We recently connected with Denise O’Connor and have shared our conversation below.
Denise, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
I have always loved beauty products. I love reading the ingredients, knowing what is in everything, how it works, and why. So when I began to experience adult acne, about 8 years ago, I ran to Sephora and bought all of their best selling acne products. It was not long before I realized that, not only did they not work for me, but some of them made my condition worse.
My skin has always reacted well to all natural products, so I began to think that maybe I could make an acne fighting product myself. I researched ingredients which possessed anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antiseptic properties. But what kind of product would it be? A serum? A cream? I looked through all of my favourite beauty products from over the years, and read through their list of ingredients for clues. I came to the realisation that most of the ingredients served no purpose other than to create the appearance, smell, or texture of the product. The important ingredients were in small quantities at the bottom of the list. So even if an acne fighting cream had acne fighting ingredients, there were many other ingredients, which made the cream a cream, that could potentially congest your skin. This is why they have limited success.
After some experimenting, I found a combination of all natural ingredients which I use as the base for all of my Clear Dream products. I started out with an oil, as that was the easiest, then branched out to an acne fighting stick, toner, scrub and mask. I am currently making labels for a cleanser and cream, and finalising formulas for a line of tinted sunscreens, which cover and fight acne while protecting your skin from the sun.
Every ingredient of every Clear Dream product I chose because it has properties that help to heal and prevent acne. There is nothing extra. Actually, nature is so amazing that some of the ingredients help to heal not just acne, but bug bites, cuts, burns, and signs of aging. Over time they improve the texture and overall appearance of your skin. You can really feel the difference when you use an all natural product. It feels so clean! It is hard to go back to big brands with artificial ingredients.
The Clear Dream brand is intended to reflect the sunny, healthy, Southern California lifestyle where it is made. I also formulated Clear Dream products and branding to be appealing to men as well women, as I have found that men suffer as much, if not more, than women from acne (shaving products coming soon!).
After being officially in business for several years now, I have people tell me all the time that they never thought they would have clear skin, or they never thought they would be able to not wear foundation. I love that I can help people heal their skin and feel good about how they look. I want everyone to have the healthy, glowing skin they deserve!
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I have several areas I am currently focusing on in my business. The first is expanding my product line. The move to include sunscreens is complex because the FDA considers sunscreens a drug, so after the formula is finalised, a 6-12 month testing and approval process begins. The second area is updating the website with new the products and marketing photos/videos. That’s the fun part! The third is the marketing itself. This is always the challenging part for me.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Perseverance has been an important quality for my journey, Even if I had to take a break to address other things in my life, I have always come back to the business. I have had to remind myself many times that there is no deadline for what I am doing. I am doing it because I enjoy it, and believe in it. Whenever I have had trouble accomplishing anything because life was getting in the way, I would make sure I did at least one thing for the business every day, just to keep it moving forward.
Another quality that has served me is the ability to delegate that which I am not good at. I have been able to find some amazing people to help me achieve things I would never have been able to achieve on my my own.
Lastly, but probably most importantly for me, has been believing in what I am doing. Believing that it is important. Believing that it will help others. This has been a prime motivation for me. I have spent a lot of time and capital giving products away because I believed that people would love them, and this would help to create a customer base, which has definitely paid dividends in the end.
The best advice I can give for those just starting out is don’t think about the whole of everything you have to do. It’s so easy get overwhelmed. It’s good to have a plan, but most importantly, focus on what you can do today. Break everything you have to do into parts, and take on one part at a time.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I am always looking for good people to collaborate with. If there is one thing I have learned is that I can not do everything myself! I have found bringing other people in can often broaden your perspective and resources, and potentially expand your ideas, and make them better.
I am looking for the following collaborators:
-Savvy marketers
-Sales partners
-Skin care or beauty lines that are complementary to Clear Dream that would like to partner in marketing and sales endeavours
The best way to reach me is at [email protected]
Contact Info:
- Website: [email protected]
- Instagram: @cleardreamshop
Image Credits
Models: Frejya Jacobsen, Kelly O’Connor
Photographer: Denise O’Connor
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
