Actress Malea Rose was introduced to the importance of skincare through her mother. “My mom was just super ahead of her time and wanted to live/lives a clean healthy lifestyle,” she says. “My mother is this beautiful, chic hippie, who moved to the North Shore of Kauai where I was born and raised, but she’s originally from New York, so I got the best of both worlds from her. The low key, natural, beach lifestyle of simplicity and the fast paced, more sophisticated elegance of New York City, and I think that comes across in the Vie En Rose brand. She never wore makeup, she didn’t need to, because she had this smooth buttery, healthy skin. We didn’t have a broad selection of natural health products available on the island, so my mother ran a co-op out of our garage in order to bring in the natural foods, body care and household products she wanted for our community. She made a lot of her own medicinal and body care products as well, and I always wanted to help. I loved learning about the ingredients and why she chose them, but mostly it was just incredibly fun to make my own potions and elixirs. As an actress I have to be impeccable about my skin care (4D agh), and while I’ve tried using all kinds of products on the market, I’m always returning to the basics that I learned from my mother: keep it as pure and organic as possible and use the best quality ingredients you can get. With Vie En Rose I’m still creating my own formulations, but now I work with a high-quality lab producing and bottling them for me (in small batches, made in the USA). Even so, I continue to be delighted when my mother sends me amber glass bottles filled with her latest blend of oils. Each one is meticulously hand labeled listing every ingredient, and I can’t help but laugh at the names she gives her creations. My mom is also my biggest cheerleader, along this rollercoaster journey of entrepreneurship.”
Having her own set of skin problems as a young adult motivated her to be innovative. “I was born with extremely fair, sensitive, and freckle prone skin – very unideal for Hawaii’s climate and my love for surfing. I was always going to have to reverse the sun damage, and I always had dry skin. After coming to California for college, my skin immediately became problem prone, ultra-dry, redness, sensitive to everything. I became a DIY queen before it was ‘cool.’ Most people would never have known how much I struggled, because I worked so hard to cover it up and do quick fixes. Let’s just say, I made it work, but I’ve always hated wearing makeup. Then when I came to Los Angeles and started acting and modeling, I was under harsh lights, with chemical filled junky products being piled onto my face all day. It gave me terrible skin rashes, bumps, and discomfort. I had underestimated how insecure not having clear skin made people feel. Being comfortable in your own skin is the basics of beauty. This was pre-Kardashians paying red carpet photographers to edit and retouch their blemishes, lines, and bumps off their photographs. It’s unrealistic. I was having these crazy skin rashes a few times a month. I was absolutely allergic to an ingredient in the ultra-hydrating ‘clean’ well-known luxury skincare line I was using and I knew I needed immediate relief and to make changes. Besides, at that point I had spent all my money trying every product. I felt like a sucker. Nothing delivered. I had literally already tried every product on the market. That’s when I started to make my home remedies again and found that CBD completely changed my skin. That’s when I set out to make my own skincare, for myself basically, as a hobby.”
Her exploration caused her to discover just how much the market was lacking. “People think it’s over-saturated, it’s not. There is a huge lack of transparency. Even Whole Foods, where I used to just assume everything was clean, have my ‘no no’ preservative in almost every one of their skincare products, as does Sephora’s ‘clean list.’ The CBD beauty area was a gray area to me. Companies weren’t listing how many MGs or educating where they were sourcing their CBD from. My CBD is sourced from the 1st FDA approved Cannabis farm in the USA. Also, premature aging is such a real thing that no one talks about. Everyone is youth driven, and will spend money on Botox at younger ages than ever. I formulated Vie En Rose for 2 years, for perfection, with the most innovative lab. It addresses the 3 main causes of aging: dehydration, inflammation, and free-radical damage. I combine over 30+ potent botanicals in my Mile High Ultra-Hydrating Mist. Swiss glacier water, rose stem cell, CBD isolate, hyaluronic acid, goji, cucumber, rose, watermelon, aquacell… the absolute best of science and nature, and every ingredient serves a purpose.” It’s only fitting that Vie En Rose, evokes timeless perfection. “Vie En Rose means to see the world through rose colored glasses, to see life in pink. Everything is more beautiful, timeless classic beauty at any age, ethnicity, color. Vie En Rose is ultra-clean, luxury CBD skincare, and it’s the best skincare I’ve ever used (I have a full facial system to launch, so they’re all I’ve been using for 2 years mostly). Both products, the Mile High Ultra-Hydrating Mist and Love Potion Beauty Oil are boosters you can incorporate into any pre-existing facial routine, for an instant upgrade. The mist is an all-star travel accessory. Under 2oz, beautiful packaging, made to fly and keep you hydrated anytime, anyplace. It’s also become many celebrity makeup artists’ favorite makeup hydrating skin prep and setting spray. It can be sprayed over makeup throughout the day for that perfect dewy, creaseless look. The company truly started out as a hobby to cure my own skin issues, then once I did – the results, the reactions when others tried it – I knew I had created something unique and special.” It was essential to her that the business be female led. “Women should be creating products made for women. Period. Don’t even get me started on equality, pay gaps, and women’s rights. The ERA still hasn’t been added to the Constitution. We’re technically not considered equal still. It is part of the reason I shifted my focus from entertainment to beauty, to empower myself, others, and break away from the disgustingly broken, male dominant, entertainment industry I’d been working in for so long. I think my last EP job really taught me that if a company is run by negativity and disregard, that’s what will show in the work, no matter how good the employees. That company was predominantly men – and didn’t pay people… women/humans shouldn’t have to fight to get paid. There is still a huge gap between genders, even in the VC world that I am newly finding myself in, which has eerie remnants of Hollywood.”
She made the decision to incorporate CBD into her products because of its incredible healing properties. “It’s high in anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties and the best, most potent skincare ingredient on the market,” she says. “It’s a holistic super potion that immediately cured my skin sensitivities. CBD deeply hydrates without causing breakouts – in fact, it cures them. It’s an absolute dream. CBD also contains the same ‘bliss molecule,’ called Anandamide, that reacts with your body’s own endocannabinoid system. Not only does it make you look good, but it also makes you feel better. There’s nothing better than that. The world is a chaotic, anxiety-ridden, stressful place, why not make it the best you can? I will say, even if we removed the CBD, Vie En Rose would still have the best formulations. CBD is the cherry on top.” The lack of understanding and proper regulation around CBD beauty creates a lot of frustration for Malea. “The government and Cannabis have a peculiar relationship, along with big pharma companies. Despite recent clinical studies, they found that CBD was not only incredibly effective in treating anxiety, but also to cure opioid addictions. The problem is the government, Google Ads, Shopify, merchant processors/banks, and Facebook/Instagram haven’t taken the time and thought to differentiate between classifying CBD and what the different types are. My products are topical with 0 THC, a skincare/beauty product (that just happens to have a wellness bonus). Yet, they’re still considered in the same ‘high risk’ category as Cannabis the ‘drug’ THC. I still can’t run normal ads or use basic platforms that every other business gets to use. It’s not an even playing field and that’s something that should be addressed, discussed, and changed. It is just sad that CBD beauty isn’t being recognized by the government as a different classification and small businesses aren’t being given an even playing field by the world’s largest unregulated marketplace (Meta). Time to make some changes, if you’re listening!” Her special ingredient Cannarose greatly enhances her products. “It’s my trademarked proprietary complex that is exclusively unique to Vie En Rose. It synergizes with the skin to boost the performance and delivery of all our meticulously hand-picked ingredients. This curated blend works to address the three major causes of aging–inflammation, free radical damage and dehydration. It also soothes, calms, boosts collagens, and truly brings out your skin’s own natural radiance, while reducing fine lines, acne, and hyperpigmentation. I also love the word. Cannabis and roses, yes please!”
Malea has learned the value of each step along the way to the bigger picture. “If there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s that I can’t predict anything. Yes, I must always have a clear plan, path, small goals/large goals, but I’ve also learned to not grow too attached to what you thought something is supposed to be. The beauty is in the process, the journey, the building. I had no help or guidance when I began building Vie En Rose, but I know if I can build something I am so proud of, that other people love too, that the future is bright. All humans deserve self-love, to feel good, to pamper themselves, to feel comfortable in their skin. I want to help provide that for the world. I want to make clean products you don’t need to worry will harm your baby or dog. I see Vie En Rose in stores around the country. I see the company expanding into cosmetics, body care, NFTs, hair, wellness products, a lifestyle brand, endless possibilities. I realize how much I love entrepreneurship, even in the thick of chaos, and how beautiful it is to build a company/or many under such a beautiful name.” Regardless of her business outcomes, she is committed to la vie en rose in every sense. Keep up with Vie En Rose on their blog, Instagram, and Facebook.
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Vie En Rose Unlocks the Magic of CBD Beauty. Photo Credit: Olivier Chatard.
