An Interview With Wanda Malhotra
Distinct Branding — As much as I wish people made purchasing decisions based on the good-for-the-planet-and-people things we do, they don’t. They want a quality brand that is resonant and delivers on its promises. Great design is an important way to convey the significance of your work.
In an era where conscious consumerism is on the rise, the beauty industry is undergoing a significant transformation towards cruelty-free and ethical practices. This series aims to highlight and celebrate the brands and individuals who are at the forefront of this movement, showcasing their commitment to ethical sourcing, animal welfare, and sustainable production in the world of cosmetics. As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Chase Polan, CEO & Founder, Kypris.
Chase Polan founded Kypris, the luxury, high-performance skincare line with a gentle footprint, upon the truth that feeling beautiful is a birthright and a vital spiritual experience of Love, acceptance, care, and pleasure. Identifying a unique opportunity within the beauty and personal care industry at a time when science-backed skincare featured questionable ingredients and natural skincare was over-simplified, Kypris emerged from the desire to offer a better experience of beauty. Always a proponent of women, the environment, & wellness, Chase created Kypris to unite the efficacy and elegance of green biotechnology; gorgeous organic, wild-crafted, and regeneratively grown botanicals; and the wisdom and respect of Ecstatic Beauty™ and embodiment practices.
Thank you so much for joining us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’?
I’m from a beach town in southern Florida and come by my beach bunny nature honestly. I grew up visiting New York, where my mom is from, and West Virginia, where my dad’s family is. Farming was and is an important part of our family’s history. Learning about land stewardship and how much hard work goes into caring for a farm and the people and beings who work the land, heavily inform my thinking on sourcing and product development. So many do not realize each farm is a living being with its own microbiome, much like each of our bodies. I started my first company when I was 21 — an education business — and among the many things I learned, the most impactful takeaway was that entrepreneurship is one way to create a difference in the world. Just doing something — anything! — well, with kindness, with great love and integrity is a service.
Can you share with us the most interesting story from your career? Can you tell us what lessons or ‘takeaways’ you learned from that?
We work with a rose grower in Bulgaria who we were originally introduced to more than a decade ago. Around 2010, she was part of an UN effort to try to help Afghani farmers transition their fields from poppies to roses. Poppies are used to make opium, while roses are a globally traded commodity used in cosmetics, perfumery, and in some instances, food. The effort in Afghanistan failed due to “cultural influences.” In 2020 when the US military left Afghanistan and the Taliban toppled the Afghani government, it felt as though the flowers knew something we all should have. It was a horrible feeling of I should have known to call someone somewhere and demand help. Watching the Taliban reinstate a brutal gender apartheid, where teachers who dare to teach girls are brutalized by the regime, where daughters as young as 8 are sold into modern slavery to help feed families, where women are not permitted to be educated yet are not permitted to see male physicians. It has been horrific to watch, and yet I cannot stop thinking about how this one small project was a harbinger of things to come. I want to say there is some hope because in the last year I read about a small rose grow operation which makes me think there are some who are dreaming of a different future for Afghanis, free from extremism and brutality, but that is but a hope. Afghanistan can feel so very far away, and yet the same extremism that has infected their beautiful country is currently attempting to corrupt the West.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Forever a Student — I’m almost always in 1–2 classes. This has been the case since I started the company. From accounting to finance to marketing to chemistry to writing to mythology to magical herbalism. I’m constantly a student. The landscape changes, and to succeed, my team and I have to be students. Sometimes the best way to learn what you know is to teach, so I occasionally speak or mentor.
The Ability to Reconcile Competing Truths — Every good idea has its limitations. As a woman and leader, I have had to unlearn a lot of patriarchal, cultural conditioning i.e. selflessness is kindness, assertiveness is manly, etc etc. Yes, to be a good leader you need to focus on how you can be of service to your team and community, but one key lesson I’ve learned especially in the last few years is that you must not light yourself on fire to keep others warm. In fact as a founder and steward of a company you have a fiduciary duty to do what is best for the business and its investors which likely includes you! As women we can be taught to overextend ourselves and take care of everyone else, but if you’re not taken care of, if you’re not honoring your financial and energetic boundaries, you’re putting yourself and your business at risk.
Proactive Integrity & Kindness — Whether it’s how we make products or how we treat our employees and vendors, practicing proactive integrity builds trust and self trust. More than a decade ago, we hired one of our designers, who we still work with today, 2 weeks before their college graduation. We paid them something nominal for 3 bottle designs. A year after the launch of the updated designs, when it was evident we were moving in a healthy direction, before they had a chance to ask, we proactively went back to them and asked to pay an additional design fee so they would receive proper compensation for the gorgeous work they created. Technically, we did not have to do that, but in integrity, we absolutely did the right thing. The gesture not only built trust within our relationship, it kept us in integrity with one another. In trying times and good times, the team and I have proactively paid, repaid, and accepted kindnesses more times than any of us can count.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that might help people?
The team and I are always working on new and exciting projects, and I can never talk about them until they’re ready to launch. We are extremely thoughtful about what we launch and how we launch them.
Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of our interview. What inspired you to embrace cruelty-free and ethical practices in the cosmetics industry, and how has this commitment shaped your brand’s philosophy?
I’m an animist. I believe the energetic essence of everything is as real as any other measurable aspect of it. An authentic, ecstatic offering of beauty is the dream seed that gathered mass and momentum to become what Kypris is today. Cruelty-free, ethical practices are the only way to create beauty. Exploitation is anathema to beauty.
How do you ensure that your products meet both ethical standards and consumer expectations for quality and performance?
With the way ethics and sustainability are discussed today, many can easily think these focuses are at odds with one another, but they are actually mutually exclusive. Quality, effective beauty offerings require ethical sourcing which includes foundational science and green biotechnology.
Can you share a challenge you faced while transitioning to or maintaining cruelty-free practices and how you overcame it?
We’ve been cruelty-free from day 1. I couldn’t live with myself otherwise. As humans, we are fallible and having processes in place to ensure the company is adhering to a standard, whatever it might be, is vital.
In wanting to create a cruelty free product, for starters — you need to know whether a material you’re considering using is plant or animal derived. Some materials like lanolin and snail mucin are byproducts of animals, and for us are on the no no list.
Everyone is trying to sell you something when you’re building a company. One tragicomical conversation I had was with an ingredient rep selling silk amino acids. The way they marketed their ingredient was as though it was created using green biotechnology as opposed to being extracted from an animal source. In a baby voice — I wish I was kidding — she went on to describe how their company “gently removed the pupae” (the silkworm in the chrysalis) from the cocoons to be used as fish feed, and that they put the newly uninhabited silk cocoons through their process to create the amino acid ingredient. All of this still in a baby voice. Her voice register thankfully dropped when she had to own up to the fact that the silk worms were killed when they were “gently removed” from their cocoons. People are going to project all kinds of things onto you. Don’t be offended. It’s a reflection of their limitations, not you, but it’s so important to know your subject matter well enough to know how to ask questions to get real answers.
In your opinion, what are the biggest misconceptions about cruelty-free and ethical cosmetics, and how do you address these in your marketing and education efforts?
When it comes to cruelty-free and ethical cosmetics, many people assume that if something is “natural” that it is also a more sustainable choice. This simply is not the case. There are many companies that feature food ingredients in their products. These can be problematic as they increase demand for a comestible item which can drive up prices for the food ingredient causing grocery bills to increase. One exception to this practice is upcycled parts of food ingredients ie pomegranate pith enzymes, cocoa pod powder vs cocoa powder.
Arable land is a finite resource and has to be carefully managed.
Responsible uses of biotechnology is another important topic. There are several examples of poor substitutions for conventional choices like plastic made from plants rather than petrochemicals. Yes, the packaging is using less fossil fuel, but you’re still making plastic, packaging formulas in plastic — which will expose end users and the planet to more plastic, and it may or may not be recyclable. Also, you’re using arable land again to make plastic as opposed to growing food.
On the other hand, engineered materials such as yeasts can create everything from bioidentical nutrients like antioxidants to peptides to safe synthetic scents and so much more. Ocean extracts cultivated in bioreactors deliver the gifts of the ocean without harm to the environment and an observable assurance of consistent quality. The value of responsible, green biotechnology cannot be overstated from an efficacy and innovation perspective even though it is not, by definition, natural.
We are not going to be able to conserve our way out of our social or ecological pickle; we must promote and apply responsible innovation.
Based on your research or experience, can you please share your “5 Things You Need to Create a Succesful Cruelty-Free Brand”?
1 . Great Labs for R & D and Production — Developing a product is one thing, sourcing and managing a supply chain is a whole other. Fantastic labs are tough to come by. When you find an amazing partner, act accordingly.
2 . Meaningful Brand Name — Starting a company is a spiritual initiation whether you choose to acknowledge it or not. If you’re going to dedicate any portion of your life bringing something into the world, select something that is a reflection of your values and aspirations with room to grow. Work with a quality IP attorney to ensure the name is available and register your intellectual property sooner than you think you should.
3 . Distinct Branding — As much as I wish people made purchasing decisions based on the good-for-the-planet-and-people things we do, they don’t. They want a quality brand that is resonant and delivers on its promises. Great design is an important way to convey the significance of your work.
4 . Regulatory Partners — You’d be amazed how much testing and regulatory work goes into delivering a quality brand to market. Not only is it the right thing to do for your customers, it’s now a legal requirement even in the US. You’ll need 3rd party testing labs to validate your formulas, attorneys and consultants to ensure your packaging and copy are appropriate, and specialized experts to review your formulas to ensure your labeling your products properly.
5 . Marketing Plan — A Marketing Plan is listed last but might actually be one of the first things you should create knowing it will need to change. If you make an excellent and unique product, to a degree the product will market itself, but you really need a marketing plan with a consistent communications strategy.
Looking ahead, how do you see the future of the beauty industry in terms of sustainability and ethical practices, and what role do you hope your brand will play in this evolution?
Beauty will continue to be a place where several different approaches to sustainability and innovation will emerge. There is a general consensus around what ethical sourcing means: transparent, traceable, fair pay, sustainable farming and procurement practices, recycled and recyclable packaging, upcycling wherever possible, and other measurable decisions.
We will continue to see more mainstreaming of these practices which is so exciting. We will also see unique innovations applied in product and marketing offerings. Interesting ingredients, common ingredients uniquely made, packaging made from new and renewable materials. There is so much extraordinary technology out there it just needs to be commercialized and implemented.
My hope is that we will continue to promote verifiable, measurable ethics, and kindness in our supply chains. That our formulas will be enjoyed by many more and appreciated for their efficacy, gentleness, and beauty. Eventually, I hope we are big enough to fund academic research and educational grants. When we think of a more sustainable, ethical future we often think of conservation and preservation of places. Absolutely these are important efforts, however, from everything I’ve read and observed, regeneration of places and ecosystems begins with people — feeling secure, knowing better, and doing better.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I want people to fall in Love and be in a constant, ongoing practice of offering Love (and kindness). With themselves, with one another, with the natural world, with all the beings we exist among. I want us all to fall madly, deeply, passionately in love with all of this. What and who we love, we care for, respect, honor, and protect. A giant ecstatic Love fest, please.
What is the best way for our readers to continue to follow your work online?
Instagram — @kyprisbeauty and LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/company/kypris
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this. We wish you only continued success.
About the Interviewer: Wanda Malhotra is a wellness entrepreneur, lifestyle journalist, and the CEO of Crunchy Mama Box, a mission-driven platform promoting conscious living. CMB empowers individuals with educational resources and vetted products to help them make informed choices. Passionate about social causes like environmental preservation and animal welfare, Wanda writes about clean beauty, wellness, nutrition, social impact and sustainability, simplifying wellness with curated resources. Join Wanda and the Crunchy Mama Box community in embracing a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle at CrunchyMamaBox.com .
Beauty Without Cruelty: Chase Polan Of Kypris On The Future of Ethical Cosmetics was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.