My story

Hi, I'm Meghan and I love to research and design beauty products.

I've come a long way from experimenting with oils and waxes in my dorm room to help heal my dry, sensitive and acne-prone skin. Today, I share my discoveries, expertise and Seychellois herbalist heritage with you, via my cosmetics brand, SEY.

 

SEY Cosmetics is a brand of eco-beauty with sustainability at its heart. My range of make-up, skin care and beauty products are designed and produced with simplicity and naturalness for the skin and reinforced with my desire to create a better understanding of the products we purchase and their impact on the environment.

 

How did SEY Cosmetics become what it is today?

Ten years ago, I moved to China to study at University. I was born and grew up in the Seychelles, the archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean to the east of Africa. Protecting the environment in the Seychelles is crucial as our economy and livelihoods depend on it. This inspired me to pursue a career in marine protection and in 2009 I had the opportunity to go to China to study Biological Oceanography or Ocean Ecology, basically the study of plants and animals in the marine environment.

I loved the culture and history in China however, the weather, food and environment didn’t love my skin! My already dry, sensitive and acne-prone skin progressively got worse. I started searching for a suitable facial moisturiser, but everywhere I went I was offered the same thing, 每白,mei bai, which translates as ‘beautifully white’. Mei bai is a bleaching cream to whiten the skin. Every store assistant I spoke to, believed my issue wasn't my bumps and spots but the colour of my skin, so I decided to try it. Cray cray right?

My skin got worse but having dark skin in China unfortunately hinders your chances of getting a part-time job, or performing or even finding love. So yes, I bleached my skin, because I didn’t want to be dark anymore. Heart breaking, yeah?

It came to a point when I said enough is enough, but what could I do to help my skin? I put my knowledge of Seychellois herbalism and of course my scientific studies to good use and started designing my own beauty products.

 

Excitingly, the products I made worked perfectly. My skin slowly started to heal, had less break outs and the scars started to fade. Now I keep my hormonal acne under control, keep my skin moisturised and feel stunning, all at the same time, and I’ve made it my mission to keep developing products for sensitive skin that suit every complexion and skin type.

 

Why is Sustainable Beauty important?

As I’ve worked on developing my products over the last ten years, I’ve carefully chosen ingredients and packaging which limit the disruption of the earth’s natural ecosystem.

Think about it, many of the ingredients used in our skincare and cosmetics end up in our drainage systems. These systems lead to our streams, rivers, lake and oceans, harming marine life and the environment. In 2018, the beauty industry also produced 142million units of packaging, the majority of which will end up in landfill, or worse, the ocean.

I constantly strive to design better beauty products which contain ingredients that are biodegradable, and I offer a refill system which encourages people to reuse the packaging when re-purchasing rather than simply recycle.