Anita Roddick: History and Key Facts

Dame Anita Lucia Roddick (née Perella; 23 October 1942 – 10 September 2007) was a British businesswoman, human rights activist and environmental campaigner, best known as the founder of The Body Shop, The Body Shop International Limited, a cosmetics company producing and retailing natural beauty products which shaped ethical consumerism. The company was one of the first to prohibit the use of products being tested on animals in some of its products and one of the first to promote fair trade with developing countries.

Roddick was involved in activism and campaigning for environmental and social issues, including involvement with Greenpeace and the newspaper The Big Issue. In 1990, she founded Children on the Edge, a charitable organisation which helps disadvantaged children in Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia. She believed that business should offer a form of moral leadership, being a more powerful force in society than religion or government.

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