The world needs more women like Natassia Nicolao, an innovative young Australian quietly getting on with making our world a more equitable, sustainable place, through smart businesses.
At Alberts we know how important it is to back diverse founders and support equality. With only three per cent of Australian VC funding being invested in women-led businesses, we are proud of the fact that 52 per cent of our portfolio have female founders.
In the spirit of celebrating pioneering women on International Women’s Day we are highlighting Conserving Beauty and the incredible powerhouse behind it.
Spotlight on Natassia, founder and CEO of Conserving Beauty
In November 2021 Natassia launched Conserving Beauty, Australia’s first waterless skincare brand that doesn’t compromise on quality but saves water, carbon and waste.
The self-professed ‘total science geek’ had completed a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry before working in product development sustainable sourcing and supply chain for companies including WelleCo and Swisse.
As she became more aware of the serious global problem of depleting water resources and a rapidly expanding population Natassia knew the beauty industry needed to change the way it did things.
“Most beauty products contain up to 70-90 per cent water, plus there’s thousands of litres of water used to create that product in the supply chain,” she says, noting also the huge carbon emissions from the manufacturing process. This isn’t the only environmental burden. Convenient disposable make-up wipes and wet wipes are regularly flushed down the toilet, resulting in 75 per cent of sewerage blockages in Australia, and 93 per cent in the UK, a costly and avoidable environmental hazard.
Combining her science background and supply chain experience Natassia developed a range of effective, waterless beauty products that bring together the best of science and nature.
Conserving Beauty’s most popular products are its InstaMelt Day Dissolver Wipes and InstaMelt Sheet Masks. They don’t contain any water, don’t use water in the manufacturing process, are completely dissolvable and equally great for your skin. Not only that, the packaging is completely home compostable.
“They don’t leave any waste or microplastics behind so if you were to flush them down the toilet they’re completely safe for our waterways,” says Natassia, 29.
While a lot of the big brands such as L’Oreal are now exploring waterless beauty products, Conserving Beauty is well down the track. “We’re envisioning over time our products will end up replacing the conventional everyday make-up wipes.”
Conserving Beauty is already available in MECCA Australia and New Zealand, Cult Beauty in the UK and launching into Space NK in May with plans for the US. Their next product is a pimple patch using nano technology to spin ingredients to form a web-like material that’s waterless and dissolves into your skin, completely plastic-free.
“We exist to conserve our beauty and our skin, but also the planet’s beauty.”
Which woman most inspires you? Hands down my mother: a strong, immigrant (Greek) woman who gave up everything to move to Melbourne and give her kids a better life in the hope we could make an amazing life for ourselves. She leads with positivity and grace and will look for the solution, rather than the problem, something that’s had a huge impact in my life because if you’re trying to innovate or create a brand you need to be solutions-focussed.
What advice do you wish you’d received? It’s OK not knowing how to do everything, just be resourceful enough to go and find the right answer or person who does know. And don’t be hard on yourself for not knowing everything, because you don’t need to.
How will you be spending IWD? I’m going to be celebrating with my team. I’m really proud we’re female-led, we have an all-female board of directors and so many wonderful female investors. I think it’s important to stop and celebrate how far we’ve come and what we’ve been able to achieve, because as a start-up we’re always focussed on what’s next.
