Beauty entrepreneur Emma Lewisham is relocating from Latest Zealand to London, a move she says is critical to the continued global expansion of her skincare brand. The decision, three years in the making, comes as the company experiences rapid growth in the UK and Europe, and prepares to further penetrate the US market.
Lewisham, founder of the eponymous Emma Lewisham brand, has spent the last six years building a reputation for high-performance, plant-powered skincare. The brand distinguishes itself through its commitment to sustainability, holding certifications as a B-Corp, being 100% circular-designed, and operating as a climate-positive business – a first for a New Zealand-based company.
Initially launching in New Zealand and Australia, Emma Lewisham expanded internationally three years ago, securing retail partnerships with major players including Space NK, Harrods, Net-A-Porter, and Liberty. The brand is now available in 230 retailers worldwide, with warehousing and logistics hubs established in New Zealand, Australia, the UK, and the US.
The move to London, undertaken with her husband Andrew and daughter Milla, is not a new venture for the family. They previously spent three months in the city when the brand first entered the UK market. Lewisham emphasized that This represents not intended as a permanent relocation, but rather a strategic positioning to accelerate growth. “I’ve been travelling there two or three times a year for the last three years. It’s a second base for our growth in the UK and expansion into the rest of Europe and now America and more to come,” she stated. The proximity to key European markets – with a short flight to Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium – was a key factor in the decision.
Despite the shift in base, Lewisham intends to maintain a strong connection to New Zealand and Australia, visiting regularly to oversee operations and engage with teams and manufacturers. “New Zealand and Australia are such important markets for us, so I’ll still be remarkably visible and active,” she said.
Lewisham acknowledged the challenges of managing a growing international business while maintaining the agility of a small team. She highlighted the importance of a strong leadership team and a successful partnership with retailer Mecca. “Our team is solid, and we have an amazing relationship with our exclusive retail partner, Mecca, where the brand is doing so well. Things are flying for us,” she said. She added that difficult decisions regarding personnel are sometimes necessary to ensure the right team is in place.
The UK has emerged as the brand’s fastest-growing market in the past year. Lewisham noted Emma Lewisham’s success within SpaceNK, where it ranks among the top five luxury skincare brands, and the strong performance of its Vitale Elixir, the number two selling luxury serum behind Dr Barbara Sturm’s Hyaluronic Serum. She as well pointed out that Emma Lewisham is the only New Zealand brand stocked in the beauty department store. “What’s helped us break into the UK has been the performance and the quality of the product,” she said.
The company is continuing to innovate, with the upcoming launch of the Supernatural Creme Cleanser on March 31. This is the second cleanser in the Emma Lewisham line, following the Illuminating Oil Cleanser introduced in 2020. Lewisham explained that the development of the new cleanser was driven by consumer demand and a focus on creating a product that could deliver deep cleansing while simultaneously nourishing the skin. “That’s why it’s taken so long to bring out another cleanser, because we genuinely wanted to see something distinct we could do in a product, not just bring out something new for buzz,” she said.
The formulation process involved challenging conventional cleansing principles, aiming to provide benefits beyond simple removal of impurities. The cleanser features ingredients like white biotech hyaluronic acid, patchouli, lichen extract, and a targeted prebiotic, designed to calm, balance, hydrate, and support the skin’s microbiome.
Lewisham’s approach to innovation has garnered recognition from Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry, Peter Agre, with whom she has cultivated a two-year relationship. She described him as a “purist” of the science world and expressed pride in his validation of the brand’s scientific rigor. “It shows what New Zealand businesses can do. At the moment, I feel like everyone’s so down and out in the country, but we have got so much to offer the world. We can achieve so much,” Lewisham stated.
