Welcome to the newest entry in our Inspiration Series, where we interview amazing women who are inspiring us daily through their work, creativity, motherhood, business and passion.
Today we meet Hayley, our incredible Business Manager at Skintopia Old Bank, Wellington. Hayley shares with us the "why" behind the amazing work she does and we talk all things plant based (with a delicious recipe included!)
Tell us about the journey that led you to Skintopia
I studied beauty therapy 13 years ago, and from the moment I started, I was obsessed with ingredients and how we could make changes on the skin with the use of certain products and various technological enhancements. After working as a Skin Therapist for four years, I joined the team at Dermalogica as a Territory Manager, looking after our Skin Centres in the lower north and south islands. I had an absolute blast in that role. This lead me onto exploring other ventures in sales over the next few years, all within the skincare industry which I am so passionate about. After having my first baby girl, I joined the Skintopia team as the Business Manager and Partner at Skintopia Old Bank and haven’t looked back since! I feel so privileged to be part of the incredible entity that Skintopia is. We work with the best products, the best technology and the BEST people! It’s so fulfilling to work with a company that supports women to grow and discover their own potential.
Tell us more about your wellness journey
Health, wellness and a holistic view on life have always been a big focus for me. I have been plant-based for many years now and enjoy spending any spare time in the kitchen creating vegan food for my family, my speciality seems to be raw slices and baking due to my love of anything sweet! Since becoming plant-based, my energy, skin and mood have never been better! Plus, a driver of the switch was to reduce my environmental impact, so it feels great all round. I’m very passionate about how lifestyle impacts your health and have learnt first-hand how diet effects your overall health, but particularly gut and skin health. Being involved with Skintopia is a great way to educate clients on options they can use to improve their own skin health through lifestyle choices and selecting the correct products for their personalised situation.
Rituals you hold for self-care & balance
I have two mottos in life: “Everything happens for a reason” and “Everything in moderation.” I’m one of those crazy people that finds exercise relaxing so I ensure this is part of my routine for wellness every day. This can be anything from HIIT training to walking, just moving my body is a huge part of my own self-care and balance every day! I’m also a big fan of meditation to relax and balance the mind and of course spending time with my little family is the most fulfilling thing I can do!
Where do you look for education & growth
I’m huge on reading, so you’ll never find me far from a wellness/plant-based/scientific book! I also listen to podcasts daily. These focus on lifestyle, food, exercise, research and nutrition. My favourite is The Plant Proof Podcast, I highly recommend learning interesting facts from a podcast like that if you’re at all interested in health, well-being and a plant-based lifestyle. We’re also very lucky to work with brands such as Dermalogica and BePure which constantly offer education and development through their product training.
Career achievement you are most proud of
Without sharing the specific numbers, the HUGE growth we’ve seen at Skintopia Old Bank! It’s so fulfilling to see the hard work we’ve been putting in come to life through client satisfaction and business growth.
Tell us your WHY behind what you do at Skintopia
My why at Skintopia is sharing the knowledge I’ve gathered over the past many years with our clients to help them in their own skin and wellness journeys. I feel so lucky to be in a role where we see real results on the skin from our recommendations which improves the confidence of a client so significantly. Another massive why for me is helping our own Therapists grow and develop through their roles. We are such a fabulous little family at Skintopia Old Bank and helping the Therapists I love to reach their potential is more than I could ever ask for.Your current fav plant based recipe!
Raw Brownie:
1 cup walnuts
1 cup almonds
2.5 cups pitted medjool dates
3/4 cup cacao powder
1/2 TSP salt
Blend nuts to create a rough texture then add all other ingredients and blend. Flatten and smooth into a loaf tin. Set aside in the freezer.
CHOC RASPBERRY TOPPING:
6 TBSP cacao powder
6 TBSP melted coconut oil
4 TBSP Nut Butter
2 TBSP Maple syrup
1 TSP drop vanilla extract
1 cup frozen raspberries
Mix all ingredients in a bowl but fold raspberries through last. Pour over base and add additional raspberries to the top. Freeze for 3-4 hours, then slice and demolish! Keep in the freezer once cut, it will keep for a couple of months if you don’t destroy it all by then!