bodies and into the environment. Isn’t that beautiful?” The publication pointed to Kitsch’s game-changing bottle-free solid formulations, it’s sustainability efforts, changing consumer behavior and achieving Barbie-level popularity.
“What an honor to be recognized for our innovations by Fast Company among such a diverse and esteemed group of creators. Making innovative, high-quality products accessible to a broad audience, not just a niche market, takes a diverse team of thinkers and doers.” says Cassandra Morales Thurswell, CEO and founder of Kitsch, which holds 14 patents in hair care alone. “This acknowledgement serves as a tribute to the incredible team at Kitsch, highlighting their dedication to supporting our customers—whether it be by a product innovation or a sustainability advancement—in being the hero of their own day.”
Kitsch takes a holistic approach to beauty—our innovations often change consumer behavior, we think about ways to reduce our carbon footprint with our manufacturing and shipping practices, and while trends may be going towards automation, we lean into the human touch, choosing proprietary labor-intensive methodology vs. mass produced machine production.”
Kitsch’s commitment to people is also evident through its global team spread across five countries and seven states, representing diverse ethnicities and ages. This dedication to diversity underpins Kitsch’s culture of innovation, enabling the brand to pioneer new approaches and technologies based on lifestyle trends, customer feedback and societal needs. It’s thoughtful vision no doubt resonates as the company strives to instill pride in choices positively impacting well-being and the planet.
In the last year, for instance, Kitsch has revolutionized consumer behavior and influenced them to shift from bottles to solid formations, good-for-you formulas which are also good for the planet. By eliminating plastic packaging, these products slash carbon emissions across the entire lifecycle from manufacturing to consumer use. Kitsch eliminated over 18 million plastic bottles and, through its partnership with 4Ocean, removed over 700,000 pounds of trash from our waterways this year.
The World’s Most Innovative Companies stands as Fast Company’s hallmark franchise and one of its most anticipated editorial efforts of the year.
The Fast Company panel identified the companies driving progress around the world and across industries, evaluating thousands of submissions through a competitive application process. The result is a globe-spanning guide to innovation today.
“Our list of the Most Innovative Companies is both a comprehensive look at the innovation economy and a snapshot of the business trends that defined the year,” said Fast Company editor-in-chief Brendan Vaughan. “We saw extraordinary innovation across the board in 2023, but we also saw a handful of clear patterns: the growing footprint and impact of AI, the triumphant return of live events, and great leaps forward in climate tech. We face daunting challenges on many fronts, but the solutions we celebrate in MIC give me plenty of hope about the future.”
