When I lived in South Africa, I used to generally use local beauty brands – Placecol, Nimue, Justine, Annique, African Extracts, Kalahari, and Environ.
I love Environ. The brand is amazing at dealing with ageing, acne-prone and sun-damaged skin. The packaging is basic, and because they are a dermatologist and salon brand, they tend not to advertise much. The founder, Dr Des Fernandes, a plastic surgeon, was one of the first to use antioxidants and Vitamin A in skin products. I loved their Ultra Night Cream, and Super Moisturiser. [English nerd fact – it is spelled moisturiser rather than moisturizer because South Africa uses British English]
I am not sure if they still do, but Environ used to have a higher price for the international market, and a lower price for local customers. For example, a moisturiser that used to cost about €50 in Europe was sold for about €12 in South Africa. This made the brand affordable in a country where most people do not earn very much. Local packaging was marked ‘for South African sale only’ for example. My beauty therapist used to allow me to stock up on products when I visited. I had been a client of hers for decades before I left South Africa. For my 50th birthday her gift to me was a tube of my favourite Environ product – Super Moisturiser!
I visited South Africa once or twice a year for 15 years. Unfortunately I have only visited once in the last 12 years due to circumstances out of my control. And I miss my Environ.
There used to be an Environ distributor in Stockholm, but she returned to South Africa many years ago. I did, however, inherit most of her stock when she left! That was amazing! Recently, Environ has returned to Sweden but none of the salons who offer it have webshops.
I was happy to find a European webshop that was offering a special price and free shipping on my beloved Super Moisturiser. I ordered a bottle, seeing as I will not be in South Africa for the foreseeable future. The packaging has changed since I last used it, but I hope the product is just as good! It shipped from The Netherlands.
