Epara Skincare

EPARA SKINCARE

Changing the landscape of inclusive beauty

Building a premium, multicultural skincare line

interview by Nicola McCullough

Bespoke beauty brand, Epara Skincare is the result of one woman's search for luxury skincare that caters to the unique issues affecting women of colour. Fired by a lifelong passion, acute attention to detail and scientific evidence, Founder and CEO, Ozohu Adoh shares the inspiration behind her vision - and how Epara has changed the beauty landscape.

Tell us about your personal journey creating Epara Skincare - and your vision for the brand.

I started the line because I couldn’t find solutions that addressed my concerns while appealing to my taste for well-considered offerings, having suffered from skin issues for 10 years with several misdiagnoses. As I was looking for solutions to treat the skin flareups, I happened upon a formulation that worked for me. With the encouragement of a good friend, I decided to carry out more research into the industry and solutions for women like me. I found that there was a gap in the market and the skincare needs of women of colour were highly underserved.

HYDRATING MIST

Plant extracts and botanical brighteners in Epara Hydrating Mist leave skin beautifully nourished while evening skin tone and tackling hyperpigmentation. Instantly refreshing, it provides lasting hydration while natural active ingredients combat dryness and imperfections.

Ozohu worked closely with a lab in the UK to develop formulas that address skincare issues faced by women of colour, from dryness and discolouration caused by the sun to free radicals and air pollution.

Each of the ten products in Epara's skincare line is formulated with the finest African botanicals, essential oils, and plant extracts, to create indulgent skin treatments scientifically proven to leave the skin beautifully moisturised, healed and protected.

What is the story behind your brand name? Epara literally means to wrap around which we have summarised as ‘to cocoon’. The idea was I wanted to create a brand which when interacted with, evokes a sense of being wrapped in luxury.

What was your greatest challenge when establishing Epara? There were quite a few, but finding the right distribution was a big one. Luckily, we found some visionary people who gave us a chance.

And the brightest highlight to date? The day we actually launched the brand still remains indelible in my mind. It was so many months and years of hard work finally crystallising. It evoked a true sense of achievement.

Your product ingredients list is incredible... we would love to hear more about the nurturing properties of African botanicals.

The efficacy of African botanicals has been attested to by our forebears for centuries. These ingredients are generally very moisturising and give suppleness to the skin. They do also contain a lot antioxidants which help to combat the effects of free radicals and pollution in the environment. Typically, you needn’t use very much of it as a little goes a long way.

Talk to us about melanin and hyperpigmentation.

Melanin is responsible for determining skin and hair colour and can also offer some natural protection against sunburn and other visible signs of UV damage such as wrinkles. Darker skin tones contain a higher concentration of the brown/black melanin (known as eumelanin). Hyperpigmentation is the over-production of melanin caused by factors like ageing, hormonal changes and sun exposure leading to the appearance of uneven pigmentation and age spots together and a decrease in skin’s luminosity and colour uniformity. Epara’s products contain actives that address areas of hyperpigmentation in the skin without changing the basal skin tone. This is because our active targets only cells where hyperpigmentation have occurred, while not altering the skin tone of the rest of the skin.

You seem to have successfully combined both a scientific and holistic approach to skincare?

Very true. When I sought to create the current Epara products, I wanted to bring the traditions passed down by my forebears about skin care but predicated on strong scientific evidence to support their claims of efficacy. So it was truly important to understand the basis of the efficaciousness of the plant and how it interacted with the skin.

I was hoping to be able to offer the customer experience I would like to have when interacting with a brand, where my custom is valued and respected.

Epara Skincare products have won multiple awards to date (congratulations!) ...what sort of feedback have you had from real women?

The first reaction I get is how well-considered the product is both in its presentation and the efficacy of the product. The truth is that we tried our best to pay attention to the little details. In my mind, I was hoping to be able to offer the customer the experience I would like to have when interacting with a brand, where my custom is valued and respected. And from the feedback we have had, it does seem our effort has been appreciated.

What is the most satisfying element of your working life?

Right now, I like the flexibility I have with this business. The way we are configured allows me to devote time and energy to things outside of work and amazingly, this gives me even more satisfaction in my working life.

Your most used product from the range, if you can narrow it to one?!

The Brightening Night Balm! I love it for its ultra-rich, luxurious and nourishing ingredients, which are naturally-derived skin brightening actives that hydrate, target imperfections, even skin tone and reduce hyper-pigmentation, leaving the face feeling hydrated, smooth and youthful. Ingredients include Moringa and Marula Oil, Mango Butter, Lipex Shea Butter, Oat Silk and Frankincense Oil.

What does the future hold for Epara Skincare?

The future is promising. We are launching a few more products over the next 18 months and we will be extending the brand with our first ancillary product in the next few months. E

Website: eparaskincare.com

IG: @eparaskincare