North Shore Times (New Zealand)
Rangitoto College trio tackle the acne curse
Acne is an issue most young adults struggle with, but, according to Will Cole, many don’t do anything about it because it’s too hard.
So the 16-year-old, along with two friends created an easy solution.
Josef Morgan, Max Lawton, and Will have created a business which sells a manuka oilbased facial spray, as part of the Young Enterprise Scheme, a competition which sees students from around the country develop a business.
Clearfree was started in March and, while it just sells the spray at this moment, they hope to expand with other natural skin products.
‘‘It’s solving a problem our age group experiences and a lot of people feel unsure about the use of chemicals on their faces,’’ Will said.
‘‘A lot of people feel really insecure, but some don’t see an alternative they agree with,’’ Josef explained.
So the group, from Rangitoto College, made several prototypes using a combination of manuka oil, manuka oil hydrosol and manuka oil concentrate, until they found one that worked by putting it to the test on 30 trial participants.
‘‘It appeared to have an effect within about a week,’’ Will said.
The trio had big dreams for their brand with hopes of creating more products further down the line and expanding internationally where there is a demand for manuka-based products.
‘‘We want to grow our brand and potentially get it overseas,’’ said Max.
‘‘There’s nothing like it on the market.’’
He said the fact their first product is in a spray form means you don’t have to touch your face to apply it, spreading germs in the process.
The pair said their product can be used by young adults with acne or eczema or by adults for manuka’s antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties.
‘‘We’re not just going for people our age, we can help lots of people,’’ Josef said.
Their business has made it to the Auckland Regional section of the contest, the finals of which take place on June 27.
If they make it past that stage of the competition, the national awards take place in December and include a total of $22,000 in prize money.
For more information go to the website clearfree.co.nz.