Inspiring Conversations with Ameann and Clarisse DeJohn of Clarisma Beauty

CLARISMA was conceived in 2007 when a precocious seven-year-old named Clarisse danced her way into the kitchen and requested that her mother, Ameann, a beauty industry professional and Esthetician, bring her childhood fantasy to fruition. Clarisse was ahead of her time and imagined a natural product line, free of harmful ingredients and chock full of peppermint and watermelon. She also gave her mother direction regarding what the packaging would look like and talked about labeling and her brand’s overall vision. Ameann, being a mother who supported her children’s ideas, put together a simple product and packaging that any other seven-year-old would have been thrilled with that Clarisse promptly rejected. The cleanser did not smell of peppermint, and she demanded to know where the peppermint had gone and addressed her packaging concerns with her mother as the label fell off in the shower. WHAT?! Ameann, at that moment, realized that this was not a child playing dress-up but a future founder, creator, and thinker. As Clarisse matured into a teen and had her own acne challenges, she realized that her brand must address all of the skin concerns she and her friends faced: blemishes, dryness, redness, under-the-surface bumps, excess oil, dullness, uneven texture, and blackheads. Clarisse’s dream was to create a simple, clean beauty brand that worked for all skin and was affordable and accessible. Seeing the potential and a niche, Ameann and Clarisse went to work to make this childhood dream become a reality.

After years of planning, refinement, and custom ingredient formulation, CLARISMA is a reality that a 7-year-old imagined. This childhood vision launched into 600 ULTA stores during the pandemic of 2020 and followed up in all CVS and RiteAid stores proving that amazing brands can grow from unique beginnings. CLARISMA beauty was created for all people working to nurture and balance skin of all ages, ethnicities, and types! Its natural plant and fruit enzyme base is the secret to unclogging pores, balancing oil and dryness, and creating a smooth and radiant complexion no matter what you’re struggling with. CLARISMA is proudly CLEAN + CRUELTY-FREE + VEGAN + NON TOXIC + PLANT & FRUIT BASED + INCLUSIVE + AFFORDABLE Our formulas were created in compliance with the strictest standard of clean in the beauty industry, including EWG, Made Safe, and Credo. We’re a certified clean beauty brand developed for all skin types, colors, and concerns. Psst! We’re the cleanest fruit-based drugstore brand under $25!

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?

CLARISMA beauty has challenges like any start-up, and one of our early struggles was people did not believe that Clarisse was the brainchild behind this brand. Anyone who knows Clarisse personally is a believer, and they understand she was always a child who thought out of the box and had big ideas. She is one of those children and now a young woman who is a creator and forward thinker and was lucky enough to come from a family that supported what others might consider a silly fantasy. Clarisse is the type of young woman that surprises you with her confidence and approach to life, even at age 21. As we share our story more and the world meets Clarisse, they understand that our brand story is legitimate. Clarisse is currently in her final year at fashion design school in New York City and still supports, leads, and guides us in moving the brand forward. Her juggle is an art form. Another challenge has been to make affordable products for everyone while ensuring our ingredients are top-of-the-line and ethically sourced. CLARISMA beauty offers a mask created to give you the equivalent of a spa treatment at home! You are getting ten treatments for $25.00 while the same facial in the spa would be a single facial for $100.00 at a minimum. Now you can mask ten times while you Netflix and chill and sip some wine in your pajamas. The last hurdle is to educate the masses as we are now in the space that hyaluronic acid once was. Fifteen years ago, nobody knew about hyaluronic acid unless they worked in the industry. It is often still misunderstood, but it is a well-known product. We are currently in a bit of an uphill battle to explain why enzymes are necessary, should be used daily, and work for all. One of the biggest obstacles now is selling that enzymes are so unique. It’s a challenge to educate through a box on a shelf, so we turn to social media, which comes with its own challenges and never-ending changing algorithms. Daily, we are searching for insight to see who we connect with and focus our marketing.

As you know, we’re big fans of CLARISMA Beauty. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?

My beginnings started at Bloomingdales at the 59th Street location where I worked at the counter and a Makeup Artist for Prescriptive, and that start was my beginning of learning about skin, texture, and the complexity of challenges from client to client. Right after working for Lauder, I was plucked from the cosmetics counter and into the SPA world. Opening spas and salons across the eastern seaboard and training them on facials. This is where I started to see a change in skin and became an esthetician, and opened my own spa. I was inspired to go to Esthetician school, followed by some time of practice and learning, and I then opened my own space. I became obsessed with skincare and taking care of my body overall due to some personal challenges. As time went on, as previously stated, I left N.Y. and headed to California sunshine and a corporate position with a major beauty brand. After that, my path led me to entrepreneurship, where I juggle two businesses, and I have helped over 100 beauty companies create and launch over 750 products, so I know a bit about the business. Some say that I am a bit of a silent and secret weapon in the industry.

Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?

Initially, I was from the Midwest and later found myself in Rochester, New York. I was an aesthetician, and I owned my own spa, where I worked with my clients to help them have the best version of their skin. I became obsessed with skincare, and due to all the misinformation out there, education became a passion that we now build into our brand. A young Clarisse was influenced by my work and became curious about health, clean beauty, and a curiosity of what could be created. She was young, curious, and precocious. My family relocated to Los Angeles when a major skincare brand brought me in to run the West Coast division and the North American operations. Later on, my career path changed, and that journey led me back into the entrepreneurial world, where I now work with a team of other passionate people focused on pushing CLARISMA beauty forward. We are a start-up focused on unique and clean products for all, with an accessible price point, while keeping it top of mind that our brand must also think of social and environmental responsibilities.