Jana Kolm, co-owner of Jana Skin, creating an amazing natural skin care line with her partner in business & life Jordan, spending her time by the ocean on the West Australian coast.
In one sentence, who are you?
I’m a soul who loves to relax, have fun and spend as much time in nature as possible.
You have created an incredible natural skin care line, known for your Australian Ocean Seaweed & Algae Mask, what was the inspiration behind Jana Skin?
There was a lot of inspiration behind Jana Skin! My partner Jordan and I were first inspired to create our own skincare brand around the end of 2018. We really liked the process and self care aspect of using clay masks however, we had tried a lot of different ‘natural’ clay masks on the market and they all left our skin red and dry - it really killed the relaxing, self care vibe!
We’re both absolute beach bums, the ocean is our happy place and we thought it’d be cool to have seaweed in our skincare routine, we imagined it to be super refreshing! We started to research seaweed skincare and it turns out seaweed is an incredible skincare ingredient that has been used for centuries for its antibacterial and antioxidants properties. We ran into a problem, all the masks that did have seaweed in them were either expensive or seaweed was the very last ingredient on the list, (meaning the seaweed was in a very low percentage and wouldn’t give any skin benefits). We wanted to create a product that was truly natural, had a high percentage of active ingredients and in a more accessible price bracket.
What/ who inspires you?
My partner Jordan inspires me to follow my heart in life, stay true to myself and most importantly have always have fun. Thanks Jord, I wouldn’t be where I am today without you!
The ocean also inspires me. I once heard the quote “the ocean is the closest thing we have to real magic” . I absolutely love this quote. The ocean brings me such peace, helps to clear my mind and makes me realise how small I am in this world (I like that a lot).
What has been your biggest challenge in business so far?
Not losing hope and not believing in myself/ my potential.
The launch and general running of Jana Skin ended up being very different to what Jordan and I originally imagined, I mean TikTok didn’t even exist when we first had the idea for Jana Skin and now it’s the social media platform we’ve had the most success with. You have to wear many hats running a business, it can be super stressful and I definitely have struggled with a lot of imposter syndrome.
What has been your stand out moment for Jana Skin?
There’s so many memorable moments, the good and the bad! My favourite memory would have to be the first time Jordan and I sampled our Australian Ocean Seaweed & Algae Mask. We did end up improving the formula a few times before launching it to the world, but trying the mask for that first time will always be such a happy memory for me. That was the first time Jordan and I saw our idea truly come to life.
How did you navigate the start up phase of Jana Skin?
The start up phase of Jana Skin was a long one! We definitely made mistakes and had many struggles! One of the biggest learning curves when navigating the start up phase of Jana Skin would be the importance of clear communication with our suppliers and manufacturers. I won’t dive too deeply into it but let’s just say not having clear communication with suppliers did end up being an expensive mistake.
What's next for Jana Skin?
New products! We really want to expand to have an entire natural skincare range.
It’s safe to say we’re absolutely obsessed with seaweed in skincare and we’re constantly getting messages on Instagram from our customers who are hooked on our Australian Ocean Seaweed & Algae Mask to bring out new products. The creative process of working closely with a cosmetic chemist and formulating new products is something Jordan and I both really enjoy so we’re super excited for the next coming months.
Tell us about a time you were proud of yourself?
Not business related, but learning to snowboard! I recently went on a snow trip to France with my family and decided to learn how to snowboard, which was something I had always thought looked very fun but also super intimidating. I stacked it a heap when learning, but eventually picked it up and ended up absolutely loving it!
What is your favourite Malakai the Label piece?
My favourite piece would have to be the Pearl Laguna Choker, It’s such a timeless piece that can be paired with anything, you won’t catch me at the beach not wearing it. I get compliments on it pretty much every time I wear it too!
