Esse means ‘to be’ in Latin. The brand initially established itself in the nascent organic skincare market in South Africa. In 2009, the company began its move into probiotic skincare.

Most people associate probiotics (good microbes) with maintaining a healthy gut but The Human Microbiome Project has now discovered that optimal skin condition also depends heavily on the probiotic microbes living on and in it.

Your microbes permeate deep into the skin structure and work with your own cells to perform the complex chemistry that keeps your radiant. Without microbes, your skin can’t perform its basic functions and the rate of skin ageing increases sharply.

Esse creates an environment on the skin that favours the growth of beneficial microbes. We use prebiotics to selectively feed good microbes and we have included LIVE probiotic microbes in two of our serums to make functional changes to the skin’s microbiome.

At Esse we don’t believe in damaging skin in pursuit of short-term results, we believe in optimising skin health to slow ageing in the long-term. For best results we recommend that Esse is used exclusively in a skincare routine. Harsh preservatives and other synthetic ingredients can destabilise your skin’s microbiome.

Since our inception in 2002, we have remained true to our core principles :- we’re certified organic, vegan and cruelty free. We support fair trade and we’re also a carbon neutral company. We believe that mindful products are a step toward an indefinitely sustainable, richly diverse and beautiful future.