“A global brand”: Ultra Violette scoops export award after taking its cult SPF products to the world

It’s no secret the Australian sun is harsher on our skin, so it makes sense for a local firm to solve how to future proof faces across the globe.

That’s the view of the Melbourne duo behind cult SPF brand Ultra Violette, which this week scooped the Global Victoria Women award for success in international business at the Governor of Victoria Export Awards.

Rebecca Jefferd and Ava Chandler-Matthews launched the first of their skincare products in late 2018 after noticing a major gap in the market.

At the time, SPF products were greasy, thick, left residue and caused unwanted skin reactions.

The pair got to work, designing products that felt more like cosmetics than sunscreen, and were made locally using native ingredients such as Kakadu Plum.

Now, the brand has expanded into 20 countries, including New Zealand, the UK, 12 countries across Europe and five in southeast Asia.

Rebecca Jefferd said the recognition felt “wonderful” as the company moved towards building a global brand.

The last 18 months had involved lots of learning, beginning with testing the UK market to see if the duo’s products resonated outside of Australia.

The Ultra Violette range. Source: supplied.

“They haven’t grown up with that ‘slip, slop, slap’ public messaging given to us in childhood,” Jefferd tells SmartCompany.

The launch into a string of UK retailers, including Space NK, was followed by an expansion to Sephora stores in 17 markets this year.

Jefferd said the pair knew early on they were solving a “big problem”.

“We knew a lot of people had trouble finding a daily SPF they wanted to wear. Despite knowing they should wear something, they couldn’t find anything in the market right for them.”

It made sense that an Australian business would solve the issue, given the harsh sun and UV awareness here, she added.

“I’m really proud it’s an Australian business solving that problem for French and German women and women in Hong Kong and all over the place,” she said.

“That realisation drives our aspiration to be a global brand and I’m really proud it seems to be working so far.”

The company just launched into southeast Asia and is eyeing Canada, the Middle East and ultimately the US.

“We have aspirations to be the biggest premium SPF brand globally,” Chandler-Matthews added.

“The timeline is about three to five years on all of that. So we’ve got a lot to do in a short time.”