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Leicester graduates launch cosmetics brand
2021-07-27
By Katrin Scionti
Hello, I am Katrin, scientist and entrepreneur. My partner Alvaro and I have founded Gamanity Health and Cosmetics, a natural cosmetic company officially registered in 2020, but already existing the year before.
Both of us are scientists. Alvaro is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Department of Chemistry, while I have recently completed my PhD studies in Immunology at the Mayer IgAN laboratories, both of us at University of Leicester. Currently I am working as Scientist at the Biotechnology company Galapagos NV, in Mechelen, Belgium. We both love science and want to contribute to people’s health using our knowledge and experience.
We got the opportunity to progress a lot in our business during the pandemic restrictions of 2020. In just less than one year of activity we registered Gamanity at the Company House, we certified two formulations under strict EU-UK regulations, we won the Santander Seed Funding through the support of the Leicester Innovation Hub and started online trading in Europe and Mexico.
The idea of funding a natural cosmetic company goes back some years. During our childhoods and while growing up we have always been in close contact with nature. While loving being immersed in nature, we could not help noticing the increasing pollution in the surroundings and decided to take action. During some journeys around the world Alvaro realised how local communities are able to live in sustainable ways and he felt inspired in understanding better about natural remedies and properties of natural ingredients. The way I approached natural ingredients was different. Since I was a teenager, I suffered of bad skin conditions and tried many products that did not help me. Frustrated of not finding any solution to the problem I started looking into natural recipes and homemade solutions. These were making me feel better.
Gamanity was founded with the intention to create better formulations that avoid harmful chemicals and at the same time to create a community that not only is better informed about the products and the ingredients used, but also more conscious about the social and environmental issues.
For all the products we formulate, we choose eco-friendly plastic-free packaging. Not only that, but we also offer refills options that can be found in eco-friendly shops. Currently, you can find our product at Just-Fairtrade shop in Leicester UK and Kabas in Mechelen Belgium. We also have distribution channels in Italy, Austria and Mexico.
Besides focusing on our products, we organise events to support the empowerment of women by inviting inspiring speakers who lead motivational talks. We want to share amazing stories and encourage every girl and woman to believe in themselves and in their dreams. In future, we would like to collaborate with a charity that supports the employability of women and girls.
Also, Gamanity supports ecological activities and sustainability. We have recently started a collaboration with Swimtrekking, an Italian swimming club that combines open water swimming with education about environmental issues and awareness of plastic pollution in natural places.
We are very thankful to our families and all the people who are supporting our project. Finally, we would like to share why we chose the name GAMANITY. It derives from the Japanese word GAMAN, which means PERSEVERANCE, ENDURANCE: keep insisting and follow your dreams!