COSMOFACTORY

Deanna: [00:00:00] This episode is about modern Mexican beauty. It's about building a heritage brand. About creating premium beauty and lifestyle products, and it's about championing a body care ingredient that is culturally relevant and environmentally sound today. My guest here on the Cosmo Factory Podcast is Sandra Velazquez, founder of No Pollara.
Deanna: Sandra, welcome to Cosmo Factory.
Sandra: Thank you so much for having me.
Deanna: Yeah, you're welcome. I'm very excited about this conversation. Um. [00:01:00] I, I do know a little bit about cactus. Um, I grew up, um, in rural Montana in the us and so when I was little, there were, um, some prickly pear cactus in our yard. Um, and I moved to New York City and I found out how to eat cactus.
Deanna: Um, but that's most of what I know. I know what it looks like and I know it's delicious. Um, but it's, um, a wonderfully distinctive plant. Beyond that, would it be right to say that cactus is the hero ingredient of your brand?
Sandra: It is, and actually the fact that you know what it is and that you've eaten it, you're way ahead of most people. So it is the star of the brand, so much so that I named the brand after it because Nora, for anyone that doesn't know, is simply the Spanish word for prickly per cactus.
Deanna: Excellent. No, I love it. Um, so tell us more. Tell us why Nepal is such a fabulous beauty ingredient.
Sandra: Well, like you, I grew up with it. It was everywhere. It's, it's always been in my parents' front yard, backyard growing on the [00:02:00] sides of the freeway. Almost so much everywhere that you don't even see it. And I also grew up eating it. Um. I think I really, just like most of us, I grew up with things. We take it for granted until we move far away from them.
Sandra: And then we're like, wait, where is that? Um, and so I like to call it the most Mexican plant ever because if you look at the Mexican flag, there is a Nora or a prickly per cactus on the flag. And there's a beautiful legend behind why that is. But it's just so culturally symbolic to anyone from Mexican heritage and.
Sandra: It's just so versatile. I really, when I had the idea for, for the brand, when it kind of came to me like a lightning bolt, my first thought was, why hasn't this already been done? Because this is a plant that is abundant, wildly abundant, wildly resilient. You cannot kill this plant. You can cut it and throw it across the yard, and a new one will grow.
Sandra: You can eat it. So you can [00:03:00] literally sustain yourself from it. It is drought resistant. People are making alternative, um, textiles, like vegan cactus leather. It can clean water. Um, and the. It's incredibly hydrating and, you know, moisturizing for the skin and hair, not just in the pad, which is the part that we eat, the green pad, similar to how aloe vera has, you know, a kind of gelatinous, what we call in Spanish, LA Baba in the middle, but also the seeds of the prickly pear fruit, which is the luxurious part of the plant, which has been used in prestige skincare for quite some time.
Sandra: That's not new, but you mostly see it in prestige skincare. You don't see it in body products or, or really anything else. So. Um, we decided to put this star ingredient in body products.
Deanna: Right.
Deanna: No, I love that. Um, and, and there is, um, a figure, um, I found this on Wikipedia. I did not know this, but there, um, are an estimated, uh, 7 million, 400,000 acres of cultivated [00:04:00] Nepal in Mexico. Um, and I, I understand that that figure actually includes Nepal that is also growing in the wild, but then cared for and harvested, so therefore cultivated.
Deanna: Um, however, sourcing, um, Nepal is not as straightforward as one might assume. Can you talk about the availability of this ingredient?
Sandra: Yes. This is something that whenever I've pitched to retailers and they wanna understand, uh, you know, sustainability story, um, the, is. Is wildly accessible. It is not hard to get, especially not the prickly, the the pad, because that is year round. The fruit, what we call in Spanish, the Una or in English, the prickly pear fruit, right?
Sandra: The reason it's called prickly pear cactus is because the fruit looks like a pear. So the the red bulb that grows off of the edge of the green pad that is seasonal. And that gets cultivated and then, you know, if the seeds get extracted, the oil gets extracted from the seeds, and then you make prickly paired oil.
Sandra: The pads, however, are just [00:05:00] always growing all the time everywhere in all over the world, not just Mexico. So we've never had an issue. Sourcing it. We get the, the cactus from Mexico. The very first cactus soaps I ever made were made from the cactus from my parents' front yard. But that was obviously not going to be, uh, sustainable.
Sandra: So, um, now it's just sourced from Mexico usually. Um, most of the northern Mexico I.
Deanna: No, that's helpful. Thank you. Um, and I know, um, over the past years, maybe at least five years, the cosmetics and personal care industry has seen, uh, greater demand for regionally sourced ingredients, um, as well as for regional production, uh, manufacturing co-packers. Um, and this is true, I think regardless.
Deanna: Of the region we're talking about, not just here in North America. We see this demand all around the world. Um, and I did actually get to speak with a group of companies, uh, called me Pack when I was at Cosmopolitan North America in Miami earlier this year. Um, this group, uh, produces fine fragrance, uh, scented personal care as well as some candles and, and one of the companies in that group.
Deanna: It's [00:06:00] called glass and glass as you, uh, won't be surprised to hear they make glass bottles, um, for fragrance, for beauty, for other industries. Um, there's a Mexico based fragrance house that's part of the group as well as a couple, um, contract manufacturing companies. Um, and certainly there are other, uh, contract manufacturers or co-packers in Mexico.
Deanna: But you've suggested to me in, in past conversations that there there's more demand perhaps than there are services available. Um, has that been your experience? Do I have it right?
Sandra: That has a hundred percent been my experience. And I think now in this moment that we're in where there's these looming tariffs and we talk about getting product. From other countries. I think every beauty owner would love to get products from the USA, you know, raw ingredients, you know, packaging bottles, et cetera.
Sandra: But they're just not available. The factories don't even exist here. And so, and then going to Mexico. I have found that there are factories there, but they are huge. So we're talking, you know, a [00:07:00] hundred thousand unit MOQs, right? They're working for like the big legacy brands, you know, Johnson and Johnsons of the world.
Sandra: And I guess that's one of the beautiful things about, you know, the United States, is that we have this booming indie beauty scene, but. At the same time, we need manufacturers that can make smaller quantities. We need to be able to order smaller quantities. And so I have not found, um, I actually have only found one and it took me all this time.
Sandra: So, you know, we've been a brand for, you know, four years. It took me all this time to find one manufacturer in Mexico that can make smaller quantities. And I actually have to say I didn't find them. They found me, they reached out to me and I'm so excited we're in talks with them now. Um, but that has been a challenge.
Deanna: No, that's, that's helpful to hear. You know, you mentioned smaller quantities, maybe even smaller sized facilities, uh, could be beneficial. Is there further opportunity here for co-packers or contract manufacturers that are thinking about, um, you know, having a footprint in this region? I.
Sandra: I think so. I think there is, [00:08:00] I think finding a good co-packer that you like that is efficient, that is, um, that has, can even do turnkey. Um, I have now found, you know, more. As I've gone deeper into this industry, but it was hard to find them in the beginning. And I don't, I don't know if this is because they don't wanna be found, um, or they don't know how to reach, um, the brands.
Sandra: You know, there's like this disconnect. There's the people in these, you know, co-packers, uh, these facilities, and then there's the brands, you know, over here on the other side of this chasm. And how do, how do you get these people to meet? Right. Are we. Is it about advertising? Is it about going to trade shows?
Sandra: Uh, what is it? But, um, I had a hard time finding manufacturing partners when I was first starting out because as you might know, I made the products myself for the first year because I could not find manufacturing partners that would make small quantities. And so I think there is, there's, I think there's lots of opportunities, um, not [00:09:00] just for more co-packers, but for more solutions.
Sandra: Um. Because, you know, making a product, the fill is just one part. Then there's the packaging, the components, the, you know, the testing, et cetera. So it's, um, there's a lot of opportunity. So.
Deanna: Yeah, no, that's helpful to hear.
Deanna: I have more questions. First though, let me mention that cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna, which is the must attend B2B event in the cosmetics industry, opens on March 20th in Bologna, Italy. I. Cosmoprof is truly where our diverse and international industry comes together each year, uh, to build business relationships, uh, to discover the best brands and newest innovations across, uh, consumer beauty, professional beauty, and the entire industry supply chain.
Deanna: I. Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna. You will find more than 3000 exhibitors from 65 different countries. Tickets are only available online. Please visit cosmoprof.com to get your ticket today. In the show notes for this episode, I will put a link where you can [00:10:00] get your ticket to cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna.
Deanna: Um, I'll share a link as well where you can explore the digital directory of exhibitors and the link to the map of this year's new exhibition layout. Cosmoprof Worldwide. Bologna opens on March 20th, uh, which is a Thursday, and I look forward to seeing you there. in my intro to our episode today, I suggested, um, that you are intentionally building what I would call a heritage brand. This would be a brand I think of as long lasting has, um, consumers trust. Maybe there's an emotional connection from consumers. Of course, they see value in the brand.
Deanna: I think heritage brands also, um. Tend to stand out from their competition. They have maybe a clear competitor set, um, but they're somehow distinctive as a brand. Uh, if I were to think maybe of a, a good example of a heritage brand in our industry, I would, I would suggest a brand like Dove. Um, can you tell us about the vision you have for the No Polar brand?
Deanna: I, I, I mean, I, I guess I'm wondering how do you create a heritage brand?
Sandra: That's a great question. [00:11:00] Um. I, first of all, I love that you said Dove because. I don't know if I share this with you, but I ran a post-purchase survey on our website for like the last year asking people What were you using before Nora? Because everyone was using something you were using your product, right?
Sandra: People were showering before we entered the market and the answer across the board was Dove. And I just thought, wow, that is so interesting. Um, because Dove I think, has done a great job of building customer trust of. Marketing towards sensitive skin of, um, body positivity, being like a product for the everyday woman and man.
Sandra: And I think they've done a great job at that. Um, and so for me, when I had the idea for Paletta, I didn't say I'm gonna go build a heritage brand. It was more that I wanted to build a premium Latina brand that wouldst stand the test of time, which I guess is a heritage brand, um, in just different words.
Sandra: But for me it was [00:12:00] about. Widening the range of options, because what I saw in the market was everything Latino or market towards Latinos was down market. It was of value. It was, you know, uh, inexpensive. And I'm like, what does that say about us? What does that say about how you people think of us and view us?
Sandra: Um, we spend a lot of money on a lot of things and beauty especially, and. So why are there not more premium Latina brands that speak to this, I hate this word cohort, this consumer, um, like there are in other. Other heritages, you know, like I see, I see so much French beauty and obviously there's a whole reason behind that.
Sandra: And there's an argument to say that those brands are not doing so well because it's not really catering to who the customer is today. Um, you know, I like to remind people that more people know how to pronounce Nora than know how to pronounce in the United States. Um, but. It is about [00:13:00] building. Uh, I wasn't trying to build a trend.
Sandra: I wasn't following any trend. It was really about building a brand that was aspirational, that was beautiful, that would speak to the Latino consumer, but also speak to everyone simply because it was beautiful. In the same way that art is for everyone, right? No one thinks that a Frida Kahlo painting is only for Mexican people,
Deanna: Yes.
Sandra: right?
Sandra: No one thinks that a Diego Rivera mural is only for Mexican people. No one thinks that, right? And so I think the thing. That I learned, uh, about myself is that before this, I used to be an artist. I was a tour musician, and so when I think of creating things, I think of making art. And I think that is what also sets my approach apart.
Sandra: Um, and this, by the way, this is something I only recently kind of discovered, right? Like, everyone think this way? And I was like, oh, well maybe. 'cause not everyone is an artist, right? I think about making things as art, I think of making objects of desire. I think about how the person's gonna feel when they interact with them.
Sandra: That's how I used to write songs, [00:14:00] you know? And so that's how I think about making products and building this brand.
Deanna: Yeah.
Deanna: No, that's fantastic. And you know, you've mentioned details like the aesthetic quality and the enjoyable, um, attributes that the products have. Um, and you mentioned price point as well when you use the word premium. I'm wondering, um, if you can say a little bit about what premium means to you and, and how that word might help guide your decision making.
Sandra: Yeah. Premium to me is about the entire experience, so it's not just about the formula. Um, but you could argue that the ordinary has premium formulas, but I wouldn't say that the experience of the packaging and buying the product and giving the product to others feels. Premium necessarily. So to me it's, I'm very tactile, right?
Sandra: Again, it's like the lighting to me matters. The how, how, how the room smells, matters, how it feels matters. And so, um, I think about how it's gonna feel in someone's hand. I feel like how they're going to feel when they see the branding, the packaging on the shelf from 30 feet away, up [00:15:00] close, how they're going to feel when they are.
Sandra: Going to buy someone a gift. Um, and so for me it's the whole experience and the sensorial experience of the formula itself. Um, even, even, for example, the shape of our soaps that was, which is, which is in the shape of a cactus pad. That was intentional because I wanted it to fit in your hand in like a very kind of sensual way.
Sandra: Just the rounded curves are sensual. You know, most soap is square because. That's how it's made. It's made in big blocks and then they cut it like cheese. Um, and so making a soap in a custom shape was actually, uh, very laborious. It meant that every single bar of soap had to be hand poured, which I did for a year.
Sandra: But, um, but it was worth it because it, it was about the experience of if, you know, you've, have you ever held a, a, a block of soap in your hand? It doesn't fit in your hand, right? Uh, our hands are not shaped that way. So that's to me, what premium. It's everything.
Deanna: Yeah. Yeah. No, that's excellent. I appreciate those notes. Um, now if I may share this, [00:16:00] um, you live in New York City. Um, so no, PRA is a US based brand. I believe the majority of your customers right now are in the States. Um, and still you're describing no PRA as a modern Mexican brand. I'm, I'm hoping you'll say something about maybe culture, history place.
Deanna: How do these things figure into the brand story? Um, yeah, tell me that.
Sandra: Yeah, so I grew up near the border about 15 minutes from the US Mexico border. Um. My parents are Mexican, my whole family is Mexican. I grew up with a lot of Mexican people, you know, but also Mexican American culture, which I think, again, how you grew up is what is normal to you. And it's not until you leave that and you change the context that you realize, oh, maybe not everyone grew up and.
Sandra: Rural Montana or in, you know, San Diego in a border town. I always grew up identifying as Chicana. You know, Chicano culture is huge in the Southwest and it's a real thing. I mean, Willie Chaia is really championing that right now in, in the fashion space, really shining a light on Chicano culture. You know, he is from [00:17:00] California, Becky G is from California.
Sandra: I am from California. But there is such a strong Mexican, we're so proud of our roots because growing up. Um, we weren't, we couldn't say that we, we were anything but Mexican. And I think that's the, the tricky thing, right when you grow up bicultural, um, is that it doesn't matter that you're born in the United States, you're still considered Mexican.
Sandra: And you know, when you go to Mexico or you, you take it out of context, people are like, well, but you're American. I'm like, well, growing up no one ever let me be that. So,
Deanna: Mm-hmm.
Sandra: um, and so modern Mexican beauty is. Is just a way to say that this is the new modern, because what we're not trying to say is, Hey, everything is about back to the land, back to the roots, you know, only, you know, um, we're trying to open it up to, to be more forward and future forward, if that makes
Sandra: sense
Deanna: No, it sounds very contemporary in your description. Very realistic. Is
Deanna: [00:18:00] that
Deanna: Yeah, more, more like, um, a lived experience. Um, I, I guess I'm curious too,
Sandra: Uh, people wanna know who is behind this brand. I. Is it authentic? Is it real? Um, I remember the first time we met Beauty Heroes, which is one of our retail partners. They said the first thing they did when they saw the brand was go to our website and go to the About page and dig, dig, dig to make sure that it was actually, you know, Latina owned.
Sandra: 'cause they were worried that it was gonna be cultural appropriation. And so that's the, that's the world that we live in. Now, people wanna know who is behind this, who owns this, and is it, is it real? Are they buying something real? And so. It means that I have to put myself out there and share my story, which is also vulnerable, but it's also what connects us to our customers.
Sandra: And you know, it was just a couple weeks ago that I did a story post on our Instagram feed, which I never do. I never post on the, on the Notta channel. I have a team that does that. But I did. I said, oh, let's, let's share, let's do like a story [00:19:00] time for anyone that doesn't know the history of the brand. And it went viral.
Sandra: And everyone was like, I had no idea. I was like, what? I feel like I've told my story a thousand times. I've been on every panel, podcast, keynote, you know, speaking stage. And, but it just goes to show you that when you're building a brand, it's like repetition is, is required.
Deanna: Absolutely. Um, you know, and I, I wanna mention too that, um, you know, there is. I don't wanna say it's a trend, but there certainly is a movement within our industry, but what we might describe as black and brown owned brands and businesses and, and consumers, um, that, that fit those demographics as well, you know, perhaps better or differently than we have in the past.
Deanna: And, you know, so I very much appreciate, um, you know, your. Talking about no Polara and developing it as you have, you know, very much as a modern Mexican brand, you are in no way trying to represent all of, you know, Latina culture or some nonsense.
Deanna: Um
Sandra: And I wish I wish more. [00:20:00] This is why we need more brands to exist so that. We don't have the Michelle Obama syndrome where there's only one of us and we represent everyone and we're the only ones that have made it. And we we're the only ones that have raised capital. There has to be more, there has to be more because, um, because that is a reflection of who the actual modern consumer is.
Deanna: yeah.
Deanna: No. Absolutely. Sandra, I thank you for your ideas, uh, for your honesty. I'm, I'm very glad you could join me here on the Cosmo Factory Podcast. Thank you.
Sandra: Thank you. [00:21:00]