Interview with Eza Borchardt

Why did you create these skincare brands?

Because I want to change how people care for their skin, positively impact our environment and communities, and make high-performing, safe skincare available to more people.

Can you tell us a bit about your vegan line Amazônica Brasil?

Amazônica is my heart project. I have always wanted to work with Amazonian oils, made of wild harvested fruits and nuts gathered in the Amazon Forest by the local families. Several years ago, these communities realized that harvesting the fruits of the trees was much better than cutting them down because the oils produced from these fruits and nuts were more valuable than the wood itself. They finally understood that by preserving the trees, they could continue earning income every harvest to support their families. Through research, I connected and partnered with an oil factory in that region that worked directly with these local communities. And that’s how my vegan skincare line was born.

Why did you develop a simple-to-use skincare brand?

Conventional skincare brands are more concerned with making a profit rather than treating your skin. The more products they offer, the higher their chances of making a sale. They use particular marketing tactics to convince consumers that they “need” several products to look good and young. However, our skin cannot absorb that many products at once. In fact, many of them don’t get absorbed at all (without adding an ingredient whose only job is to be a penetration enhancer) and sit on top of your skin, leading to microbiome disruption and dermal congestion. I believe this is too many unnecessary steps. 

What is your background in the skincare business?

I went to the United States as an exchange student.  Years later, I came back to the US to study medicine. I wanted to be a pediatrician with an undergrad in biology, my favorite subject. I’ve always enjoyed mixing and creating things. So, formulating skincare ingredients came quite naturally to me. I didn’t want to make another skincare line with many SKUs, so I focused on a few solid essential products that would be multifunctional and high-performance.

How did you get started?

I initially got the idea back in 2016, newly divorced, with a newborn and another young child. I had been laid-off and was looking for opportunities that I would enjoy doing and hopefully give me an income to support myself and my kids.  Unfortunately, I didn’t have the money to start a business, so I put it on the back burner.  In 2017 went back to school to get an international business degree, then I got a job with GOOP when they opened a pop-up shop in San Francisco.  I was fortunate to have first-hand experience talking to customers to learn about their needs and price points most of them were willing to pay and what was missing in the market.  At that time, GOOP had just launched its namesake skincare line to compliment other pioneering clean and safe brands.  When I saw this, I realized that clean beauty was the logical and ethical way to go.