Sparkle Session: Jan Marini Interview

It has been a little while since I have brought you an interview with an empowering female entrepreneur but I am so excited to get a jump start on one of my New Year’s Resolutions. Recently I had the opportunity earlier this month to interview Jan Marini, the famed name behind the eponymous skin care brand.  Jan is an incredible woman and she spent more than an hour speaking with me, humoring all my questions, and truly being as sweet as can be.  Since my conversation with Jan Marini was a long one, let’s dive right in to this great interview and the revival of Sparkle Sessions: 

What are five words you would use to describe yourself?  
I actually have six – Intensely curious, entrepreneurial, focused, tenacious, fair, and loyal. 

How do those personal characteristics relate to your brand?  
Being intensely curious I do a tremendous amount of research and one of the ways I develop products is by perusing up to 25 different medical journals.  Being intensely curious is very helpful to running a successful company and so being tenacious. In business you have to stay very focused, wear blinders, and tenaciously blocking everything else out because it is about reaching a particular goal, not paying attention to the noise around you.  And it is important to be fair and loyal in business with your employees especially when it comes to job satisfaction. 

With nearly 25 years behind your prestigious skin care line, what is the top selling product? 
Our bestselling product is the Jan Marini Skin Care Management System which is comprised of a cleanser, serum, lotion, face cream, and facial SPF.  The reason there are five different products is because there is something referred to as layered technology. Consumers are often seduced by seeing products that are advertised as having everything in one product but you cannot put everything in one container – there are certain technologies and certain topical agents that cannot be mixed.  There are different chemicals that need to be kept at different PH levels and some ingredients when combined are rendered inactive so I designed a system where I could put active ingredients in various, sequenced products and maintain the efficacy. 

At what age do you suggest women establish a skin care routine? 
Statistically speaking the average age women decides to use something on a more consistent basis at age 25 but skincare actually starts from the time you are born.  The number one thing people can do to take care of their skin is to use is sunscreen and it is not just cosmetic, it is a health issue. 95% of what you perceive is aging is actually sun exposure and only 4% is the youthful triangle of things that start sagging that can be fixed surgically. Wearing sunscreen is really the most important thing people can do. 

Usually one of the most prominent concerns from teenage to college age women is that they skill breakout. Even though though teenagers are often concerned with skin care, try getting them to use a complicated routine day and night.   Once women get past that age they start getting interested in a routine so that average age of 24 or 25 is probably pretty accurate.

Many of my readers, especially those in their 20’s, are concerned skin serums, lotions, ect. can cause breakouts.  Do you have products specifically designed for acne prone skin?  

People often say their skin is sensitive and then go on to say that it is sensitive because they get acne.  What we have to consider is that adult acne in your 20’s, 30’s, and 40’s is much more common and it is very different than the acne in your teens.  In order to cure it you have to address the factors that cause acne – mainly the hormonal ones.

So typically we will suggest Duality – Duality is a revolutionary product that utilizes Benzoyl Peroxide and Retinol but if you try and put the two of those products together in the same formula they become inactive. So I put them in the same product, but in different chambers.  So once you get out of those teenage years this product is exactly what you need for that adult acne.  (You can read more about Jan Marini Duality here). 

 
What is one lesson you have had to learn the hard way?  
Whether you own the business or you are working for someone else, the only person who is going to do it is you.  It comes down to keeping absolutely focused and it will come down to what you do and how much effort you put in. And as I always say,’No one can do it for you, but you don’t have to do it alone.’  Surround yourself with people that are very bright but no one can do it for you. 

What is one product from your line you can not live without? 
That is a tough one because there are so many but probably BioClear. I don’t care what your concern is with your skin it has such a transformational quality to it.  (You can find Jan Marini’s Bioclear® Lotion and Bioclear® Cream on her website with many more details, photos, testimonials and more!) 

 
If you had to give advice to other female entrepreneurs what would you tell them? 
I would tell them that businesses don’t succeed because you have a business plan, they succeed because you are willing to work hard and after four successful business I have learned you do not need to be able to see the end of something at the beginning of it for it to be successful. 

 Lastly, is there anything you would want to tell my readers? 
With regards to skincare it is so easy to get seduced, just be sure to ask yourself – if there is something you could do to improve or change about your skin, what is it?  Then look for technologies that have data behind them that prove that the product will be able to address your concern and it does not have to be a $500 product.  It is all about the technology, how it is formulated, the efficacy, and the clinical data on it.  For business, my advice is from Nike, Just Do It.

I want to thank Jan Marini for taking the time out of her crazy, busy schedule to speak to me and even sweeter of her to send me a few of the products we spoke about the in the interview that she thought would benefit my skin. So I will leave you off with two questions: 

Which product would you most like to try? 

What interview would you like to see next on Sparkle Sessions?