A Chat with Matt Calver, Founder at Aker Skincare: Men’s Seasonal Skincare

Aker is a men’s skincare company built around nature and the changing effects each season has on our skin. I wanted to build a company and create products that I knew I would want to use myself, so we focus on using the very best ingredients from nature and science and creating bespoke formulas to support men’s skin through climate change.

I firmly believe that any new company, especially a consumer product one, should be putting sustainability at its core. With the personal care industry such a culprit when it comes to plastic waste, I wanted to make sure that sustainability is at the forefront of every decision we make.
 
 

 

How did you come up with the idea for the company?

 
I have always been interested in skincare but often found my skin would be oily one month and then dry another, and it never really felt comfortable year-round. I started looking into this and found a paper by the British Journal of Dermatology who’s research explained the huge effect the changing seasons have on your skin.

It clicked for me – you wear season-appropriate clothing to protect the rest of your body year-round; why should it be any different for protecting the skin on one of the most consistently exposed part of your body – your face. Equally, I’m starting to see my skin change as I get a little older and wanted to prioritise long-term skin health and create products that would help guys look their best for years to come.
 

How has the company evolved during the pandemic?

 
Launching a new business is tricky as it is, and the pandemic didn’t make things any easier let’s put it that way! Fortunately, being a full e-commerce business, the impact on the way we do business wasn’t affected too much. The main impact was on the supply side, and keeping up with demand has been challenging as getting stock produced became almost impossible at one point.

That said, we have evolved our supply chain and, in the process, actually improved the product – for example, I am proud that we have been able to move away from plastic on our labels and now print directly to glass on our products. Equally, we are currently running limited seasonal subscription runs to help us manage future demand and stock levels. All in all, I think the lessons learned from the pandemic will shape the company’s future for the better.
 

What can we hope to see from Aker Skincare in the future?

 
The next stage for us is expanding the range. I wanted to start the company with a limited set of products to see if the brand and purpose resonated with people. We have gotten some great feedback and the next step this year is to expand the seasonal range. Customers have been asking for facewash and scrub as well as lip balm, hand and eye cream. It will be exciting to launch new products and to explore sustainability as a company more deeply.

We are also planning on expanding Team Aker to include more outdoor athletes to put our products through their paces out in the wild and around the world.