BY NADIA BADOWSK
We are super excited to introduce you to the incredible Nadia Badowski, the founder of the award-winning personal care brand Koope.
NEXT LEVEL CLEAN BEAUTY
BY NADIA BADOWSK
We are super excited to introduce you to the incredible Nadia Badowski, the founder of the award-winning personal care brand Koope.
When noticeable challenges like acne, irritation, redness, or eczema appear, they can take a toll on our confidence. With the right routine, you can support your skin as it works to regain balance. And when you show up for your skin every day, you start to realize just how much it shapes the way you feel about yourself.
The Koope Mission Nadia Badowski, an esthetician and child‑trafficking survivor, founded Koope with a mission rooted in advocacy, integrity, and meaningful impact. After struggling with chronic hives caused by harsh skincare ingredients, she became committed to creating formulas people can trust. Frustrated by how complicated skincare shopping had become, she chose to focus on what truly matters: effective cleansers and moisturizers that ground a routine in simplicity and purpose. Two steps. Real results. No unnecessary clutter.
How Koope Cuts the Skincare Routine Down to What Works
Koope keeps skincare intentionally simple and streamlined. The brand focuses on cleansers and moisturizers because it’s rooted in true skinimalism: the belief that most skin thrives with less, not more.
This approach respects the skin’s natural rhythm. Skin is designed to balance, repair, and protect itself, so it doesn’t need constant stimulation or an overwhelming lineup of products.
For every product sold, Koope donates up to $1 toward the fight against sex trafficking. Together, Koope is prioritizing people over profit and turning product into purpose.
Three rules for Koope formulations
When formulating Koope products, I follow these three rules:
If it doesn’t benefit the skin, don’t put it in – If an ingredient is added purely to mask a scent or give a more luxurious feeling, in my opinion, it has no value and may have the potential to irritate or damage the skin. Fragrances and essential oils
are high on this list. While they might add a pleasant scent, they very often cause sensitivity and, in some cases, like my own, can trigger painful skin conditions.
Not every ingredient works best applied topically – Some ingredients work wonders when applied directly to the skin. However, some work better for your skin when taken orally as a supplement or part of your diet. It’s easy to be enamoured by an International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients (INCI) list full of vitamins and other actives, but they’re not always working hardest when in your skincare product.
We don’t fill our products with actives that we know will work better as part of a healthy diet (and unnecessarily hike up the price tag). Always choose vegan and cruelty-free – In addition to getting nutrient-rich ingredients from plants and seeds, by choosing only vegan ingredients, we’re leaving out potential pesticides and animal by-products that do nothing good for our skin and bodies.
Ingredient favourites
Hyaluronic acid – Holding up to 1,000 times its molecular weight in water, this ingredients a staple in any skincare routine. Both hyaluronic acid and sodium hyaluronate penetrate deeply into the skin to hydrate, smooth texture, and soothe the skin.
Centella – Centella asiatica is a gentle antioxidant, anticellulite, and anti-inflammatory ingredient that moisturizes and heals the skin. Some studies even suggest that it helps slow signs of aging.
Niacinamide – This powerful ingredient helps build keratin proteins, strengthening, smoothing, and brightening the skin. There are also ongoing studies that find niacinamide helps balance oil production.
Oat amino acids – Not only do they replace SLS/SLES, a common foaming agent known to irritate the skin, but they also help retain moisture, and soothe and soften the skin.
Ceramides – Commonly referred to as an “anti-aging powerhouse,” ceramides are naturally occurring fatty acids. They protect against free radicals that destroy elastin and collagen.
Koope is hyper-focused on using quality, allergen-free skin care with the finest clean ingredients while giving back to communities. Above all, Koope prioritizes people over profit because we believe in positively impacting the world. We do this by sourcing cause-driven ingredients where available, such as our baobab oil, part of the Eco-Products® foundation – a non-profit initiative committed to buying fruit directly from rural harvesters and providing under-resourced preschool areas with infrastructure, education equipment, toys, swings, and jungle gyms, right in the community the baobab is harvested.
