Green Beauty Conversations by Formula Botanica

Glycolic acid has been made the same way since the 1930s. The process starts with formaldehyde. Most formulators have never questioned it, and most beauty shoppers have never heard about it. In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO and podcast host Lorraine Dallmeier sits down with Vikram Pandit, co-founder and CEO of Phycus Biotechnologies , to discuss the world's firs...

Beauty packaging is one of the most expensive mistakes an indie brand founder can make. And yet most brands still treat it as an afterthought. In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO and podcast host Lorraine Dallmeier unpicks why leaving packaging decisions to the last minute costs brands far more than money, and why some of the most well-intentioned choices, from dar...

Picture this: you've chosen your materials, researched your options and invested in what you believe is eco packaging for your beauty products. But what if it's not as sustainable as it seems? In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Jerome Fraillon, founder and CEO of Alder Packaging , to unpack the hidden realities behind packaging deci...

Hair loss is one of the most searched beauty concerns online – and yet, much of what you're being told about it simply doesn't hold up. In this thought-provoking and vulnerable episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO and podcast host Lorraine Dallmeier pulls back the curtain on the hair loss industry – opening up about her own hair loss experience – and reveals why so many pro...

Hair loss is far more common in women than we often realise – yet it often remains misunderstood, under-discussed, and frequently mis-sold through quick-fix products. In this episode of  Green Beauty Conversations , Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by trichologist Chloe Heyworth, founder of Micro Artistry , to explore what really lies behind hair loss and why a personalised, evidence-led approach matt...

What if you discovered that a significant portion of the beauty products you use every day could be rooted in fossil fuels – and no one is required to tell you? In this thought-provoking episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Lorraine Dallmeier challenges one of the biggest blind spots in the beauty industry: transparency around petrochemical dependency. It's a question that most formulators, bra...

Did you know that most of the most celebrated active ingredients in your skincare are actually derived from petrochemicals? In this week's eye-opening episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO and podcast host Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Chris Valencius, Chief Marketing Officer at Evolved by Nature , to uncover the uncomfortable truth about fossil fuels in skincare and how d...

What if everything you thought you knew about natural skincare was… wrong? Picture the most luxurious skincare product you can imagine – a weighty glass jar, minimalist branding, a premium price tag. Now ask yourself: what colour is it? If your answer is white or cream, you're not alone – but this week's episode of Green Beauty Conversations challenges exactly why that assumption exists, and what...

The beauty industry says it wants to go natural – but does it really mean it? In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Alejandro Franco of  Kaffe Bueno to explore the contradiction at the heart of beauty, where brands champion plant-based ingredients, yet reject their natural colour, scent and texture. Alejandro shares why the industry ne...

What happens when a brand loses its purpose – and what happens when a founder refuses to let go? In this week's episode of  Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier reveals the surprising truth behind the rise and fall of one of the most iconic ethical beauty brands in history, and the remarkable story of Formula Botanica graduate Sandra Velasquez, who succeeded against...

Could skincare help save butterflies? In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Chris Amendt, founder of Native Monarchs and Monarch Botanika , who is on a mission to protect monarch butterflies through both conservation and skincare. Chris shares how she's using beauty as a tool to fund conservation, protect monarch habitats, and raise aw...

If your newsfeed has felt overwhelmingly negative lately, this episode of the Green Beauty Conversations podcast is exactly the antidote you need. In this uplifting episode, Formula Botanica CEO and podcast host Lorraine Dallmeier takes a step back and reflects on the inspiring people she has interviewed over the years on the podcast. This will leave you with a big smile on your face, so get ready...

What if your cosmetics could keep forests alive? In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier speaks with John Goedschalk, founder and CEO of BioTara , about how regenerative sourcing of Amazonian cosmetic ingredients can create real economic value for forest communities – helping make standing forests worth more alive than cut down. Tune in to discover h...

For decades, green beauty has leaned heavily on one simple belief – if an ingredient comes from a plant, it must be better. Better for the skin, better for the planet and better for people. But what happens when that comforting narrative starts to unravel? In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier explores the deeper story behind fermentation and asks...

Palm oil is everywhere in cosmetics – but what if it didn't need to come from trees at all ? In the latest episode of her  Green Beauty Conversations podcast , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Nemailla Bonturi, co-founder and CEO of  ÄIO , an Estonian biotech company developing fermentation-derived oils for cosmetics and personal care that can mimic the properties of palm oil a...

Are modern beauty brand founders accidentally sabotaging their own success by hiding behind their screens? In this thought-provoking episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO and host Lorraine Dallmeier challenges one of the most widely accepted assumptions in today's indie beauty world: that selling online is always the easiest – and smartest – way to grow a beauty brand. Tune...

Ever wondered what it's like to build a family-led beauty brand? Then tune in to this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , where Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier sits down with mother-daughter duo Angela Gargano and Kathy Griswold, co-founders of Lola Arnao Beauty , a family-run beauty brand for ultra-sensitive skin. Discover the realities of building a family business, the practical adv...

The modern beauty industry didn't just happen – it was carefully designed. In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier tells the remarkable story of Helena Rubinstein, the woman who helped invent the beauty industry as we know it today, yet whose name most people no longer recognise. From lab coats and clinical imagery to the idea that beauty needs to lo...

If you've ever felt that learning to make your own skincare or haircare products is only reserved for people in lab coats, this episode of  Green Beauty Conversations is about to change everything. In this special episode, Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Formula Botanica's in-house Cosmetic Scientist, Natalie Garwe, to tackle one of the most persistent myths in beauty – that y...

What if your relationship with eye makeup wasn't really a personal choice, but the result of 5,000 years of history, culture, and technology? In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier explores how eye makeup evolved from ancient ritual and symbolism into a modern daily habit. From kohl in ancient civilisations to Hollywood close-ups and today's social...

We brush our teeth twice a day without even thinking, yet most of us can't name a single thing we do to care for our eyes – even though we expose them daily to mascara, eyeliner, lash serums, powders, creams and makeup removers, often for decades at a time. In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Dr Pam Theriot , optometrist, author and...

What happens when indie founders sell their beauty brands and the authenticity that built them disappears? That's what Lorraine Dallmeier, Formula Botanica CEO, unpacks in this solo episode of Green Beauty Conversations . The episode argues that indie beauty isn't really about being "independent"; it's about authenticity, craft, and founder-driven vision. Find out what real authenticity looks like...

Is pig fat the next big thing in beauty? In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations , Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier speaks with Farrow founder Charles Mayfield about lard in skincare, animal fats, regenerative farming, and what this sometimes controversial ingredient means for the future of green beauty. If you want to understand where the animal fat trend is really heading – and whet...

We've been told for years that great skin comes down to the latest breakthrough active – the kind with a name that sounds more like a space mission than a skincare ingredient. But what if the reason your serum isn't delivering results has nothing to do with missing actives at all? What if the ingredient that outperforms many so-called high-performance actives is already sitting quietly in your for...

What does an active ingredient really do for your skin? In this episode of Green Beauty   Conversations, Formula Botanica CEO Lorraine Dallmeier is joined by Dr Jule Lexa Völzke, a skincare scientist at CLR Berlin, to uncover the truth behind these "hero" compounds. Together, they explore how active ingredients are developed, tested, and why some of the simplest ingredients often outperform trendy...