Gold Coast vegan skincare label Neek Skin Organics — founded by Angelique Ahearn — grows slow and steady

Neek Skin Organics founder Angelique Ahearn has faced all manner of challenges in her first years in business, but the pay-off may be just around the corner for her all-natural vegan products.

NEEK Skin Organics founder Angelique Ahearn has faced all manner of challenges in her first years in business, but the pay-off may be just around the corner for her all-natural vegan products.

Her ‘Pash’ lipstick is a finalist in the 2018 Clean Beauty Awards run by North American certification body CertClean, UK online supermarket Ocado started stocking Neek products in January and her Gold Coast business has 20 new products set to be launch in the next two years.

Ms Ahearn is forecasting 20 per cent growth this financial year after business grew two-and-a-half times in the first four years.

However, the outlook for Neek was not always so bright.

Cashflow, margin-hungry retailers and an evolving industry landscape have all been hurdles to overcome.

NEEK Skin Organics was founded in 2014. Picture: Tertius Pickard

Ms Ahearn’s background is in marketing, first at Vodafone, then the Sunday Mail in Brisbane, before she started working with Gold Coast skincare company MooGoo in 2011.

“We grew the business so much that I ended up going and setting it up in the UK,” she said.

While in the UK she noticed a shift towards vegan or cruelty-free skincare products.

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Ms Ahearn said she had maintained an interest in natural skincare products since her youth.

“I had lots of skin allergies when I was younger so I wouldn’t use the major brands because I would get an awful rash,” she said.

“I had to use olive oil to use make up and scrubs with avocado. When vegan products came on the shelves I was intrigued but they always smelled disgusting, they were lumpy and separated. They also came in this ugly packaging you wouldn’t put on your bathroom counter.”

Angelique Ahearn is the founder of NEEK Skin Organics. Picture: Tertius Pickard

Ms Ahearn said when she returned from the UK in 2014, she decided to have a go at launching her own products that looked and smelled good while being kind to the environment.

She said views about vegan skincare products then were much less favourable.

“When I first starting pitching the product five years ago, people would say they did not care about vegan products,” she said.

“Even though it was a challenge in the beginning the pay-off is we are one of the first to do it.”

She launched the first Neek products, four lipstick shades, in 2015, using organic ingredients such as wattleseed and environmentally-friendly paper tubes.

NEEK Skin Organics was founded in 2014. Picture: Tertius Pickard

“I decided to go for lipsticks. I could not find any that were vegan and did not have any chemicals,” she said.

The act of pulling together from suppliers all the different components for a lipstick tube was difficult, she aid.

“I knew it was going to be hard in terms of the componentry and that is why I invested in really good inventory software at the start,” she said.

“That was a huge investment.”

Ms Ahearn said another challenge was managing cashflow when launching products to the market and while waiting for the profits to come back in.

She said this was a particular issue when releasing her skincare range of vegan face moisturiser and cleansers.

“By the time the orders were filled and got into shops it was a two-year turnaround before I saw a return on my investment. I did not anticipate that it would be that slow and that was a learning curve.”

She said she had to push hard to make it through that period.

“I had a young family. I’ve always been a hard worker but this was next level because I was trying to get the products in the UK markets. I was talking to them at night and packing the products and it was really hard. I got burnt out. I thought I have an asset and I just have to keep going and push through this.”

Ms Ahearn said she has also had to knock back some retailers because they did not fit in with her approach to business.

“There was a big pharmacy chain in the UK that were keen to take us on board but they wanted really low-cost products,” she said.

“It was fast-moving goods. I was thinking that would be amazing but I thought long term they are turning us into their model where we will be one of those products that end up in a discount barrel.”

She said the approach has been hard but worth it.

UK online supermarket Ocado, which was valued at £10 billion following a supply agreement with Marks and Spencer, recently made the decision to start stocking Neek.

Ms Ahearn said it has been a hard path, but worthwhile.

“I’d rather grow slowly than too fast.”