‘Tragic’ reason behind Aussie sisters’ brand Outside Beauty & Skincare
The Aussie actor and her sister have revealed the personal tragedy that sparked their booming business.
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Australian actor Maddison Brown and her sister, Allyson Popovic, know all too well the importance of sun protection.
Their father’s best friend passed away from melanoma in his 20s and the sisters say they have always understood the importance of sunscreen from a health perspective.
“Ninety per cent of women have a skincare routine, yet only half of us use sunscreen daily, and only around 10 per cent top up regularly to maintain that protection,” the sisters tell news.com.au checkout.
“The gap was so jarring to us that we wanted to do something about that.”
And do something about it, they most certainly did.
Since its launch in January 2023, their company, Outside Beauty & Skincare, has quietly become one of Australia’s top SPF beauty brands. Its best-selling product, SPF50+ Lip to Cheek, sells every four seconds at the start of summer.
In October 2024 the brand was picked up by the popular womenswear brand, DISSH. And just last month, in December 2024, it launched on Aussie retail juggernaut Adore Beauty.
These launches have seen the brand double its revenue from 2023 to 2024 and this is set to increase again with international expansion next on its radar.
And a week ago, the brand had its first ever five-figure day.
“Australian sunscreens are world class and we are looking forward to seeing how the world welcomes Outside Beauty & Skincare,” they say.
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The brand launched with just two products, a mineral-based SPF 50+ Lip to Cheek Balm and SPF 50+ Face Mist. They say these were the two biggest gaps they immediately saw in the SPF space.
Outside Beauty & Skincare SPF 50+ Face Mist
“SPF needs to be reapplied every two hours to maintain its protective benefit but that is not widely understood and it is not always practical to do that over make-up,” they say.
“Our SPF50+ Face Mist is a 100 per cent clear, lightweight product that can be reapplied over make-up every two hours with a beautiful botanical scent.”
“Our SPF50+ Lip to Cheek was also a gap, people love multi-use products like Lip to Cheek that are effortless and easy to apply,” they say.
“The lips are a huge oversight with SPF application and are just as important as the rest of your skin.
“Chemical SPF formulations leave an awful bitter aftertaste so we were determined to make something that didn’t do that.
“The mineral-based balm tastes just like a lipstick and we specially formulated the launch shade to be a universally flattering colour that doubles as a cheek tint.
“We also added vitamin E and cocoa butter to give it a lovely nourishing finish.”
Outside Beauty & Skincare SPF50+ Face Crème
The most recent product to come to market is the SPF50+ Face Creme. It launched to a waitlist of 10,000+ and has already become a big mover, the sisters say.
Since its launch in November, the brand has already seen some customers make a return purchase four, five and even six times.
On a personal level, Allyson, a 32-year-old mother of two, says it’s one of her favourite products.
“I have very dry skin so my skin just drinks this in and it leaves the most beautiful luminous glow,” she says.
“Since I started using it I have received many compliments on my skin and people ask what I’m using and my answer is always our SPF50+ Face Creme!”
Outside Beauty & Skincare SPF50+ Mineral Primer
“My favourite product is the SPF50+ Mineral Primer, it’s literally like a magic skin salve that calms and soothes any inflammation going on,” says Maddison, 27.
“It’s hydrating, melts into the skin and has a pore-minimising effect, it has kakadu plum and hyaluronic acid so I feel like I’m giving myself a facial every time I wear it, but it’s actually sunscreen. It’s so crazy.
“I apply it every day with our kabuki brush which is so chic (if I do say so myself, I might be biased) and just a joy to use,” she raves.
‘I’M A VERY PROUD AUSTRALIAN’
By the time Outside Beauty & Skincare launched, Maddison had been living overseas for roughly 11 years.
Despite this, The Dynasty star she still felt very tapped into the Australian market.
“One thing about me, I’m a very proud Australian, I’ve always made it a priority to spend as much time in Australia as possible – even when my job has taken me elsewhere,” the 27-year-old says.
“I felt like I understood what people would like or dislike having grown up in Australia and worked so much in fashion and beauty.
“So it felt like an obvious no-brainer (to launch the business in Australia), plus as a bonus, I spent way more time at home because of the brand than I have in the past 11+ years.”
‘SUNSCREEN FOR SKINCARE LOVERS’
“We wanted to create an elevated skincare brand that had therapeutic grade sun protection,” they say. This evolved into their mantra; sunscreen for skincare lovers.
Even though Australia has some of the toughest sunscreen regulations in the world and is stacked with other brands, they had no doubt this is what they wanted to do.
“We have some of the highest skincare rates in the world,” says Maddison.
“There was a very real need for a brand like ours to reach a broader sector of the growing market, to get those customers who felt isolated by loud branding and kitschy names and viral ‘click-bait’ style marketing.
“Sunscreen is medicine, and I felt it was so important to educate people on that while making multifunctional products that feel, well, cool.”
Similarly, Allyson says they “wanted to create SPF that people desired, not they felt had to use – something they look forward to in their daily life.”
‘SKIN HEALTH HAS ALWAYS BEEN IMPORTANT TO ME’
As a working actor and a model before that, Maddison has been exposed to a lot of beauty products in her career.
“Skin health has always been important to me, I started out as a model and it was ingrained into me at a young age that good skin starts with taking really good care of your skin, getting enough sleep, eating well and more importantly sunscreen. Every single day,” she recalls.
Similarly, this passion for skincare was instilled in Allyson, who has a background in life sciences and pharmaceuticals including senior roles such as Head of Sales & Marketing.
“Sunscreen is a wonderfully complex space in the beauty and skincare area which I have been able to help the brand navigate given my long history of working in TGA-compliant products and markets,” she says.
“Building our presence over the last two years has been so rewarding and we are seeing a huge exponential growth point this summer.”
Maddison also says the brand is at a “really exciting inflection point, sitting on the precipice of a lot of growth”.
Watch this space.
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