Latest / Skin Anarchy / Discovering the Power of Chinese Superfoods For The Skin Ft. YENSA Beauty

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Discovering the Power of Chinese Superfoods For The Skin Ft. YENSA Beauty · Skin Anarchy

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hey guys, welcome back to Skincare Anarchy.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: This is your host EXTA, and I'm really, really excited about this episode because, well, one, it's a brand new friend that I've discovered and I've been absolutely loving, but also because the founder is absolutely phenomenal, and I'm a huge fan and a little starstruck that she's here with us today.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: So without further ado, I want to introduce you guys to the founder of Yensa, Jennifer Yen.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: And a lot of you might recognize her from the hit TV series Power Rangers.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: So welcome, Jennifer.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: I'm so honored to host you.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you, Ekna, for having me.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_01: It's a pleasure.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, it's it's really exciting to host you and I love your brand.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: I've really fallen in love with it, and I can't wait to dive into that.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: But I would love if you could walk us down memory lane a little bit.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_00: Tell us like what led to the creation of Yensa.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: Like what inspired you to create a line?
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_01: So um I think it kind of goes even further back to post-college.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_01: After I graduated from Boston University, I moved to LA because I wanted to be an actress.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_01: So I landed um the role of Vipera, which is a villain on Power Rangers, the Kids of Power Rangers.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_01: And I played the evil villainous, and I had to wear this heavy, heavy villain makeup for 15 hours a day, five days a week.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_01: And mind you, this was over 20 years ago.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_01: So there wasn't a lot of makeup options.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_01: So the makeup that I was wearing actually absolutely wrecked my skin.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_01: I developed psoriasis, adult acne, rosacea.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_01: My skin was so sensitive.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_01: I tried everything.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_01: I was just so many dermatologists, and nothing worked.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_01: And that's when I dove into my heritage and I rediscovered my grandmother's Asian beauty rituals like blue lotus and white tea.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: Now that's when I created my first brand, Pure Lease, which is inspired by Asian rituals, is skincare.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_01: But for Yensa specifically, you know, back in 2018, I had this idea actually, even way back before that, after giving birth to my daughter, my skin was once again wrecked.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_01: I, but this time I'm hormonal.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_01: I'm 12 years older.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_01: I have um melasma and sunspots.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_01: And my mother was taking care of me and she was following this Chinese tradition called Tsuo Yuethi.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_01: It means sit out the month.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_01: It's rooted in 2,000-year-old Chinese medicine where the new mom sits down.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_01: She integrates superfoods into her daily life.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_01: So I was eating chicken soup with black rice, sauteed with like black sesame oil, black seaweed, black mushrooms.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_01: And this brought radiance and vitality back into my skin.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_01: So I wanted to take this superfood concept, all these nurturing, powerful ingredients, and then infuse it into complexion makeup.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_01: And that's how I came up with yensa.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_01: So yensa means color in Chinese.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_01: I mean it's inspired by my last name yen, which means color and face.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_01: And each one of our products are infused with eight superfoods.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_01: Eight represents the luckiest number in Chinese culture and Asian culture, and it symbolizes prosperity, great health, and infinite possibilities.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: Oh my gosh.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: No, that's so cool though, that you, you know, because Pure Lease is a phenomenal brand.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: Like I remember when I first discovered it, I was like, this is really, really cool.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: And it's cool that you brought this, you know, this take to a complexion brand because I never hear really any founders talk about complexion products this way.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: You know, how you've kind of um told us so far, like in terms of really taking care of your skin, you know, in this very holistic way.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's usually just, you know, what works the best, what's the best concealer, what's the best foundation.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: It's not about, you know, how can we really take care of our skin, you know, right like overall for the long time.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: That's right.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, this is why this is a very eastern philosophy, eastern way.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, and I bring in pure laces because I started out skincare first.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: And in my family, the women and my family, they're all about skincare.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, Asian women in general are just so obsessed with their skin.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_01: And it makes sense.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it was surprising to me that people didn't understand that.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_01: I was like, you know, you got to take care of your skin first, and then your makeup will will look better, it'll work better.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_01: Um, because no amount of makeup will cover, you know, problematic skin.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_01: And I experienced that when I was on Power Ranger.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_01: So I really had to fix my skin first, and then comes the makeup.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_01: And now the idea of Yensa complexion products.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: So I think, okay, we're all trained to wear skincare and serums at night while while we're sleeping, but truly, we're awake a lot more than we are than we're asleep.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_01: So why are we not demanding, expecting the same from our makeup?
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_01: Like we should be having nurturing uh benefits to our makeup while we have while we're wearing it.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, so the idea was like really natural from that, okay, of course you should have skincare benefits in your makeup.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: Right, right.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: No, I mean it's it's like I feel like it should have been here.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: You know, many, many years ago we should have been doing this because it's crazy.
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_00: Like you have a very distinct journey that you went on because you were acting and you had to wear this makeup every day.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: But even as for me as a general consumer, a big reason I know like in my 20s and you know, younger ages, I shied away from makeup because it always broke me out.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_00: Like I could never wear it.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: It was like I love makeup like every other person, right?
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: But I just for me as a consumer, it was like I have to be so picky with what I buy because I would wear it and then I'd break out, you know?
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: So it's like it's a problem that's I think been there for everybody in some shape or form.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: And so now to see the space growing like this, it makes me so happy, you know, because it's it should have been like this for you know what I mean, like a long time ago.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, very exciting.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_00: What is there, like so when you were creating Yensa, like when you wanted to create these formulas, you know, what were some of the ingredients that you knew like off the bat?
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I really want this in the product.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: Like, was there anything that you had in mind or how did you approach that?
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: So great questions.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we had eight superfoods.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_01: There's all these amazing um Asian-inspired superfoods, superfoods in general, but I really broke it down to like what was I eating when my mother was taking care of me and what was working?
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_01: And it was definitely black sesame wool.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I always remember my family sauteing vegetables.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_01: It brought out this beautiful aroma, delicious flavor, but also they would use it on their skin and hair.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: So black sesame oil was number one.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it's rich in amino acids, it helps improve skin texture.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_01: And then also another one was black seaweed, like we would eat it in all of our soups, but I also knew that my parents always, my mom was, you know, if you eat black sesame oil, it's gonna leave your hair shiny and black.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_01: So that was always another ingredient.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_01: But also we know that you know, seaweed is has very soothing, brightening properties, it's rich in vitamins, C and C, and it's gonna really help brighten skin.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_01: And then black rice is another one, it's really hydrating.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_01: But we also I also have nettle because I was taking nettle because it was helping with lactation, like um creating breast smell, but it also was very soothing to my skin.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_01: And I actually would use it on my scalp too, because scalp is also an extension of your skin.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it would decrease inflammation, it would help you relieve itchiness on my scalp.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_01: So that was also part of the ingredient makeup that I wanted to have in our complexion products.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, our complexion products, I want it to be preventative, and I wanted to have a nourishing, anti-aging benefit, but also soothing um for sensitive skin because I have really sensitive skin.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_01: So I wanted to have all those components working together.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_01: You have the anti-aging, the moisturizing benefits, and then you have the soothing benefits too.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so that's how I thought about the ingredient makeup.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: That makes sense.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: That's really interesting because I like from the formulation standpoint.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: I won't lie, I won't, I don't know much about like, you know, when it comes to complexion products, because we we talk about a lot of skincare here, you know, on the podcast.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_00: And uh a lot of people will tell me, like, yeah, you can pair these ingredients, but when you like some of the things you just described, did you have any like, I don't know, did you run into any problems with like the different iterations for the products?
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: Or how was that like incorporating those ingredients from the formulation?
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_01: Some of the some of the ingredients were hard to source.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so we we did go to Asia, to Korea, um, and we sourced some ingredients from France.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_01: I think it was more the uniqueness of the of the ingredients that was harder sourced, but we kept looking and we ended up finding them.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but actually because we use these natural acids, they were they were pretty flexible in terms of blending them into our complexion products.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_00: That's interesting.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, I mean I think that that's the for me, it's like the fundamental, like I never understand how like makeup, because I I've used your complexion products, and for me, I have oily skin.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: Like, well, now it's oily, but sometimes you know, it was dry.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_00: But my biggest problem is that when things are packed with nourishing ingredients, for some reason I get oilier and I don't experience that with your products.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: That's why I'm like, I'm wondering how you did that.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and you know, and we also have a lot of tea extracts in our in our formulas as well.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_01: We have black tea is is one of the and we use we use white tea and green tea and pure leaf.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_01: So, yeah, so a lot of these these are very balancing ingredients and they're really gonna soothe and balance your skin.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_00: No, it makes sense because I I really have a great my skin responds so well to your products.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: Like it's oh, I'm so happy to hear that.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, it's really good.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_00: And for everyone listening, like genuinely, like it's really, really good stuff.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_00: And I I'm not somebody who wears heavy makeup.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_00: I know a lot of people, um, especially in like, you know, I'm in medicine, so a lot of professions don't allow you to have like this heavy, you know what I mean?
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_00: Like just your your kind like going out kind of makeup on.
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_00: Like you have to have you know what I mean.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_00: So like it's really nice to have that as like a real option that you've created here for us.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's it's nice to see lines that are not focused so heavily on this like kind of I don't know, stage makeup kind of look.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh, I'm all about I I get it.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_01: People are like, people are like, you know, I know the eyelash thing is is like a huge trend.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_01: And like, you know, for a while with contour heavy makeup, it's like the reason why I didn't get into it because if they knew, I was like, if you knew I had to wear these fake eyelashes for two years for 15 hours a day and the heavy makeup, this is why I haven't embraced contouring and and the and then the crazy eyelashes, is because I've already did it, you know, and it's like it's so funny how history just like comes back.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_01: But I will have to say that you know, our makeup, Yenza is the superfood glow is for the everyday superwoman like you and me.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_01: You're busy, you have careers, you're traveling here and here.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_01: And so our makeup are is very functional, and you don't need to be a makeup artist to apply beautiful makeup.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_01: But if you wanted to have the heavy corn, you can go down that direction.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_01: But our makeup is really about ease and accessibility, functional, you know, works as hard as you do.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_01: I want to say.
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, it's uh it's it's a really balanced line, I think.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, one of the big questions I have, because I'm sure, like, you know, as a founder, you know, you've you've created a beautiful line, you know, and and go going from one thing to another, I guess one of my big questions is how was that for you going into like the makeup realm?
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_00: Because I know a lot of people are talking right now about inclusivity in this industry, and I think you're doing a wonderful job, by the way.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_00: I've looked at your range, you know, it's beautiful, and I think there's definitely something here people can resonate with and feel included.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_00: How was that for you as a founder?
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: Like to really be mindful of that and you know, and create products for everybody, you know?
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, great question.
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_01: So when I did first start going into yeah, when I started developing Yansa, I said, okay, I can't just create skincare again, like I did with Pure Lease.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_01: I really wanted to challenge myself because I was truly having pro like issues where I really wanted to cover up my melasma, but not in a heavy made-up way, but I just wanted my skin to look even.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_01: I had redness, you know, I wanted to even off skin, I wanted to have a glow, I wanted to have, you know, FPF and the product.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_01: So I had to really challenge myself to understand um different undertones, the skin, the skin tones.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_01: Because for me growing up, you know, I'm Asian, I have yellow undertones, I have warmer undertones.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_01: It was hard for me.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_01: Now I know it's changed a lot, but I was didn't feel included either growing up being Asian American, growing up as the only Asian American in Alabama.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: So I, you know, from a marketing perspective, I didn't feel included, but also, you know, just growing up being around uh I was the only Asian, so I really stuck out.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_01: So I knew when we developed this that, and this was back in 2018 before there was a lot of talk about it, was that we were indie brand.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_01: We don't have, you know, venture back.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_01: So we had to be very mindful too.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_01: So we started out with eight, eight ranges, but I I made sure that every skin skin tone, like from fair, light, medium, tan, deep, was represented.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_01: And as we grew a line, now we have 16 shades.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_01: Now you'll see that we're very fair.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_01: We have three in fair, um, well, two in fair, like three in light, four in medium, you know, and so it it's you when you look at an indie brand, you're like, okay, we can't create a hundred shades.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_01: It's just not possible, but it's also wasteful from a you know, it we want to be inclusive, but you have to think about the in entire manufacturing process, like how much waste that goes along.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_01: And because the product expires, we're using plastic, we try to use 30% post-consumer um recycle, but it doesn't always happen that way.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_01: But also, you know, the air freight, the um, the fuel that comes to transportation, and then you've got you know you have to also put in a warehouse, and then where does it go when it doesn't sell?
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, some some of our shades doesn't sell, we could we do our best, but yeah, it was important that we represented equally the percentage for for all the skin tones.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: No, that's why I'm like so impressed because I like I looked at your range.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_00: I remember like, you know, um long before this interview, I I looked and I was like, yeah, like you guys, I mean, you're really doing it, you can see that you're doing everything you can, you know what I mean, to to have this inclusivity there.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's what for me as a consumer, when I look at the the you know, whole category of makeup and the brands that are in it, I feel like if you as an indie brand can do your best to put that out, that we are here and we are inclusive and we do care about you, you know what I mean?
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_00: That's what matters.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_00: And I feel like that's where I just fight I found you to be such a shining example of that, you know.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: So truly hats off to you for doing that and for creating that because I know that it must be very difficult, you know, in the beginning stages of a brand.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: But just the fact that like that there is that thought there, that's what matters, you know, to a lot of consumers.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_00: And so I really applaud you for that.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: And also like one of my big things is I like that you're bringing like true Chinese culture to a you know, to a makeup brand, because I don't know much about like um Asian cultures when it comes to like complexion products.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_00: I know a lot in the skincare realm, but then that's also very interesting to me.
• 14:58
  SPEAKER_00: So if you could tell us a little bit about that, that'd be really cool to learn.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like, how do women in Asia approach makeup um as compared to here, from what you've noticed?
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's always skin first.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_01: It's always skincare first.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: Protect your skin from the sun, you know, eat eat healthy foods and you know, have a healthy mindset.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_01: I think it starts there because my grandmother always said that, you know, to have a healthy mindset, to be healthy, to eat healthy is number one because beauty does truly radiate from the inside out.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I think that's that's number one, too, is like I said, protecting your skin from from the sun.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we're in Alabama, my aunt, my mom would walk around in um with umbrellas because it is 95 degrees, blazing hot, 100% humidity during the summers, and I would be so embarrassed, you know, because I'm but then I realize why now because I barely I try not to honest, I do, but I it's always after 3 p.m.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_01: or 2 p.m.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_01: And then the sun really is damaging to your skin, and then it affects Asian skin differently because Asians um we tend to get melasma and sunspots and wrinkles too, but that's not the first, it's always these sunspots that Asians are so obsessed about not having.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_01: So we stay out of the sun, skincare, and then then it comes makeup.
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_01: But I know most Asian women that I know, they don't want to apply a ton of heavy makeup, they want to look natural, and it comes with having healthy skin.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, that makes sense.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_00: I like that.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_00: Like I feel like that's something that I wish somebody would have preached for me growing up.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_00: You know what I mean?
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_00: Like I really wish because I, you know, growing up, like in in the US, it was very hard to get this, I guess, concept delivered at a young age where it's like, no, you gotta take care of your skin.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_00: You know, everything that sits on top of it will be a reflection of how much you take care of your skin.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_00: So that was really it it's interesting to me.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_00: That's why I asked you, you know, into how big of a role makeup plays in Asian cultures because it always looks good.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah, exactly.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_01: And then I don't know if you know this, but I recently um we recently launched our third brand, which is Joy, J-O-O-Y, and it's skincare for the scalp, like superfood skincare for the scalp.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_01: And it goes with kind of the way I grew up.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_01: Again, my grandmother, my aunt, my mom, they focus on their scalp health.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_01: Scalp health first, then beautiful hair.
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_01: It's like skincare first and then beautiful makeup.
• 17:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so it's the same concept.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_01: You know, you have to take care of what you don't see.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, no, which is your health, which is your skin, which is your scalp.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, it makes sense.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_00: So, like for the scalp uh products, what did you uh focus on with the ingredients?
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_00: What are the most uh used ingredients?
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_01: So, okay, so it's um it's called joy, and it's with if you use eight fermented superfood ingredients, okay.
• 17:51
  SPEAKER_01: So I love fermented superfoods because it gives rise to amino acids and help the ingredients penetrate into your scalp more.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: So we have our first question, which is clarify because it's about cleaning the scalp, exfoliating the scalp, and also removing death skin cells, any impurities, because we use a lot of product and we only see our hair.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_01: And the first two key ingredients that we focused on are apple cider vinegar, ferment apple cider vinegar because it helps tone your scalp, it helps clarify, it helps balance your scalp, and it gently removes any distorted death skin cells.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_01: And then C algae is the second one, it's the seaweed that is soothing, it helps keep your hair shiny.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_01: So those are the two main ingredients that we focused on with the first collection.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_00: That's interesting.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I'm gonna have to send you some.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, I have to try it because I I'm I'm sorry, I'm like picking your brain about this, but I just really am so intrigued because I there's so many ingredients I feel like in Asian culture that we just never hear about.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_00: You know what I mean?
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_00: Like we there's a lot of hero ones that have come to the forefront, but like a lot of the ones that you're like kind of you know shouting out here, I've never experienced them.
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_00: So it's very, very intriguing and very exciting to hear that there are things that are there and they're tried and true.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_00: And and to see you incorporate them into products is very exciting for me as a consumer because I think we definitely need that.
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's almost like a more holistic approach, you know, and and that's I think been long overdue in the beauty industry for a long time is this idea that, you know, there is so much knowledge in these ancient cultures that we just need to harness and we need to apply and stop trying to like, you know, go this route of like just super stripping ingredients and and approaches that are just cheaper.
• 19:30
  SPEAKER_00: You know, that's the bottom line.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what I see a lot of is that there are a lot of brands out there that have just found, you know, for example, with hair, we were talking about hair.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: I know so many products that are just like, I look at their ingredient list and I'm like, what were you thinking?
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_00: You know, this is gonna dry my scalp out.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_00: And even if I don't have dandruff, it's gonna make me have dandruff by the end of you know, it it's just it's crazy to me.
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm really excited to see that you've brought over this kind of new way of kind of approaching this whole idea of t it's health first, you know what I mean?
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's more about nerves.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_01: I I can't wait to send you some because I think you're gonna love it.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_01: And it's I always think, okay, I know there's science, and we do of course have science because these are like created in labs with chemists, but it's I think about how these ingredients have been utilized by generations of women in Asian culture.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_01: My mom, my aunt, my grandmother, and they learn that from their mom.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, these are timeless ingredients.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm thinking, okay, it's so obvious to me.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_01: Like, why wouldn't it work?
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_01: Of course it does, because it's been used by women for thousands of years for a reason.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_01: It's not, it's not tenure research, like five-year research, 15 years.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_01: These are thousands of years.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_01: So that's why I lean into history and these time-tested, proven ingredients that have kept, you know, generations of women youthful and beautiful.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_00: It makes so much sense.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: I I love that so much.
• 20:57
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that, you know, it's it we have a lot to learn too from from these approaches because as consumers, we're so quick to just say, okay, well, our favorite influencer is doing this, that must work for me.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_00: And that's I always tell people, you know, they reach out to us a lot for recommendations.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, no, that's not necessarily the case.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you have to understand like what do your, what does your skin need?
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: You know, like what does it really need?
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_00: And then go find it.
• 21:20
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it's very important to have brands like the ones you've created, you know, because they're these to me are real options instead of just like, you know, repeated things that we keep seeing over and over again.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_00: And and that's where I'm like, you know, I I say that a lot.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_00: And I because in the industry I always look at, I'm like, I feel like we have so much packaging in this industry and not in like much, you know, products, right?
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's crazy.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_00: So I it's very refreshing to see the approach that you're taking.
• 21:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm a huge fan.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_00: I wanna, I just, you know, just some advice, like as a as a rounding question from you for any um entrepreneurs out there that might wanna go into their, you know.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_00: Journey and start their own life because I know you've, I mean, you've had such a successful career in the entrepreneurial space.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_00: You know my goodness.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_00: Advice you have.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_01: It wasn't always like that.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_01: I know it looks like it is, but there's so much like behind the scenes.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_01: I think what I realized, even starting with my third brand now, and I was actually telling somebody this, it is so much harder than you think.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_01: It it takes so many more resources than you.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I just you should think, oh, I'm needing to pay for product, and then you pay for the product, you're like, oh my god, what's next?
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_01: You know, and it's there's so much more.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_01: I think you got to prepare for the unexpected, which is a lot of expenses.
• 22:36
  SPEAKER_01: Marketing is crazy, insane now.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um, manufacturing costs have gone up.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's one on the business side.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, just the pure operational, you know, hard numbers.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_01: One.
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_01: Second, I think really know why, you know, there because it is super saturated and crowded.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_01: I think really have a point of view, a distinctive difference in what you're doing.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that is really, really important.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_01: And then having really quality, incredible, effective products.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that makes sense.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_00: It's like quality first kind of thing.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, I'm sure it's very hard.
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'm glad that you you were very um honest about that because I think sometimes, you know, people think that, oh, I'm just gonna do it.
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_00: And it's like you don't know what you're getting into.
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's like it is true.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_01: Like, yes, like you want to tell people follow your dreams, like do this.
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_01: But like the reality is, because I was like that and I know how hard it was, you know, we launched purely in the recession.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_01: I was barely hanging on, and but from an entrepreneur's perspective, you have the hard cost, you have the m you have the um the storytelling that you have to be unique and have a unique point of difference.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_01: But from an entrepreneur perspective, like you have to be so a wavering belief in yourself to never give up, to fight through, like it and it's it's hard, but it's not impossible.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_01: And this is why like it's entrepreneurship, even what you're doing, it's not easy because nobody's telling you you gotta get up and do this, you gotta get up and do that.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_01: You just have to do it, you have to make things happen.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_01: So it's that's also hard.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_01: But it's not impossible, and then I love when people when I love entrepreneurs because the spirit is so strong, and people love to, you know, and I love being around entrepreneurs because they're so creative and they dream.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but the reality is it's really hard, right?
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_00: No, it's uh it's a tough journey.
• 24:33
  SPEAKER_00: It's a it's like paving your own road, you know.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_00: There's no roadmap.
• 24:37
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_00: You just kind of have to figure it out as you go.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's very cool.
• 24:43
  SPEAKER_00: No, well, you know, Jen, I think that you're doing such a phenomenal job, and I congratulate you so much on all your success and all your hard work.
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it really shows in your brands, and I I'm a huge believer in voting with our dollars for brands that are, you know, really paving the road to true inclusivity, you know, in our beauty industry.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I think you're definitely clearly a shining example of that.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_00: So thank you for doing what you do and for creating such magnificent products.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's so lovely to see that and to see true commitment, you know, and and and something that comes from a genuine place.
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's what for me it matters.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah.
• 25:17
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much.
• 25:18
  SPEAKER_00: Well, for everyone listening, I hope you guys love the episode.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_00: And I if you have any questions at all, um please shoot them our way.
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_00: We can definitely pass them along to Jen's team.
• 25:27
  SPEAKER_00: But um, I'll be back next time.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_00: Hey guys, so I hope you love that episode.
• 25:33
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• 25:38
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• 25:55
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• 26:21
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• 26:26
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• 26:33
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• 26:38
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