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INTERVIEW Tim Probert – Editor, Personal Care Magazine
BUILDING BEAUTY BRANDS
Tim Probert (TP): So, you are a Pole living in New Zealand. How did you end up in Auckland? Dominika Andrys (DA): I actually came to New Zealand from Norway. I was living in Norway and working for Regenics, a company producing salmon roe extract for the cosmetic industry, and I just received a job offer to be a New Product Development Manager for a contract manufacturer in New Zealand. I thought it would be a cool
adventure to come to New Zealand for a year. I’ve been here eight years!
TP: What is your background in the personal care industry? DA: My Master’s degree was in Biotechnology at the West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin, Poland. I then completed a Postgraduate degree in Cosmetic Chemistry at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan. I completed my PhD in
Plant Biotechnology related to cosmetic chemistry, during which I micropropagated lavender plants, isolated essential oils from them, and used these EO as natural preservatives in cosmetics, as they demonstrated increased antimicrobial and antioxidant activity. During my PhD, I received
Dr. Dominika Andrys is an Auckland, New Zealand-based cosmetics consultant and author of the recently published book, Beyond Beauty: How to Build Your Own Cosmetic Brand. In conversation with editor Tim Probert, Polish-born Dominika shares her considerable insight into new product development and helping indie brands get off the ground
a scholarship and went to Norway, where I was eventually offered a position of Research & Formulation Scientist at Regenics, so I was completing my PhD in Poland while working in Norway.
TP: Can you tell us about your main role and what your work involves in the cosmetics industry? DA: I work as an independent consultant and cosmetic scientist through my business, Beauty Brand Formula. I specialize in the formulation and troubleshooting of a wide range of cosmetic and personal care products. I also mentor and guide aspiring beauty brand founders, helping them with preparing product dossiers and claims, conducting safety assessments, compiling INCI lists, and integrating new ingredients aligned with emerging beauty trends.
TP: This is mostly skin care, I assume. Do you also cover hair care, body care, and so on? DA: Most of my clients are in the skin care space but hair care is growing. I have also developed pet care products. Believe it or not, I have also been working on car care products. That’s not cosmetics, of course, but it is a growing market.
PERSONAL CARE MAGAZINE April 2026
TP: Will your typical client be an indie brand or someone who’s got a good idea for a product and they want you to help? How does it work? DA: I have created a product development brief for my clients. They fill out the brief so that I know what they need. My typical client, is, yes, an indie
brand or person who has an idea for a product, or a range of products, and need some help to go through the development process. I tend to categorise my clients
into two groups. First are the people who know exactly what they want. They may want to build a brand story around certain ingredients or concepts.
Then there are those who are
not really sure about what they want to develop. They may have an idea about the type of product they want to develop, like a moisturizer, but that’s it. It’s part of my role to get as
much information about what the client really wants. Not just in the product formulation but also about the type of consumers they want to target, how they want to market their product and so on.
TP: This is part of the product development brief you send to your clients? DA: Yes, there are many questions. I also ask about packaging. I ask what their product price point is. Is it a low, medium or a high-end product? I also ask for a benchmark product or a similar product already on the market. I have to get that information
from them for me to be able to develop products they will be happy with.
TP: And then what happens? DA: Once I have all that information, I start designing and developing the product for the client. I conduct research, contact suppliers and source the right ingredients to make sure everything meets the client’s requirements. I design the formulation on paper, capturing all the ingredients and specifications the client wants. Then I create initial formulations in the lab, producing samples for the client to test. Because preferences for texture, aroma, colour, and overall feel vary, I often develop one or two additional variations, giving the client a choice and ensuring the final
www.personalcaremagazine.com
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