Hope Dworaczyk Smith. In Lights. Undone and Done.

HOPE SMITH: Passion. Passion for pregnancy and skin care combined. I had a deep insecurity around my own stretch marks I developed during puberty and knew genetically I was predisposed since every woman in my family had them from pregnancy. I refused to believe it was purely genetic so chose to follow the environmental path and found great success preventing stretch marks. From there, I did a deep dive into what I was using on my face. I thought, if I can develop a product to prevent stretch marks, I must be able to build products for other things I wanted to improve or prevent, like hyperpigmentation and inevitable fine lines...amongst other concerns.

H. S.: I opened my first medical spa at 20 and am a licensed aesthetician and also trained to do laser hair removal and laser vein removal so I knew about the structure of skin, but I hadn’t studied stretch marks or which vitamins, if applied topically, could help to reverse or prevent them. I did a deep dive into why the skin tears and how to build strong, resilient skin and consulted with a large handful of professionals to h

H. S.: Before it was a brand and before Instagram was what it is today it had a cult following. This group of women could buy anything they wanted on any shelf in the world but were asking me to make this magic crème for them. Feedback and success stories from real people are what told me this butter was magic.

H. S.: If I have a skin concern and I can’t find a product or solution that will help me combat it, I want to be the one to develop it. That process starts by working with a chemist and exploring different formulations that will work. Only when my concern was noticeably improved and the product tested and perfected will I launch it. Behind every product there is a very personal story that I feel women, especially mothers, share, and that’s why MUTHA and our product integrity is such a non-negotiable.

H. S.: There was no question that I wanted it to be Violet Grey. VG’s VIOLET CODE APPROVED accolade was absolutely imperative to the brand. If one of my products wasn’t deemed best-in-class, would any of the work had been worth it? I don’t think it would have been. We had to be the best and be carried by the best and VIOLET GREY is the destination for best-in-class products. Absolutely everything you find on the site has been tested, scrutinized, and ultimately approved by a committee of beauty experts so if it is on VIOLET GREY, you know that it works, and it is the best in the category. When working with our chemist, the top of mind questions was, would VIOLET GREY approve this?

H. S.: More communication than ever before! I’ve spent over 1,700 hours on Zoom since the pandemic started over a year ago. We had to stay flexible and nimble. We had to change our budget and work harder than ever all while managing a whole new work and home lifestyle.

H. S.: The product is clean and natural but has science and clinicals behind the ingredients we use. This is something the older, more skin-savvy consumer really values, and the artistic packaging is a bonus. The younger generations are attracted first to the packaging and then they become interested in the ingredients and supporting research. MUTHA provides everything to everyone.

H. S.: Our body care is not only for mothers. It’s for MUTHA’s. There’s a difference. One doesn’t have to have a child to use it. It’s the best hydrator out there. Also, our Body Oil is the best thing that’s happened to my skin post-baby. It’s a dry oil and is absolutely the most nourishing thing you can do for your body in a day.

H. S.: Clinicals are how you build trust and stand out in the market. We make it a point for all of our products to undergo consumer panels and now we have many undergoing clinical testing so that we have scientific backing and proof that our products will do what they say they will do. Before we create a product we make sure that the actives we care most about have clinicals behind them. I also personally test every product and I have wildly high standards. That’s how I know we are putting the very best, highest-quality products out there.

H. S.: How much work it actually is on a daily basis. And because it’s my brand, delegation doesn’t always come easily to me. At the beginning, I felt like I had to have a hand in every part of the business, from product development to marketing to operations, but I am trying to get better about that. MUTHA has an amazing team that I like to lead by educating them about the brand and product origins so they really believe in the integrity of everything we sell. I hope this inspires them to see our potential and where we are going.

H. S.: Selling MUTHA isn’t something that I am tracking towards. If I were to ever consider selling the brand, it would have to come with the condition that the integrity of the ingredients and the product are never sacrificed. We use the best of any ingredients, and while many products all use Vitamin C, for example, we use THD or Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate which is a stabilized form of Vitamin C that is 50x more effective than other Vitamin C formulations. The same can be said not just for the form of the ingredient, but where and how it is sourced. Are nuts better from East African trees or West? Does Bulgaria produce the best rosehip? We scour the planet to find literally the best of everything.  I will never falter on the belief that MUTHA needs to be formulated from ingredients that are proven to be the best in the world.

H. S.: With a handful of women including Cassandra, I am part of a beauty group that is led by a badass woman who I admire and truly respect so much. These women are much smarter than me and have been in the business much longer than I have. These women have been a sounding board and a resource to ask questions and really support one other. You’d think our brands would be competitors, but we have such an open and honest space that I valued deeply.

H. S.: We want our customers, especially moms, to not only feel good about their MUTHA product, but the purchase itself. By donating some of profits to IMC, we are authentically supporting mothers–literally putting our money where our mouth is. These funds help fight infant and maternal mortality rate, which is something I am extremely passionate about.

H. S.: Our F Racism candle gives 100% of profits back to The Conscious Kid, an organization that supports organizations and educators in taking action to disrupt racism in young children. As a mom to 4 African American children, this was the right organization for us. When my son was 3 years old he came home from preschool and told me light skin was better than dark skin. I was furious. I was the first one waiting outside for the school to open the next morning and had already called the parent to the child who said it to him the night before. Racism doesn’t fly here so the F*&% Racism candle was my F*&% you.

H. S.: Be alone with no music and no noise and no one needing anything from me so I can sort thoughts and take care of me. Time is truly the biggest luxury in the world and the one thing I don’t have enough of in the day.

H. S.: We’ve made the batch 400+ times at home and in the lab. It’s all a blur. Final answer...no comment.