Inglot

Inglot was founded in 1983 in Przemyśl, Poland, by chemist Wojciech Inglot, who ran a state pharmaceutical plant in the communist era, bought up chemical equipment after the transition and launched his first nail polish in 1987. Four decades later the company still makes around 95% of its products in-house in Poland and sells through roughly 950 of its own boutiques across some ninety countries.

Two innovations define it. The Freedom System is a magnetic, fully customisable palette architecture that let people build their own eyeshadow, blush and face palettes years before the format was mainstream. O2M breathable nail enamel uses a polymer that allows water and oxygen through the film, which made it the go-to polish for wudu-observant customers and opened a huge market the industry had largely ignored. Add the AMC Gel Eyeliner — shade 77 is the global bestseller — and Duraline mixing medium, and you have a brand whose credibility with working makeup artists has never really depended on marketing.