There’s A New Skin-Care Brand On The Block (Win!)

There’s a new skin-care brand on the block: we’re loving the story and the serum from Vancouver’s own East 29th. We chatted with founder Victoria Ferguson about her unique journey to entrepreneurship and her future company plans, and are giving you a chance to win a bottle of her hydration-boosting, texture-improving and wrinkle-smoothing Vital Serum ($88), featuring antioxidant-rich lemon-rind extract. It’s an absolute staple for summer! —Vita Daily

Hi Victoria! When and why did you decide to launch you skin-care company, East 29th, and how did you go about doing it? (Also, any special meaning to the brand name?)

I moved to Vancouver when I was newly 19 with a son who was a couple months shy of turning 4 years old to attend makeup school at Blanche Macdonald. I have sensitive skin and couldn’t find any products on the market that worked and I was also dealing with a lack of confidence due to my skin, which directly affected my mental health. I decided I would try to make my own product and took the perspective of “feeding” my skin like I would feed myself to be healthy. I decided to tackle both of these problems head on by focusing on both internal and external textures. I realized our potential exploring the physical and mental health benefits associated with adding lemon rinds in various forms into our daily lives and the results created clean skin but, most importantly, boosted mental clarity. My products allowed me to rarely wear any makeup. I had spent the better part of a decade working as a makeup artist in the TV and film industry, dealing with skin that longed to be cared for, like everyone else’s, just on a much larger scale. My career quickly evolved from having a hand in character development on set into a passion for creating natural confidence off-screen. Inspired by the home that I raised my son and created my skin care in, East 29th inherently named itself. I originally only made it for myself but on every single TV show I worked on the cast would inquire about my skin-care routine and ask me to take them shopping. I explained I made it myself and it was while working on The Good Doctor S1 that I was inspired to make it for others. I wrapped The Good Doctor S3 on March 6th, 2020, and spent the last few months finalizing and launching.

In a market flooded with skin-care products (not to mention, skin-care promises), what makes East 29th different?

What distinguishes us from other skincare brands is our knowledge that where their journey of providing you with better skin ends, ours is just beginning. We’re creating solutions that go beyond clearing your skin; we want to focus on the union of elements (body, emotions, thoughts, and sensations) that we call “self” so that you can embody our essence, natural confidence. We also understand the importance of using natural ingredients that support being a part of the clean-beauty movement while implementing minimalistic and essential solutions to your skin-care needs by putting powerful ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, vitamins C and E together with lemon rind extract to remove the stress of multiple products to get the same results. We want to ensure skin care goes hand-in-hand with self-care. East 29th’s mission is to establish a conscious dialogue that connects both the physical- and mental-health awareness behind the clean-beauty movement while embodying a mindful transition to not only being seen but also felt.

Can you speak more to your unique use of lemon rind? And, can you also please tell us more about your hero product, the Vital Serum?

Lemon rinds are high in antioxidants and potassium, which assists in creating a smooth electrical transmission in your brain and nervous system that helps reduce depression and anxiety and when used in skin care, lemon rind has shown to improve skin clarity by cleansing, exfoliating and brightening, while targeting age spots, removing dead skin cells, and promoting elasticity. The Vital Serum is designed to deliver a high concentration of all-natural ingredients directly into the skin after cleansing to improve hydration, texture and tone while also firming, promoting elasticity and smoothing wrinkles. You can get the best out of your skin-care routine with East 29th by always starting with an exfoliant to help open up blocked pores and remove dead skin cells. Once the pores are open, cleanse your skin and allow time to dry. Apply the Vital Serum; to get the full benefits of your serum you’ll need to lock it in with moisturizer. A lot of the time I find people are putting moisturizer on before the serum, which results in trying to penetrate locked in pores so you won’t see the results you’re after. (Oh, fun fact: While “vital” means “essential,” I’m also from St. Vital in Winnipeg, Manitoba, so as much as East 29th is the home I raised my son, myself and my company, St. Vital is where my son and I lived our younger years. It’s all full circle and I like to playfully say “welcome home” to anyone using the brand because of how deeply personal this is for me.

What can we look for in the way of new launches from the brand?

We have some other products that will be coming out; an eye cream is in the works followed by what I see as the fundamentals for a healthy skin-care routine. We want to change the way individuals talk about themselves by engaging in positive conversations within ourselves while doing our daily skin-care routines. I’m consciously putting together a platform to start the dialogue on self-care where we’ll explore a multitude of avenues such as virtual block parties and working on a podcast platform. Beyond skin, we care. And we can’t wait to share it all with you.

east29th.com

Win! An $88 Bottle of East 29th Vita Serum!

We have a winner! Congrats Elizabeth H. of Langley, B.C., who will receive a bottle of East 29th Vita Serum!