The Midwest doesn’t always get the spotlight in beauty conversations — but the region has its own independent makers worth knowing.
Some are built around a single, carefully developed product.
Others grew out of a founder’s own search for something that worked.
And some have been quietly serving their local communities for years.
There’s no shortcut through all of it — but one useful signal is which brands have chosen to put their products in front of independent judges.
That’s the idea behind this list.
These 4 brands based in the Midwest are taking part in the 2027 Clean Beauty Awards, organized by CertClean. This year’s program brings together 151 participating brands from 18 countries, with 361 products entered across 21 award categories and evaluated by 97 independent judges.
Shopping closer to home can also mean:
- quicker delivery
- simpler reordering
- fresher products, especially from small-batch makers
- supporting founders and formulators in your own community
Whether you’re in Michigan, Illinois, Missouri and Minnesota, use this round-up as a starting point for finding brands near you — some you may already know, others you may not have come across yet.
Prefer to browse the whole country? See the national overview → [73 USA-Based Clean Beauty Brands]
Featured Midwest Brands:
1. Kanuni Brown
Location: Southfield, Michigan
Kanuni Brown is a hair care brand created by a registered nurse for damaged hair, using plant-based approaches. Products are made with naturally derived and organic ingredients in the western United States, using solar power, and come in eco-friendly packaging. Vegan options are available.
2. Green Envee
Location: Frankfort, Illinois
Green Envee is a skincare brand founded in 2009 in the Chicago area by a co-founder looking for products for his daughter's eczema. It makes skincare for clinical wellness settings and retail, built on plant actives and botanicals. Formulas are vegan, and select packaging is made from reclaimed ocean plastic.
Location: Hillsboro, Missouri
Sunny Brews Apothecary is a woman-owned apothecary in Missouri, founded in 2020 by formulator Sandra Kost, who has more than 20 years of experience in aromatherapy, herbalism, and product formulation. They make skincare, hair care, bath and body products and soaps from naturally derived ingredients, and sells online, at farmers markets and wholesale to boutiques.
Location: Minnesota
VRAI Cosmetics was founded by Melissa Poepping, a makeup designer based in rural Minnesota with more than a decade of experience in the beauty industry. The brand launched in 2024 and makes mineral-based makeup and skincare-adjacent products. It states that its formulas follow EU Commission safety standards and Cosmetic Ingredient Review benchmarks.
The Midwest’s clean beauty community may be smaller, but it’s made up of founders who care about what goes into their products and who stand behind them.
As you browse, follow the brands that resonate with you. Many independent brands grow through word of mouth rather than big advertising budgets, so a visit, a follow or a first order can make a real difference.
To see past finalists and winners, download The Ultimate Guide to the Clean Beauty Awards, and follow @CertCleanInc on Instagram for brand features, judging insights and more clean beauty discoveries.
Explore other regions in the national overview → [73 USA-Based Clean Beauty Brands]
