Natural New Zealand beauty
Manuka honey, harakeke or flax, black fern, kawakawa, pohutukawa, sea kelp and organic beeswax are some of the indigenous ingredients found in natural beauty products - made in a socially responsible way in New Zealand.
New Zealand’s unique flora means that natural beauty companies are able to harvest or grow fresh, sustainable ingredients that are found nowhere else in the world.
Kiwi brands such as Antipodes, Living Nature and Trilogy are renowned internationally for the quality and effectiveness of their products and some, like Margaret Hema’s skin oils, are beloved by Hollywood stars.
Natural skin care products, based on botanical sources, are manufactured without synthetic chemicals and in a way that preserves the integrity of the ingredients.
Antipodes
- Wellington
The definition of the little Kiwi company that could - Antipodes was developed in 2005 by young mother Elizabeth Barbalich. With a background in science and naturopathy, Barbalich started the brand from her home kitchen in Wellington, New Zealand.
Antipodes has gone on to great international success in just a few short years. It now sells to customers in the US, UK, Australia, France and Asia. The most popular range by far is a certified organic line, which carries certification by the internationally-respected Agriquality.
"My goal is to educate women of all ages, in all countries, on the simple fact that serious, results-driven skincare can be achieved naturally and responsibly - without the use of harsh chemicals and processes that are both self and environmentally damaging," said Barbalich.
Certified organic extra virgin avocado oil, rainforest-dwelling kawakawa - a small native tree often used in traditional Māori medicine, mamaku black fern, manuka honey and pohutukawa, also dubbed New Zealand’s own Christmas tree, are some of the key ingredients used in Antipodes.
Trilogy
- Wellington
"Maximum effect on your skin, and minimum effect on the environment" is the mantra of New Zealand-based natural skincare company Trilogy.
Created in 2003 by Wellington sisters Sarah Gibbs and Catherine de Groot, the Trilogy range has grown from a local boutique operation into an internationally-recognised and respected brand.
The company’s 37 products are sold in more than 3,500 stores in Australasia, Asia, the UK and US. Trilogy is even used at Scott Base in Antarctica.
Trilogy is carbon neutral, has recyclable packaging for all products and sources ethically-traded and where possible, certified organic ingredients.
"Sarah and I knew that if we were going to sell our products to smart, savvy women who valued authenticity, they had to be able to trust us and our products. Neither of us could abide smoke screens or overstatement and we committed to listing Trilogy’s ingredients clearly, with integrity; outlining what our products did without exaggeration," de Groot said.
Pot of Gold
- Auckland
A 120-year-old Kiwi natural family remedy for skin conditions is making waves in New Zealand and overseas. Pot of Gold is made in Aotearoa New Zealand by Aucklander James Crow, who says the recipe for the balm is a closely-guarded family secret.
"Until recently, the balm was just made for family and friends. But there was always a big jar of it around when I was growing up - we used it for almost everything,"
Crow said.
Pot of Gold can be used for anything from soothing open wounds and mild burns to treating everyday skin conditions like dry skin, eczema, insect bites and dermatitis - and is 100% natural.
The brand prides itself on transparency by listing every single ingredient used, and uses no artificial preservatives, in keeping with New Zealand’s clean, green image.
"The underlying motivation has been to reach people suffering from conditions like eczema, acne, and scarring. We want them to know that there is a natural solution in Pot of Gold and all they have to do is give it a shot," Crow said.
The Herb Farm
- Manawatu
The Herb Farm is the dream of mother-and-daughter team Lynn Kirkland and Sarah Cowan.
The natural skincare range is produced on-site in the Herb Farm headquarters in Manawatu, in the central North Island. The farm is open to the public, so clients can see exactly how products are manufactured.
The Herb Farm consists of a retail shop, two acres of themed gardens growing herbs and ingredients, and a café specialising in local and organic produce from the gardens.
Visitors can join garden tours and workshops on how to create natural beauty products from common plants.
Living Nature
- Kerikeri
Northland-based company Living Nature is certified 100% natural, and has kept things that way for more than 20 years.
The brand uses all-natural New Zealand ingredients such as native harekeke or flax, sea kelp harvested from the nutrient-rich South Pacific ocean, kumerahou or gumdiggers soap, totaral - derived from the totara tree, white clay sourced from the Northland’s Matauri Bay, manuka honey and oil.
Launched in 1987, Living Nature sells in the UK, Europe, Australia, and Asia. Most of its products are manufactured in Kerikeri, in the far north of New Zealand.
Living Nature founder Suzanne Hall says she wanted to "make creams that had wonderful textures and that worked, not greasy balms that most people didn’t like using on their skin".
Hall trialled her first gel, made from harakeke, manuka honey and manuka essential oil on her own acne. She went on to develop a natural skincare range now worth an estimated $10m, employing over 80 staff worldwide.
Living Nature products are accredited by Germany’s BDIH, the world’s leading independent auditor of natural cosmetics.
Linden Leaves
Linden Leaves products - made from locally-sourced natural ingredients - are manufactured in Christchurch, in New Zealand’s South Island. The brand, founded in 1995 by Brigit Blair, has been a major international success and sells in Asia, Australia, the UK, US and Middle East.
Linden Leaves is focused on harvesting ingredients from sustainable sources. The company started when mother-of-three Blair was looking for simple, effective products for her daughter, who had severe eczema and extremely sensitive skin.
The brand is based around the idea of peace at bath-time, which Blair says is one of the few moments of pure relaxation to be found in busy contemporary lifestyles. Blair was made a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2009.
Evolu
- Auckland
Daughter of a herbalist mother and winemaker father, evolu founder Kati Kasza’s Hungarian-Kiwi upbringing and first career choice provided the launching pad for a successful natural skincare range.
Kasza, who started out working as a flight attendant, began developing homemade skincare products to help deal with her own problem skin. When fellow flight attendants found the products also worked for them, Kasza was encouraged to start her own business.
Evolu products are based around pure botanicals and pure New Zealand spring water. Plant extracts used include natural kiwifruit seed oil, kawakawa oil, kanuka oil, manuka honey and avocado, grapefruit or lavender oils.
Margaret Hema
- Wellington
Margaret Hema, from Wellington, became known as "facialist to the stars" after treating Hollywood celebrities Liv Tyler and Ellijah Wood while they were in New Zealand filming Lord of the Rings.
Many international celebrities now use Hema’s seven-product certified organic line of cleansing, moisturising and body oils, and facial spray.
Hema uses certified organic New Zealand avocado oil, manuka essential oil and manuka honey from the East Cape, totaral and flax oil in her facial and skincare products.
Margaret Hema started working for the skincare industry in 1970 as a Mary Quant consultant in a department store. She is a qualified beauty therapist and says "my thinking has always been that skin should be treated like beautiful fabric".
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Iconic New Zealand native flora
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