Sheffield Skincare Company: handmade natural products with a proper Sheffield accent

Some skincare brands talk about their origins. Sheffield Skincare Company wears its home city on every label. Founded by Megan Beardsmore, the independent business has been making natural skincare in Sheffield since 2014, handmade in small batches and named after the places, pubs and sayings that locals know and love.

Megan's journey into skincare began in 2001, when she studied herbalism and aromatherapy at Sheffield College. She started making creams and remedies with herbs, oils and essential oils for friends and family, and with plenty of encouragement turned her passion into a business. In an interview with instantprint, she explained that she worked as a teaching assistant for 20 years while making products on the side, before trying a month-long pop-up shop at the Winter Gardens. It went so well that she opened a shop, and in September 2015 the company opened on Crookes High Street.

The Sheffield flavour runs right through the range. Megan told instantprint that the name came to her in a dream, and that she wrote to Cutlers' Hall for permission to use "Sheffield" in it, since products must be made in the city to carry the name. Favourites have included the "ee-by-gum soap" and the "wesh thi face" face wash, which she said do especially well with people who have moved away.

Behind the fun names is a serious commitment to natural ingredients. The company uses natural oils and butters, pure essential oils and organic botanicals, and its products are free from synthetic fragrances, colours and petroleum derivatives and never tested on animals. Today Megan is chief formulator, with maker Leah producing the range in the company's manufacturing unit.

The business works hard to cut waste too. Most products come in plastic-free, biodegradable or recyclable packaging, soaps and gift sets are wrapped in recycled kraft card, and customers can return their empties to be cleaned and reused, earning a 20 per cent discount code in return. Local shoppers can collect orders from a pick-up point in Crookes.

The range now covers face, body, bath, hair and men's skincare, with bestsellers including the Holy Grail Balm and Spa in a Jar.

Browse the full range and find out about local collection on the Sheffield Skincare Company website.