If we don’t protect nature, we’ll saw off the branch we’re sitting on. Because only an intact environment can deliver high-quality active ingredients. – Birgit Corall from cobicos
The eco-beauty pioneer brought the New Zealand brand Living Nature to Germany in the 80s during her studies. Mind you, at a time when organic beauty was still a niche and hardly anyone knew that Manuka is a nutritious honey that is so good for the skin thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties. The part-time job finally – numerous training courses in beautician, herbalism and natural cosmetics later – turned into her new profession development and sales of natural cosmetics.
100 percent purely natural products – nature’s luxury
Developing her own products was the next logical step. Convinced of the possibility of producing highly effective anti-aging products with purely natural active ingredients, she finally launched three natural cosmetic products under the name cobicos with the help of a developer.
cobicos is made up of “co” (Corall) and “bi” (Birgit) as well as the syllable “cos” for Cosmos or Cosmetic.
Her beauty brand completely dispenses with synthetic materials and artificial preservatives. That means: There are no silicones, parabens, mineral oils or microplastics in the sustainable tubes and pots.
The focus at cobicos: high-quality serums and a small range of multifunctional high-end products.
Her motivation? To develop natural cosmetics with immediate effect. Because that was (and is) in short supply. Because ingredients that would have a quick effect are banned in natural cosmetics, the visionary has increased the concentration of active ingredients to the maximum. Hibiscus extract or Smithsonite crystal are therefore used at cobicos according to the “as much as possible” principle. Pure lotus, cherry blossom and rose hydrolate replaces water. Birgit Corall brings many other natural active ingredients such as Akoobo from an African root or recycled totarol from the New Zealand totara tree with her from her travels.
cobicos founder Birgit Corall can do so much more than beauty.
Because the Landshut woman impresses not only with her effective organic cosmetics, but also with her commitment to inclusion and her smart ideas on the subject of packaging. For her, fairness begins in her own company: The sustainable visionary founded when her children were small. In her team? Women who wanted to combine work and motherhood. Just like herself. In order to manage this balancing act, various part-time models from 15 to 38 hours have been developed. For this concept, cobicos has already received two awards from the Bertelsmann Foundation as a “family-friendly employer”.
The subject of inclusion is also important for her
For the integration of severely handicapped employees, cobicos received the honorary award “Job Success” from the Bavarian State Government in 2016. A year later, cobicos was awarded the emblem “Inclusion in Bavaria – we work together”. In the same year, Birgit Corall had all product labels provided with Braille for severely visually impaired people.
Upcycle – Recycle – Recircle
The product packaging is made of recycled or recyclable plastic, glass or ocean waste plastic, which is collected from the sea and rivers by Indonesian fishermen. The labels, half of which are made from post-consumer and half post-industrial waste, have been awarded the 2019 environmental award.
cobicos founder Birgit Corall lives 360 degrees of sustainability.
That is why the passionate cyclist offers e.g. pencils from Newspaper as souvenirs. The cardboard boxes and bubble wrap from local grocery stores are used by cobicos for shipping. And she has increased the filling sizes of her products. Instead of 30 ml day cream, cobicos products are available in 50 ml versions. That saves packaging. And the production? It takes place in Germany and Austria.
The bigger the product, the less surface it has and the longer it takes to need new packaging.
Good to know: All cobicos products are certified according to BDIH or BDIH cosmos and are available in her online shop and at www.living-nature.de, as well as in natural cosmetics retailers, from natural beauticians and also in the natural shop of the Müller drugstore.
More about Cobicos. Click here
