ABOUT US

Estonian Excellence

A spin-off company from the University of Tartu, LUMI has its roots in tackling dermatological issues and bringing radiance back to skin. Founder Helen Hirv became invested in skincare research when her daughter began suffering from atopic dermatitis.

Unsatisfied with the solutions available on the market, Helen sought to create a cream without the usual array of artificial additives that industry giants insert into their products – designed primarily to keep profits high, rather than skin healthy.

A fascination with the properties of hemp seed oil and its incredible ability to tackle dermatitis led to the creation of her first skin cream, a forerunner to what would become the award-winning Bio-Klinik line, Estonia’s first hypoallergenic, prebiotic skincare series. The cream’s results on skin were amazing, and it was clear that Helen’s passion had to be pursued.

In 2012, Helen realised that she could do more good through her own brand than remaining at the university. LUMI was born, and we’ve never looked back. In twelve years, LUMI has succeeded all expectations, growing year-on-year, and flourishing into Estonia’s premier organic skincare brand.

The modern iteration of LUMI still has that commitment to helping people that inspired our first steps, but the scale of what we’re able to achieve has grown vastly.

Through our tailored skincare lines and our pioneering ‘LUMI Method’ 4-week approach, we’re proudly able to provide a comprehensive skincare regime to anyone, no matter their skin type or skin condition. All we ever ask is patience – because good things come to those who wait!

But, as ever, we’re not content simply resting on our laurels and admiring how much we’ve done so far. With these achievements ticked off, there are new challenges on the horizon, and we’re relishing the idea of getting stuck in. Watch this space, because if you think we’ve done a lot already, then you’re not going to believe what we’ve got planned for LUMI’s future!

From Micro to Macro

Your skin is the meeting point between your body and the world. It’s the largest organ in the human body, connected in myriad ways to every facet of the internal and external, and is home to billions of microorganisms that live on its surface. To try and treat the skin in isolation, then, is not just ineffective – it’s plain stupid!

To properly look after skin, it’s important to always look at the whole picture. That includes the big things, such as the nutrients you feed your body, which become the building blocks needed to repair and maintain skin, and health conditions, whether physical or mental, chronic or acute. Any of these factors can greatly affect the whole body, including and especially the skin.

But also, the whole picture means including even the most tiny of things. The skin microbiome – the billions-strong community of microorganisms that live on the surface of our skin – have a major role in how our skin looks, performs its duties, and regenerates itself.

As scientific research sheds more and more light on the microbiome, its vital role in skin health becomes ever clearer. Put simply – look after the microbiome, and it can be your skin’s greatest ally; neglect it, and no amount of creams, serums, or anything else will be able to fill the gap.

Only when you take a holistic view of health – from the innermost workings of the brain all the way to the microscopic bacteria living at our very edges – can you hope to get things right when it comes to lasting skin health.

At the Cutting Edge

As you’d expect from a skincare brand born from university research, scientific endeavour is the lifeblood of everything we do here at LUMI. We’re obsessed with scientific news, both within the skincare industry and further afield, and the LUMI labs are an exciting place to be, where ideas are free to be explored and groundbreaking formulations are continually being worked on.

Our passion for science is not merely about curiosity, though. We understand that research and technological innovation are at the heart of problem solving. By achieving greater understanding of the body and embracing new methods, we can go further than has ever been possible before, and tackle even the most difficult of challenges.

We’re proud of our status as early adopters, utilising the latest breakthroughs in skincare and helping to shape trends, rather than simply following them. In recent years, we’ve pioneered the use of revolutionary biotechnologies such as neurocosmetics, phytocannabinoids, and plant stem cells, to name just a few highlights in a long list of successes.

But do these modern innovations really make a difference to skin, you ask? Well, you could just take our word for it, but we’d really rather you tried them for yourself!

Better for Skin, Better for Earth

What’s the point in having flawless skin if you don’t have a planet to show it off on?

Sustainability has always been a core tenet of LUMI’s beliefs, and it’s a view that naturally goes hand-in-hand with our focus on natural ingredients. Everyone here at LUMI is committed to responsible sourcing, production, and distribution. It’s better for the planet, and natural ingredients are better for your skin, too!

Through our focus on short supply chains, only using responsible producers, and our in-house sustainability initiatives, we keep our contribution to climate change as low as possible, whilst still maintaining an excellent standard of product.

Hemp seed oil provides the base for our creams and many other products that we make at LUMI. We grow all of our own hemp, cultivating the superstar variety Finola, renowned for its strength, nutritious content, and versatility. Finola hemp also enriches the soil its planted in, rather than stripping away nutrients from the land.

But Finola’s real talent comes from its carbon capturing abilities. One hectare of Finola hemp removes up to 22 tonnes of CO2 from the air each year, making it one of the most efficient natural air purifiers in the world. With every LUMI purchase, we plant 1m2 of Finola hemp, clearing 0.8kg of CO2 from the air annually. So, not only do LUMI products leave your skin feeling incredible – your conscience can feel good, too.

But we’re not in this alone! Sustainable change requires a buy-in from our customers, too, and we’re so grateful for the support of all of you. An incredible 90% of LUMI customers choose to either forego packaging or used recycled packaging, allowing us to dispense with so much unnecessary waste and focus our efforts on the things that really matter – the products themselves.

Of course, there’s always more that can be done, and we’re continually looking for ways we can reduce our environmental impact even more. Watch this space, because we’ve got some incredible plans for LUMI’s green future!