Jacine Greenwood is dubbed by all who know her as the “fairy godmother of skin” because she makes products under her multi-award winning Roccoco Botanicals brand for women who live with skin challenges like acute acne, dermatitis, rosacea, and eczema. Jacine knows these women because she is one of them.
“At 13, I started developing problems with my skin and it got much worse at the age of 14. My mum was the one who taught me the importance of doing a basic routine and a skin care system. She learnt that from her mother because my great-grandmother had a very simple skin care routine and she again – like, my grandmother did not look her age at all. It’s in my maternal line to care about skin – although I took it one step further and became skin-obesssed,” says Jacine.
To celebrate her mum Valda Elson, 75, this Mother’s Day, super busy entrepreneur Jacine, who won the inaugural Businesswoman Who is Changing the World award in London on April 19, set aside time to tailor make a cream she knows her mum will love. But you won’t find it on the Roccoco Botanicals’ product list anytime soon – it’s for Mum Valda’s hands only.
“I’ll be making her a hand cream that’s never been released. It’s a rose hand cream which I make her every year that she absolutely loves. It’s a labour of love for me – I make the time to make my mum this hand cream because I know how much it means to her,” explains Jacine.
Jacine, a globally renowned and award-winning cosmetic chemist began her Gold Coast headquartered beauty company Roccoco Botanicals over a decade ago. She credits her mum for teaching her the golden tips for a solid skincare routine which set her on a path to success.
“What I learnt from my Mum is that consistency is key with skincare. My mother used her skincare regularly and it was part of her beauty routine. Even when money was tight, Mum always bought her skincare. It was her one luxury. It’s something that always stuck with me. Even as a single mother, I still ensured I bought skincare that was high quality. It was a value that was taught to me by my mother,” Jacine remembers fondly.
Jacine, 52, is a mum to 4 children although her son James sadly died over two decades ago from an undiagnosed congenital heart defect. She’s also grandma to 11-month-old Adelaide, born to her 30 year old daughter Corinne who works at Roccoco Botanicals.
While Jacine says Mother’s Day is a moment to reflect on the son she misses, she’s abundantly grateful for his life and the lessons she learned through his passing.
“After James died, everything changed. I started going for things that I would not normally have done. I decided I wanted to be a business owner, and consequently, I was led in the direction of starting Roccoco. As hard as it was losing him, I wouldn’t change any of it because it’s made me who I am,” says Jacine.
Jacine recounts how she’s been forced to pass down all her skincare tips to her children due to sheer necessity as they have inherited their mum’s skin challenges.
“My daughter was using skincare from when she was about 10, and my sons have been the same. Even though most boys don’t use skincare, mine have had to because of the skin conditions they’ve inherited from me. My older son has used skincare products since he was five because he needed to maintain his skin’s barrier function because of eczema. My kids have been raised on skincare as a normal part of their everyday life. They cleanse their skin twice a day, they look after their skin and it’s going to pay off for them because it’s preventing so many other issues happening, especially acne scarring. If the skin is managed and maintained, then inflammation can be kept at a low level,” explains Jacine.
And for anyone in the market for a transforming gift for mum this Mother’s Day, Jacine says she has just the offer.
“We’ve got this amazing promotion coming out with our frangipani and lychee body cream, which we’ve dubbed ‘the original tummy tuck in a jar’. This product is absolutely transforming mothers’ bodies. After pregnancy, many women find their skin has stretched to the point where they have been left with stretch marks because the elasticity has reached maximum strength and it has caused a tear in the skin. While we all embrace motherhood, some women want to feel like we felt before we had a baby and comfortable in our own skin. This product is snapping it back to almost pre-baby status within about 30-60 days,” says Jacine.
“With this offer, we include one of our beautiful body shimmer oils, which is perfect to highlight for an evening night out. It’s the perfect sun-kissed glow and it’s very hydrating and nourishing on the skin.”
For more on skincare, check out:
Lifestyle Changes For Glowing Skin: How To Get Glowing Skin
The Science of Hydration: How 5 Weights of Hyaluronic Acid Can Transform Your Skin
