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“Great” brand Disruptor London harnesses the chemical engineering know-how of co-founder Sira Dheshan Naidu to create waterless, multi-purpose bars for cleansing, shampooing, conditioning, and shaving. They’re ideal for busy mums, time-strapped gym-goers, and everyone in between, but the best part? It’s all rooted in veganism, transparency, and reducing consumption.
A beauty brand built on personal passions and sustainable values
Unlike many businesses that start with an idea for a product or solution, Disruptor London—the highest rated beauty brand in Good On You’s directory—grew from co-founders Sira Dheshan Naidu and Dr Juan Jose Jimenez Anca’s core values. “We’ve always known who we are—individually and as partners—so it felt natural to infuse these values into the foundation of our brand,” Naidu says. “We’re both really involved in Greenpeace and environmental activism. He [Anca] is a Quaker as well.” Together, they set out five principles (Naidu calls it a consideration framework) that guide everything Disruptor London does: Ingredient transparency, responsible consumption, waterless formulas, just-in-time manufacturing, and plastic-free packaging. These factors closely align with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 12, which is all about ensuring responsible production and reducing consumption.
The consideration framework, like the brand’s name itself, reads like an opposition to everything mainstream beauty represents—the industry is shrouded in mystery, littered with complex ingredient names, and crowded with so-called targeted products, from upper-arm creams to under-eye serums. And in this era, the co-founders want you to know that you really can do more with less—a single bar, in fact. Guided by circular design principles, Disruptor London’s sole product unites the functions of shampoo, conditioner, cleanser, and shave product in a single, sustainable solution.
“We need products that work hard for us in a green way, and it can only do that if it’s multi-functional,” says Naidu. Creating the bar required “forgetting everything we know about beauty,” and reimagining how products are used. “If I’m washing my hair and my face is getting wet, then why can’t we develop a product with a formula that’s going to be compatible with my skin, my hair and my scalp?”
The pair registered the business “after a few glasses of wine” on their sofa during COVID. “We’re partners in both life and business,” smiles Naidu, sharing how they decided to combine his beauty industry knowledge and formulation expertise with Anca’s skills in software engineering to become, perhaps, the ultimate power couple of the sustainable beauty movement. “I vividly remember when we decided to put things on paper—me the old-fashioned way with a notebook, and Juan sitting down with his laptop, but that’s just how we are,” Naidu says of how they complement each other.
Disruptor London’s co-founders, Dr Juan Jose Jimenez Anca and Sira Dheshan Naidu.
Why ingredient formulations are key to reducing beauty’s overconsumption problem
An insider with over 20 years’ experience working for major beauty brands, including Estée Lauder Companies, LVMH, and contract manufacturer MANA Products, Naidu knew exactly where to start in creating an alternative. “I’d always read INCI [cosmetic ingredient] lists on products, I know what goes into these things, and I have the understanding to develop them on my own,” he says.
Unsurprisingly, Naidu has selected the very best for Disruptor London’s shampoo bars, even upskilling with a course in organic skincare and haircare to ensure greater transparency in ingredient sourcing, and sometimes changing formulas completely if they’re unable to source raw materials of the highest standard and with ethical credentials.
We need products that work hard for us in a green way, and it can only do that if it's multi-functional.
Sira Dheshan Naidu – co-founder, Disruptor London
Ingredients also play a big role in reducing consumption. Formulas based predominantly on water are cheap to make and therefore popular amongst brands, but they don’t last nearly as long as solid products that are packed with concentrated ingredients instead.
Long-lasting products present a business challenge because repeat customers don’t need to come back as frequently—the brand’s 100-gram bar, for instance, is designed to last around 80 washes. Naidu isn’t worried, though, noting that building the business slowly and making a small difference to the lives of consumers is exactly what he and Anca signed up for.
In fact, the latter is what brings Naidu the most joy: “The fact that we can put the power into your hands as a consumer, just through a product that you get up in the morning and use, take to the shower, to the gym, or on holiday, and know that you can make a difference—that makes us happy.
A final word, then, on how the rest of the beauty industry might take a leaf out of Disruptor London’s book? “It’s time for the beauty industry to hold up a mirror and confront a hard truth: Are we truly living up to the values we claim to represent? Or is it just PR? If sustainability isn’t a real priority, that’s a choice—but let’s not hide behind buzzwords like ‘clean beauty’ or the greenwashing that comes with them. Disruptor London isn’t here to shame or scare. Our focus is on creating high-performance products and giving consumers responsible, informed choices.”
Watch Disruptor London’s video to learn more about the brand’s history.
