Latest / Skin Anarchy / E.309: Scientific, Sustainable and Sophisticated: The Trifecta of REN CLEAN SKINCARE

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E.309: Scientific, Sustainable and Sophisticated: The Trifecta of REN CLEAN SKINCARE · Skin Anarchy

• 0:11
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• 0:50
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome back to Skincare Anarchy.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_02: I have such a phenomenal guest today.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_02: I am a huge, huge fan of this line, and I can't tell you enough good things about it.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_02: And I don't think I need to because I'm pretty sure all of you know about you know Ren Skincare at this point.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_02: So without further ado, I want to introduce you guys to the global brand ambassador for Ren Clean Skin Care, David Delport.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome to the show, David.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_01: It is such an honor to host you.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_01: Oh hi, Edka.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you so much for having me and having us.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_01: It's it's really, really exciting.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I love this part of my job getting to speak about something that I'm so passionate about.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um and yeah, Ren, what an exciting place to be working right now, right?
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, no, it's such an exciting company in general, I think, for consumers and professionals.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_02: I cannot wait to learn more about it from you.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_02: But I want to get started um by really talking about you and your career because I know that, you know, to work for such a great brand, you've got to be equally amazing.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_02: So I would love to hear about you.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_02: And uh what led you're very kind.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um you're very, very kind.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_01: I think, you know, for me it was uh, you know, when I when I discovered Ren, it was like finding my my home and my tribe, uh, my sort of vibe of people.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I was a makeup artist for many years and I sort of got a bit burnt out doing the road shows and sort of eventing after eventing after eventing.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_01: And while I love the creativity of makeup, I kind of wasn't finding my family or or I would say my purpose with it within it all.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_01: But I always, you know, I've loved the beauty industry since uh, you know, I was a teenager.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_01: I've probably worked in the industry since I was 15.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and you know, I met I met up with some of the founders of Ren uh many, many years ago.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: It was about 15 or 16 years.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: I'm actually just coming up to my 15th or 16th year anniversary at Ren.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_01: And just chatting to them about what they believed in and this whole new way of creating cosmetics that no one else had had come up with.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_01: For me, it was super, super intriguing.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I think what drew me to the brand initially was, you know, it was the sort of place where you couldn't make a mistake, everyone was welcome, it was very inclusive.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it just felt like a wonderful thing to be a part of and truly something very, very different.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_01: So I left the the makeup world behind me, and I was, you know, I was a national artist for brands like Narris and Laura Mercy and Trish McAvoy.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: And then I started working for Ren.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_01: And I would say it was kind of like being a bit of an evangelist, going almost door to door, but not door to door, more store to store, and sharing this kind of really cool concept around um bioactive ingredients and clean beauty and um just a different way to deliver results that other people hadn't thought of.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, I mean, I just felt like something really special from the start.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, 16 years on, here I am.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I still wake up every day grateful that this is what I get to do.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_02: Gosh, that's such a that's such an impressive background, by the way, David.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_02: That's really, really cool to hear that you've been in the industry for so long.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_02: And oh yeah, you've seen that you you've seen the like the both sides, right?
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_02: It's like I feel like makeup so skilled in that way.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_02: Like you guys have seen everything in terms of you know what people want for their makeup, but then also the skin, and you understand the skin and the way that it moves and changes.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_02: So that's so exciting for me, you know, to learn that about you.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah, that's I mean, it's such a valid point.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_01: Like, you know, when when I was working with people like uh Laura Mercier, and I was very fortunate enough to do events with her, um, and people like Franchois Nars, it was all about that canvas, right, and perfecting the skin before you even pick up your foundation brush or your concealer brush.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_01: So for me as an as an artist, I was always obsessed with getting the skin perfect before the makeup.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_01: And there was, you know, with respect to makeup brands that try to do skincare, they don't always get it right.
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_01: And it's sometimes decent but not the best.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so when I discovered what Ren could do for skin alone before I even started working with makeup or with my clients, for me that was just that's what sold it to me, that I could transform and remedy issues that were going on in the skin almost instantly, but with serio irritation.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_01: And you'd be amazed how many times you would work with a makeup line, and then it's like it's the primer that makes them break out, or it's the moisturizer that stings their eyes.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_01: And I never had to think about that with Ren.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_01: It just organically worked very well with what I was trying to achieve, which was this really healthy, glowy, natural look.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_02: That's so, oh my gosh, I cannot um, you know, second that enough in terms of the sensitivity aspect that you mentioned, because this is something that, you know, like long before I even started this podcast, I mean, obviously I knew about Ren's skincare.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_02: And I was always like, if I need a product, that was like one of my hallmark go-to lines was you know, just get something by Ren, you're gonna be fine, you don't have to worry about sensitivity.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_02: And I want you to really kind of speak to us a little bit more about that, the sensitive skin, um, you know, heritage that Ren has.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_02: Because, you know, I oftentimes I'll hear about, you know, a skincare line, and they are always talking about, well, we're we're also good for sensitive skin.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm sitting here thinking, you should always be good for sensitive skin.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: You know what I mean?
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: Like, yeah, yeah.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_01: And this is kind of where the whole clean, you know, we did start the clean movement.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_01: And you say what you want about clean as a category today, rightly or wrongly.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, when we when we set out to create a new way of formulating, it was because our founder had incredibly sensitive skin.
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_01: Should, you know, it runs in her family, and she was pregnant at the time.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, your hormones and the stress of pregnancy can make your skin behave quite badly.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_01: And she was really dissatisfied with products she was using because, you know, she's a very smart woman.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_01: She could go to an inky list and go, well, this is something that I know is going to make my skin, looks going to trigger my skin.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_01: This is something I wouldn't choose because I'm pregnant.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_01: And that's kind of how the clean movement started for us.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so it was really about someone with truly sensitive skin wanting the results, but was not able to use traditionally formulated cosmetics.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_01: Now, this is not to say that those cosmetics are bad.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_01: We are not that brand that goes out and says these ingredients are toxic, these are harmful, because you know, within the industry, we know that everything has to be safe in order to be sold.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_01: But what I am saying is for a very sensitive skin type that still needs high-tech results from their products, you struggle because you're very limited, which is why we turn to these uh bioactive ingredients.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_01: So this was also a very pioneering concept working with plant chemicals as opposed to synthetic chemicals to get sensitive skin the results it deserves and wants.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_01: And at the same time, the product needs to feel good.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_01: We want you to love using the product.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_01: The texture's got to be great.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_01: There's got to be a fragrance sensorial, because sometimes, you know, we say having sensitive skin is tough enough.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_01: We shouldn't be limiting you to picking something up from the drugstore that is bland, boring, and feels medicinal, if that makes sense.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_01: So, yeah, there's a lot about Ren that's about the pleasure and how the product feels when it's touching your skin.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_02: No, I I completely understand what you mean about that in terms of like, you know, I actually had a conversation.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I I don't remember which episode it was, but we were talking about like drugstore products and how much money people spend on these uh products that are sold in drugstores, and they're just not, you know, it's like they think they're buying something that's less uh it's more cost effective.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_02: But really, what it's doing is you're buying things that are very synthetic, very, you know, just kind of not friendly for sensitive or even normal skin sometimes, you know.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_02: So I think that's yeah, like it's a huge aspect of like why I really love Ren because it's you know, I've never had any product give me any kind of bad reaction.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_02: If anything, it's just I've never had a bad experience.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_02: Like, let me just put it that way.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_02: Like it's never been a product that I'm like, oh, I don't like this one.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_02: I love every product I buy from Ren.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_02: And that's very rare for me, you know, in terms of a skincare line, because I'm definitely one of those people that's like mix and match, you know what I mean?
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_02: Like this, this company makes great, you know, this.
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_02: I literally told got my brother on to Ren.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_01: I I hear you.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, my whole family, everyone's converted.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_01: Even my, you know, even my dear old papa, he's uh, you know, he said, get me that green cream, and he puts it on after he shaves, which is of course the Evercalm Global Protection Day Cream.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: But I I love what you said because there's an element of Ren that's about trust.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_01: And I can fully give Ren to someone and know that they're not going to have a bad experience with the brand.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, over 20 years, touching thousands of skin around the world, I can honestly say I cannot recall a single moment where someone has had a reaction to the products in the chair when I'm doing a facial, prepping for a for a show, um, a fashion show, for example, um, sort of my celebrity clients, this just not this doesn't happen.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_01: So for me, that is a really truly magnificent thing.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_01: And I just, you know, I wish people out there would also understand how much sort of science and tech goes into creating a formula like this, because it is, believe me, it is it is not easy.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_01: We fail more often than we succeed when it comes to new product development.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_01: Because when a rent product launches, you know it's been through sometimes two or three years of uh of sort of process in order to get it to that point.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, it's something really quite special.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_02: That's so cool.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_02: I love that because that's truly in the in the spirit of science that you know that's that's what it takes to make a really good product or a perfect discovery.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_02: And I love that that's embedded into the brand's DNA.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_02: That's a beautiful thing.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_02: Now, you know, David, I want to ask you because you know, I know that you had mentioned the plant-based uh ingredients and high performance bioactives.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_02: I really would love for you to talk a little bit about that and give us examples because um, you know, one thing I, you know, I want to just actually say is that people, you know, often reach out to me and they're like, Well, is it easier for me to buy a line that's based on, you know, using plant-based or should I be, you know, working with the ones that are made in a lab?
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, well, you can't do it better than nature, so I don't even know what to tell you, you know.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know what's there.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_02: I would love for you to speak on that.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_01: This is it.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, this is almost like a whole podcast, right?
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_01: Because I'm sure you get this as well.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_01: You know, there's there's a big misunderstanding between the world of natural, the world of organic, the world of synthetic.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_01: And at the end of the day, everything's a chemical, right?
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_01: So we know that um things can be made in a laboratory that mimics something from nature perfectly.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but but you know, what we truly feel at Ren is that there is some kind of a synergy when you're using a plant chemical that we know has worked well for that plant and is doing something for that plant that your skin can also benefit from.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: And this is, you know, there's a lot of science and research that goes into developing these molecules.
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_01: Um, when you have these bioactive ingredients, bio from life, active, meaning clinically proven, um, it just seems to fit in with the chemical messaging of your skin perfectly.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_01: Like, you know, I'm gonna give you an example.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Biden's pelosa, which we we pioneered like more than 10 years ago.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_01: This is one of your retinal alternatives that everyone's using right now.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_01: This is a plant molecule that is essentially going to fit into that exact same receptor, that retinol will in your skin, to deliver that collagen result that you need, to be that antioxidant, to stimulate cell renewal, but it does this and avoids all the sensitizing pathways in the skin as well.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_01: So, this is also something it doesn't make you sun sensitive.
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_01: It's something that you can use when you're pregnant, it's pregnancy safe, but it's clinically proven to give you that retinol-like result.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_01: And this comes from a plant, this comes from a flower.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, how awesome is that that we can understand on a molecular level how these how these how these molecules can work with your skin.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I say speak the same language as your skin on a chemical level.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I think this is what's interesting for me is like you can get these results if you know the language of the skin, if you know the language of the plants.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_01: Because at the end of the day, it's like it's a key fitting into a lock.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_01: You've just got to find the right combination.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, this is where really the power of just nature and science um combined really comes in.
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_02: Because, you know, even from like my perspective as a researcher, when it comes to even something that's not even related to skin, you know, anything.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_02: It's like you always want to mimic what's going on in nature and learn from it.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_02: And the fact that so many people are now like deviating from that, it blows my mind because I'm like, you're never gonna find something as elegant as you would in just that normal environment settings.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_02: You know what I mean?
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_02: Like it's that's it.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: And isn't the irony that we're destroying the environment?
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_01: We're destroying access to all these beautiful things that are, you know, we probably know 1% about what's out there that we could tap into.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if we do it respectfully, how wonderful could that be?
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_01: And I think one day we're all gonna wake up and go, we've just made a terrible, terrible mistake because we've not listened to nature.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_01: We are so a part of nature that they are plant molecules that fit into our own chemistry.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, that that's not an accident.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_01: These things are not accidents.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_01: This is this is how closely related and tied we are to plant molecules, and we just need to sort of expand that science, open ourselves up to it.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, at the end of the day, it all comes down to the science and what works.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, Rennie's not a brand that's going to throw a little bit of flour water together and hope for the best and put a big price tag on something and wow you with fancy marketing.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_01: Everything we do is grounded in science and stuff you can find online data that's published.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_01: It's very, very cool.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_01: And for me, being like a science geek, I read a ton.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_01: I always need to go back and research these ingredients and find out where's that data coming from?
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_01: How is it being tested?
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_01: You know, how efficacious is it?
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, on top of that, you've got to put things through the um sort of the sustainability lens that we work on at Ren2.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_01: So for us to use an ingredient is like, you know, it's gone through a lot of process to get there.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_01: And for us, it's something incredibly precious.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's why REN just works so well.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_02: I can definitely see that.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_02: Now, I I I really want to um ask you, you know, you since you've been with Ren for uh so long, you know, tell me about your favorite products that you you love in the line, because I I think that'll give us our listeners like a little bit of a benchmark of where to start.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_01: Where to start?
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um, gosh, okay, that is always the toughest question I'm asked, but I'm going to say um I I'm currently obsessed with a product called the Bioretinoid Uh Youth Serum.
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_01: And this is in the bioretinoid range, which is a purple box, and this is about healthy aging.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_01: So essentially, this is a serum that uses that Biden's Pelosa, which is giving you the retinal boost, uh, the retinal type boost.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_01: It's got um niacinamide in, which is a molecule we all love in the industry, lots of ceramides.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_01: And for me, that just kind of took my skin up a step.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_01: I love that.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_01: But I'm also quite old school.
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_01: So I go back to some of the original masks rendered 15 years ago, like the glycolactic uh radiance renewal mask, which uses fruit acids to exfoliate tons of amigo oils, energizing factors in there.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_01: And then for the body, if I had to pick one product for the body, I would say the Atlantic Help range, which is a range I worked on.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_01: I'd helped develop.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_01: It's one of my babies.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_01: And this is all about releasing stress in your body via magnesium support.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_01: It's about using algae, which limits uh the destruction that cortisol has in the surface of your skin.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_01: It's just one of these ranges that is so modern and so on point in terms of what it's delivering for what we're all going through as humanity right now.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um, that I think everyone should have Atlantic help in the bathroom.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I know you've tried it as well.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm interested to see how you felt when you used it.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah, I'm obsessed.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_01: Are you kidding?
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_02: I'm obsessed with every other one has.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_02: Like it's it's literally like, you know, you I always try to explain this to people.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_02: It's like, you know, you treat treat your face so well, you spend thousands of dollars on your facial skincare.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_02: Well, your body is covered in the same thing, skin.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, like we need to like get back to what skin is all about, you know, it's a sensory organ, it's a protective organ, it's a it's a two-way street.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_01: Things are coming in, things are going out.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_01: It's uh and it doesn't stop at the neck, right?
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_01: So if we're gonna be taking skincare seriously, it needs to go through the whole body, which is like, you know, one of the things you're gonna see from Ren is is is this this emergence of high-tech body, which we started with Atlantic Help, we started with the AHA Smart Renew Body Serum, which is fabulous.
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and you know, I feel like you're gonna see more of that because yeah, uh, skin doesn't stop at the neck.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um, anyone in our industry will tell you that.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and there's also this amazing ability for these body products to to help you connect and reconnect with yourself.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's just uh it's not just about the product, it's about the touch, it's about the time you're spending on yourself.
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_01: And that stuff is becoming more and more important.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_02: And it's that, you know, you had mentioned like the sensory aspect, like that is so it's just so true because you know, when you are using body products, for example, it's supposed to feel like self-care, right?
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_02: You're not just trying to scrub away the day, you're trying to nourish your body, bring back the things that it lost during the day, bring back the things that help it heal from the day.
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, these are all aspects that I wish people understood when it comes to especially body care, because it's like, you know, you you don't want to be buying the terrible bath soap bar that you were buying in, you know, 1995.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_02: You know, we've come a long way since then.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we have.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I'm I'm like, I'm not about this fast food beauty industry, you know, like everyone bringing out new products all the time, a million different types of MPD.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_01: Everyone wants like the five-minute product, the two-minute product, the 30-second product hack.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm just about, you know what, just take a breath, take a moment, please, because you're using these things, they're they're a luxury.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_01: No one really needs them, but dare I say that.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_01: But it is a luxury.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_01: You you're doing something wonderful for yourself.
• 19:18
  SPEAKER_01: Enjoy that moment.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_01: You know, every culture in the world, going back hundreds and thousands of years, they connected to their bodies via plants and via massage and via touch, and we've lost all of that.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's why we are dealing with this sort of misery epidemic we're dealing with now, because we're not taking time to reconnect.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, absolutely.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_02: And also, I just want to say, you know, David, I know that when it comes to like, you know, I'm harping a little bit on body care, but I think this is such an important thing.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_02: And I, and Ren is definitely at the forefront when it comes to amazing body care products.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_02: So I just want to say, like, for everyone listening, if you suffer from like eczema or like psoriasis or anything that's like a it's it's a disease that impacts all over, right?
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, you need to really stop honing in on just creams and you need to start thinking about the full body ritual that you're going through.
• 20:11
  SPEAKER_02: Because a lot of times what I see customers doing or consumers doing rather is just, well, what's the right moisturizer for my, you know, this skin condition or this kind of rash that I experience all over my body.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm sitting here like thinking, you know, it's like a diet, right?
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_02: If you don't eat the right things and if you don't ingest the right amounts of nutrients, you're not gonna have a quick fix by just incorporating like one, you know, multivitamin shake in your diet once in a while.
• 20:38
  SPEAKER_02: That's not gonna do anything.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_02: So you have to really come back to this idea of preventative care.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_02: And that's where, you know, that's where skincare lines like Ren for me are extremely, you know, extraordinary because you're you're really you've got products that are targeting every angle of true physiological preventative measures so that your skin can become not only healthier, but maintain, you know, it's about maintenance.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_01: And so, you know, I just say that uh for everybody listening, it's important.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_01: I absolutely love that.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_01: And you've you've nailed it.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, you know, we we live in a world where we're always sold the quick fix.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_01: And it's like, you know, bless TikTok and things like that.
• 21:20
  SPEAKER_01: But um, you know, I see a lot of that sort of stuff going on social media.
• 21:23
  SPEAKER_01: But the reality is Ren was created for people who had real concerns with their skin and things that they wanted to tackle.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I think you have to look at this holistically, right?
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_01: And to your point, prevention is so much better than cure.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_01: And Ren is all about giving your skin these tools, and by tools I mean these plant chemicals that help your skin to be healthier and stronger every single day.
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_01: So it's that, you know, as well as making you feel good.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_01: So for me, it's just it takes every box and it makes a lot of sense.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_01: But I'll tell you, it's not been a it's not been an easy journey.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_01: And I think a lot gets lost in translation with Ren because it was a brand that was so far ahead in the future.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: um that that clients perhaps didn't always understand what we're trying to achieve with you know the healthy skin and the bioactives and the clean formulas and whatnot but i i still feel very firmly that this is a brand that's yet to come into its own we have not peaked um we're still quite a small brand but i i think we're future proofing ourselves i think we really are no i absolutely agree and i think that you know um it's it's for me when i look at rent i i see a very almost like an industry standard uh i could say as a brand but it's surprising to me how much people are investing in these just let's be honest BS products that are not from you know truly well researched companies and that's where I'm like you know why are you wasting your money and it goes back to my point about going to a drugstore and just buying a standard whatever it is that you buy this is not how you you know if you had a liver disease would you go and buy some cheap product from you know your local local drugstore no you go to the best of the best right and that's what you need to do for your skin your skin is an organ it is one of the most versatile organs we have and for me to watch consumers just you know waste their money on things that do not work in any way like scientifically you know actually like visible you I don't get it you know I just don't get it and it's it's really really baffling to me.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_01: And as an expert you must see this a lot because you know this is what you do and you are you know very qualified in this world you can read an ingredients list and you know I you know I'm not a chemist or a doctor but I've been around for so long that I I know my way around these ingredients and I can look at some of these inky lists and I go oh well that's nice a little bit of glycerin or a little bit of this a little bit of that a bit of fragrance and a little bit of vitamin C or whatever.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_01: And you know you're charging this for it and there's the wasteful packaging and there's this whole element where it's like you know we're buying this stuff on a whim to make us feel better.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_01: We're being overpromised uh the products don't always perform and this is kind of what Ren was wanting to challenge 20 years ago when we started it was all about no BS no smoke and no marketing smoke and mirrors it's just the truth about what your skin needs and hopefully in a pack in in packaging that is sustainable which is you know was a big move for us three years ago when we decided to become zero waste so there's a lot you got to think about and I know it can seem overwhelming but you know I always tell my clients listen Ren's done the work for you you've got more important things in life to get on with if you're using Ren you don't need to worry about your skin we got you we do the hard work for you get on with life um just just you know trust us and we got you and that's kind of what I think sums Ren up in many ways.
• 24:43
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah absolutely no absolutely I I think that you know I I couldn't support that statement enough and I couldn't support the brand enough honestly but I want to actually ask you and this is something that I think is very useful for everyone listening whether you're somebody who is a skincare savant or you're somebody who's just starting off I really want to know David what are some of your skincare rules to live by um if you were to give advice to anyone listening um SPF every day uh that is something if I could go back in time I would change.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_01: Being 42 this year I probably spent too much time in the sun without SPF when I was in my 20s.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_01: I also grew up in Africa so I had a lot of sun damage and I'm still trying to work on now.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_01: So that would be the big one um I would say uh keep it simple.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_01: Your skin is essentially an organ that is far more superior to any formula out there in terms of its ability to regenerate is always trying to strive towards being um healthy and strong and sometimes bad formulas get in the way.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_01: So you know if your skin's freaking out take a step back you don't need eight products at the same time.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_01: The most important thing for me and actually the thing that changed my skin was switching to a really good cleanser that did not strip my skin or disrupt my skin barrier.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I think the more that we're understanding now about skin and skin barrier and microbiome and all these things, the more I think that this is probably the future and I'm so glad that you know you may not know this about REN, but a lot of our products we're now doing testing and it's coming through that they are supporting healthy microbiome.
• 26:15
  SPEAKER_01: They're not disrupting your microbiome our cleansers were the first in the industry to not use the harsh surfactants that were traditionally used in cleansers.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: So you're actually supporting your skin barrier when you when you're cleansing and if you get your cleanser wrong everything else falls apart.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_01: So for me it's like great SPF, great cleanser and then just make sure you're giving your skin a little bit of those basics like your amica oils, your ceramides, something to nourish and support the skin barrier and I could probably get by on three products for the rest of my life and I know my skin's going to be great.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely no I love that I really love that.
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_02: And I, you know, can I just add that I'm so glad that you guys have not deviated from this idea of using good masks in a routine because I see so many lines that are getting rid of their masking products and it makes me actually very angry to see that because you know I love masks and I'm not even gonna lie to you sometimes there are days where I don't overcleanse my skin I use a mask instead.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_02: So I use like like for example your clay mask is something I absolutely love.
• 27:18
  SPEAKER_02: It's so good and I will use that some mornings like I'll just pop it on, wash it right off and then just put on like something super hydrating and moisturizing before my SPF.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_02: And it's actually better for my skin in the long run than using a super like you know what I mean like a surfactant rich cleanser.
• 27:35
  SPEAKER_02: Like it just it it makes my skin I feel like more balanced you know not only in that day throughout the week as well.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_01: So I mean the masks are so concentrated that we do like the the the the the mud mask you're referring to is just packed with spirulina and kale and clay and yeah it's detoxifying so it's you know it's a thing you're gonna put it on and it gives you that buffer for a couple of days I think against environmental toxins and that's why we designed it.
• 27:59
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah to your point there's always there's always time for a mask and much like you I will put my mask on as soon as I get out of bed in the morning I'll have my coffee I will take my time and then I'll just rinse it off in the shower.
• 28:11
  SPEAKER_01: So I don't want to hear that people don't have time for masks because that is BS and they have a real role to play in the screen.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_02: No if you don't have time for a mask I don't even know why you're listening to the podcast yeah exactly.
• 28:25
  SPEAKER_02: So I want to I could I want to move on and ask you about this um you know this zero pledge uh commitment that Ren has because I know you guys have been doing it right since gosh like you know are just the beginning of this uh millennium right I mean it's it's it's crazy to think about how long um you guys have been committed to this and I would love for you to speak more about you know some of the more meaningful moments and experiences that you've been part of um when it comes to the zero waste movement.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_01: Well you know it did start at the start of the company it's it's nothing new for us but it was something we certainly accelerated and refined over the last three years.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_01: You know Ren was always cruelty free we've always used vegetable inks we've always used less plastic we've always offered clients a free post address to recycle the packaging that we covered um it was it was something that's always been in our DNA and you know our our founder Jane uh is is someone who is very very much in touch with nature and someone who is you know loves nature but is also science science led.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_01: And for us it's something that we needed to to affect because we you know we acknowledge that as a cosmetics manufacturer one of the biggest things that we were seeing is single use plastic and you know you use a product you maybe don't like it you throw it away or you or you know it just doesn't get recycled at the end of the day.
• 29:43
  SPEAKER_01: So the thing that we could do that was meaningful and actionable was to say it was this is 2018 by the end of 21 2021 we are going to create all of our all of our packaging will be uh recyclable reusable or made from recyclable materials or previously used materials and that was a huge um pledge and it's something that we had to stick to so we held ourselves accountable and that was our zero waste pressure I'm very proud to proud to say that we did it.
• 30:11
  SPEAKER_01: I think it almost killed all of us at Ren.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_01: You know it was like it was like working for two different companies the one that was doing new product development and another one that was going back and and re-engineering every single piece of packaging that we have in the company.
• 30:24
  SPEAKER_01: So you know I would say the big moment for me was just being proud that we did it.
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_01: It cost us time it cost us money it cost us um probably our health at times through stress but it was something that was so much bigger than any of us.
• 30:39
  SPEAKER_01: And you know the the the thing about this was we wanted to show other brands out there that if a small brand like Ren can use innovation to bring new packaging out to the world that was uh you know challenging a status quo in so many ways they can too this is you know this is a shout out to the big guys out there listen we can do it so can you let's let's make this change um and that was for me a very very cool moment when we hit that milestone at the end of 21.
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_01: Another thing that I really particularly loved was you know it's a it's a very simple change but we immediately stopped um producing sachet samples in the so sachet samples in the industry all end up in landfill it's billions a year and those are like the little sachet samples you get in magazines and whatnot or you give it out free in store.
• 31:25
  SPEAKER_01: So we pioneered this aluminium tube which is reusable you snap the lid off it it turns around and becomes a lid you can reuse the tube you get a whole week's worth of product in a tube you get to really experience a product properly before you financially commit.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_01: And the best thing is it's made from previously recycled aluminium and it's 100% recyclable wherever you are in the world and this was a world first.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_01: So Ren as a small brand saved I believe it was something like 300 or sorry 3 million sachet samples from entering landfill and this is something we you know in 2018 when we started our pledge we just went from today we are no longer producing sachet samples so we decided we took the financial hit we took the you know maybe the hit on product exposure through free sampling but we committed and we did it and I think that is something to be really proud of it's not been easy.
• 32:17
  SPEAKER_01: I wouldn't say we've made the most money in the world over the last three years but as I said earlier I think you know we are future proofing ourselves and everyone at Ren is in this for the environment as well because you know we can't have good skin and you know excuse my effing up the environment at the same time it just is not sustainable.
• 32:38
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah no absolutely and you know what like truly hats off to you guys because you know you mentioned you guys took a financial hit for this I mean I really believe in this idea and call me you know call me a dreamer if you want but I believe in if you want to do something you better do it right.
• 32:54
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 32:54
  SPEAKER_02: You there's no cutting corners there's no time for the the fluff and the BS and it's not about making money it's about doing things with ethics and morals behind them and really making a mark in this world.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_02: And you know this really goes back you know I think even in like I could you not you know David when I first went into the medical field I used to have people ask me all the time well you know why are you why do you want to be a doctor?
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_02: Is it like something that you really want to do or is it for the money?
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like what the hell are you talking about?
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_02: If you want something it better be for the right reason.
• 33:25
  SPEAKER_02: You know what I mean?
• 33:26
  SPEAKER_02: Like and the same thing with entrepreneurship.
• 33:29
  SPEAKER_02: So I love that you guys do that.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_02: I love that you're you know you you don't just have words you have actions that have backed up those words and you're really becoming pioneers and leaders in this space for sustainability.
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_02: And I think there's a lot that brands can definitely learn from Ren when it comes to that because I'm still seeing so many brands that are doing nothing about the sustainability aspect.
• 33:51
  SPEAKER_01: Well you know the the clock the clock is ticking and I truly believe that the the ones that are going to survive are the ones that are making those changes.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_01: And you know even for me as an employee at Ren I I couldn't work for a company that didn't always have this as part of their DNA.
• 34:05
  SPEAKER_01: You know I I'm an environmentalist I grew up in Africa.
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_01: I've worked in conservation projects um nature for me is is the most wonderful most stimulating most important thing to protect my partners are marine biologists and a conservationist like our our household you know no one is perfect but I could not with good conscience use a product knowing that the ingredients are not sustainable.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_01: It's been tested on animals the packaging is single use um we're just yeah which I'm just not there as a human and I think there's a lot of people who I hope will join us on this journey.
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_01: And it's like you know like I said earlier we we're doing the work for you so that is one less thing for you to have to agonize over but I just hope that others will in some way get inspired and and move in the right direction with us.
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_01: And you know it's about sharing.
• 34:53
  SPEAKER_01: We are we're not a brand that's saying we're the best we've made plenty of mistakes believe me.
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_01: But what I would say is if we can at least influence and share some of this technology with other brands it's all open source we will give you we will show you how to use these aluminium sample packs.
• 35:08
  SPEAKER_01: We will give you the name of the people who use you know who create our our our packaging if that's what you want to do too.
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what it's about because you know there's there's there's enough to go around but I think we all need to be on the same page when it comes to the environment.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_02: 100% and that's such a beautiful statement and I thank you so much for sharing that on air and if there's any entrepreneurs listening um please you know take David up on that offer get that information get that knowledge because you know there's very few brands that are not only doing it right but they have the you know the the aspiration to really kind of share it with the world you know in a meaningful way.
• 35:48
  SPEAKER_02: And that's something that is really really unique.
• 35:51
  SPEAKER_02: It's something that's just I can't even say enough good things about it.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_02: So thank you so much David this has been so lovely hosting you and learning about the company it's it's such a beautiful brand for me.
• 36:01
  SPEAKER_02: I've always been a fan I will I'm even a bigger fan now and I will always be a fan.
• 36:05
  SPEAKER_01: So oh that is so kind.
• 36:07
  SPEAKER_01: Honestly it's it's such a pleasure I'm just I'm just a thrill that you um that you love the products that you love what we're doing.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_01: And thank you for for giving us the opportunity and the platform to share what we're so passionate about.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_01: It's been amazing.
• 36:21
  SPEAKER_02: Oh no it's such an honor and everyone listening if you have not already done so definitely go check out Ren's skincare.
• 36:28
  SPEAKER_02: I will be tagging everything in the concept art for this episode and definitely um you know shoot us some questions some comments and if you have any questions for David you know send them along and I'll pass them to his team and we'll see what if we can have him back to answer some of those questions David that would be great.
• 36:43
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely yeah you can find me on Instagram as well I'm David Ren Skincare very easy to find um I'm very approachable I don't bite um and I look forward to hearing from all of you yes thank you so much to everyone listening and I will be back next time hey guys so I hope you love that episode please make sure to hit subscribe if you're tuning in to us on any podcast platform we are available on so many different platforms so wherever it is that you're tuning in just go hit subscribe you will be immediately notified when we publish new episodes this way you're able to tune in to amazing insights from experts brand founders industry leaders authors all the wonderful people that we host and that's very important for me because I love to hear from you guys and really understand what you love and what you want to hear more of.
• 37:31
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• 37:38
  SPEAKER_02: We also have a blog on Medium so if you're a reader and you love medium blogs check us out on Medium.
• 37:44
  SPEAKER_02: We publish some really great articles on there that do deeper dives than just what's available on the podcast and it's really a great place for all of you science geeks out there that want to learn a little bit more.
• 37:54
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• 38:01
  SPEAKER_02: So check us out leave us a comment leave us a review and we'll be back next time with another episode.
• 38:06
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.