When Susan Nickell launched her Flathead-based business of skin-care products last December, the company had high hopes for its Sevique and Relevance lines. But no one could have guessed that just two months after the launch, the products would be part of Hollywood’s biggest night.
Nickell and the company’s general manager Kim Briggs went to California for the 2014 Academy Awards, where their products would be part of the TMG International Pre-Oscar Luxury Suite at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.
Speaking in the company’s shipping warehouse west of Kalispell before heading to California for the Oscars, Briggs said the public relations company heard about Sevique, an anti-aging skin care line, and asked for samples.
“We sent them the product, they liked what they saw, and the rest is history,” Briggs said.
Sevique, and its clinical counterpart Relevance, launched last December. It is the brainchild of Nickell, a long-time Kalispell resident who, after a battle with breast cancer and lymphoma, developed her own products to help her skin recover from the cancer treatments while also getting away from harsh chemicals.
She developed a product that is formulated to be soothing and allow the skin to use its natural defenses and keep its natural components safe, Briggs said. It has also worked well with blemish-prone skin, she said, which allows for a broadened market.
After developing the product, Nickell headquartered Sevique’s parent company, Glacier Labs Inc., in Kalispell. The skin-care products are manufactured in California, Briggs said.
The facility on Whalebone Drive west of Kalispell is used for packaging and shipping, Briggs said, and it has plenty of potential for expansion. Which the company may need – so far, Sevique and Relevance have tested well locally and across the country, she said.
Before the company launched in December 2013, the product was already in the warehouse by May. This meant the company spent time shipping it out to various retailers, Briggs said, and getting feedback.
The overall goal is to be known at spas and dermatological offices nation wide, Briggs said.
“From conception, we always saw this as a national brand,” she said, adding, “The Oscars will be a huge part of it.”
At the luxury suite, Briggs and Nickell were be able to network with industry and media professionals to get the word out about their products, and a skin expert managed two estheticians who applied the products to whomever stopped by.
Briggs believes one of the biggest selling points of the skin-care products will be their blend of natural products and scientific know-how; each product sample card comes with easy-to-understand ingredient guides, she said, and so far clients have responded well to that.
While Sevique is the product line available at salons and spas, the company’s Relevance line is marketed toward dermatology and plastic surgery professionals. Currently, both products are the same, Briggs said, but in the future, the company hopes to tailor the Relevance line to the needs of doctors.
Shea Ciaramitaro, the company’s vice president and Nickell’s son, said the Oscars are a “huge opportunity” for the company.
“It was amazing it was this fast,” he said of the company’s progress.
Briggs said that while the company is in its nascent stages, she believes there is potential to bring jobs to the Flathead, with sales representatives and shipping and receiving personnel.
While the future sorts itself out for the company, Briggs said the goal is to make it through the Oscars event successfully, and see where it takes them.
“It’s very exciting,” Briggs said.
For more information on Sevique and Relevance, visit www.sevique.com.