Where beauty and wellness meet the next generation of superhero ingredients – Tech Powered Luxury host Ashley McDonnell sits down with Dr. Helena McMahon, the co-founder of Seabody, an Irish seaweed-based Skincare and Supplement brand dominating the industry, while still in its infancy.
Described as “the true embodiment of the concept of tech powered luxury”, Ashley and Dr. Helena McMahon discuss the path to develop Seabody, the ins and outs of this homegrown brand and how they are revolutionising the sustainable lifestyle market in the latest episode of Tech Powered Luxury.
Starting off by delving deep into her career origins, Dr. Helena discusses her fascination with discovery and childhood dream of becoming an air hostess, explaining “I thought going out and discovering the world was just the most exciting thing” that was until she discovered the
human body, and in her words “that was it for me”. Wanting to know every intricate detail of how the body worked, Dr. Helena holds a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Science, a master’s in Molecular Medicine and a PhD in Gene and Cellular Therapeutics.
At the end of her extensive scientific education, McMahon came away with one main epiphany; “I realised nature is actually the most intelligent technology on the planet” she says, “…it created all of these amazing molecules over millennia of evolution that actually have health benefits.”
Dr. Helena McMahon speaks about the moment Seabody was born, when scientific research uncovered molecules through a marine biodiscovery project which resulted in the development of a zero-waste process for the production of seaweed derived bioactives for next generation targeted skin care and super supplements for skin, joint, digestive, immune and immune health describing it as a “pandoras box of magic” ingredients.
Elaborating on the extraction of these molecules, “..we disassemble the plant, grab the molecules and the sort them into little piles and figured out what they do.”
Initially Dr. Helena McMahon and the team had no idea what the results would be, stating “we had a look at them in the lab, and the data revealed that, these are really good for collagen and elastin, and hydration… these are really good for your microbiome… this is good for your immune system.” and so Seabody was born.
When speaking about the main challenges the founder faced, Dr. Helena discusses the fears around introducing such a science backed brand, ensuring the products were understood by the customer, “We’re bringing brand new ingredients and molecules to market, and we
have developed state of the art technologies for the identification and isolation of molecules” McMahon states, “making sure that consumers can understand the value Proposition can be really challenging when there is so much technology behind it” Dr. Helena’s mission is to ensure that Seabody is recognised as brand that simplifies your daily proactive health and wellness routine and gives reassurance that your skin care and supplement choices are aligned with living more sustainably. It is the total of all the choices we make in a day, week, month and year that positively contribute to our personal health and the health of the planet. Seabody have taken the time to invest in sustainable wellness innovation to deliver on this, with every element considered from Sea to Self.
In the episode, Dr. Helena McMahon also speaks about the importance of circularity and environmentalism within her company. “if we ..go to nature for these molecules to create new products… then we absolutely need to do that in a really, really sustainable way.” Furthermore stating “you shouldn’t have to sacrifice or diminish the quality and the luxury experience that you have just because something is natural and sustainable.”
When discussing her distain towards the dark truths of ‘sustainable’ and ‘clean’ beauty brands, Dr. Helena says, “ What beauty means is completely different from brand to brand.. There’s no single standard that says, ‘clean’ or ‘sustainable’ beauty and wellness,.. this differs from band to brand and can be confusing when we discovering new products”. Dr Helena discusses the work that is globally to create new standards and how each company has a responsibility in their design and production of products.
When discussing Seabody’s response to this, Dr. Helena says, “…at the core of circularity really is all around delivering positive impact” she continues, “that means a positive impact on the planet, a positive impact on your customers, and also a positive impact on the relationships that you have created in your supply chain”.
Listen to the full conversation between Tech Powered Luxury and Seabody co-founder Dr. Helena McMahon on all podcast platforms.