Pai in the wake of a pandemic
Sarah Brown, Founder of Pai Skincare, explains:
“The pandemic really brought home Pai’s relevance now, seeing the upheaval it caused in our customers’ lives.
The way we behave and shop is shifting, in a seismic way, towards conscious consumption. A purchase now represents your values, a demonstration of shared beliefs between customer and brand.
Customers are looking for brands to align with their values. They are calling out complacency and demanding transparency – they are challenging brands and saying “prove it”.”
Goodness built in
Pai’s philosophy is that well grown, carefully extracted organic ingredients result in great products.
Gone are the days that natural means low or no performance. Emerging natural actives have science and efficacy data behind them. While also being better for the environment, and often better tolerated by sensitive skin.
New Look, New Outlook
The relaunch is far reaching and focuses squarely on storytelling and sustainability. Sarah explains:
“We wanted to better capture the essence of who we are, what we do and what matters to us.
Covid brought complexity, but positives too – making us laser focus on the benefits of conceiving and making our products under one roof, and explaining why our customer should care about this as much as we do.”
The new logo and packaging has been designed by Toronto based creative agency Concrete.
Each product now has a new name and unique design interruption to bring to life its core benefit, reason for being, or hero ingredient.
The patent-pending outer carton magically unfolds to unveil the back story.
Pai is Made by Pai.
Pai is vertically integrated and has always made all of its products since its launch, starting from Sarah’s converted garage in Ealing, London.
This development process is owned end to end. From formulation to ingredient sourcing and manufacturing. Head of R&D, John Monoyioudis, comments:
“Devising our formulations means they are unique, crafted and 100% owned by us. Never regurgitated in a different pack for a different brand. We test and learn continuously and can stay flexible to new ingredient innovations and customer demand.”
“Manufacturing as you scale is costly, challenging and a commitment to the cause. It’s a crucial driver of product quality though and we are vigilant caretakers of our ingredients – ensuring we preserve their extraordinary properties so they can sing on the skin.”
Independently Certified
Pai is certified by COSMOS*, Vegan Society, Cruelty Free International and London Living Wage. Sarah says:
“These are kitemarks of authenticity. The term “clean” has pervaded the natural category in recent years but carries no definition and we’re at a point where brands invent their own self referring standards with no scrutiny or objectivity.
With organic products costing on average 1000% more to produce, certification has never been more important to stop “cleanwashing”. It provides a robust framework developed over years in consultation with industry and is a reassuring beacon for customers in a hard-to-navigate world.”
Sustainability
Sustainability was the number one priority in the packaging updates. Every component was painstakingly reviewed and modified to improve its carbon footprint or recyclability.
Outer cartons:
- Laminate-free
- Made from 50% recycled / 50%
- FSC** board biodegradable tamper seals
- Unique patent pending design removes the need for adhesives and leaflets
- 50% of the primary packaging (bottles) is glass
- Tubes comprise a minimum 40% PCR** plastic with the remainder from bio-based (sugar cane) material
A new recycling guide on Pai’s website educates customers on how to disassemble packs and recycle each element.
*COSMOS Cosmetic Organic and Natural Standard sets certification requirements for organic and natural cosmetics products. The standard is recognised globally by the cosmetic industry.
** FSC Forest Stewardship Council is an international non-profit organisation certifying wood, paper and other forest products are made with materials from well-managed forests and / or recycled sources.
*** PCR Post Consumer Resin. Plastic that has already been recycled and is reusable.
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