The beauty business isn?t only about lip liners, eyeliners and blush ons. They do bring in the money, but there is more to it than the manufacture of creams and lotions. So, just as these companies pledge to remove fine lines from your face, they also pursue the line of giving back to society.

The Body Shop, considered the pioneer of modern corporate social responsibility, believes it is the ?small things that really can make a big difference.? They decided to make a difference to the lives of millions of children and women who are victims of domestic violence. To help the cause, Body Shop has launched a special edition pink Hi-Shine Lip Treatment for Rs 695 and promised nearly 75% of the proceeds to its 2007 ?Stop Violence in the Home? campaign. Launched in Canada 10 years ago, this campaign has spread to 45 countries across the world. Last year alone it raised more than ?5,00,000 for the cause. The global retailer of toiletries and cosmetics is also trying to develop trading relationships with disadvantaged communities. Nearly 15,000 people in 24 countries are being imparted sustainable benefits. In fact, this product also makes use of marula oil sourced from Eudafano Women?s Co-operative in Namibia.

Closer home in India, it is supporting Muskaan, a Jaipur-based non-government organisation (NGO). Smart marketing, don?t you think? ?We are confident our customers can help make this difference simply because they care,? feels Sameer Prasad, COO, Planet Retail Holdings, the franchisee for The Body Shop in India. ?We have always campaigned and given store space to promote social and environmental issues. It is important to provide an invaluable high-street platform to raise awareness of domestic violence across the world,? he adds, echoing the philosophy of late Dame Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop.

Hindustan Unilever?s brand, Fair & Lovely, too seeks to empower Indian women the economic way. For the past four years, its Foundation has been disbursing scholarships of up to Rs l lakh to women who want to pursue higher studies. Last year, 91 deserving young girls out of 400 short-listed were awarded scholarships for higher studies. ?In India, low-income families, albeit unwillingly, tend to discriminate against the girl child in providing opportunities for education and enterprise because of resource constraints. We wanted to help them avail of the opportunities they would have otherwise lost,? says R Ram, spokesperson, HUL. The Foundation has organised career fairs, provided vocational training, and also trained balwadi teachers in Maharashtra and Bihar.

Other brands too are following the sustainability ethos. Direct selling cosmetic brand Avon entered India in 1996 and soon after began supporting research initiatives of Concern India Foundation. And post 2004, after the tsunami wreaked havoc in India, it got actively involved with NGOs in the rehabilitation of the victims in Andamans. ?Globally, we have collaborated with the World Breast Cancer Foundation to fulfill our corporate social responsibility. Being a women-oriented company, the move came naturally to us. And when we started operations in India, we decided to pick up causes more relevant to the country,? says Vitika Banerjee, senior manager, marketing, Avon India. There?s another principle that it fundamentally follows ? no testing of the products on animals!

Neither does Mary Kay, another direct-selling cosmetic brand. Incidentally, the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation, created in 1996 also funds research of cancer, but only in women. Six years back it expanded its mission to address the problem of violence against women.

But to veterans, it seems to have come naturally. ?Honestly, CSR was not on my mind when I started my career. Unknowingly I may have fulfilled this responsibility to a great extent though,? says Shahnaz Husain. Often hailed as the herbal queen of India, she has always believed that ?nature is the best cosmetologist.? She set up an organic herb and flower farm near Delhi 15 years ago to obtain pure extracts for its formulations. ?We use natural composts and fertilisers to foster healthy soil and keep it free from chemical pollutants,? she says. It?s a move that the industry with a dark ecological footprint will certainly welcome. Very few of the beauty brands score well in their environmental report card. Lancome is another case in point. When it launched its new cell defense product, an antioxidant skin care treatment, it associated with carbonfund.org to reduce and offset its carbon emissions. For every 10,000 units of the products sold, carbonfund planted a tree!

Women empowerment also figures high on Husain?s agenda. She set up Shamute, a free training institute to enable the speech and hearing impaired earn a livelihood. Nearly 100 students are trained every year and close to Rs 50,000 spent per head. ?I wanted to support vocational training for those who are not as fortunate as I have been. We employ many of them. Most have gone ahead and opened their own salons, making me proud,? she beams.

Ren? Lacoste Foundation on the other hand has taken up the cause of street children with the help of Don Bosco Ashalayam Association. The Foundation has helped the Association groom a team of rugby players out of street children. In fact, the team is preparing for a month-long tour of France next month. ?Rugby gives these children a purpose in life, by providing discipline, team spirit and by teaching them to respect others,? says Vikas Gupta, MD & CEO, Lacoste India.

L?oreal India too has a string of projects focusing on education. Along with Unesco, it awards five remarkable women across continents. Prof Indira Nath, in 2003, was the first recipient of the $1,00,000 award. Five separate fellowships are being given to women to encourage scientific research ? Dr Ruchi Singh won the same last year. Down south they have also constructed primary school buildings for tsunami-affected children. ?If the younger generation is given the opportunity and ability to learn, then they can become catalysts and bring about much-needed progress,? says Varshaa Bhiwandkar, manager, For Young Women in Science Programme, L?oreal India Pvt Ltd.

While a lot is being done, there?s scope for more. For instance, seldom does one find beauty products packaged in recycled material. The organic wave is yet to wash away the chemical ingredients found in most products. At the same time, the much-deserved applause for the commendable initiatives undertaken by the handful of brands so far is certainly due.