PETALING JAYA: Following her passion to pursue a skincare business as opposed to being a doctor was the best decision that Dr Nurul A’in Sa’ari (pix) said she made, despite objections from her family.
Nurul A’in, or more commonly known as Aen, is the founder and CEO of Alluskin Sdn Bhd which she established in August 2019 after quitting as a medical officer just a week into the job.
“My husband was fully supportive. However my parents were against it. Thus, it took a while for them to accept my decision,” the 28-year-old told SunBiz.
“I quit (becoming a doctor) because the medical field is not my passion. I love enterpreneurship and I make use of what I have learned in medical school in Alluskin. Applying the knowledge that I have is more beneficial for the skincare business and I hope it will become a trusted local brand.”
Aen said she had difficulty in finding skincare products that suit her dry and sensitive skin, which led to her formulating her own skincare products and subsequently creating Alluskin.
“I started (formulating) Alluskin during my housemanship and I’m confident that Alluskin will grow.”
Alluskin is made to be gentle on sensitive skin and currently sells three products: cleanser, toner and light bulb serum (brightening serum). Its best selling product is the cleanser which it sells 5,000-7,000 bottles a month. Retailing at RM59 for 100ml and RM30 for 30ml, Aen said, the cleanser has glycolic acid that helps remove dead skin cells, improve skin texture and brighten up skin.
“In the local market, not many products use active ingredients in their cleanser. My cleanser not only cleans, it also exfoliates the skin cell. It’s like two-in-one and it does more than just a basic cleanser.”
The movement control order (MCO) period saw Alluskin’s revenue double to a record RM260,000 in May 2020, from an average RM150,000 a month, from regular postings on social media, Aen said. However, the MCO also delayed the production of the company’s skincare products.
Aen said she frequently shared medical and skincare postings on Twitter and had generated a following before launching Alluskin products. Using her influence on social media to promote Alluskin, she also engaged micro-influencers to review the company’s products and is now expanding its various social media reach and working with more influencers to secure a stronger social media presence.
“Previously we focused more on Twitter and we’re now trying to reach out to other social media. We’re planning billboard advertising across Malaysia. We have started to enter pharmacies and drugstores (Farmasi Hero in Sendayan and Farmasi UKM Kesihatan). We’re exploring digital marketing as well, like Google Ads, Facebook Ads as strategy to move forward.”
About 80% of Alluskin’s sales come from its sales representatives across Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore, while the remaining 20% comes from its website. Aen said it is eyeing a 50-50 contribution from both channels moving forward.
She said the focus in the immediate term is to launch its new product, nicknamed Alluskin Barrier Care, next year. She plans to release the full range of Alluskin basic skincare products by next year, before moving to the advanced range in the following year.
“We want to market our products to Southeast Asia and penetrate into the UK market. We have customers from UK where they buy from Malaysians studying there.”
Now, Aen’s parents are fully supportive of her business.
“My mother starts to talk about my business to other family members and friends,” she said.
