It is easy to see that the beauty industry is as big as it is saturated. The Philippine market is full of foreign brands with their own niche when it comes to the kind of beauty they promote: K-Beauty (Korean), J-Beauty (Japanese), American brands, and then the homegrown brands.
Amid all these noises is a Filipino brand that quietly helps women address beauty issues that are not often brought to light, such as dark underarms and other dark areas in the female body.
This brand does this and more, going to the extent of allowing Filipino women and OFWs to have their own business. This brand is One Earth Organics.
Small beginnings
Tyff Short started her beauty business in 2012 by selling a beauty facial set that was chemical-based. “My skin is so sensitive, and I have psoriasis. Everything was aggravating for me,” Tyff recalls. “This prompted me to explore and research more on plant-based ingredients.”
Tyff became vigilant about researching plant-based counterparts to every chemical component of the facial set she was selling. As luck would have it, she had a friend who had a manufacturing business for natural beauty products. Tyff shared her idea with her friend, and One Earth Organics was born.
In developing her flagship product, Tyff had to be honest about her insecurities. “My biggest insecurity was my underarms,” she admits. “So I decided to start with something that had to do with my underarms.”
A safe space to talk about insecurities
Tyff started selling One Earth Organics products in bazaars, where she would highlight her kili-kili (underarm) products. This gave her insight into a mentality and another form of insecurity women have: admitting their problem areas and being brave to openly ask for help.
“People would always be shy to talk about insecurities, especially their underarms,” Tyff says. “They wouldn’t admit that they have dark underarms. We were selling the underarm therapy set as if secretly. They wouldn’t buy it on the spot.”
She continues, “I will always be proud to say that One Earth Organics is the safe avenue to talk about a woman’s insecurity.” Tyff believes that if people openly talk about their insecurities, it helps give others hope, making them feel they are not alone.
“Underarm problems? It’s a normal thing,” Tyff posits. “We were that avenue for people not to be ashamed of buying underarm therapy sets.” This movement paved the way to underarm selfies on social media, where confident women would tag the brand.
Beauty for everyone
Tyff recognizes that not everyone can afford treatments to help address their problem areas, like dark underarms, thigh burn, and a problematic bikini area. This is why she makes sure that One Earth Organics products are not just competitively priced — they are also the most affordable in terms of the promise and results they deliver.
“One Earth Organics is your organic beauty solution for any skincare or beauty problem,” says Tyff. “Everything is multi-functional while also targeted.”
This explains why they stick to the number of their SKUs (stock keeping unit) or a distinct type of item for sale. If a brand has 10 different products, then a brand has 10 SKUs. One Earth Organics only has 34 SKUs that can address all skin problems.
“If you have a dark skin problem in any part of your body, you can use our Wonder Blanche Balm,” suggests Tyff. “At the same time, you can use the Wonder Blanche Balm to moisturize the hardest or roughest areas of your skin.”
“I know there are so many salons doing that, but not all people can afford those kinds of services,” she adds. “Many people want to use organic and natural, but at the same time get the results, be able to afford it, and experience no side effects.”
The mission to give business opportunities
When Tyff started selling One Earth Organics in 2013, distributors asked her if they could take it as their own business. This led to a eureka moment and a decision to change its business model from retail selling to direct selling.
“The core value of everything I work hard for is always about helping and supporting others,” says Tyff. “The mission of One Earth Organics is about giving business opportunities to people.”
She then came up with business packages for distributors and resellers, which led to the organic Herculean growth of One Earth Organics from 2013 to 2017. In 2017, the brand entered Beauty Bar. In 2018, they got into Watson’s.
Amid these opportunities for the company, Tyff kept her distributors in mind. Instead of opening just company-owned stores in these big retailers, she gave the business to her distributors. This way, they operate the stores, and everyone wins.
Opportunities for OFWs
The company’s nature and culture have reached other shores, and Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) would reach out to inquire about starting their own business.
“We provide business opportunities, and we don’t want to deny this to anyone, whether in the country or abroad,” says Tyff. “Our OFW program is about recognizing that an OFW application for a franchise here in the country is an investment.”
“If you want to own a store, we will take care of it for you,” adds Tyff. “We will manage your store for a minimal management fee.”
But Tyff reiterates that she is looking for stewards of the brand, not just people with money. “It’s not just about having sales skills. It’s about being an advocate and carrying the brand,” she says. “We worked so hard to be part of Beauty Bar and Watson’s. So if you are going to be a franchisee, you have to embody that.”
One Earth Organics brings dignity back to beauty. It lets you look in the mirror to see your imperfections and problem areas yet feel secure and assured that you have One Earth Organics to help you fix them. No judgement, no embarrassment. Now, that is true beauty.
