Skincare for your skin’s microbiome: Le Cleanse

Mirella Siciliano started Le Cleanse after working on the beauty buying team at Barneys New York & Rinascente. Le Cleanse is a cruelty-free skincare brand with a simple routine that balances your skin to ensure it’ll be hydrated & renewed. Meet Mirella & learn about this newly launched skincare brand below! Want to try these products after reading about the brand? You’ll find shoppable links at the bottom of this interview.

Where did the idea for the brand come about?

The idea for my own skincare range came while I was working as a Buyer at Barneys New York.

I was a bit underwhelmed by step-intensive routines and becoming more and more sensitive to brand marketing.  And I was not the only one. I have always been very in tune with the consumer, their evolving “needs” and I felt the consumer had become more and more discerning and confused. We read editorials on cosmetic confusion. It is a real thing.

In a year like 2020 we reached a point that truth and health became EVERYTHING.

But even prior to 2020, I had personally begun my journey looking for a way to purge. I was trying to source brands that were simple and straightforward. In my research I had discovered the most profound yet comprehensible concept which was the Microbiome. It was there that it all began. I became more and more convinced that it was time for the beauty industry to change the narrative and focus on skin health. I knew of the importance of Probiotics + Prebiotics and their benefits for gut health and wanted Le Cleanse to offer similar benefits for the skin. 

What are some of your biggest takeaways from working on the buying team at Rinascente & Barneys?

14 years worth of brand and product launches globally. I have had the best experience for brand building and feel that utilizing the experience to build a brand has been everything. I am also very lucky to have incredible partners (Advantage Brands Group), that has proven to be such a great brand building resource and was able to beautifully put together the vision for Le Cleanse. 

As a buyer working at the top retailers in the world, you saw it all! Even though there are a plethora of brands out there, what did you feel was missing in the market?

Having a purposeful mission, bringing it back to the basics and providing that clarity attracted, and inspired me to create the line. By bringing it back to the basics – it is helping consumers realize what is really the importance of skincare. Why do we need it? What are harmful skincare habits? I not only want to help educate but I want to provide consumers with a simplified routine of core essentials to benefit their skin health.

How is Le Cleanse different from other beauty brands?

Le Cleanses’ most important attribute is its minimal complexity, its straightforward nature. We wanted to create products easy for the consumer to comprehend and that would want to use daily. 

Le Cleanse has a unique positioning in the skincare market as it speaks to The Skin microbiome, which is the newest microbiome that is gaining lots of attention. Le Cleanse is a brand that ranks skin health as a priority and does it the most simplified and easiest way. 

Our skin has a microbiome?! Tell us more!

The skin Microbiome is a protective barrier made of billions of bacteria that works to guard you against pathogens that could affect your skin and overall health. It is important that the community of bacteria that resides on our skin finds balance. The concept of eliminating bacteria is no longer relevant. We need to use gentle and nourishing ingredients to maintain the friendly bacteria healthy in order to “naturally” defend against the bad bacteria from breaking through to the dermal layer. Hydration is another key element that helps fortify that skin barrier, including using actives that provide anti-inflammatory benefits and pro+prebiotics – that have shown to restore this balance and rebuild the community of good bacteria in our Microbiome. 

Why is Balance so important with Le Cleanse?

When we speak to balance, we not only refer to cultivating and balancing the good bacteria that keeps our skin healthy and glowing but balance is also about finding the right way to clean, exfoliate and take care of your skin from the inside out, and doing it without over complicating is what Le Cleanse is all about. 

What’s the secret to beautiful skin?

Its health- and the approach also must be holistic. Skin health is how we nourish, protect and preserve our skin but it is also how we eat, how we live and how we process stress. Balance is very important –  inside and out.  

Talk about why it was important to you to use clean ingredients & that your products would be made in the US.

I think it is important to understand what we are putting on our skin and be informed. The clean movement brought about that awareness that there are potentially harmful ingredients in products and that we should question. I also felt it was very important that we are made in the USA because we felt it was synonymous with quality and we also wanted to be mindful of the carbon footprint – and not source our ingredients from foreign countries.

How did you go about determining your price point?

The products consist of simple yet highly effective ingredients that we wanted to make available for all consumers at accessible price points. Luxury beauty I felt does not need to be overpriced, we are democratizing beauty.

What beauty trends are you excited about?

Helping individuals deepen their understanding of themselves and enrich their commitment to every day wellness. We believe that wellbeing is our most valuable resource, and are working to create a future where it is accessible to everyone.

Walk us through the best skincare routine using Le Cleanse.

We made it super easy for you in 3 simple steps or what I consider the “core essentials” to best cleanse and care for your skin. First you start with The Cleansing Water (step 1) to remove makeup and impurities and then follow up with The Restorative Cleanser (step 2) that is extremely gentle and hydrating cleansing cream to help restore and prime the skin for Step 3 – The Essential Hydration – complete with all the necessary humectants + emollients to keep your skin’s barrier function fully intact, nourishing your skin and locking in lasting moisture. 

Lastly, The Reset Mask for that weekly reset. I often refer to it as a facial on demand because it detoxes, exfoliates and leaves your skin with a beautiful bare face glow. 

What was the importance of including a daily probiotic in your product matrix?

It was very important to include The Daily Probiotic in the line to reinforce this concept that skincare is a holistic approach and we need to nurture ourselves inside as well as outside. What we eat is super important to the health and care of our skin. Probiotic-rich foods for example are extremely powerful in boosting our good gut bacteria that can provide a multitude of benefits – including glowing skin.  When we want to nurture ourselves inside and out and can’t get enough of the foods we want – we can rely on a supplement. 

What’s next for you?

We want to continue to focus on developing products that continue to address the balancing of the Microbiome on other areas of our bodies and as we grow -we hope to power the creation of products that address needs that are becoming more and more specific. I see in this category develop in terms of personalization as science will help us better identify our skin’s personal deficiencies. 

Want to try?! Shop Le Cleanse below!