Good Company: Undefined’s Clean, Conscious, and Inclusive Beauty Products

Text size

After years of working at major beauty brands, including Sephora and Coty,
Dorian Morris
wanted to create a new approach to the category. In 2018, the Harvard Business School graduate launched Undefined, a line of clean, conscious, and inclusive plant-based products.

“I felt something was missing in the industry: authenticity, inclusivity, and the courage to do things a little differently,” Morris says. The CEO and founder aims to “democratize” beauty and wellness. “Undefined is about reframing and rejecting what beauty and wellness have historically stood for,” she says. “Rules are meant to be broken, especially when the rules were set up by a patriarchal system that did not—and still does not—want diverse and underrepresented communities to thrive.”

Morris, 38, hopes she can help people of all backgrounds feel comfortable and excited about using plant-based beauty and wellness solutions. 

THE ITEMS

Morris brings together active ingredients like lactic acid or niacinamide with plants in Undefined products. The line’s latest product is the R&R Sun Serum, which Morris calls “a game-changer.” 

The serum is a lightweight, tinted, broad-spectrum mineral SPF 50 with skin-nourishing ingredients like niacinamide—a favorite among dermatologists for its hydrating and skin-brightening qualities—moisture-booster tremella mushroom, jojoba, rosemary, and raspberry seed. Morris believes the lightweight, fragrance-free, water-resistant formula will help make it easier for people to use sunscreen every day. The serum comes in a tinted shade that makes it well-suited for people of color, avoiding the problem of a white cast on the skin. 

“I believe in the power of plants and operate my business by pairing Mother Nature’s ancient wisdom with known performance-driven active ingredients. It was important to create products that people could understand and would enjoy using in their daily routines,” she says.

CBD is also on heavy rotation—in skincare as a potential anti-inflammatory agent and in adaptogenic chocolate bars and tinctures to help combat stress, under the belief that beauty starts within. 

“Beauty is wellness and wellness is beauty—they are one and the same,” Morris says.

The Glow Gelée Firming Serum uses ingredients like CBD, which has the potential to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits for the skin, vitamin C to brighten skin, and aloe to hydrate. 

Glow Drops are a CBD tincture that can be used topically and for ingestion. The tangerine-flavored drops contain full spectrum CBD and mucuna as mood boosters and cordyceps, which have been found to reduce inflammation in studies. 

Undefined’s chocolate Glow Bars are vegan and fair trade, made with raw cacao, coconut sugar, cacao butter, and CBD. The Uninterrupted bar, made for better sleep, is lavender-flavored, Uncanny is flavored with blood orange, almond and sea salt, and Uninhibited is studded with crushed hazelnuts. 

The packaging for Undefined products feature illustrations of diverse people as part of its commitment to inclusivity. 

THE PRICE

Although Undefined’s products use many of the same ingredients as much more pricey serums from other brands, Morris is firm on keeping the prices accessible. “Wellness has historically had one face,” Morris says. “She was skinny, blonde, affluent, and white, but I believe everyone deserves access to high-quality products that do not cost your first-born child.” 

The R&R Day Serum and Night Serum are each US$28. Products with CBD are a bit pricier: Chocolate Glow Bars infused with CBD are US$28 each, and the larger size of Glow Drops is US$48. 

WHAT’S THE GOOD? 

Morris says Undefined’s purpose is to make beauty and wellness inclusive. Imagery on Undefined’s social media channels and website is diverse and inclusive, and each product description explains the “why” behind each ingredient to help educate customers about plant-based solutions. Morris listens to Undefined’s customers to learn more about beauty and wellness issues she can address through her line. 

“My goal is to demystify and destigmatize plant-based tools that can have an immense impact on our skin health and internal wellness,” Morris says. “It’s about making wellness understandable—simplifying it. I want everyone to feel comfortable, empowered, and able to find tools to help them thrive.”

All of Undefined’s ingredients are plant-based and certified cruelty-free by the Leaping Bunny Program. Additionally, all of the packaging is made from post-consumer recycled materials.

Morris calls “conscious capitalism” a core value at Undefined. It means that Undefined partners with like-minded women-led, BIPOC, and LGBTQ companies across its supply chain. 

“I’m a strong believer that business empowers business,” she says. “I use this tool to amplify and support businesses like Undefined that have been historically not given a seat at the table. We build our own table.” 

WHAT’S NEXT

Morris plans to expand Undefined’s retail presence. Products are currently sold on Undefined’s website, and at Whole Foods, the Vitamin Shoppe, and Target.

Morris is also working on expanding the product line to include more skin, body, hair, and ingestible products.