"I really enjoyed answering these questions for beauty blogger, Simply Sarah Jayne Loves . It’s always great to take stock and reflect on the origins of our little company and reaffirm our core beliefs and visions for Rosalena. Thank you for the opportunity to share our brands DNA and let you know our plans." Helena Chapman, co-founder Rosalena Skincare.
I love being able to have the opportunity to get to know more about the people and story behind some of my favourite brands! Award winning Rosalena Skincare have the most beautiful clean beauty products, their Face Oils are stunning! With a focus on self care and wellness they are the perfect remedy. Enjoy the interview.
'Rosalena was born simply because I was unable to buy what I wanted to put on my skin…’ Helena Chapman, Rosalena Skincare
Award-winning Rosalena Skincare offer a wonderful natural oil-based range of skincare. They are focused on providing clean beauty products that will leave skin healthy and glowing through their 100% plant based ingredients. I am always intrigued to know more about the brands I love and follow and had an opportunity to get to know Helena, Co-Founder of Rosalena and learn a bit more (and be a little bit nosy!) about the brand. Keep reading for a fantastic offer from Rosalena!
Tell Us A Bit About Yourself!
My name is Helena. I am 1/3 of Rosalena Skincare, mum of three, London-living, part-time yogi/spinner with a passion for wellness but not at the expense of a party or two!
How Was Rosalena Skincare Born?
Rosalena was born simply because I was unable to buy what I wanted to put on my skin; that being a natural, non-toxic product that smelt beautiful, that worked, that didn’t require a 12-step beauty regime to achieve the desired affect and that didn’t cost the earth. This happened to coincide with a time in my personal life when I was changing career and where I was venturing into mindfulness and wellbeing.
Not being able to buy what I passionately believed my skin needed (less complicated concoctions of multi-ingredients). I was desperately trying to find a product that effectively delivered the 3 things all skin needs: Hydration, Nourishment and Protection from free-radical damage (with antioxidants). So, long story short, I made my own!
I utilised the time I spent daily on my skincare routine as an opportunity to Pause, Breathe, Be. By that I mean just a simple moment of quietening the mind to savour the moment of applying these beautiful, natural oils in a moment of self-care to increase wellbeing. There is a need amongst us all too slow down a bit and the daily skincare routine is a great chance to do just that. And the rest is history- we now have a brand that promotes the dialogue between Skincare and Wellbeing using 100% natural products and that delivers a notably positive impact on both skin and mind.
What Has Been The Biggest Challenge For You To Overcome?
Busting the myth that “clean skincare” somehow means less effective skincare. Yes, we are 100% natural, but NOT at the expense of efficacy. Convincing people that our products still work, despite not having a huge list of unpronounceable ingredients, is our challenge, but one that we relish! I think we have been programmed into believing Mother Nature alone isn’t enough and we need “extra” man-made ingredients with scientific sounding names for products to really work.
Rosalena combines century old, proven to work plant oils with cutting edge, bio-active ingredients (without synthetic preservatives and artificial fragrances) into every product and the truth is they work better than any chemically laden one ever can. The challenge is getting people to try! Once they are brave enough to step away from the familiarity of a big brand and try Rosalena, our try-to-buy rate is over 95% and our re-order rate over 98%.
Which Product Are You Most Proud Of?
That’s like asking me to choose which of my kids I love the most!!!! But I guess I have to say it’s between two. Rock & Rose Face Oil because it has won the most awards, it’s our best seller and that’s because the results are probably the most impactful.
I am also extremely proud of our newly launched Cleanse & Be Nourishing Cleansing Balm because it was a real labour of love to develop. It took so long to ensure stability and just the right consistency as a balm. We all knew exactly what we wanted and it took two years to achieve, all three of us were adamant we would not bring to market anything below our upper most dream for this cleanser. We wanted a balm, that melts onto skin, that cleanses without stripping and smells beautiful. That nourishes the skin and leaves you with a velvety soft, cleansed face that wasn’t dry and “squeaky clean”. It had to be so gorgeous to use it would induce a really luxurious night-time routine. When it launched, we sold out within a month, we have re-run manufacturing of it three times when we predicted we would need one run for the year and it won the highly coveted Beauty Short List Award for Best New Skincare Product. It was a happy dayat Rosalena HQ indeed, just so reaffirming and proved that believing in a product until its perfect does pay off.
What Has Been Your Pinch Me Moment?
For me it was in the very early days when somebody outside of my friends and family network bought a product!!! I remember the elation at realising we had a developed product, from concept to completion, that a complete stranger has heard about, deemed worthy of parting with their hard-earned cash for, and even better fed back that it was amazing! That was the moment we all realised this business has got legs!
You Have Won So Many Awards Which One Has Stood Out For You The Most?
Last year our Love & Me Face Oil won an award for the best product for sensitive skin. This was so meaningful because Love & Me is a very special oil for us. Designed to be really gentle and nurturing for the skin, balancing of the mind, like a hug in a bottle.
We get so many clients with really significant skin conditions like rosacea using it and telling us how this is the only product to calm the condition, meaning they can go out, feel more confident, be themselves again without hiding their face and that means the world to us.
Similarly, many chemo-patients use this throughout their treatment as it’s so gentle, and the small bit of joy it brings them at that horrific time is priceless to us. From new mums to hormonal teens- all report a significant impact on skin and mind. Love & Me generates the most meaningful feedback, which is profoundly humbling, so an award for this oil really did stand out as a significant part of our journey.
What Are Your Plans For The Future? Any exciting News To share? We have big plans for Rosalena Skincare. As well as extending our product range (toner anyone?!! Watch this space – we have not one but two in the pipeline!) we plan to broaden our distribution platform to spread the reach of the Rosalena story and product range. can’t answer this question without referring to the current climate in which we operate. The crisis obviously affects everything we and everyone else thinks about right now. We are cognisant of the far-reaching devastation it’s causing, and we know 100% that skincare is futile for some and perhaps even inappropriate to discuss in light of the seriousness of it, for others.
Our take at Rosalena HQ is to acknowledge this, but also to see that people want distraction, in the form of content away from the news. We have more time for self-care now (music to our ears as a company that has always advocated self-care through skincare) SO we plan to sensitively carry on our business, not for commercial gain but to amplify our message around wellness. We plan to do this via video content of How To/Top Tips/ Wellness ideas etc as well as reductions (fantastic offer below!) on products so people can really get stuck into their skincare routine, hopefully as a portal to wellness. You can follow Rosalena Skincare on Instagram for some wonderful Self Care tips that I am enjoying escaping to!
Additionally, we have and will continue to give away product to front line workers who need some TLC and recognition for their incredible work for us all!
Rosalena Skincare is available to purchase here. Get a fantastic 20% off products using the code INTHISTOGETHER (apply discount code at checkout). Thank you Helena for giving such a wonderful insight into Rosalena and the love and care behind all your skincare!
If you enjoyed this post tap the star and if you would love to get to know more independent brands in the future in the let me know in the comments below!
Have a lovely week and stay safe, Sarah xx