Our Story
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OUR STORY
MINIMAL INGREDIENT PHILOSOPHY
MERME Berlin is pure and potent clean-skincare. Our minimal ingredient philosophy means that our products are stripped down to their 100% potency, without any hidden fillers, synthetics or chemicals. We use only the most trustworthy and powerful ingredients, mindfully and sustainably sourced from across the globe.
Our overarching ideology focuses on ‘minimalism in a bottle’ – with our foundational product line consisting of 100% botanical ingredients, and the other with innovative biotechnological ingredients. Our products are so powerful that they can stand alone, untouched, and without any added fragrances or synthetics. With the goal to make skincare easy and effective for everyone, MERME Berlin is a simple, effective range of skin essentials based on best-in-class ingredients. We serve everyone from the Green Beauty Beginner to the All-time Beauty Junkie, who's tried everything and wants to come back to the basics.
FOUNDED BY CLAIRE RALSTON
Originally from Australia, Claire‘s passion for clean skincare started when studying at the Australian College of Natural Beauty, where she took particular interest in the effectiveness of non-clinical and natural beauty methods. This, combined with a further ten years in the magazine and beauty industry resulted in one conclusion: Even the so-called “natural” skincare products were full of unnecessary chemicals and toxins.
After moving to Berlin in 2014, she was unable to find good-for-you organic, skincare ingredients that gave her that sought after healthy glow, so began sourcing them herself – from then, MERME was born. Launched in 2016, MERME Berlin has grown from a singular face oil to over 12 different options for clean skincare that can be combined into an individualised treatment formula. The key product is a cold-pressed Rosehip oil inspired by the beauty routine of Claire's grandmother, whose nickname is also the brands namesake. Her minimal-ingredient philosophy was inspired by her late grandmother, who always used homemade, organic oils to cure any skin alignment.
WHO IS MERME?
“Merme was my grandmother who lived on a cattle farm in northern New South Wales, Australia. Growing up, she believed in the power of nature and living off the land, and had every type of oil for every ailment. She was an extraordinary woman, who was the original power woman to me! Before #girlboss was a hashtag on Instagram. She inspired me to start my own business in a mutual passion of ours – simplified self care.”
Claire Ralston
SCIENCE THAT MATTERS
By deeply exploring nature’s tree of life and combining biotechnological advancements, it is possible to create sustainable, high-performance clean ingredients. Whilst remaining vegan, cruelty-free and non-GMO, it is possible to use the benefits of scientific developments to create conscious, clean skincare products. We are not interested in faux-science or silly claims. Just good quality, useful, non-irritating skin care that you’ll like using, and your skin will love.
Sustainability
Sustainability and respecting our beautiful planet is at the forefront of everything we do. We are always seeking to minimise our impact on the environment as much as possible. Whether that be our decision to bottle our products in recyclable glass, use only vegan & cruelty-free ingredients, our elimination of all synthetic ingredients that harm our ecosystem, our use of reusable cotton bags instead of boxed packaging, and our considered shipping practices. Not only should clean skincare be safe for you, but also our planet.