Green beauty is more than a trend: it’s transforming the industry. To find out way around it, Iris Gagnon-Paradis introduces you to a company each month that has attracted his attention.
IRIS GAGNON-PARADIS
LA PRESS
Patrice Mousseau, who came from the media world, didn’t intend on creating a product to soothe and treat sensitive skin prone to eczema and other skin problems. Yet that’s exactly what she’s done with Satya, a small company based in Vancouver that only sells one product containing— five ingredients!
THE LITTLE STORY
Living in Vancouver, Patrice Mousseau worked in radio and television. But she’s also, and more importantly, the mother of little Esme, who is now 7 years old. «Esme was only eight months when she started to suffer from eczema. Unfortunately, the doctor had no other suggestions than to prescribe steroid cream, which I didn’t think was the best option at all!”
What she found in store didn’t cut it, with the long lists of ingredients such as parabens and petroleum derivatives. Her research experience came to assist her: she set out to find natural ingredients that could really help her daughter. “I started looking at medical research, but also at traditional medicine. Then I simply took all the fruits of my research and started having fun with my slow cooker in my kitchen!” she said.
THE DNA OF THE BRAND
In her research, Mousseau focused on finding natural ingredients that had demonstrated their effectiveness, were safe and had anti-inflammatory properties. Her mantra: don’t add anything that doesn’t have a specific purpose. “We meet so many products that have a million ingredients. What I’m interested in is an ingredient that has a real effect.” She ended up, after trials and errors, with a formula that contains only… five ingredients! She tried the product on her daughter and the results were immediate. “In just two days, her eczema was gone!” she says.
HOW NATURAL IS IT?
With its five ingredients, the Satya balm is not only entirely natural, but also Certified Organic. The formulation contains organic calendula petals, sweet almond oil, beeswax, jojoba oil and colloidal oats. “In my research, I noticed that calendula is used to treat radiation burns. It’s incredible! However, I found that calendula extract, which is found in several products, is often obtained using benzene [I.e: a mixture of hydrocarbons].” To avoid this, Patrice orders calendula petals that she infuses directly into the oil.
Each ingredient has a specific purpose: sweet almond oil, rich in vitamin E, is a natural antioxidant while jojoba oil, very close to the oil produced naturally by the skin, is antibacterial. Beeswax is used to moisturize and protect the skin and colloidal oats is a well-known ingredient to soothe itching and irritation.
Why are we talking about this?
Patrice Mousseau was initially looking for a solution for her daughter. But having cooked large quantities of ointment, she began to sell it to friends and acquaintances. By word of mouth, with the help of testimonies of people for whom the product had done little miracles, she decided to start a serious business in 2015, after attending a conference on women in business and integrity.“I was so inspired to see these women entrepreneurs who put real values forward, who wanted to help people. That’s when I saw that maybe I had a bad perception, that starting a business wasn’t just about money and profits!” she says.
OUR VERDICT
Coming in a small glass jar, the balm has a solid texture that is amazing. But all you have to do is take a little bit of it from your fingertips and heat it up slightly so that it melts and spreads well over the skin – but not like a cream. We had to work a little bit to spread it all over my son’s skin, who suffers from eczema and just had a little flare up. The next day, we noticed a good improvement and, the next day, the almost complete disappearance of his eczema outbreak. The product is really ideal for treating localized irritations, inflammations and skin problems. We love that the formulation contains only five ingredients, which demonstrates by example the proverbial expression: less is more.
PRICE AND PURCHASE
Satya is a very minimalist brand: there is only one formulation, but offered in in several formats: the balm, which comes in a glass jar of 50 ml ($25.99) and a small format «travel» refillable ($31.99, with the jar of 50 ml). In the coming weeks, a “zero waste” format will be added in a biodegradable bag ($23.99, pre-order on the web only).
Satya products are offered online and in the outlets.
