Latest / Skin Anarchy / Matthew Jackson , Founder of Emigee Skyn

Transcript

Matthew Jackson , Founder of Emigee Skyn · Skin Anarchy

• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: Yellow four has arrived.
• 0:05
  SPEAKER_00: Only you can get their way.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: Journey across the expansive open world sanctuary.
• 0:11
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• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to four.
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  SPEAKER_00: Available now.
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  SPEAKER_00: Weighted and premature.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: At the banner or 55th episodes page to learn more.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_04: Hi guys, welcome back to Skincare Anarchy.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_04: This is Ecta, and I am super excited about our guests because this is a line that I recently discovered, and not only do I love it, but Robert is obsessed.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_04: Um, he really doesn't get into skincare lines a lot or really commit to them very easily.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_04: So without further ado, I want to introduce you guys to the founder of Imagi Skin, Matthew Jackson.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_04: Welcome to the show, Matt.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_04: I'm so excited that we could finally set some time apart and connect.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_01: Hello, everybody.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for having me.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_01: I'm glad to be here.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_04: It's such a pleasure to talk to you.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_04: And I absolutely love your line.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_04: And um my fiance absolutely loves your line.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, so it's it's a great, it's a it's it's truly really good.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_04: Everybody out there.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_04: So I want you to tell us everything.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_04: How did you get into beauty?
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_04: How did you come up with a uh concept for your for going into skincare?
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_03: Wow, so my journey started back in 2007 when I graduated um from high school.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_03: Um and you know, at that time we were told that we needed to know what it was that we wanted to do.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_03: I uh personally wanted to be an architect.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_03: Um and things just kind of went a little left.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_03: I've always been a creative, if you will.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and I just wanted to follow my own passion and not what someone else or my parents thought I should have been doing.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_03: So I took a leap of faith and I started uh my fashion line.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_03: Um and then from there down the line, you know, fashion and skincare for me has always been my personal um, I don't even want to call them vices because, you know, we have things that we love, you know.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but vices, if you will.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_03: And, you know, did the fashion thing for years and years and years up until 2016.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_03: Um, you know, I personally suffered from um uh hormonal acne and hyperpigmentation.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_03: And I don't think a lot of people know what that means.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_03: You know, you hear these words and you hear, you know, skincare routines, and now it's actually one of those things that kind of turns into like a self-care journey if you don't have any um skin conditions, if you will.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but for me, yes, I had bad acne, hyperpigmentation, dry skin, um, clog pores.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_03: That that was my journey, right?
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and for years I was just dumping money, you know, chasing these over-the-counter skincare products and you know, just fads, if you will.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_03: So we we also get caught up in the name brands, right?
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_03: We we don't nine out of 10 times we as consumers, we buy things, we're not really sure what we're buying, we're not sure if it's really gonna work, but because it's hot right now, it's in the media, this is what we need to have, this is what we need to be using.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_03: Um, me on the other side.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_04: I just want to say Neutrogena.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_04: Can I just say that honestly?
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_04: I don't care who hates me for saying it, but I bought Neutrogena and clean and clear, and guess what?
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_04: They sucked, they broke me out even more.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_04: So I totally get what you're saying.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_04: Please conclude.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_03: I second that the Neutrogena, the the proactive, the clearest, all of that I tried, I tried, I wasted so much money on that.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_03: You on the other hand, I am a big, big, big researcher.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_03: I, you know, people laugh, like, oh my god, you read any ingredients?
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_03: You laugh, but it's kind of like, you know, we don't I had to realize, and what we don't realize is that nine out of 10 times, more likely 10, we are doing our skin more harm than good with these over-the-counter products.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_03: Um, you know, we are just buying these products because, like again, they're in the media, they're bumped up to make you believe that it's going to do these things for your skin, and you just find yourselves constantly spending money, constantly spending money, constantly spending money chasing your skincare goal, and you're not achieving it, right?
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_03: So for me, I'm like, you know what?
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_03: It has to stop.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_03: Like, you know, I've tried the dermatologist.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_03: She's just like, what even for me, she's like, wait, what are you using on your skin?
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm telling her, um, and she's like, no, no, no, no.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_03: She's like, no, stop that.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_03: We got to find a different way.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_03: And um, you know, after a couple of rounds at the dermo, I'm like, okay, well, I have to find a different way because it gets pricey.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_03: You know what I mean?
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_03: Like it gets expensive, very expensive, very quickly, too.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_03: Quickly, yeah.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_03: So fast forward to from um 2011, late 2011, early 2012.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I'm like, okay, you know, we do have I'm a big manifest a manifestator, and I'm like the manifestation king.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I remember putting um skincare um on my vision board, but it wasn't supposed to be a brand.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_03: It was just like that.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_04: Oh my god, can I just take a minute and say how much I love what you just said, everything about it?
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_04: Because I for years, honestly, Matt, for years, I was also the same, you know what I mean.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_04: What you just described is exactly how I always call myself, but it was so hard to talk to people and say that.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_04: Like, hey, by the way, I really do believe in manifestation, and I really do believe in, you know what I mean?
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_04: All this, but anyways, continue.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_04: I just had to take a little like side alley and say that's amazing.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_03: No, it is real.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_03: Manifestation is real, but what I also think that what's key with manifestation is actually manifesting and just being head down, focused, and putting in the work because you can manifest all day and there's no action, nothing is gonna come to the surface.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_03: The universe is not gonna put nothing in your path.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and um, yeah, so late uh 2011, early 2012, I put skincare blog on my vision board.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_03: Um, never really, it never really happened um because I was just so busy.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_03: Like the fashion part of the brand took me by storm.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_03: It got a little crazy.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and then fast forward again, 2016, we adopted our six-day old.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and you know, I didn't we I didn't necessarily push the baby out, but you know, we I was still suffering from like postpartum, if you will.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_01: Of course, yeah.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it's like, oh my god, I have this little baby, like the creature in my house, like this little baby in my house.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_03: What I'm what am I gonna do?
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_03: Congratulations.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_03: I remember laying in a bed with him, and I'm on my phone doing something for the the fashion line, and something pops up, and it's like Kylie Jenner, self-made billionaire, whatever it was, and something clicked in my head, and instantly I went to the wait a minute, self-made, wait a minute, already has this self-made, like wait, it wasn't clicking for me, right?
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and then I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_03: And I give a moment, I remember, you know, he fell asleep.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_03: I put the baby down, I opened up my laptop, went back to my, I have a thousand notebooks.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_03: I write down the same thing twice or three a thousand times, whatever it may be.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, well, Matthew, let's go back to the skincare blog, right?
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, okay, this is bigger than me.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_03: Like, ideas just started flowing.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_03: And I lost literally two months before getting the baby, I was making products in my kitchen.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_03: So I just felt like the universe was aligning me things.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_03: I went from making one product for myself.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_03: First of all, Imaji's skin wasn't supposed to be a thing, and second of all, the product wasn't supposed to be for the people, right?
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, um, it was for me.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_03: I was on my skincare journey.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_03: I was trying to see what works for me because evidently over-the-counter stuff was not working for me.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, um, and keep in mind, this is like 2016.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like in the kitchen making products, and one of my good friends come over, and I'm like, girl, you gotta try this because now I'm I'm starting to feel crazy.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like, wait a minute, it's been 30 days, my skin is bomb.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_03: Maybe it's just me because we want to believe in our own, we believe in our own products, we believe in our own creativity, we believe in everything that we do.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm like, let me step out for a second, and you need to try this.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm trying it on multiple people, a couple of friends, different shades, different color uh colors, skin tones, skin concerns, whatever.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, let me try it on somebody who has flawless skin just to see, like, you know, I'm I'm doing a survey here.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_03: And the feedback was just crazy.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_03: All of them were like, the world needs this, the world needs this, the world needs this.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_03: Like, no, like you, you created something, you're onto something.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_03: And then I'm like, no, like before and after pitches, they're not like that.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_04: It's not like listen, like, I I don't want to interrupt you, but I just want to like say that you know, our intuition and our initial feedback that we get from people that we trust is the you know what I mean?
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_04: That is the benchmark for the quality of what we're producing.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_04: It is, and the fact that you know, I I can sit here and tell you it's you have great products.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_04: I I really enjoy your products.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, I haven't, you know, like obviously I wasn't one of the first people to try it, but I just want to say, like, you know, it that is still research.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, you know, people talk about clinical trials and all that, and that is very important, but like that comes later.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_04: But the initial research you can do on any brand is that initial consumer feedback.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_04: So I I love that that's where you started.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_03: And then, you know, I was, you know, I remember uh dressing my son, jumping in a car, driving three and a half hours to another part of Florida, and um driving to this warehouse because I remember calling them up and I'm like, listen, I have all of my oils, I have all of my ingredients.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_03: How much are you gonna charge me to mass produce, if you will, you know, use your equipment to make a massive amount of my product?
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_03: And they're like, okay, this is the amount, it's gonna be$1,800.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_03: You have access to the warehouse, the factory, um, literally 24 hours around the clock, seven days a week, except holidays, um, you know, and you just gotta clean up.
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, okay, so let me just make this clear.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_03: I can bring all of my ingredients, use your equipment for$1,800.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_03: And she was just like, yeah, like, you know, we just open up this location.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_03: She was like, I just want to keep you in mind we don't do anything with formulas.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_03: Like, you have to already have your formulas, you have to already have your ingredients, like you have to have all of those things.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_03: You are just utilizing our space to use our heavy grade equipment to produce your product, like, you know, to uh whip up your products.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, okay, sold, you know, and even at that moment, I realized that I was running at speed, if you will, right?
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_03: Because a lot of times people ask us, like, what is your drive?
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_03: Like, why did you start?
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_03: You know, and I remember I felt like I was running at speed, like trying to find this, trying to get this, get my vendors in line for my my containers, right?
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_03: Um, because what Imaji is is a all-natural, luxury, gender-neutral skincare brand.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_03: And we we put the emphasis on gender neutral because we want to normalize that it's okay for guys to have a skincare routine, it's okay for guys to be into their beard, it's okay to guys to be into their skin.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and you know, just take that little extra mile and that little self-care love, that little self-care um, you know, pep journey, if you will.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and I remember getting ready to launch back in August of last year, late August, the 15th to be exact, and I'm going crazy, like, oh my God, like I'm freaking out, like, you know, it has to be perfect.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_03: I'm such a perfectionist.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, it has to be perfect, it has to be right, this has to be this, this has to be that.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, the product speaks for itself, you know what I mean?
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, then that's what you want.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_04: That's if you have that, then there's nothing that's gonna stop you, you know, at that point.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_04: Like it's it's if the product speaks for itself.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_04: That's what I meant earlier was that you know, the fact that you got this initial consumer feedback, like, you know, that is really at that point you knew, and that's where I think the whole manifestation thing comes in is that when you're truly manifesting something that's inspired and something that's coming from a very real place, everything really makes sense about it.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_04: It's gonna be the top quality, it's gonna be the top everything because you've created this, you know, and you're and and so anyways, but I I want to shift focus a little bit because I I love um that you're going into not even shifting yesterday.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_04: Let's dive deeper because you're you're really telling us how you um, you know, basically formulated your products and how you like the community, you know, helped you and the fellow entrepreneurs helped you.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_04: I love that.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_04: Like, you know what I mean?
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_04: Like that you got into like this this uh, you know, I don't know, uh, experience with people that they were willing to say, hey, yeah, go ahead.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_04: Do you know, use our stuff for what you need and whatever.
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_04: Because right now, people get ripped off.
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I'm saying?
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_04: There's so many uh, you know, labs out there that are charging tens of thousands of dollars, and people are just getting kind of you know, everyone wants a skincare line and they're getting ripped off.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_04: That's my point.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_04: And you know what?
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_03: I I I I I I I a thousand percent agree with that.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_03: And at first I thought I was being like bamboozled if you were like I had to literally ask the question 10 times, like, you sure, you sure?
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_03: So is this price and this is just this?
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_03: And you sure, you know, it's not because like I'm talking about like a factory with like machines that is like doing like I in my house at home now.
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_03: I'm doing like my I have like the industrial grade um kitchen aids, but I'm talking about heavy-duty machines bigger than that, that's going to like make my scrubs 10 times faster than me, you know, doing it at home on my kitchen aids, you know.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and I'm like, wait a minute, so just$1,800 a month, you know?
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_03: And she's like, Yep, come down.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_03: Um, you know, we're not gonna solidify anything at this moment.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_03: I'm not, you know, I'm not gonna have you find anything, just come down, take a peek, talk to the um the owner of the company um who owns the uh factory, and then you guys can go from there.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_03: And I remember meeting him, um, and he's like, uh, we have other people at this moment using the equipment.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know, I'm not sure if you want to bring the baby in.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, well, is there any way we can just kind of like, you know, just shoot the breeze outside?
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_03: Like, you know, because I don't, it's loud, it's loud for one, and then two, you know, like whatever they the person was using was like all over the place.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like, I don't really know, you know, what the ingredients entail.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_03: I can only tell you what mines entail.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm I feel safer with the baby outside.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_03: Long story short, we got into details, you know, just started telling them my story um and a little bit of background about the brand.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_03: And he was like, wait a minute, no parabens, no harsh products, and just started going through some um some pictures and some reviews from like just personal text messages.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_03: Not even, I didn't that website wasn't even up yet.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_03: So just going through like personal text messages and um WhatsApp messages like, hey, for my friends and family and colleagues, like, hey, like I need more scrub or I need more oil cleanser, like, oh my god, you know.
• 14:58
  SPEAKER_03: Um he's like, Well, like that is phenomenal.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_03: He was like, you know, did you bring any samples?
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_03: But as a joke, and I'm like, you know what?
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_03: I sure did.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_03: I don't leave the house without them.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_03: Um, so I ended up giving him some.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_03: And then he's like, No, no, no, we need to meet my wife.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_03: She's also like the co-founder of the factories.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_03: We have like multiple here in Florida, we have um three in Texas, like just going on.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_03: And the wife comes out, Julie, who is amazing.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_03: I actually love both of them, but yeah, me and Julie, we just we just click.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_03: Um and I remember her like, I'm gonna try this right now.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_03: Like, we're literally sitting in front of the factory, they have like this little meeting section, and it's like a Starbucks, it's really, really cute.
• 15:35
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and she put on the uh PBO, which is our pure botanical oil cleanser, and instantly starts taking off her makeup in front of me.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_03: And she's like, Whoa, she was like, No, she's like reading the label like 10 times, like, there's nothing harsh in here.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like, no, you know, just our botanical oils, and it's versatile.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_03: You can, as you've just seen, take your makeup off anyway.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and it's you can also cleanse your skin with it.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_03: So it's two in one.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_03: And I started to explain for me, I know a lot of people might not have that luxury to drop three, four hundred dollars at Sephora every two weeks to achieve that skincare goal or that beauty vice.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_03: I wanted to create products that were versatile, I wanted to make people feel as if they didn't need 20, 30 products to achieve this one goal.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_03: I want you to be able to use our PBO oil to take off your makeup and cleanse your skin.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_03: I want you to be able to use our face scrubs and feel the difference after you remove the the sugars and the oils off of your skin, you know.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_03: I want you to be able to use our rose gold oil on your face skin and your hair.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_03: You understand?
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_03: Um, yeah, yeah.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_03: I just want that versatility because I feel like skincare should not be out of reach, it should be at our fingertips.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_03: That's our motto.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_04: Um well, not only that, Matt, but I feel like your line, you know, I just want to I want to say this like I think skincare, yeah, I agree with you, it should be at reach, it should be available and accessible to everybody that needs it.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_04: Um, but I also think that, you know, a luxury feel to skincare should also be available.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_04: And I think that's what I really enjoyed when I first um, you know, tried your line, looked at your line.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_04: I felt like a high-end, um, you know, because of the packaging and the way like it felt like more for men though, you know, I'm gonna I'm gonna be honest, it was definitely gender neutral, but it it felt like classy, like you want to put it on your shelf, you want to because right now skincare is also a huge industry when it comes to social media, you know what I mean?
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_04: So like people really want that product that looks sophisticated and beautiful, they can put on their vanity, and you know, let's not let's not kid ourselves.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_04: We all like you know, you want the perfect Instagram photo or whatever it is you're using it for.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_04: So that's also driving sales, is my point.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_04: And so I think the fact that you did not compromise on that side is actually important.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_04: And I want to talk to you about that, like with the packaging.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_04: Um, you know, did you just like did you know what you wanted from the beginning or did you do any kind of consumer research before you, you know, went down?
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_04: What how did you come up with that side?
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_03: Um, for the packaging, I didn't really do any consumer research.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_03: I the image emojis is luxury in itself, right?
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_03: I knew that I wanted that luxury feel.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_03: I knew that I wanted to be affordable luxury, right?
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_03: First of all, I knew that I wanted to create an experience.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_03: So when you're unpackaging um our packages, it's that feeling like, oh my god, my image skin is here, you know.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_03: So I knew for a fact that I wanted that everything luxury.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but I knew also knew that I wanted to be at um an affordable price for my consumers.
• 18:40
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and I think that, you know, slightly researching, I felt that everything had a health, a hefty price tag that was screaming luxury, if you will, you know.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and I feel like during that itty bitty tiny glimpse of, okay, let me just pop in and see what my competition is.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_03: Let me just pop in and see what is out there already.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, okay, I'm paying like I'm seeing this for 120, 130, but it's like, you know, and I personally even also ordered from different brands to see what that packaging looked like because anything online could look a totally different way than you actually receive in the package, right?
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_04: Um I did that, yeah, exactly, exactly.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_03: Yep, I did that, and I I remember opening about several packages, and I'm like, okay, like I see the luxury presence online, I see this, I see how it's being advertised.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_03: But when I got it, it was just like, oh, okay, just another skincare product, you know what I mean, or just another cleanser or whatever.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, I don't want that for my I hate the word consumers.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_03: I call them my skin tribe.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm like, I don't want that from my skin tribe.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_03: I want them to open this, they gift, you know, their packaging and feel like, okay, I'm excited.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_03: Like, let me just drop all things right now and get ready to get into the skincare routine.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_03: Let me just put on my products and just go, you know.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_03: Um, so right off the back, I knew that it was Imajskin was supposed to be luxury, it was supposed to create an experience, you know, and not only create an experience, be effective, right?
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_03: That would be a good idea.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_04: Well, I think that I think that it's it's creating an experience, and I think that you have the fact that you have non-skincare products also is beautiful.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, I absolutely love your candle, by the way.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_04: Um, the the I love that you have these freight, like these um self-care products along with it because your diffuser looks like something I would go and buy at Nordstrom's for like$300.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_04: Like it just it's like I I keep seeing that trend, and that's why I'm bringing up packaging because you've made it so beautiful and classy and and sophisticated, but I know and but I know that you know, like you're still making it affordable for people.
• 20:47
  SPEAKER_04: And that's I think the message I want to send here is that you need to people need to back brands that you know you have to figure out what it is you want, right?
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_04: Aesthetically.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_04: If you if you're saying I want something that looks beautiful and luxurious, I don't really, you know, whatever it is that attracts you to a product, figure that out, and then go invest in brands that are doing it the right way, and they're actually not just, you know what I mean, selling because they're in north terms or because they're insects, or you know, do you see where I'm going with this, Matt?
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_04: Like, like I feel like your product, I could easily put it on any, like, you know, any of these huge retailers, their shelves, and it would sell out.
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_04: And it's like, why can't you know, so like that's my thing is like we just keep supporting like these like giant you know, conglomerate things when you're creating something so beautiful as an you know individual brand owner, and we're not we need to get more, you know, I guess people to in that mindset rather than just you know, well, this is trendy and I'm just gonna buy it because it's on this website, that kind of thing.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, I agree.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_04: So how do you feel about that?
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_04: Actually, I want to talk about that a little bit.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_04: Um, as an as a um, you know, individual brand owner, I know like you know, we we totally differ.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_04: Small business owners.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_04: We're totally different how we think.
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_04: So, um, how do you feel about the whole, you know, uh teaming up with a retailer like Sephora, where they take a huge percentage, you know, of your commissions and all that?
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_04: Like, how do you feel about all that?
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_03: That bothers me on so many different levels.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I feel like, first of all, I honestly feel like there's not an a platform big enough for small businesses, if you will, which causes us to get overlooked, if you will.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and like you mentioned before, you know, there's these bigger companies charging tons of money um for these luxurious products.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_03: And then here we are as small business owners, like, hey, we're down here, we offer luxury, we offer products that actually works for the you know, the culture or the community, if you will.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_03: And it's just kind of like, okay, well, your margins may be too low, or you know, yes, your packaging is out of this world, but your product, like, no, and I'm like, no, it's it's where it needs to be.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_03: You know what I mean?
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_03: Um, it's definitely where it needs to be because it's for, you know, if you will, created by us for us, if you will, you know.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_03: So I don't expect my consumer to, I don't want my consumer to be chased away or feel as if they can't, you know, endure, indulge on their skincare journey because my uh my my skincare products was listed at$133 for an eight-ounce or whatever the case means.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_03: So I met my I made I priced my products to match people like me who was somewhat going through my experience um at that time.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_03: But I feel like there's not a big enough platform or uh outlet for small businesses.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_03: Um and I feel like they we we are thrown through the ringer, if you will.
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_03: Um because I feel like we have to prove ourselves.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, rather than needs to be a good thing.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_04: Way more than we did.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, exactly.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_04: For example, I just want to for everybody out there, you're lying, you have an LED mask on your website, you know what I mean, in your shop.
• 24:07
  SPEAKER_04: And I don't understand why that's not everywhere.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_04: Why is it that there's only one company who's being like, you know what I mean, like kind of propped up when it comes to LED masks, or maybe three or four companies?
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_04: It's like there's a place, I I get it, for like, you know, PR, and I get that there's a place for promotions, but like, you know, I was having this conversation with someone else earlier um in my episodes about how it these resources are really how you make a difference for small business owners and provide them.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_04: Like if you really want to say things like, well, I stand behind the 15% pledge and I stand behind contributing to small business and I could all this stuff that's great, but I'm not gonna believe you till you make things accessible to all small business owners, regardless of color, ethnicity, background.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_04: I don't give a shit.
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_04: Like just make it available, you know what I mean?
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_04: Like action speak much louder, just like what you experienced with your friends who you know you teamed up with in the lab.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_04: Like, why are we not seeing that more?
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_04: You know, why are we not seeing that around every corner, every bend?
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_04: Like it should just be there.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_04: So that's what I just want to make that very clear on this podcast.
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_04: Like, I want to use this platform to amplify that because I really believe in your southern Caroline.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_04: Right now, someone can ask me, um, you know, you know, you hear those articles, right, Matt, about like these are the top uh like Sephora just came out with this one.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_04: Um, the top new brands, black owned businesses that we're putting into Sephora.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_04: Why are you making this a thing, Sephora?
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_04: Like it bothered me.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I'm saying?
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_04: It's like you're making this a fucking um, you know, like parade, and it's not supposed to be like that.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_04: You should be doing this automatically.
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_03: Automatically, I agree, I agree.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I'm saying?
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_04: Like, I look at your line.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_04: Anyone looking at your line with a brain would be like, This is a beautifully crafted line.
• 25:49
  SPEAKER_04: It works, it looks good, it looks good on a vanity.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_04: Put him in Sephora.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_04: And I don't understand where all the action is, and I know I'm getting very heated, but it's like if none of us actually get heated, nothing's gonna change.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_03: So nothing's gonna change.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I agree, yeah.
• 26:04
  SPEAKER_03: And there's so many people, like you said in the beginning, there's so many people taking advantage of small businesses because they know, especially the beauty industry right now, the beauty industry is is crazy.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_03: And for instance, I feel like this pandemic has shaken a lot of things for um people.
• 26:20
  SPEAKER_03: So people are just creating, and I stress this people are just creating brands to survive, if you will.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_03: And for us, it was kind of like, okay, well, we're getting overlooked for being thought out, for doing our research, for creating a sustainable product, for creating an effective product.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_03: And then you have these people that's creating these overnight businesses that nine out of 10 is not gonna last, but because they're in survival mode and they're the ones that's getting picked up, if you will.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_03: And I say that to say that there's we are being taken advantage of.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_03: I remember um after lost in our first five products and our again, speed.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like, okay, well, you know, I I want to create a cleanser, an additional cleanser to add to the the tribe.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_03: And this woman is like, oh yeah, you know, just let me give me your formula.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_03: We and then go from there.
• 27:15
  SPEAKER_03: But then I'm like, wait a minute, that's a hefty price tag for something I've I've already created.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_03: I can see if I came to you and I'm like, okay, listen, I need a formula, blah blah blah, then that's different.
• 27:24
  SPEAKER_03: But I already already created everything that I needed to create.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_03: You understand what I'm saying?
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, um, and that price tag is kind of hefty.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, you know what?
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_03: No that thank you, but no, thank you.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_04: Good for you.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_04: No, for real.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_04: Good for out of them.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_04: The same thing.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_04: Like, no, it's my formula.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_04: What do you mean?
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_04: Like, what do you mean?
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_04: That's like someone saying, Um, give me your patent.
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_03: What?
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, yes, and right, and then putting a hefty price tag on something that you already created, so it kind of pissed me off, and it made me realize that like people know exactly what they're doing.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_03: They know that us as small business owners, we want things done and we want it done in a timely manner, so we are willing to either pay or you know, meet them where they want to be met.
• 28:11
  SPEAKER_03: And it's sad because like you're taking advantage of us.
• 28:14
  SPEAKER_03: We're just starting out.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_03: Um, you know, some of us have made more sales than others, or some people are still struggling to make sales, and you want to put a hefty price tag on something that somebody else created is crazy.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I remember also a uh retailer sliding in my DMs and like, hey, I'm gonna, you know, our CEO of the company is gonna reach out to you and we want to carry your product.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_03: And you know, things like that don't really excite me.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_03: And I know people probably like that's crazy that he said that, but it doesn't excite me because I feel like you said in the beginning, it's like being ripped off.
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_03: It's like saying, Hey, we love the product, we love the packaging, but this is what we're willing to give you.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_04: And it's like um, it's like colonialism and skincare, dude.
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_04: Like, what do you mean?
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_04: Like, no, it's like you want to come in and take what's not yours and make it yours and make it sound like you know, it's like I don't know how anyone buys into this stuff.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_04: I really don't get it either.
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_03: So I hear like we can't make this stuff up, and I'm like, okay, so you want to do that, give me this price, yeah.
• 29:15
  SPEAKER_03: And it's not like, do you really like my product?
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_03: Because from this price, it doesn't seem as if you do, like you just want to nickel and dime and then run with my product in your store, you know what I'm saying?
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_03: So it didn't really make sense.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, hey, make it make sense for me, you know, and I think a lot of small businesses get so caught up on like wanting to be into retail and wanting to be um on shelves right away.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_03: And it's like, no, slow down.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_03: You could go fast for anything else, but when it comes to you know, really trying to get into retail, you really have to be very, very careful because you can get screwed really, really quick.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_03: Um, yeah, and they don't understand that they just want to have that visual rule, oh, I'm in retail, or I'm in target, or I'm in here, I'm in here.
• 29:56
  SPEAKER_03: But you have to be really, really careful.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_03: You have to really read over those documents, you have to really, it's like really playing ball and being very strategic on your next shot because it can make or break you.
• 30:07
  SPEAKER_03: Um yeah, but it's definitely been a roller coaster.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_03: You know, we it's definitely been a roller coaster.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_03: And I think, you know, one for being a black skincare brand, yeah um, and having so much competition around, which the competition don't bother me because I know what my products do and I know what they're capable of doing and what it stands for.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but I just feel like you know, a lot of people like, you know, I was speaking to another retailer about a month ago, and they're like, oh, well, what separates you from the other consumer and that can, you know, uh other brand, but that other brand was also a minor, like a black brand.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_03: And I I'm running down the list.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like, you know, well, we stand behind our ingredients being 100% natural, we stand behind our sustainable packaging, we stand behind our multi-functional products.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_03: You understand?
• 30:55
  SPEAKER_04: And this is a giant problem for me that this question even exists.
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_04: Like, I'm sorry, I'm just gonna take a minute here because um when's the last time anyone asked uh a white woman why what's differentiate differentiates you and your brand from that white woman over there?
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_04: No one asked that question.
• 31:16
  SPEAKER_04: And the fact that we're this is exactly where I was trying to go with that Sephora thing about Sephora's making this big thing now.
• 31:23
  SPEAKER_04: We have now these new black-owned brands.
• 31:26
  SPEAKER_04: Sephora, why do you need to make a statement about it being black owned?
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_04: Yes, we want to know who the owners and the CEOs are of these amazing um, you know, brands by people of color, but that should not be the highlight of why this brand is selling.
• 31:43
  SPEAKER_04: You have a great body scrub.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_04: Can we talk about your body scrub?
• 31:46
  SPEAKER_04: Like you said, you have sustainability um, you know, taking care of in your company.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_04: You have all these great things clean, like you know the little check mark that they have for like clean skincare.
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_04: Like, why can't we talk about all the things that all the things that you fit in with in terms of their like list of things they look for in a brand that they want to include as a retailer rather than are you black owned or are you not?
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_04: That's that should not be the focus of this movement.
• 32:12
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I'm trying to say?
• 32:13
  SPEAKER_04: Like it should not be like that, it should be about inclusivity at the highest degree, where you no longer have to look at a person and be like, well, now their skin color fits into my checklist of demographics I have to cover to look like I'm inclusive.
• 32:28
  SPEAKER_04: Do you see what I'm saying?
• 32:30
  SPEAKER_04: That is a giant problem.
• 32:32
  SPEAKER_04: And I think that that's what's standing, to be very honest with you.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_04: In my humble opinion, I think that's what's standing between amazing brands that just so happen to be founded by uh women and men of color and them getting to the shelves in the right places in the right cities in the right demographic areas and the right, you know what I mean, like socioeconomic areas, like that is what's standing between it because we cannot get over the that hurle of race, you know.
• 32:58
  SPEAKER_04: And so, anyways, I'll just stop ranting.
• 33:00
  SPEAKER_04: I know it's a lot, but yeah, please continue, Matt.
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_04: I want to keep, I wanna keep talking more.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_03: It's good stuff, it's definitely good stuff, you know.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_03: And you know, I just knew off the back, you know, what the brand meant, um, what it stands for, and who it's for, you know.
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, um, and I I I couldn't stress enough, you know, as I'm still growing, as I'm still adding products, I'm like, why did you start?
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_03: And I think a lot of us as business owners sometimes forget the why we started.
• 33:31
  SPEAKER_03: Um and I just keep going back to that.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_03: And then every time I go back to my why, I'm like, listen, you know, we vow, like we promise you, we promise you, we promise you that our skincare products are 100% natural.
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_03: We guarantee that if you stick to your skincare routine, right?
• 33:48
  SPEAKER_03: Because sometimes we we pick up these journeys and we have these goals that we want to crush.
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_03: But the minute we crush those goals and we start to see glowy skin and we start to see our acne face, it's kind of like, okay, whatever, put the skincare products down.
• 34:00
  SPEAKER_03: Let me go on to the next thing.
• 34:02
  SPEAKER_03: Consistency is key.
• 34:03
  SPEAKER_03: And I preach this if you want anything to work, you have to be consistent, right?
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_03: You can't just, hey, for a couple of days, a couple of weeks, indulge in something and then drop it and then expect that you're gonna have these long-lasting results, right?
• 34:16
  SPEAKER_03: You have to maintain it's the upkeep that goes along with the consistency.
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and for me, I'm just like, you know, as I continue to add the add products to our brand, I'm like, listen, you don't need 15, 20, 30 products, you know, take our skin quiz, figure out what it is that you that you know that you want to target first.
• 34:39
  SPEAKER_03: It doesn't have to be everything at one time.
• 34:40
  SPEAKER_03: If you focus on acne first, focus on dry skin, focus on whatever it is that you want to focus.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_03: I think a lot of brands get so caught up on trying to push their product onto the consumer rather than actually walking them through.
• 34:53
  SPEAKER_03: Like, hey, come in, like, let's let's talk skincare.
• 34:57
  SPEAKER_03: Let's be real, let's be very transparent.
• 34:59
  SPEAKER_03: And saying, Okay, well, try our PBO cleanser, see how that goes, right?
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and oh, it works.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, great, okay, cool.
• 35:08
  SPEAKER_03: Here's the next step.
• 35:09
  SPEAKER_03: You know, buy you know, buy our booster kit, buy the complete kit, let us know how that goes, right?
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_03: I don't think a lot of brands is doing a lot of brands are just like no pushing all of these products, and it's like, okay, well, where do I start?
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_03: What do I use?
• 35:21
  SPEAKER_03: You know what I'm saying?
• 35:22
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, and I completely get you.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_04: And I and I think I want to know actually, before before you could even continue, I want you to tell us for everybody out there.
• 35:29
  SPEAKER_04: So, for example, Robert loves your line, you know, and he uses it for his beard, for his beard care and his his hair care.
• 35:36
  SPEAKER_04: I know um uh black men have very, you know, they very uh different issues as far as the hair care goes, you know, around the beard area, and he absolutely loves it.
• 35:44
  SPEAKER_04: So um I want you to walk us through like a um like a you know, one, two, however many steps you recommend of your of your products, and um, you know, say you're you're giving it to me and I and I come to you and say, Matt, I want you to recommend this.
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_04: So tell us what you recommend.
• 36:00
  SPEAKER_03: Okay, so I like to start off with our our new skin journeyers, right?
• 36:05
  SPEAKER_03: Um, what that looks like is a person who wants to get into skincare, don't know where to start, may have um minimal to maximum skincare concerns.
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_03: What that looks like from for Imaji skin is our pure botanical oil you cleanser, right?
• 36:19
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, whether you wear makeup or not, great.
• 36:22
  SPEAKER_03: If you if you do great, if you don't great, um, our part uh pure botanical oil cleanser is going to purify and cleanse your skin, right?
• 36:32
  SPEAKER_03: It's going to leave your skin rejuvenated, uh glowy, um, extra clean.
• 36:39
  SPEAKER_03: You're going to feel the difference in your pores after using our pure botanical oil cleanser.
• 36:44
  SPEAKER_03: I guarantee you that.
• 36:45
  SPEAKER_03: And if you are a makeup wearer, it is going to just start simultaneously just take off all of your makeup.
• 36:52
  SPEAKER_03: And it's kind of like, okay, wait, it's cleansing my skin at the same time and removing my makeup.
• 36:57
  SPEAKER_03: So you're getting that two-in-one effect, right?
• 37:00
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and then you want to use our face scrubs.
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_03: Now, our face again, going back to our multifunctional products, our face scrubs are amazing because I for me, I remember using a lot of face scrubs, and then like my face is like burning after because it then scraped up my skin, right?
• 37:15
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 37:16
  SPEAKER_03: Um, our scrubs are amazing when it comes to not only what it does, but the ingredients that's inside, because you you're using a sugar scrub, but you don't feel like you're using a sugar scrub, if you will, because it's so smooth, it's packed with um multiple uh botanical oils, and it also acts as a shaver.
• 37:39
  SPEAKER_03: You know, if you shave, you can use it to shave because once you know, our body scrub, if you, you know, your face as well for guys, for females, if you're shaving, once you wipe off the excess from exfoliating, now you can shave because it leaves your skin so smooth.
• 37:54
  SPEAKER_04: So smooth and so yeah.
• 37:56
  SPEAKER_04: That's exactly what Rob said actually.
• 37:57
  SPEAKER_04: He said that it was um very like like I think like he meant hydrating, but it was like he was like it leaves you with a hydrated feeling, like in the you know, your facial hair for men.
• 38:07
  SPEAKER_04: Like, I mean, and that was that was something I I really enjoyed hearing because I know it can get very, very dry and itchy, you know what I mean, especially for men with with facial hair and you know, anywhere really for all of us, anyone who shaves like you shave your life.
• 38:20
  SPEAKER_04: So I love that.
• 38:21
  SPEAKER_04: I really like that you have the oils in there because it definitely leaves behind a wonderful feeling.
• 38:26
  SPEAKER_04: I can definitely rush it around.
• 38:28
  SPEAKER_03: And we don't, you know, I didn't want products that you know, I hate products that it's going to dry you out and you feel like you have to use tons of moisturizer after.
• 38:36
  SPEAKER_03: So I wanted that hydrating feel in all of our products.
• 38:40
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and then you know, after that, we have our oil lotion, which I absolutely love.
• 38:46
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and who is the oil lotion is actually like on the verge of being our top seller at this moment.
• 38:52
  SPEAKER_03: Um, if you live in a different climate other than Florida, and I know some of our up northern people, I'm originally from New York, so I know at that time living in New York, we like that that whipped feeling, not even whipped, that creamy feeling, if you will.
• 39:07
  SPEAKER_03: Um, with ours, if you take our oily lotion and you put it in the fridge, it turns into a different texture.
• 39:13
  SPEAKER_03: And me being in Florida, I kind of want this time to kind of like ghost in and tan me a little bit.
• 39:18
  SPEAKER_03: So I leave it as an oil, but I do prefer, you know, toggling back between the two.
• 39:23
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and it it you hydrate it 24-7.
• 39:27
  SPEAKER_03: I kids, you know, like literally I wake up, do my skincare routine, especially if I'm like going out in the day, and I'm coming home about maybe like six, seven, maybe eight o'clock the latest, and I'm still moisturized.
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, you know, yeah, so I want it to hydrate and yeah, it's very hydrating.
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_04: And I mean, honestly, here's my thing, and I and I want to say this because you know, skincare, every single thing does not have to be like, well, you know, I I support science-backed skincare a lot, but I also support good feeling self-care products that work, and we don't have to know every little detail of how they work, what you know, because people hear things like buzzwords.
• 40:04
  SPEAKER_04: So, you know, you said sugar scrub.
• 40:06
  SPEAKER_04: So people out there might be thinking, well, well, I know this and this and this about physical exfoliators.
• 40:10
  SPEAKER_04: Well, that's not you know, that's you have to be intelligent consumers, you know what I mean?
• 40:15
  SPEAKER_04: Use the stuff that works.
• 40:17
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, at the end of the day, everything can do certain things to your health versus not, right?
• 40:23
  SPEAKER_04: But if you're if at the end of the day what you're using makes you feel good on any level, then that is a good skincare, skin or self-care product, period.
• 40:32
  SPEAKER_04: So I can honestly say, like, I think you're creating beautiful luxury feel products that uh, you know, just I just I think it's something you would want to pick up at the end of your day.
• 40:41
  SPEAKER_04: It's very relaxing, it's very like, you know, men can use it.
• 40:45
  SPEAKER_04: I I'm making that a point because I know how hard it is for black men to find things they really like.
• 40:50
  SPEAKER_04: And like Robert has never, he never likes, you know what I mean?
• 40:53
  SPEAKER_04: I get so many samples and stuff, and he's never like, Oh, I really, really like this.
• 40:56
  SPEAKER_04: No, it's like he really loves your line.
• 40:59
  SPEAKER_04: So I, you know, I that to me is a huge statement.
• 41:02
  SPEAKER_04: And so I think if you can make something like that, it deserves to be in, you know, so much more recognition.
• 41:08
  SPEAKER_04: It needs recognition.
• 41:10
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
• 41:11
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, thank you.
• 41:12
  SPEAKER_04: So, um, Matt, this has been amazing, and I feel like I could talk to you for literally years.
• 41:17
  SPEAKER_04: Um you know, I really like that I was able to um speak to you so openly.
• 41:21
  SPEAKER_04: So thank you for that conversation about just inclusivity and um, you know, all of that.
• 41:28
  SPEAKER_03: You're welcome, you're welcome.
• 41:30
  SPEAKER_03: I appreciate it, and thanks for having me.
• 41:32
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, and and I want um everyone out there, you know, can you shout out your Instagram handle and anything you want, you know, people to really know as far as that counts?
• 41:42
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so you guys can follow us at Imaji Skin.
• 41:45
  SPEAKER_03: That's E-M I G-E-E-S-K-Y-N.
• 41:49
  SPEAKER_03: Also go check out our website, subscribe to our emailing list.
• 41:52
  SPEAKER_03: I promise you we won't spam you, you'll just get all the good stuff.
• 41:55
  SPEAKER_03: Um, imajiskin.com and that's image em I G E S K Y N.
• 42:00
  SPEAKER_03: So it's skinwithawhy.com.
• 42:02
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and you know, we just don't post into uh Instagram content.
• 42:06
  SPEAKER_03: We at we love to engage.
• 42:07
  SPEAKER_03: So if you have any questions, uh dive into our comments, we answer back.
• 42:11
  SPEAKER_03: If you have any questions, you don't want it on social media.
• 42:14
  SPEAKER_03: We do have our uh chat box on our website.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_03: Um, we do have our skincare quiz if you want to take that as well.
• 42:21
  SPEAKER_03: Um, yeah, and you know, just and you can shop on Instagram, you can shop on Instagram.
• 42:25
  SPEAKER_03: And you can shop on our Instagram, yes, you can.
• 42:28
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, shop on our Instagram.
• 42:31
  SPEAKER_04: Easy, but yes, I I I hope that everybody out there, you guys please, please, please go check it out.
• 42:36
  SPEAKER_04: I definitely stand behind Matt's brand.
• 42:39
  SPEAKER_04: It's amazing.
• 42:40
  SPEAKER_04: But thank you so much.
• 42:41
  SPEAKER_04: And I can't wait to hear your comments and questions.
• 42:44
  SPEAKER_04: And if you guys have any questions for Matt and his team, please leave them in the comment section.
• 42:48
  SPEAKER_04: I will definitely, definitely pass them along.
• 42:50
  SPEAKER_04: Um, and yeah, let me know what you thought of our episode.
• 42:53
  SPEAKER_04: Make sure you tune in and uh, you know, rate us on whatever platform you're listening to us on, and I'll be back next time.
• 43:00
  SPEAKER_04: Thanks, guys.
• 43:01
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 43:22
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• 43:25
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• 43:33
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• 43:50
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• 43:54
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• 43:59
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• 44:04
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• 44:11
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• 44:16
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you.