Spend 5 minutes with 1/2 of the twin powerhouse duo behind beauty cult classic, Sand and Sky, Sarah Hamilton.
1. So Sarah! You founded Sand and Sky with your twin sister, Emily. What are the best and worst parts of being in business with family?
Emily and I work in separate areas of the business, which is great as we don’t have to worry about each other's parts. We’re able to focus on our own areas, while being confident the other will bring in the results.
What is helpful is that we have two different points of views that come together to help the overall business. While they don’t always necessarily agree, they both hold value and support the business in moving forward. We also laugh a lot, which I love (we love banter!).
We can’t pretend that we don’t have lives outside our awesome jobs, so meetings are often interspersed with comments on world affairs, shopping trends and of course our kids and family.
Our whole family works together, 40% in Sand and Sky and 60% in the Hamilton Family Property Group, so our biggest challenge is not to talk about work at a family BBQ. Our parents worked together and dad also worked with his friends, so being in business with those close to us wasn’t foreign to Emily or I.
Like anything, there are of course some downsides. Mainly it can sometimes be hard to delineate between work and family catch ups, which might be boring for others to listen to. I also find you tend to be more direct than you would otherwise be with co-workers who aren’t family. This can be great if the feedback is positive but horrible when it is negative!
2. Sand and Sky has a cult following on Instagram, what are your top tips for business owners on socials?
1. Establish your brand - what does it stand for, what is your aesthetic and then become part of the conversation while ensuring you maintain your brand values.
2. Celebrate your customers and not just influencers. We have a group of really loyal Sand and Sky customers who have been big supporters of the brand since the very beginning, and we always keep them front of mind. Whenever we’re looking at developing new products, we do our best to base these off what our customers have been asking for.
3. Use yourself as a test case - what makes you pause when scrolling your feed, what makes you like a piece of content, tag friends or comment?
3. What are some of the key beauty trends in 2021? How do you stay ahead of the curve at Sand and Sky?
Sustainable is the new clean beauty and rightly so. Brands shouldn't feel it's enough to have clean ingredients, sustainability through all facets of your brand is now a responsibility we all share and one that so many consumers expect. Brands should be assessing their carbon footprint and making serious steps to reducing their impact on the environment. I think we’re also continuing to make strides in proving that beauty is for everyone. It's disappointing that it has taken this long to get us here but I think it’s really important for brands to be showing their products on a range of their customers, no matter the shape, size or colour.
In terms of product trends, living with your best skin microbiome is a big one this year. Skincare shouldn’t just plump and hydrate your skin, it now needs to remove the bad bacteria and bring in the good.
Probiotics are a necessity to help protect and strengthen your skin barrier and our Tasmanian Spring Water Splash Serum is the first one of its kind to include probiotics which we’re really proud of. Hyaluronic and lactic acids also help to maintain healthier skin.
4. In a global pandemic, 'maskne' is a real issue! How do you suggest treating it?
It’s great to firstly think about why it happens. Makeup can get trapped and with your skin rubbing against fabric for hours at a time (plus a gross dose of sweat!), it’s not hard to see why breakouts occur.
In order to treat it, swap your masks over regularly and wash them well in super hot water. Apply a skincare mask a few times a week (our Australian Pink Clay Mask is perfect for drawing out toxins and impurities) and be sure to limit makeup in that area. If you can’t go without makeup, I recommend using our Australian Emu Apple Enzyme Powder Polish after wearing a mask to provide a light exfoliation and thoroughly remove the makeup from that area.
5. What's your go-to product from the Sand and Sky range?
Right now I have two favourites that work so well together that I actually get excited on the days that I am able to use them. It’s our Australian Emu Apple Enzyme Powder Polish activated by our Australian Emu Apple Dreamy Glow Drops, rather than just water.
I use this powerful little duo in the shower a few mornings a week and it gives my face the perfect makeup base.
I’m also trialling a new mask that we’re hoping to launch January 2022 and I could not be more in love with it! Stay tuned for more on that later this year...
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