Flow Cosmetics: Aromatherapy Meets Organic Skincare
Sustainability is a big concern for shoppers in the UK and worldwide, not only when it comes to fashion, but also with makeup and skincare. Many mainstream skincare brands contain harsh ingredients for the skin, and these past few years, many people have made the switch towards more sustainable skincare, and ethical skincare that doesn’t harm animals or the environment in its manufacturing processes.
We had a chat with Flow Cosmetics, a Finnish brand of eco-friendly skincare and makeup that prides itself on being sustainable and organic, to see why sustainable skincare is important and how it’s different from traditional brands.
Can you introduce the brand and the founder(s)?
Flow Cosmetics is a manufacturer of organic and natural products. We create products for skin and hair care as well as makeup products. The company was founded by Riitta Jänkälä. Nowadays Riitta’s daughter Suvi is running Flow Cosmetics with her. Flow Cosmetics is a natural cosmetics pioneer in Finland and our handcrafted products have established themselves among quality-conscious consumers. This is because our products are clean and high-quality, mostly produced from organic raw materials and made with love for nature and human beings.
How did you come up with the idea for Flow Cosmetics, and why?
Riitta is from Northern Finland and like for many Finns, nature is a really big part of her life. Riitta was previously working in a beauty salon and started to think about the daily chemical load coming from the products she used. As a busy businesswoman and mom, Riitta didn’t want her kids to be exposed with additional chemicals. As Rita’s family was already eating healthy, she decided that the next step was going to be focusing on what was applied to her family's skin. Riitta started Flow Cosmetics in 2004 by making natural and aromatherapeutic soaps in her kitchen. She was very interested in natural skincare and also loved bar soaps, which led her to develop soaps as Flow Cosmetics first products (they are still one of our most popular products!). Riitta’s soap business was a success! You see, back in the early days there weren’t many natural cosmetic products available in Finland and the natural cosmetics weren’t trending like they are today!
What is your professional background and expertise in skincare?
Riitta holds a diploma in aromatherapy and is a self-taught cosmetics formulator. Her previous career was in hairdressing and beauty treatments. Riitta is a real innovator and does things guided by her strong intuition.
What is your philosophy as a brand?
Everything must be as natural as possible and organic if available. We don't make compromises with the ingredients. We focus on quality over quantity and most of the manufacturing processes are done by hand at our factory. Aromatherapy is also close to our hearts and that is why we want to make products that take care of both the mind and the body.
How do you see Flow Cosmetics' future, and what are your next steps?
Just under a year ago, we relaunched the brand with lovely new products and a new design. We will continue to develop new products that will complement the line. We also want to continue to focus more on aromatherapy in the future. Also, we're looking into reducing our carbon footprint and trying to find a way to make our use of plastic in the packaging we use as minimal as possible. The packaging we use at Flow Cosmetics is already almost plastic-free packaging, so from now on we want to focus on getting our makeup line as close to zero waste as possible. This autumn our second brand, the makeup line Korento that was launched in summer 2018, will be getting new packaging.
