Acne compelled entrepreneur to create an all-natural skincare line that’s good enough to eat
- Superfoods such as turmeric, coconut and avocado oils are the foundation for Cocokind’s skincare line, which particularly targets acne sufferers
- Behind Cocokind is a former Wall Street analyst who turned her back on a financial career to enter an industry she ‘had no experience with’
In 2014, Priscilla Tsai was a successful Wall Street executive, working as a financial research analyst in the food category at JP Morgan. But, whether because of job stress or other factors, she found herself dealing with acne – and when antibiotics and other conventional treatments didn’t work, she began researching natural skincare products.
Tsai left her financial career in 2015 to launch Cocokind, an all-natural skincare line using ingredients you might find in your kitchen and bathroom cabinets – such as coconut, avocado, tea tree leaf and lavender oils.
“It was trial and error,” says Tsai. “I didn’t know anyone in the beauty industry, and I had no experience with making beauty products. I basically just experimented to see what would work on my skin.”
She learned about the healing properties of nourishing oils like coconut, avocado and olive, which she started applying on her skin and taking internally, mixed with other superfoods such as turmeric and spirulina, an algae. When she started to see a difference in her complexion, she knew she had developed an essential formula for Cocokind.
She initially launched five products – rose water, cleansing oil, skin butter, facial repair oil and lip balm – and her product range has since grown to more than 30. These include make-up products that incorporate ingredients such as mango seed butter and calendula extract, so they “have lots of skincare benefits”, says Tsai.