Anna Ross attended St Hilda's from 1999-2005. She is the Founder and Director of Kester Black, one of Australia’s leading manicure and skincare brands specialising in sustainably and ethically produced products. After finishing school she went to Otago Polytechnic to study fashion, graduating in 2008. In 2009 she headed to Australia, where she started making jewellery, and then in 2012 she launched her first nailpolish range.
Anna set out on a mission to redefine the industry standard for consciously created cosmetics. She developed a range of manicure products that adhere to her ethical and environmental values without compromising on style. Utilising her background in design, her love for creative collaboration and her uncompromising social and environmental values, Anna’s belief in ethical business practice has resulted in the fast-growing success of the Kester Black brand, which remains at the forefront of the Australian beauty industry.
Driven to minimize environmental impact and maximise the quality of Kester Black cosmetics, the company uses sustainable production methods that utilise recyclable materials and small batch manufacturing to minimise wastage. The brand guarantees that all of its products are vegan and are not and have never been tested on animals either by themselves, by anyone on their behalf, or by any of their suppliers.
The water permeable, breathable nail polishes are high shine, chip resistant and follow the Five-Free formula, providing a manicure as kind to your nails as it is to the planet. Alongside their vibrant range of nail polishes, they offer a deeply nourishing range of skincare products containing 97%+ natural ingredients and are free from palm oil, parabens, sulfates and petrochemicals.
As part of their initiative to give back, $1 from every sale on kesterblack.com will be donated by the company to one of their customers’ choice of four charity partners. Kester Black is proudly Australian made and owned and all of their products are accredited by Choose Cruelty Free, Cruelty Free International and the Vegan Society.