Human Nature Philippines
A reality of modern living is that our bodies come in contact with a lot of chemicals that we are unaware of. They lurk in your daily bath essentials, cosmetics, detergents, hand sanitizer, deodorant, nail polish, plastic containers and even your toothpaste! Many types of commercial products that are laden with nasty chemicals (parabens, triclosan, fluoride, phthalates, and oxybenzone) are not only harmful to people but pollute and destroy the environment as well. The use of animal testing, unfair trade practices and a lot of other alarming environmental issues are the effect of using such cosmetic and chemical products.
Human Nature is a reputable and trusted company in The Philippines that takes pride in honest practices and provides consumers with high-quality all-natural products. Unlike most commercial products out there, Human Nature seeks to create products that are not harmful and make use of sustainable, natural, and local ingredients. The company has numerous advocacies that support local suppliers and farmers by helping them create community-based enterprises to improve their quality of life. Another great thing about Human Nature is that what were once considered specialty goods are now more readily available in the market.
With a keen focus on health, environmental sustainability, social consciousness, and Faith, Human Nature is a company with a message that definitely needs to be heard.
Human Nature's Corporate Communications & PR Executive, Jen Suguitan tells us more.
Can you tell us the story of Human Nature?
Human Nature started out from love, literally. Love for our country, for our people, and for our environment so that children and the generations after them will get to experience what nature has to offer.
It all started when our founders (sisters Anna Meloto Wilk and Camille Meloto, and Anna’s husband, Dylan Wilk) were in the US. Anna & Dylan were slowly shifting to a greener lifestyle and sustainable living by switching to using cloth diapers and using products with less chemicals. Camille eventually joined them and pursued her love for makeup by taking freelance makeup gigs.
While in the US, they saw that there was a growing trend of natural products - from personal care to makeup. What’s fascinating was that natural ingredients like coconut, lemongrass, and citronella are actually grown and abundant here in the Philippines!
After countless hours of research & hardwork, they saw the potential for high-quality natural products that’s proudly Pinoy-made—products where each bar or bottle isn’t just good for the consumer, but it gives back to the Philippines too.
Can you brief us on some of the company’s advocacies?
We’re very focused on our core values—Pro-Poor (we keep our prices low so more people can afford our products & we buy our raw materials at above market prices), Pro-Philippines (All our products are made in the Philippines!), and Pro-Environment (We are genuinely natural. We have 44 products certified by the Natural Products Association, currently, we’re the leading brand to have the most NPA certified products), that’s why all our initiatives are focused on them.
We are really driven to make business not just about profit, but an investment back to our people and our land. That’s why we have a no-firing policy and we don’t have contractual employees-even our merchandisers are regular employees with full benefits. Our salary is around 40 to 60 percent above minimum wage for our rank & file employees. We call this our “living wage”, we are committed to giving dignified wages to our employees.
Right now, the advocacies we support are on our way to building the first Human Nature Village in Gawad Kalinga Rajah Buayan. Our profits from our Bug Shield line will be used to fund 50 homes for Rajah Buayan.
Internally, Human Nature employees are working for our Goodness Rising project: raise P7.5 million to send 50 scholars to School for Experiential and Entrepreneurial Development (SEED) at Enchanted Farm, Angat Bulacan. These scholars are mostly second or third generation farmers in from the farming communities in Bulacan.
We organized food sales, ukay-ukay, and movie screenings to raise funds! It’s fun to see how creative employees can be, especially that we know that our money is going to build a bright future for our scholars.
In 2014, Human Nature raised funds for GK Tambulilid for Goodness Rising.
Here are some links that might be helpful:
http://humanheartnature.com/buy/index.php/content/more-than-feeding-tummies-filling-hearts-with-hope
How has the brand evolved since it started in 2008?
Human Nature has gone through a lot of changes in the last seven years! From personal care, we’ve expanded to home care, men’s care, wellness line, and even pet care!
We launch new products every eight to twelve weeks because we want to make sure that we have something new for our advocates (formerly called dealers). Is it easy? Definitely not (our Research & Development team can attest to that.) but it’s definitely worth it. It only goes to show that Filipinos really are innovative.
We’re also now at 32 branches, with overseas operations in Singapore, USA, Indonesia, and UAE. We recently opened our first physical store in Dalma Mall, Abu Dhabi, UAE and it’s well-received not just by Filipinos, but Emiratis as well.
What is the long term goal of Human Nature?
We dream of becoming a global brand—a Filipino brand that we can all be proud of. We also hope to see more social enterprises to flourish that’s why we carry a lot of social enterprise products like First Harvest, Mori Notes, Theo & Philo, Pili & Pino, Bayani Brew, among many others—these businesses are not just made with top-notch quality, but they are helping poor communities rise above poverty.
What are your favorite Human Nature Products?
This is a tough one! Right now, my favorites would be our PerfectFlush Cream Tint in Rosy for my lips & cheek tint & Perfect Eyes Mineral Eyeshadow for my kilay & highlight. These are my go-to products every day, especially for days when I’m too lazy to put on a full face makeup!
I also love our Moisturizing Shampoo & Conditioner in Lush Vanilla. It took me years before I fell in love with my naturally wavy hair and Human Nature has helped me grow my locks strong and my waves hydrated.
What makes you Happy?
A lot of things—my family, our three dogs (all are FurryKind Cocomutt babies!), and an eight-year relationship. But what’s at the top my list is that every day, I get to do what I love most- writing stories about the goodness that our country has to offer! I went through a phase where I felt lost because I didn’t know what my purpose is—but now I believe that God led me to where I am now - doing Public Relations with integrity & to tell good stories to remind people that Philippines is not hopeless! That’s why we always say “Goodness… it’s Human Nature”. We are a country rich in culture, resources, and people. We just need to be more compassionate & see that there’s goodness in everyone.
Human Nature products are available online via: www.humanheartnature.com/buy and in any of Human Nature retail partners & Branches: http://humanheartnature.com/buy/where-to-buy.
For more information:
Website: http://humanheartnature.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/humanheartnature/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/humannaturephil
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Photos property of Human Nature Philippines
