Otherworldly Beauty with whind

Words & Creative Direction: AMY SESSIONS Photography: GREG ADAMSKI

Beauty OTHERWORLDLY whind embodies a new kind of beauty, expertly blending both science and skincare rituals. We discuss heritage and brand building with Founder, Hind Sebti

Previous page: Illuminating Magic Oil, Marrakech Light Dhs370; Both pages: Instant Glow Tinting Water, Ourika Sun Dhs180; All whind

Both pages: Brightening Cream Exfoliator, Sahara Silk Dhs290; whind

Dissolving Jelly Cleanser, Oasis Fresh Dhs170; whind

Left page: Melting Rose Water Cream, Medina Dew Dhs250 & Overnight Recovery Mask, Kasbah Moonlight Dhs320; This page: Reviving Glow Mist, Oasis Veil, Dhs170; All whind

Inside and out. The true magic of whind comes from the new kind of brand we want to build. A brand anchored in warmth, unapologetic beauty and kindness inspired by our Arab values and attitude to beauty. It is unapologetically different and yet so authentic to its roots with sensoriality and warmth infused in every detail from packaging to formula. Tell us about the Moroccan heritage of whind and was this a key factor from the outset? Building whind was as much of a professional project as a personal journey into my identity and heritage. When I set out to build whind, I was obsessed with the idea of evocatively potent skin care, one that brings high performance products in a highly sensorial experience. This obsession was rooted on the overwhelming fact that the only skin care that works is the one you actually love to use every day. Hyperformance products that once used every day become hyperperforming. My 20 years in the beauty industry taught me “the performance bit” or how to brief the best formulations and work with the best labs and chemists. But when it came to the sensoriality and overall vibe and aesthetic of the brand I found myself being increasingly inspired by my Moroccan heritage. I didn’t set up to build a brand inspired by Morocco but a brand that didn’t exist, one that exudes warmth, confidence and unapologetic sensorial beauty. Until one day, I realised that whind was imprinted by my vision of beauty, a vision inspired by my Moroccan upbringing. Beauty anchored in warmth and sensoriality. Morocco is a land of implicit beauty and it is implicitly and delicately weaved into the soul of whind. How did you know it was the right time to launch whind and what was the catalyst for you to make the leap? I think whind was with me for a very long time. More than 20 years ago with many seeds along the way. It started with a fascination for beauty aged five. At age fifteen, I was obsessing on scribbling brand names and other logos for “my brand” on the back of my notebooks. At twenty-two, it all morphed into starting a career in the beauty industry. Theree years on, creativity kicked in when I asked my parWhat do your first 30 mins of the day look like, your morning ents to scout the traditional markets and send me routine? I wake up to the world’s noisiest alarm as I am far every beauty ingredient they could find. Only to refrom being a morning person. I first check my phone (terrible alise I simply wasn’t ready to build the kind of brand I know) and more precisely my diary. Before I start my morn- I dreamed about. I kept that bundle of spices, herbs ing beauty routine, I drink a large glass of water to awaken and other oils for years, throughout one internamy body and I give my son a big hug to awaken my heart and tional move from Paris to London and then many soul. I start my routine by massaging Oasis Fresh Dissolving house moves. It was there always, as a reminder of Cleanser on my dry face for a good 60 seconds. I love how the a dream. A dream I was waiting to be ready for to massage slowly wakes up my skin whilst the refreshing scent make a reality. In my late thirties, I was finally ready of Orange Blossom refreshes my mood. I rinse it all under the when I became overwhelmed with the desire to take shower – which I like lukewarm on my face, very hot on my the jump and build something new, having identified body – and proceed to wash my hair. Which I must do. Daily. exactly the gap in the market: a brand that marries Thankfully, I have my Glaze Super Gloss that I use as a daily performance and experience, inspired by our side conditioner to keep my hair healthy and shiny, despite the of the world, a world class home of beauty that deoverwashing. Then I am onto my favourite part of the morn- serves its due visibility. ing – my skin care routine. It’s a short routine but I like to do I trusted the timing but focused on growing and every step conscioulsy as to me beauty is as much about the developing myself and my skills to be ready for it products itself as the moment we take for ourselves to enjoy it. and I couldn’t have better planned it – it was the Step 1 always starts with a generous spray of Oasis Veil mist, right time, experience and context. an on the go serum packed with hydration. For another hydra- Do you feel more drawn to the creative or the busition boost, I use a Vitamin C Serum. I am currently testing ness side of the brand and how have you grown the many formulations for the most delicious yet potent vitC that team to support this? I would say both. I am both could find its home in the whind family. Lastly, I mix my day a dreamer and a maker. Head in the cloud but feet cream Marrakech Rich Ultimate Cream (out in January 2022) firmly on the ground. And, I found both qualities which I am beyond obsessed with because it’s everything extremely helpful in this industry where success is you’d want from a day cream in the most luxurious whipped a balance of art and commerce. When it came to texture, with a few drops of Ourika Sun Tinting water for that whind, I let my personal sense of beauty flow and always on bronzed skin. A touch of Marrakech light oil on my put total creative freedom into the brand design and cheekbones for a bit of light. A smudge of Kjaer Weis Blush in thus it is the brand I created that “looks the most Blossoming. All I have to do now is quickly rough dry my hair, like me”. But it is not about me but about serving dress and I’m ready for the day. a consumer that I believe needs or wants a brand What is the DNA of the brand, its core values? Extraordinary like whind. So my business head then takes over to products that are the perfect blend of science and sensoriality, make sure the brand delivers on this objective and is products that make sure skin is so healthy and happy, it glows. presented to our consumer in the right way, at the

VIDEOGRAPHER: MARK MATHEW; PRODUCTION: OLIVIA MORRIS; MAKEUP & HAIR: REBECCA DONEY AT MMG ARTISTS; FASHION ASSISTANT: SARAH JOSEPH; MODEL: BEATRIZ ALBORCH PEIRÓ AT SIGNATURE ELEMENT; ALL FASHION AVAILABLE AT BLOOMINGDALES; WITH SPECIAL THANKS TO FOUR SEASONS HOTEL DUBAI JUMEIRAH BEACH right touchpoints with of course the right structure to ensure a sustainable business. For the brand to grow and be here in 100 years from now.

For such a personal project, I obsessed on surrounding myself with the perfect team to complement me from day one and built it over time as the brand building required it. All of team whind have three things in common: they are at the top of their game in their area of expertise, completely “get” me and the vision I had for whind and of course they are amazing humans that share my values and view of the world. I am thankful to them and couldn’t have done it without them. What has been the biggest hurdle since launching and how did you navigate it? The biggest hurdle was launching during a pandemic: unexpected delays, lack of visibility and limited ability to connect in real life (a crucial element of the whind experience). The plan was to launch 6 products in February. We could only launch 2 in April so I decided to soft launch the brand anyway so we could start with 2 products only so we can start interacting with our consumers, test and learn. I am so glad I did because the learning curve has been amazing and enabled us to strengthen our plans for when we have a fuller launch (which is now). Do you have any mentors or guides and how does this help navigate the right path? My first instinct is to always answer this question by saying I was very lucky to have had many, many wonderful mentors – women and men – throughout my professional career. But I think this is not just about luck but an active focus on surrounding myself with people I admired, and I am so thankful I did as they have massively contributed to shaping the person that I am today. The list is too long to go through, but I have to start with my father who was my day one mentor and gave me the best advice I have ever got which is “not to look for external validation – emotional or not – but to my skills or talent and believe in my inner worth”. This is the advice I try to pass on to my son and everyone I have the privilege to mentor. Then comes a long list – too many wonderful people to name each one by name – from my very first marketing Director at Procter & Gamble – Sophie Blum – who took me under her wing and made me see my leadership potential when I couldn’t see it myself yet, to Stephanie Dumas-Pilhou who saw my beauty and marketing potential and supported a never done before career move at Procter & Gamble at the time to Zaid Alqassab, who taught me almost everything I know about Beauty, Annie Murphy whose leadership style inspired me and of course Michel Brousset, my partner and co-founder at Waldencast (company under which I developed whind ) who enabled me to finally unleash my inner entrepreneur and embark on this wonderful journey to build a global, best in-class conscious and purpose driven beauty and wellness brand. How have your previous roles supported the success of whind? I couldn’t have built whind as it is today without 20 years of beauty experience behind me. My skin care roles, on iconic brands such as Olay and L’Oreal Paris, taught me everything about skin care products, formulations and the best technology. Fun fact: it was in my very first role at Olay where I learned an insight that stayed with me for almost 20 years and is the foundation of whind: that the only skin care that works is the one you actually use. And that people stop using skin care that “works” for them because they do not enjoy the texture or the scent.

My brand and general management roles taught me how to plan a successful business and ensure that beyond a great insight, a great product and a great brand there is a solid growth plan with sustainable financials to scale it globally. Lastly, my interaction with thousands of consumers over the years enabled me to hone the above-mentioned insights and get a deep understanding of what they are missing. What has been the most successful product to date globally? Medina Dew Melting Rose water cream has been an instant hit. How has social media affected the beauty industry and which platform has been most useful? Social media has reshaped the beauty industry in so many ways. Firstly, by democratizing connections between brands to consumers and paving the way for the rise of indie brands as the cost to

THE HERO BUYS

Nina Ubhi

If you want a more dewy makeup look, Marrakech Light is the best product you could use. It instantly gives a ‘lit from within’ glow that also deeply nourishes the skin. It can even be used as a base for overly dry skin but also on top of makeup when you want to add a touch of dewiness to a matte base.

The best product for exfoliating the skin and lips is Sahara Silk. It’s not harsh for the skin, it buffs the dead skin away yet keeps the skin and lips hydrated.

I use it to soften my skin and lips after removing my makeup! Media Dew can be used every morning to give your skin the ultimate hydration that sinks into your skin.

It is especially useful to me when filming several makeup looks in a day for YouTube.

The best way to have a bronzing look is by using Ourika Sun. It is perfect to create a sun kissed contour that lasts for days! It can also be used by mixing into your foundation for an overall bronzed look.

My favourite thing about Oasis Veil is that it can be with me at all times. It’s the only mist that can be reapplied over and over without ruining your makeup.

It’s refreshing, hydrating and makes your skin smell amazing.

enter the market became significantly lower than traditional media. Secondly, by providing mass inspiration and education to consumers that have contributed to the growth of the beauty industry overall, the most powerful tool on beauty being YouTube. Thirdly, it has fuelled the rise of transparency or easy access to information as there have never been as many forums on the topic of beauty. That being said, I do also think with the proliferation of platforms and players, in what is more a non-regulated media space, it has also come with more questions on 2 major topics: source of authority vs. click bait and self-esteem vs. unrealistic mood boards. There is a lot to do and build over the upcoming years to drive a more responsible and accountable space. What advice would you give to your younger self starting out? Keep dreaming. This is The Winter Escape Issue – where would you like to escape to? Morocco! And more particularly Tangier, one of the most beautiful, fascinating and diverse cities in the world.