Kora Organics Founder Miranda Kerr on Her New Eye Cream, Top Self-Care Gadgets
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Miranda Kerr is keeping busy these days, having recently signed with WME in the midst of running Kora Organics (the skincare brand she founded in 2009) and her Hollywood Regency-inspired furniture line. The former Victoria’s Secret Angel also has a tea set line with Royal Albert — and her latest launch is a product that fellow multi-taskers will appreciate.
Kora Organics today debuted its first eye cream ($54), a brightening and smoothing concoction that comes in a refillable jar. The cream contains a 5.5 percent active blend of stabilized and natural sources of vitamin C, as well as other certified organic ingredients such as kangaroo paw flower, kakadu plum, cloudberry, red ginseng and quinoa. The result, per Kerr: a more eco-conscious way to boost the skin’s vibrancy and reduce the appearance of under-eye bags, fine lines and wrinkles. (In other words, a way for fellow busy bees to look more awake.)
Kora Organics Berry Bright Vitamin C Eye Cream
On the heels of the United Nations’ recent climate change report, Kerr tells The Hollywood Reporter that “it’s something that we’re very conscious of” when it comes to Kora Organics. The brand has recently partnered with the nonprofit organization Climate Neutral to become certified carbon neutral in 2021 and beyond, and the company — which is based in Australia and the U.S. — is also certified organic by Ecocert COSMOS, a global certification with “very strict guidelines,” says Kerr.
“That’s why our new eye cream is the second product that has the refillable pod. I decided to do this refillable jar which reduces plastic, so it’s better for the environment. We also have the Turmeric Glow Moisturizer [in a refillable jar] as well,” she adds.
“The fact that we are certified organic by Ecocert COSMOS, which is an independent global certification body that actually certifies that products are genuinely organic and are produced to the highest feasible sustainable standards.” says Kerr. “Basically with [their] certification, it also requires the use of responsible and environmental production processes during our manufacturing. And the majority of our manufacturing facilities are powered by renewable energy sources.”
The new eye cream isn’t Kora Organics’ first foray into refillable containers. The brand’s Turmeric Glow Moisturizer (Katy Perry revealed in a recent Instagram Live with Kerr that she’s a fan) also comes in a reusable jar and refill pods.
We recently sat down with Kerr to chat about the differences between clean and organic skincare, the best business advice she’s received (hint: it comes from the startup world), her favorite tech gadgets for self-care and more. Keep reading for more, and shop Kora Organics online here.
You founded Kora Organics in 2009. What are some of the most important lessons you’ve learned as an entrepreneur over the last 12 years?
I’ve learned so much, and I continually learn every day from my team. When you’re building a company from the ground up, there is so much to learn. I’ve actually been very inspired by my husband [Snapchat co-founder Evan Spiegel] and his incredible work ethic, and management of his company, which I’m sure you know about, Snapchat. He is so dedicated and so committed to his company and his team. He was the one who told me pretty much the day he tried [Kora], he’s like, ‘What are you doing?’ I was like, ‘What do you mean?’ He said, ‘You really need to get it into stores in America, people would love this!’
He was the one who encouraged me to further expand Kora Organics. Now we’re in over 30 different countries and brick-and-mortar stores, and we ship to 120 different countries. He was saying to me, ‘You have this incredible company, why are you spending all of your time working [and] providing for other people’s companies when you should be focused and working on your own company?’
It was incredible to see that when you do take that leap of faith — and it was a little daunting at first, and obviously I had to invest more time, money and energy to really make Kora my priority, but it’s paid off. It’s incredible and so rewarding to give people all over the world these healthy options for their skin that are so powerful and give them the results that they need in a natural way that is so much more than just “clean beauty.”
Courtesy of Kora Organics
To the average shopper, the labels “clean” and organic” when it comes to beauty products seem interchangeable. What do you wish people knew?
I think “clean beauty” is a little bit of a dirty word. From day one being certified organic is definitely a step in a right direction, [and that] is so much more than just being “clean.”
I wish people understood the difference between certified organic and clean skincare. Cambridge put out a study in a British Journal of Nutrition showing that that certified organically grown fruits and vegetables like the ones we use in Kora Organics, they have up to 60% more antioxidants. So not only are they are more effective, they’re more powerful.
And the soil that our ingredients are grown on — because it has to be for our certified organic ingredients — they have such strict regulations. It has to be nutrient-rich, they can’t be grown over and over on the same soil like the way a lot of mass-produced ingredients are grown — so therefore you have that higher quality. Unfortunately, clean beauty is highly unregulated. There are so many products out there that are labeled as “natural” or “clean” but that is only regulated by certain companies.
But for us, being Eco-Cert Cosmos, it’s a world certification. They have the authority on this and it requires a lot of time and work and energy and annual auditing for us. But it really ensures that our brand has that integrity and full transparency so our customers know exactly what they’re putting on their skin.
What does your daily self-care routine look like now?
I am very much into self-care because I do think it’s very important to fill your cup so you can give so much more back. Becoming a mother and having to learn to get things done while the kids are sleeping and multi-tasking is important. As I said, the more you take care of yourself, the more you can give back to others, the better mother you can be.
I try to fit into my routines before my kids wake up, my skincare routine morning and night; and simple things like dry body brushing. Making sure that I do my exercise; I love Kundalini yoga and even going on walks with the kids. I just love to incorporate fun fitness things, maybe even jumping on a trampoline together. I think that making sure that you do those things for yourself is really important.
My husband wakes up every day at 5:30 and my kids don’t wake up until 6:30, so I have a good hour in there to do my morning routine, a little meditation, a little dry body brush. Thanks to my husband, he’s turned me into a morning person.
What about your favorite tech gadgets for self-care?
Another thing that I’m into is the Mini Theragun; think it’s important to give yourself a little massage. I got into that during the pandemic. The mini [size] is just as good as the big one, it can in your handbag, you can use it all over your body; is great. I love my Oura ring, because it tracks your sleep. It’s so good to make sure I’ve done my steps [for the day]. It makes you get to bed earlier; it’s a good motivator. And the NuFace [facial toning device].
And what are you eating and drinking these days?
Something that has made a huge difference in my life is — and I know it sounds simple — is waking up every morning [and drinking] room temperature water with one lemon. I have 32 ounces of that to start off my day. Then I have [32 ounces of] celery juice. That really helped me elevate my health in a way that I never thought was even possible. Not only do I drink the celery juice every day, now my husband and my family do too. The baby has maybe 30 [milliliters] of it and absolutely loves it.
We have fresh cucumber juice that we make throughout the day. Or we’ll make an apple, lemon, cucumber and celery juice [to get] the nutrients in a very simple way in our cold pressed juicer.
I love my air fryer! I basically use it every day… I love air-fried potatoes. I think potatoes have gotten such a bad rap, but they’re actually very healing for the gut, especially if you don’t add stuff to them, if you’re just having potatoes steamed or air-fried, they’re really good for you. I’m obsessed with my potatoes, and the air fryer and my celery juice.
This is making us hungry and we imagine you’re a great dinner host! Can we come over?
I love having people over! My parents owned a steakhouse growing up, so I know how to cook meat, my husband likes meat, but at the same time I’m being more plant-based right now. I still will have a little bit of meat every now and then, I’m not opposed to it. I feel better when I have more plant-based. Everything is in moderation: I try to be 80 percent healthy and 20 percent indulgent, that’s always what’s worked for me.
If you make a conscious choice, if you’re educated and say, “This is healthy for me and this is not, but I’m going to make that choice and I’m going to enjoy every moment of it,” I think that’s important for balance.
We have to ask what those indulgences are!
My indulgences are anything from french fries to sourdough bread with butter and Vegemite. If I see Evan eating fried chicken, it’s really hard for me not to take a bite!
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