The Flow Cosmetics Story

From A Simple Soap Experiment to an International Cosmetics Brand 

A home kitchen and a spark of interest was all it took. Founder Riitta Jänkälä started making homemade soaps in her home kitchen, and what started out as a hobby quickly turned into a job and a business that soon employed almost the entire family. 

Today, Flow Cosmetics consists of more than a 100 handmade skincare, haircare and make-up products. In addition to being pioneers in the Finnish organic cosmetics market, Flow Cosmetics has now expanded to international waters.

Our handmade products are manufactured in our own small factory in Riihimäki, and they've established their position in the beauty boxes and makeup bags of quality-conscious customers. A genuine love for nature, decades of expertise and a range of high-quality natural ingredients is a strong base for excellence. 

It All Started with a Simple Bar of Lavender Soap… 

Riitta Jänkälä was a busy career mother in the 90’s, who took care of the family and simultaneously ran a hair salon with her sister in Vantaa and later in Hyvinkää.

Born and raised in Northern Finland, Riitta was swept away by the fast pace of the hair and beauty care industry of the South. The longing for nature remained, and at the turn of the millennium Riitta became more and more aware of the dose of chemicals she was exposed to on a daily basis.

Mother and Daughter as a Business Owner Duo

Riitta and her daughter Suvi run the business together, both relying on their strengths. Riitta creates wonderful aromatherapeutic recipes, driven by strong intuition, whilst Suvi formulates effective, solution-oriented treatments. 

"I am the brains, and my mother is the heart! I consider and contemplate, while she trusts her instincts and moves forward quickly. We're aware of our differences and they play out as a complementing, balancing strength for Flow Cosmetics. It's a wonderful thing to be able to work with your own family, and it is more a lifestyle than anything. Often, when we sit by the dock on long summer evenings, we envision the future and plan new products together", Suvi says. 

 

The Everyday Life of an Entrepreneur

In 2014, the company faced a new challenge. As demand increased, the old production facilities in Hyvinkää became cramped, leaving Riitta and Suvi with a difficult choice. They had to either move to a larger facility and invest in new equipment, or outsource the manufacturing as many cosmetics companies do.

“The manufacturing of Flow Cosmetics products was temporarily outsourced - it was the worst mistake of my career! Customers noticed a difference in the texture and quality, and for the first time we started getting negative feedback on the products. Luckily we realized to pull back in time. I realized that efficiency and productivity are not the most important thing, and that the professionalism we had accumulated over the years was our greatest asset. Our thing is to manufacture the products from start to finish ourselves. This that has taken us to this point where we are now.”

New Innovations and Bestseller Treasures 

Flow Cosmetics selects ingredients so pure they're good enough to eat! The ingredients include but are not limited to seed oils of various berries, flower extracts, coconut oil, salt, sugar and apple cider vinegar.

Along the way, various product experiments have been carried out, some of which have been successful immediately, some of which have been waiting for the right moment.

“My mother's intuition and bold experimentation has often paid off, but we also listen to the feedback of our resellers and customers. We have no need to run after trends, but of course we follow up on ingredients that are hyped to pick out the best ones for use. It would be madness not to utilize hyaluronic acid in products, which has been proved an excellent moisture-binding ingredient. The customers are already aware of its effectiveness due to the media attention.

Sometimes Flow Cosmetics has been ahead of its time. A good example of this are the flower waters, which Flow Cosmetics had in the early 2010 in five different variations. Only the rose water was selling, so we decided to give up the others. A couple of years ago, the popularity of floral waters began to grow once more, so chamomile and lavender water returned to the range alongside the bestselling rose water. ”

A New Look

In honor of the 15-year journey, Flow Cosmetics got a new look.

“While the content of the product always comes first, it is also important that the design of the packaging is interesting, so that the products receive the attention they deserve.

It was time to renew the look of the brand and at the same time think about the place of each product within the range.We wanted to unify the brand's appearance and bring Flow Cosmetics forward as a Finnish, international-level natural cosmetics series.”

Our Promise and Mission

Finland is known to have one of the cleanest, purest natures in the entire world. The ingredients we need are right at our fingertips. Truly natural ingredients are essential to Flow Cosmetics, and we carefully select each and every one of them. 

  • Our production complies with the criteria of certified natural cosmetics.
  • We use organically certified ingredients and wild-grown plants of the pure, green North.
  • The ratio of organically grown or wild-grown ingredients in our products is particularly high, and is clearly visible on the packaging.
  • Our customers always receive the products fresh, as they are made by hand in small batches.
  • We mainly use easily recyclable cardboard and glass as packaging materials.

"I'm really proud that I have been able to grow Flow Cosmetics from my hobby to one of Finland's best-known natural cosmetics series. The doors to the world are already open, and it feels like only the sky is the limit. My dear family and our knowledgeable and passionate Flow Cosmetics team are developing Finnish natural cosmetics expertise forward. We will continue to make the products ourselves by hand from high-quality ingredients, relying on our strong natural cosmetics expertise, professionalism and intuition.”