The Face Planner

Amid the chaos of a global pandemic and wedding planning, one busy New York professional found clarity in the serene landscapes of Tuscany. Step forward Emma Dobbie, founder of one of our favourite brands, The Face Planner...

Inspired by the natural bounty of her family's estate, Emma conceived a skincare brand focused on holistic, curated routines. This brand, born from a desire for simplicity and quality, offers bespoke solutions to those navigating the overwhelming skincare market.

We caught up with Emma to explore her fascinating journey from finance to founding a skincare revolution...

TBS: What inspired you to start The Face Planner, and how did your journey lead you to focus on skincare sets as a cornerstone of your brand?

ED: I was inspired by the amazing natural ingredients we grow at our brand home in Tuscany. I was also counting down to my wedding at the time of creating the brand and wanted my skin to look its best. I was searching for a simple and effective skincare routine and was overwhelmed with all of the choices, so decided to work on a brand that focused on selling in plans instead of individual products.

TBS: The Face Planner's Tuscan home, The Frantoio, holds a significant place in your brand's story…

ED: We believe that skincare is more than what you apply topically to your skin. Your skin health is greatly influenced by how you move, how you sleep and what you eat. We are proud to be able to offer annual retreats at our brand home in Tuscany where we can take a 360 degree approach to skincare. 

Our retreats also give our customers the opportunity to experience the place where many of our skincare ingredients are sourced from. Provenance of ingredients is super important to us, and being able to show our customers where many of them are sourced makes us very proud.

TBS: Sustainability is increasingly crucial in the beauty industry. How do you integrate sustainability into your products and processes?

ED: There are four key ways…

Small batch production: we only have a small selection of products and only produce in small quantities. This also allows for the ultimate potency of ingredients in our products which means less products for ultimate results.

Packaging efforts: our caps, lids and pumps are made from post-industrial recycled plastics. Our bottles are all glass which was chosen for its lower environmental impact. 

Manufacturer: when choosing our lab partner, their sustainability credentials were hugely important to us. 

Selling in plans: we think by selling our skincare products in plans, we are encouraging conscious consumerism i.e. less products to reach better results.

TBS: Can you tell us more about the ingredients that go into making The Face Planner?

ED: I was first inspired by the amazing ingredients we have at our fingertips, grown at our brand home @thefrantoio. We produce our own olive oil and wine from the property and by-products of these are used in our skincare products. We also source almond oil and citrus extract from the property. For the ingredients that we cannot source from our brand home, we have worked closely with our lab to identify Italian suppliers of excellence. It was important for us to keep production 100% in Italy, allowing us to be able to trace each ingredient down to the farm that it is sourced from. Our lab has specialised for over 30 years in sourcing and using natural ingredients in skincare to treat conditions such as psoriasis, dermatitis and skin ageing. 

TBS: What does an ideal day off look like for you?

ED: As a mum to a newborn the ideal day off would begin with a couple of hours extra sleep! Then a walk or run around Holland Park followed by a homemade brunch. I LOVE a facial and would have to include one of those from @rhiantrumantherapies and finish the day with a yummy dinner and early night – things are pretty tame these days!

TBS: Celebrating successes is crucial in any venture. How do you acknowledge and celebrate milestones?

ED: Admittedly I am not very good at this! I think I am always striving to do better and sometimes need to take a step back to look at what has been achieved so far, and understand that not all successes will happen overnight!

TBS: The future of beauty is always evolving. Where do you see the industry heading, and how does The Face Planner plan to influence or adapt to these changes?

ED: I think many of us have realised that less is more in terms of beauty and more specifically skincare. Consumers have become more conscious in the purchase decisions as they have realised that less products = better results and better for the environment too. I think there will be a heightened awareness of the efficacy of products and products can no longer be successful just from pure marketing. The Face Planner wants our customers to own less skincare products/have less steps in their skincare routine for better results. We are also passionate about only bringing products to market that are truly effective, and will continue to work hard via testing, research and development with professionals to do so. 

TBS: What is one of the most touching or unexpected pieces of feedback you've received from a customer?

ED: We have geared alot of our early marketing and focus on selling skincare plans to get our customer’s skin ready for life’s biggest moments – specifically weddings as this is what I was counting down to when I developed our products. Getting feedback from customers that they felt confident on their big day because their skin was glowing from our products is hugely satisfying. 

TBS: During tough times, what keeps you driven and focused on your vision?

ED: I have recently given birth to my first child, a daughter. I am now hugely inspired and driven to succeed because of her. It is a feeling I hadn’t felt before but it is extremely powerful.

TBS: If you could travel back in time, what piece of advice would you give to your younger self at the start of this journey?

ED: I would tell myself to take my time and not to rush. I have learned that better results often come from well thought out decisions opposed to those made in a flash.

TBS: What attracted you to The Beauty Standard?

ED: I felt that The Beauty Standard was not ‘just another beauty gift box’. I could tell that your product selection was thoughtful and it looked like something I would like to receive myself! There are so many new, interesting beauty brands so I think The Beauty Standard is doing a great job of curating a selection of thoughtful beauty products.

You can find The Face Planner's Cleanser in our be_calm box.