Brown and Coconut: Sisters embrace simplicity in their skincare brand
By Rachel Erwin, Columnist
Featuring Letisha and Zeena | Photo Credits of Brown and Coconut
For sisters Letisha Izuchi and Zeena Brown, effective skincare means going back to the basics.
Growing up, the pair struggled with several severe bouts of acne. Their mother, a nurse, instilled in them the value of non-toxic skincare products, and they refused doctors’ recommendations to take acne medications. Frustrated by persistent skin troubles, they vowed to live a healthier lifestyle, which they began by starting a lifestyle blog in 2013.
“We started this blog to document our journey to naturally and holistically healing our skin as well,” Izuchi said.
This blog transformed into Brown and Coconut, a skincare company featuring simple, plant-based ingredients. After searching through store after store trying to find products that would work with their skin, the sisters decided it was time to experiment with making their own. In 2016, a friend invited them to sell their products at a Natick Mall market, and the rest was history. The skincare line sold incredibly well, and they made the transition to e-commerce.
“We are our own customers,” Brown said. “This is stuff that was tried and true for us. We're not going to put anything out there unless we are 1000 percent sure that we will use it.”
The name Brown and Coconut is a combination of two things. Brown is the sisters’ family name, while coconut represents the plant-based aspect of the company. It is also a play on brand names with “and Co.” at the end, Izuchi explained.
With ingredients like aloe vera gel, hemp seed oil, oats, and hibiscus, Brown and Coconut offers options that are both natural and minimal. Prices range from $12 for the Deep Cleansing Charcoal Soap to $38 for the Moisturizing Body Butter. Sets and accessories like soap bags and reusable cotton pads are also available.
Izuchi shared that the company avoids using ingredients just for the sake of using them.
“We never add ingredients just because it sounds fancier or because it smells really good,” Izuchi said. “All of our products are going to have whatever smell. We add ingredients that we know are going to have a purpose.”
Prior to the pandemic, the company hosted pop-up events at restaurants, markets, bars, and outdoor venue spaces, especially during the holiday season. The sisters hope to continue this once it is safe again in late 2021 or 2022. Currently, they are working to release a few new products that have been in the works for months now. They originally planned to launch them in January, but Izuchi said they are “obsessive about getting things right.”
Featuring the Hydrating Face Oil and Nourishing Body Oil | Photo credits of Brown and Coconut
Featuring the Replenishing Toner | Photo credits of Brown and Coconut
“We always love doing events,” Izuchi said, “but we're continuing to grow and expand into more stores, extend into more products, and really just get our products into more people's hands to change more lives.”
The pair finds that working together comes easily. Close since childhood, they feel that they can be open and honest with one another. Izuchi imagines that this might not be the case if she worked with someone she did not know as well.
“I feel like when you're working with a traditional colleague, you aren't fully yourself, you know?” Izuchi said. “It's nice to be able to just relax and peel back those layers and just be truly who you are, doing what you love to do”
Featuring the Brightening Face Polish | Photo credits of Brown and Coconut
Featuring the Balancing Cleaser and Hydrating Face Oil | Photo credits of Brown and Coconut
What keeps these two going is the joy that people get from using their products. Both agree that they started this company to make people feel happier, rejuvenated, and more confident in their own skin.
“We know what it feels like to be at the lowest of low and suffering from severe acne and have your confidence take a huge hit,” Izuchi said. “To be able to climb out of that hole and want to deliver that same joy to other people is really what we strive for.”
