In the fast-evolving world of skincare, Baroque & Rose aims to stand out for its distinctive blend of luxury, sustainability and inclusivity. The UK-based brand offers skincare products crafted from organic ingredients which are handpicked and hand-processed.
Founded in 2018 by Miriam Ciantar – spa owner, aesthetician and makeup artist with over 40 years of experience in the beauty industry – Baroque & Rose manufactures non-toxic products without any gender or ethnicity bracket. It encourages organic wellness and an active lifestyle, paying tribute to the founder’s Mediterranean roots.
As reported, the brand made its debut in travel retail by securing a listing with Emirates last year. Baroque & Rose, represented in the channel by Garry Maxwell’s GMAX Travel Retail, later announced a presence with Virgin Atlantic.
Its Pure Face Milk recently secured a joint win in the Best Skincare, Haircare, Bath & Body Product category at the 2023 Asia Pacific Travel Retail Awards.
About the origin of Baroque & Rose, Ciantar says: “In 2015, I was importing skincare into the UK. I was making good progress and got the brand into three major companies in three months. Unfortunately, the company I was marketing for were not serious about the UK market, and I had to stop importing that brand.”
This led her to pause and embark on a nine-month journey of reflection. She visited major stores, seeing them through the eyes of a customer. “I could not see what I as a customer wanted to see. If a skincare product was organic, it wasn’t sustainable or cruelty-free. This made me think about a skincare brand that I wanted to see and create.”
Born in Malta, Ciantar wanted to keep Mediterranean ingredients at the forefront of her new brand. She says, “Baroque & Rose was the first sustainable brand with fresh ingredients – it is clean, luxurious, cruelty-free and unisex. It is something that everybody can safely use with no age or gender demographic.
“That’s why my reasoning is: If something is genuinely good for you, why would you age or gender bracket it? Skin is skin.”
‘Look better, feel better, live better…’
Baroque & Rose found its niche with individuals who appreciate the synergy between safe, natural skincare and high-potency ingredients.
Ciantar comments: “It’s useless to follow an organic diet if you use skincare products that are full of toxins; or to go for a detox spa treatment in which the products used are full of toxins. In that case you will only be going for a relaxing treatment, not detoxification.
“Our customers are people that want to experience their skin in its best possible condition. We do not claim to remove lines or sagging, or to make you look ten years younger – but we guarantee to make your skin look and be its best. By default, you will look younger and feel like a fresher and better version of yourself.
“Our customers are conscious of sustainable products and appreciate the effort we make with our hand-crafted, cold maceration process. It leaves the fresh ingredients in their most potent form, delivering best possible results when combined with cutting-edge technology.”
Baroque & Rose caters to not only those who want the best and purest ingredients in the products they put on their body, but also those who want the best for the environment.
Ciantar adds, “We make sure we plant back into the earth what we have taken out, and treat the earth with the respect it rightly deserves. We cannot expect to look and feel beautiful if we create disaster and ruin around us – not only on land but also for our oceans and seas.
“Beauty should not only be on the outside and inside, but around us too. Look better, feel better, live better…”
“If something is genuinely good for you, why would you age or gender bracket it? Skin is skin”
Sustainable beauty through a new lens
The heart of Baroque & Rose beats in harmony with the environment. Ciantar asserts: “Sustainability is at the core of Baroque & Rose.” Its products eschew artificial ingredients and toxins, embracing organic farming practices.
Ciantar says, “Our ingredients come from organic farming and are harvested with the love the earth deserves. We replant what has been removed and don’t leave the earth barren. Our products contain only natural preservatives and our packaging (down to the cello wrap) is all recyclable and biodegradable.
“Our store counters also carry the same ethos on sustainability whereby you add onto the counters and integrate.” This allows the brand to make the most of the available floor space and minimise wastage of both money and materials.
She adds: “Beauty must not only be a reflection of ourselves, achieved at the expense of our planet, but it should also reflect the beauty of the world around us.”
What sets Baroque & Rose apart from the multitude of skincare brands on the market? The founder mentions that Baroque & Rose has an array of unique selling points (USP), one of the crucial ones being ingredient transparency.
She says: “Our keywords are organic, luxury, unisex, sustainable, vegan and cruelty-free. These set us miles apart from our competitors and the delivery of our products is quite distinctive as well.
“For example, our Pure Hyaluronic Hand Cream is offered in a roll-on format that only releases as much as needed. You can immediately touch paper and the cream will not transfer.
“The Pure Instant Beauty Detox Mask is activated when the customer mixes the mask and the ampule themselves. The mask does not sit in the solution for three years – who wants to put something on their face that’s been sitting in a solution for three years?”
The packaging of Baroque & Rose products is also sustainable; everything down to the plant-based ink used on boxes and labels is eco-friendly.
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Venturing into travel retail
Ciantar says, “I would love to see Baroque & Rose in all the high-end airlines and airports. We aim to be affiliated with luxury skincare distributors and partners that embrace our sustainability and social conscience, which goes past the point of purchase.
“Partnering for a travel retail project at airports would be a marvellous way of creating brand awareness and visibility for Baroque & Rose.”
In travel retail, Ciantar believes that a successful partnership hinges on trust, respect and shared values. Baroque & Rose seeks collaborators who not only recognise its skincare proposition but also understand the ‘why’ behind it. On the evolving consumer mindset towards ethical solutions and natural ingredients, Ciantar says: “Airlines and distributors should join us in offering customers genuine products that encapsulate organic luxury and are 100% safe to use.
“Retailers need to give brands such as Baroque & Rose more opportunities to enter the market. We have an amazing product range but at this stage cannot invest in huge fixtures etcetera. Consumers want to try and experience new brands, and retailers need to be innovative with the sections in their beauty space for brands such as ours.”
Ciantar comments on the brand’s partnership with GMAX Travel Retail: “Garry Maxwell has understood our brand. His extensive expertise in travel retail has been an integral part of Baroque & Rose’s launch in travel retail. We are integrating with airlines that recognise the brand USPs and appreciate the difference we are making in sustainability and luxury.
“I know Garry is confident we have the right product for the market. With the developments we are making, and with operators starting to look at more innovation in the category, the future looks good.”
The brand will launch its travel retail kit later this year and is currently taking pre-orders. The kit retails at US$90 and includes the Pure Eye Contour cream (30ml), Pure Face Milk (50ml) and Pure Face Tonic (50ml).
Rising above challenges
As a beauty leader and entrepreneur, Ciantar faced several obstacles along her journey, including the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath. She says, “We were just about to launch in major retail stores and airlines. Two days after we received our stock, COVID-19 lockdowns were announced.”
“As a relatively new brand there are many challenges to overcome such as production and logistics, together with supply chain problems that COVID-19 and Brexit unexpectedly presented.
“We have solved our logistical problem in the UK through our warehouse in Malta, so we can ship to our partners smoothly.”
Ciantar shares advice for entrepreneurs introducing their brands to the travel retail channel: “Take one day at a time and believe in yourself, your vision and your product or service. Have an outlook that no matter what obstacles come your way you can and will overcome them.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s taking you longer than it should. Take it one day at a time and do not lose heart if people opt out at the last minute – they were just not the right partners for you.” Ciantar strongly believes that these challenges are thrown at entrepreneurs to test their endurance in the business world.
She says, “My humble advice is believe in yourself, and never give up on yourself even if other people do.” ✈
