Transitioning to Circular Beauty: the Sense–Trust–Adopt (STA) Framework for Scaling Upcycled Ingredient Integration in Sustainable Cosmetics

ABSTRACT The cosmetics industry faces increasing pressure to integrate upcycled agro‐food by‐products, yet consumer adoption remains constrained by contamination concerns that are strongest for products applied directly to the body. Linear attitudinal models offer limited insight into how meaning is constructed around novel “waste‐derived” claims. This study therefore examines how consumers interpret, evaluate, and negotiate trust in cosmetic formulations containing upcycled ingredients. Thirty‐one in‐depth interviews with UK consumers were analyzed through reflexive thematic analysis, combined with close attention to the language participants used, and structured by the FRASE elicitation framework (familiarity, reflection, articulation, sentiment, engagement). The findings show that evaluation unfolds in stages rather than as a single attitudinal judgment: Most participants initially misunderstood the category, typically assuming that upcycled cosmetics are made from recovered used products, and this misreading—rather than weak environmental motivation—constituted the first barrier to acceptance. Trust was then negotiated on two fronts: whether the product is safe and effective, and whether the claim itself is credible and independently verifiable. Acceptance thresholds varied by application zone: A majority of participants demanded stronger evidence for facial products than for body products—a pattern termed contextual gatekeeping—although a substantial minority applied uniform standards across zones. These insights are integrated into the sense–trust–adopt (STA) framework, advanced as a provisional interpretive framework rather than a tested model of behavior. Implications are developed for communication strategy, certification design, market‐entry sequencing, and policy support for circular business models aligned with SDG 12. The contribution lies in locating the barrier to circular adoption in comprehension and trust negotiation rather than in environmental attitudes alone.