New Zealand skincare brand Emma Lewisham enters Credo Beauty 

New Zealand entrepreneur Emma Lewisham is setting out to change the course of the beauty industry with her eponymous brand.After forging a successful corporate career as a strategy and marketing executive for Japanese tech company Brother International, Lewisham was inspired to reflect on the potentially harmful ingredients in the skincare she was using after a series of personal events. Unsatisfied with the natural products on the market, which she felt were either ineffective or unappealing to use, Lewisham made the decision to launch an evidence-based, B Corp-certified natural skincare brand. After starting as a DTC-only brand, Emma Lewisham is now available in over 200 stores, including Space NK, Harrods, Goop and Net-a-Porter, with recommended retail price sales globally for the year ending March 2024 totalling NZ$13 million, about US$7.3 million. Inside Retail connected with the founder to learn more about the origin story behind her company and her latest US retail partnership with Credo Beauty. Inside Retail: How did you come up with the concept for your brand?Emma Lewisham: In 2016, I had lost my mother to cancer and was simultaneously navigating the challenges of falling pregnant. I became passionate about all aspects of my health and well-being, leading to a conversation with my doctor, which would plant the seeds for Emma Lewisham. I had a real desire to use natural products on my skin, but searching globally, I found that natural skincare came at a compromise to innovation, luxury and scientifically backed results.My research led me to discover the work of Nobel Prize winner in chemistry, Frances Arnold, who through her ground-breaking work is proving that nature is the most powerful bioengineer.Since I was young, I had always been drawn to the challenge of doing or building something that’s both incredibly difficult and truly meaningful — solving problems that I deeply believe need to be addressed but have yet to be conquered. The opportunity to build something groundbreaking and impactful is what drove me to create Emma Lewisham.IR: How does Emma Lewisham fill a white space in the beauty market?EL: We have genuinely created formulations that are unlike anything seen before, through our unique way of formulating for how the skin works (our physiology) and not a focus on ingredients and trends. We have also underpinned all our decisions with a responsible approach to the environment, abiding by moral and ethical values in the management of the company and our entire supply chain. We are B Corp Certified, Climate Positive certified, and circularly designed with all of our products in a refillable component. IR: What have been some of the challenges in building the business thus far? How have you overcome these challenges?EL: One thing I’ve learned in building this business is the importance of consistency and patience. Often in business, and in life, people think it’s that one big thing you do that makes an impact or drives success. In fact, success is built from an unwavering commitment to consistency – day in and day out – brick by brick. It’s the little things you do that lay the foundations for a strong and prosperous business, relationship or lifestyle.The challenging thing with consistency is it’s not glamourous, nor immediately gratifying. The past few years have been spent laying the groundwork. While we’ve had some incredible moments, there have been busy and hard years.For example, I launched Emma Lewisham when my daughter was only a few months old, and I do, unfortunately, miss out on things. And it never gets easier. She is the most important person in my life, and I wish I could be in two places at once. However, I have learned that while I may miss some things, what is most important to her is consistency. It’s me showing up every day, even when it’s been a long and challenging day in the office and being completely present with her.Listening to her, giving her my undivided attention and genuinely engaging with her. It’s not the big things, it’s the little things. Every day, day in and day out. The consistency of my undivided attention and love deepens our relationship and softens the times I can’t always be there.IR: What have been the highlights in building the brand thus far?EL: Truly, just walking down the street and bumping into people who tell me how our skincare has genuinely changed their lives, means so much to me. Also, having someone like Dr Jane Goodall, who has been an inspiration of mine since childhood, endorse our work around our circular business model was incredibly special. I had the privilege of interviewing Jane during her “Reasons for Hope” tour. To share the stage with her as she reflected on her most treasured memories and imparted wisdom from her remarkable life was an honour. Jane has not just made a difference, but forged a legacy that will live on for generations to come.It has also been such a privilege to engage with Nobel Prize winners about our formulations and innovations, who have been genuinely impressed with our scientific rigor and ethics.IR: Since launching the brand in 2019, what has the brand’s growth trajectory been like?EL: We were developing Emma Lewisham behind the scenes for three years prior to launching, so while we have seen rapid success, it has been the result of much hard work over the past nine years.It felt very real when we got our first major international department store when the business was six months old. From there our growth moved very quickly and it really set in that our products and business model resonated with customers and that this was a business that could truly make an impact.In New Zealand and Australia, we are now stocked in all 107 Mecca stores and have been one of their most successful new skincare brand launches. In the UK, we are ranged in all SpaceNK doors, where our Supernatural Vitale Face Elixir is the second bestselling luxury serum, [as well as] Harrods, Liberty, Net-A-Porter, and the Gleneagles Hotel in Scotland.In the US, we are ranged in Goop and have also just launched into all 15 Credo Beauty stores, which provides our customers additional places to shop and refill their Emma Lewisham products.IR: How did the Credo Beauty partnership come about and what does this signal about the brand’s strategic plan for the US retail market?EL: The partnership with Credo came about organically. They had seen our success in other retailers and our impact on the beauty industry, with Dr Jane Goodall’s endorsement of our pioneering efforts in transitioning the beauty industry to a circular model and reducing carbon emissions. When I connected with Credo’s founder, it was clear that there was a natural alignment in our shared values, especially our commitment to sustainability, transparency, and driving meaningful change in the industry.The Credo partnership signals a strategic step forward in our expansion within the US retail market. We have seen strong and consistent organic growth in the US through our own DTC channels over the last few years, and so we are excited to be expanding our on-the-ground presence with Credo, to help service this growing demand and introduce a new community of people to the pioneering results of our evidence-based, natural skincare.IR: What are your top priorities/areas of focus for the brand over the next 12 months?EL: Our top priority is always our customers, connecting with them and delivering them the very best products that are good for them, efficacious and that they love using. We continue to be inspired by the challenge of tackling problems that are unsolved, and creating something meaningful for our customers.This year we also have a focus on launching our luxurious, invisible mineral SPF 50 range that meets the US Food and Drug Administration and Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration approval and delivers advanced skincare benefits. Creating these SPFs has been among the most challenging yet rewarding formulations we’ve ever undertaken. It has taken eight years of trial and iterations to unite an unparalleled, luxurious sensory experience, with no whitening effect and beautiful absorption,  alongside proven efficacy in sun protection against robust global standards.This launch holds a very special place in my heart. When we founded Emma Lewisham, we did so with a laser focus on sun protection and skin health, starting with the Skin Reset Serum and two SPF products. These first releases were designed to help protect and repair the skin, with a particular focus on pigmentation.Now, as we launch our new SPF 50 range, we feel as though we’ve come full circle, evolving that original vision.IR: What is your long-term focus for the brand’s future?EL: Long term, I want Emma Lewisham to be a brand that stands the test of time, creating a legacy rooted in science-led skincare, environmental responsibility and a deep connection with our customers. We are driving meaningful change within the beauty industry, and solving problems and delivering uncompromising skincare solutions that aren’t available on the market. I am very selective with the products we formulate and release and if it isn’t innovative and doesn’t fill a gap in the market, it doesn’t get released.Our formulations stem from my founding belief that we deserve skincare without compromise, so each new addition to the Emma Lewisham range is designed to harness the most innovative natural ingredients to target specific skin concerns, and ultimately to be safe to use through all chapters of our lives.IR: What is a piece of advice you would give to the day-one version of yourself as a brand founder?EL: To know your purpose and hold yourself to this. When I take a step back to what our purpose truly is, it always comes back to people and wanting to provide something fundamentally better that means they don’t have to compromise. My North Star is to deliver products that work, are good for us and the world around us. I am relentless in wanting to develop the very best products in the world but am determined to do so without compromising on our values.When we started, so many people told us that it couldn’t be done. That it wasn’t possible to produce luxurious, natural, high-performing, circular skincare and that we could never compete with the well-established skincare giants. Yet, fast forward to today and in many instances our formulations have been proven to outperform those brands.