Superflower The Everyday Serum & Carton (Lifestyle)
Superflower The Everyday Serum & Carton (Lifestyle
An indispensable element of grooming is facial serum. An altogether elegant as well as ecologically sound option is the most sought after product in today’s market. Consumer’s are seeking product where just a small amount of serum is sufficient enough to fulfill the need and will be a relatively rare occurrence – meaning once or twice per day. In the past, applications of serum often caused painful stinging. Nowadays, modern grooming products have a pleasant cooling and soothing effect on the skin. In fact, these serums which are specifically formulated to soothe the skin and produce a velvety smooth finish. So now, let’s talk about the benefits of CBD when formulated into its ultimate use-you.
Founders Cary Leitzes and Olivia Combemale launched Superflower in September 2019 because as two working women in their 20’s and 40’s, they couldn’t find a single skincare brand that was easy-to-use and maximized the benefits of CBD with really great, clean, and effective formulas. They didn’t feel the CBD products out there were safe and they didn’t feel that clean beauty products/brands understood how to properly use CBD.
Cary and Olivia initially became obsessed with CBD because of its incredible potential. But they quickly learned that not all CBD is created equal. Therefore, they tested everything — tinctures, balms, flower, edibles, oils, scrubs, and more —to make sure they felt confident about using an oil extract that they felt could make luminous, calm skin a reality. After two years of formulation and testing, Superflower’s Everyday Serum was launched.
Superflower The Everyday Serum
Sunflower
Will there be more products to come? Yes—but only if they further their mission to bridge the gap between clean beauty and CBD ingredients… and only if anyone, at any age, can share in the benefits.
The Everyday Serum is for anyone who wants to calm, soothe, hydrate and replenish tired skin. The unique emulsion defends against the loss of moisture, leaving skin absolutely radiant and glowing. From CBD, hyaluronic acid, grapeseed oil, jojoba oil and vitamin C; Every ingredient is included for a reason. No extra additives. Wear it alone or layer it under your favorite moisturizer.
Superflower The Everyday Serum (Lifestyle – 3)
Superflower The Everyday Serum (Lifestyle – 3)
As we are all aware, CBD is booming right now but what sets Superflower apart from the rest is the immense amount of time and research that the two put into making sure that Superflower is clean CBD accompanied with the right, pure ingredients to deliver actual results.
Superflower The Everyda Serum Carton
Superflower
I recently had the privilege of speaking with Superflower Co-Founders Cary Leitzes & Olivia Combemale about how Superflower is a part of a larger mindset and lifestyle that empowers and values a holistic approach to self-love and care, how CBD is a cannabinoid derived from hemp that interacts with our endocannabinoid system to help bodies maintain homeostasis, by regulating a range of physiological processes and why they manufacture in the US to ensure we produce our product with the best manufacturing practices and labor standards!
Cary & Olivia, Co Founders
Sunflower
Joseph DeAcetis: Talk to Forbes about the history, and development of Superflower and your personal background?
Cary Leitzes, Co-Founder:
“I have a creative agency, LEITZES&CO, that specializes in partnerships between brands and creatives to drive cultural relevancy. Current and past clients include Target, Tiffany & Co, Barney’s, Coca-Cola, and more. Prior to that, I was an editor at W Magazine and the Director of Photography at Harper’s Bazaar. Olivia, my Co-Founder and Partner, and I work together at the agency and over the years, we’ve done a lot of work together – some of which connected to beauty, but through a marketing lens, for established leading beauty brands such as MAC, Estée Lauder and Sephora. About 3 years ago, we took on a project where we helped bring a beauty brand to life, from start to finish. We brought in the experts and learned the entire supply chain. We fell in love with the process. What was disheartening and enlightening, was the toxic materials that we saw being put into the products and industry as a whole. Simultaneously, a few other things fell into place, and it became clear that we really wanted to build something of our own in the beauty landscape … We’re builders by nature and find immense enjoyment in process and learning. With our work in partnerships AND trend forecasting already in our wheelhouse we knew we would be able to bring this idea to life. We were passionate about cannabis, skincare, and health/wellness; a trifecta of three booming industries. I’m in my 40’s, Olivia’s in her 20’s and while there’s a big age difference between us – we share the same values, work ethic, holistic, health-conscious mindset and wanted to build a brand and product that embodied that same intention. From there, Superflower was born”
Joseph DeAcetis: In your words, what is your competitive advantage in the development of this specialized grooming product?
Olivia Combemale, Co-Founder:
“There are very few brands who put equal weight on understanding how to develop products for both the clean beauty, natural ingredient space, and the cannabis industry. We worked with a chemist who has years of experience in both disciplines. A rare combo. It was two years of back-and-forth about ingredients (for efficacy and quality), texture (the perfect emulsion versus an oil), dry-down (soaking into your skin, but still leaving you glowing) and scent (custom blended and hand selected). Incredible diligence went into the CBD sourcing – interviewing 20+ farms and committing to one of the few who had both the type of CBD and the quality control our customer deserves.”
Joseph DeAcetis: How do you intend to market to your target audience? What is your message?
Olivia Combemale, Co-Founder:
„Superflower is a part of a larger mindset and lifestyle that empowers and values a holistic approach to self-love and care. Superflower was created to be the healthier choice when it comes to skin, but our core values and brand ethos lay the foundation for how we speak to our consumer – whether through social, digital marketing, email marketing, in real life, and so on. While we are advocates of non-toxic and synthetic-free beauty, we don’t encourage an extreme approach to wellness, as we believe an obsessive mindset around health can do more harm than good. Instead, it’s about living consciously and making decisions that make you feel like the healthiest and happiest version of you. We believe clean beauty is one easy way to feel empowered by your choices and embody self-love.”
Joseph DeAcetis: In your words, what are consumers seeking today in a lifestyle grooming regime.
Cary Leitzes, Co-Founder:
“In today’s world where immediacy often supersedes excellence consumers are searching for healthy alternatives that will not interrupt their busy lifestyles; alternatives that contain all-natural ingredients that will allow them to feel good about themselves while also physically feeling the best they can. They want simplicity, transparency & results. Consumers want a product that’s trustworthy and easy-to-use, while helping to achieve their skin goals. Who has time a 12-step Korean regime? They want a great multipurpose product at a great value.”
Joseph DeAcetis: Talk to Forbes in detail about the current product offerings and why it is important for consumers to be aware of this brand?
Cary Leitzes, Co-Founder:
“Simply put, our formula. At the moment we have one hero product, a face serum that we spent 2 years developing and we think is worthy of the title – “The Everyday Serum.” We believe in the Steve Jobs model – starting with one product and doing it really really well.”
Olivia Combemale, Co-Founder:
“A serum is the workhorse of your beauty bag and the market lacks clean, effective, quality serums for a valuable price point. We began with an Everyday Serum, made up of natural ingredients including CBD as a key active, as well as Hyaluronic Acid, Vitamin C, Grapeseed and Jojoba Oils. The Everyday Serum’s essential oils and scent was carefully and whole heartedly sourced ourselves, creating a unique blend with aromatherapy benefits that go beyond the skin.”
Joseph DeAcetis: If you could choose one celebrity to represent your brand, who would it be and why?
Olivia Combemale & Cary Leitzes, Co-Founders:
“We could never have one face or celebrity represent our brand. We created Superflower for everyone. It’s the characteristics that we identify with these personas that are important to us – spirit, strength, unbridled passion, tenacity, empowerment and authenticity. Some individuals we really admire and possess these qualities are Maggie Rodgers, Serena Williams and Oprah, to name a few.”
Joseph DeAcetis: Talk to Forbes about what is unique about your brand?
Olivia Combemale, Co-Founder:
“First, our age span. Cary and I being 20 years apart is a key differentiator in our brand ethos and product approach. We use our shared mindset as a foundation for brand decisions, but the truth is we are at different stages in our lives and not only have different skin needs, but different skin types as well. It takes immense energy and patience to learn and experiment with clean ingredients that can garner great results at any age. In developing products, a key question given the ingredient passes our standards for clean has been, is this effective for people of all ages?
Second, our dedication to education and transparency. We feel strongly about spending time researching and vetting so our customer doesn’t have to. Our website includes a detailed ingredient glossary, a page dedicated to CBD education, and clarifies how we define clean – a very gray area in the industry. Our Everyday Serum carton also includes a scannable QR code that takes you to a PDF of our third-party test results for our CBD. This shows that our CBD has no THC, heavy metals, residual solvents, or pesticides.”
Joseph DeAcetis: What are your day-to-day responsibilities?
Cary Leitzes, Co-Founder:
“Each day is different. We built this from the ground up and it’s been a huge learning experience and labor of love. One day we’re planning a dinner with Gossamer and the next we’re becoming experts on the FDA’s latest CBD regulations or trademark. From the jump, many unexpected hurdles were thrown our way on a daily basis. The barrier to entry in the CBD space is high – if you are making long term decisions setting up the foundation in the right way.”
Olivia Combemale, Co-Founder:
“I’m more on the ground, running the day-to-day and anything that’s consumer-facing from the brand voice, product, social media presence, e-commerce and so on. Cary handles the finances, budget allocation, high-level networking and adds the creative magic that we need to really take things to the next level. We’ve naturally taken on different roles based on our strengths, but bounce things off of each other all the time. We work very collaboratively and are dividing and conquering as we grow.”
Joseph DeAcetis: Where is the product made and why?
Olivia Combemale & Cary Leitzes, Co-Founders:
“Finding a manufacturer with a track record in clean skin care AND experience with CBD was a Herculean task. Our product is made in California –chemist in Marin County and our Manufacturer in Anaheim. We vetted multiple chemists and several manufacturers before we found a fit. It was important for us to work with individuals and companies who had knowledge and expertise far beyond ours, as well as respected the level of transparency we required. We were very lucky to have Susan Griffin-Black, Co-Founder of EO, who was at the forefront of the clean space for the last 3 decades, an extraordinary human and mentor, as an advisor.”
Joseph DeAcetis: You have the floor: Talk to my viewers about why they should try Superflower now?
Cary Leitzes, Co-Founder:
“It’s a beautiful thing. The scent, the texture, the simplicity. We didn’t just white label or throw CBD into a formula and expect it would be great. It dries down fast yet stays super hydrating and dewy (but not sticky!). It’s synthetic-free, non-toxic, and cruelty free while fueling your skin with the highest quality ingredients it needs to maintain balance. We committed to care and tenacity to push through when we knew in our hearts it could be better.”
Joseph DeAcetis: What are the key ingredients and the properties that Superflower’s Everyday Serum carry?
CBD: We can’t make medical claims (that’s a big FDA no no) but CBD has been shown, through various scientific studies, to have a host of benefits and we encourage everyone to look into them. Big picture, CBD is a cannabinoid derived from hemp that interacts with our endocannabinoid system to help bodies maintain homeostasis, by regulating a range of physiological processes.
Grapeseed Oil: A great antioxidant packed oil for acne-prone skin that absorbs easily and creates a protective barrier while hydrating and healing. It’s non-comedogenic, which means it won’t clog pores.
Jojoba Oil: Soothing, softening, and hydrating, Jojoba Oil helps give skin that extra glow. Super lightweight like our skin’s natural oils, it penetrates the skin nicely. Full of antioxidants and nutrients like Vitamin E and B, it’s suitable for all skin types and also non-comedogenic, so it doesn’t clog pores.
Hyaluronic Acid: Naturally occurring in our skin tissue, think of hyaluronic acid as a magnet for moisture. The molecule holds 1000x its weight in water to retain moisture, hydrate, plump skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It also creates a barrier that can act as an antioxidant against free radicals in the environment.
Vitamin C: Vitamin C is well known for brightening, evening out skin tones and also acting as an antioxidant against free radicals in the environment. We use a non-acidic, highly stable form of Vitamin C, specifically known for its high efficacy over time and collagen synthesis stimulation for anti-aging.
Joseph DeAcetis: How are you making sustainable efforts in both product and packaging?
Olivia Combemale, Co-Founder:
“We manufacture in the US to ensure we produce our product with the best manufacturing practices and labor standards. Our ingredients are synthetic-free, and don’t support the use of any harsh chemicals in an effort to protect our environment.
Our frosted glass bottles come from Italy and are fully recyclable. Our paper cartons are also certified by the Sustainable Forest Initiative, which means they use forestry best management practices to protect water quality and take care of the environment when sourcing our fiber. Sustainability is important to our ethos and long-term commitment. We’re actively seeking new ways to implement sustainability programs and improve our packaging and best practices. My generation in particular will stand for nothing less than a commitment to change in this area. Myself included.”
Joseph DeAcetis: How many milligrams of CBD is in your Everyday Serum? Can you expand on why you chose to use a distillate form of CBD?
Olivia Combemale, Co-Founder:
“There are ~200MG of CBD in our Everyday Serum. We say “about” because it’s hard to get an exact amount when the concentration of CBD will vary from batch to batch. We are committed to always having at least 200MG per bottle. We chose a distillate for a couple reasons. First, because you get the benefits of the entourage effect, without the THC. The entourage effect reflects the fact that the whole plant is better than any isolated part alone. The cannabinoids and terpenes work together synergistically to create a greater impact than any single molecule would on its on. Second, because it’s still in an oil form (vs a powder like a CBD isolate), which gives you the hydration and natural vitamins you want for your skin.”
Superflower The Everyday Serum (Lifestyle – 1)
Superflower The Everyday Serum (Lifestyle – 1)