Skincare, but for the kids

Samara Roy recommends the Fresh AF Cleanser, the Glow Moisturiser, and the Sunny Side Sunscreen as a starter pack; (right) Sammmm offers both skincare and makeup for young adults and adolescents. PICS COURTESY/SAMMMM

One day 12-year-old Samara Roy was out shopping. She went into a makeup and skincare store, where she found out that every product she liked was not suitable for her. "I was too young to use any of them," she tells us.

The experience stayed with her. "I came out and told my dad, ‘How is this fair? How is it possible that even though I want to do something to take care of myself, everyone around me, people older than me, are telling me, no, you can't do that?'" she recalls.

There is a curious gap in the beauty industry. Children and adolescents are told they are too young for most skincare and makeup products, while the products that are available are often formulated with older skin in mind. But being too young for retinol, harsh actives, or anti-ageing ingredients does not mean being too young to explore beauty, experiment with makeup, or simply enjoy a skincare routine.

Samara Roy

This is the space that Samara, now 16, is attempting to fill with SAMMMM, a makeup and skincare brand she started with her father, Mantosh Roy. "It started mainly for that reason," she says, "Having something safe that makes me feel good."

Skincare is not necessarily about fixing a perceived flaw for Roy. "For me, self-care is about myself. Doing my makeup, my skincare, it's about myself," she says, "Even if I just do my skincare, it makes me feel really good for the rest of the day."

The brand, she says, is careful about the concentration and choice of actives it uses. "The concentration of all the actives that we put in it are safe for younger skin," she explains, "The idea, she adds, is not to reject chemicals entirely, but to find a balance between chemical and natural ingredients. At the end of the day, even water is a chemical. So we cannot completely reject them. I feel like the balance between chemical and natural is the best middle path for it to be safe for younger kids."

The journey of building a brand while still in school has not been easy. "Obviously, it's tough. It's tiring," she says. But it has also taught her lessons far earlier than she expected. "I was very insecure about people I used to hang out with, being judged by other people, what other people thought," she says. After she began working, she lost friends and heard that people were saying "a lot of bad things" about her. "But I realised that those people weren't worth my time."

Working with her father has brought its own challenges, but also brought them closer. "He can't fully understand, obviously, but to an extent, he tries a lot. He puts in a lot of effort," she says, "The biggest benefit is that we do not carry work problems into our personal lives."

And perhaps that is the lesson she wants her young customers to take away too. "A very big thing for me is: you do you," she says, "Everyone can't like me or the brand. But as long as they align with some of the values that I have, I feel like the brand is working."

For those wondering where to begin, Roy recommends three products: the Fresh AF Cleanser, the Glow Moisturiser, and the Sunny Side Sunscreen. "That's a good starter pack," she signs off.