You know you’re in a new phase of your relationship when you agree to do a detox together. And back in 2008 when Emily Doyle and Oliver Sweatman were dating, a detox was a decidedly more unusual activity than it is now. “We were just learning about toxins in our food, cleaning supplies, beauty products, and more,” says Emily, a former vice president at Ouidad haircare and Jurlique skincare brands. “We’d both already felt that beauty and personal care needed to be more about actual wellness. You’re supposed to be taking care of yourself, not unknowingly exposing yourself to things like phthalates and endocrine disruptors.”
Some months after the detox, Oliver—who co-founded the men’s grooming company Sharps—took a trip to Vermont. “He called and said, ‘I’m not coming back, so please come. And also, let’s start a business here,’” says Emily. “It was one of those leap-of-faith moments in life, and I just jumped.”
The two didn’t know what type of business they’d start—initially it was anything but beauty—but they knew they had to figure it out fast.
As they worked together on business ideas, each was struggling to find skin essentials they loved that didn’t expose them to problematic ingredients. “We were using a lot of Weleda and Dr. Hauschka, going to Whole Foods,” says Emily. The search evolved into the idea of a skincare company. “We questioned a lot,” she continues. “‘Is this real? Are toxins in beauty products a real problem?’”
“It was one of those leap-of-faith moments in life, and I just jumped.”
The answer, sadly, remains yes in many cases. “Beauty products are an environmental piece of the puzzle—not the biggest piece, but a piece,” she says. “And it’s one of the few instances where you can control your exposure.”
At the time, the few beauty companies that did make “clean” products were understandably focused solely on getting the nontoxic message across. But the couple knew that Ursa Major—named for the largest visible constellation in the Northern sky, one long used to find True North—would have to do more as a brand to succeed. “It had to be enchanting,” says Emily.
So, the two went with what enchanted them: the simplicity and epic beauty of the forest. “The formulas had to be best in class, not just in the clean world, but in the beauty world as a whole,” she says. “We had to really innovate to get there, and many of the ingredients sourced from the forest turned out to be game-changing for our formulas.” Many active ingredients come directly from the forests of Vermont and around the Northeast: birch sap, willow bark, pink snow algae, tremella and chaga mushrooms.
They wanted to infuse Ursa Major with more than ingredients, though—they wanted the feeling of Vermont. “The fresh air and clarity you feel up here is unmistakable,” she says. “Those qualities inspire the formulas, the scents, the look, and feel of everything. Nature is enticing to everyone.”
Sold at clean retailers like Credo, Heyday, and Goop as well as online, Ursa Major is simple by design. “We wanted it to feel fresh, ageless, clean, and above all effortless,” Emily continues. “As women, we’re told all our lives that we need to do more and consume more—to look better, to be prettier. But great skin is actually pretty simple. You don’t need to layer six different serums to have healthy, glowing skin. You don’t need to overthink it. Find what works for you and go with that—skip the 10-step routines. Beauty shouldn’t be a full-time job.”
The cult following around the ultra-moisturizing Golden Hour cream testifies to the success of that philosophy. “It just really works, and people respond to that,” she says. “There’s an art and science to Golden Hour–it’s made with great ingredients like sea buckthorn, calendula, and lots of omegas, but the magic is that it’s more than the sum of its parts. It’s got everything in one: it’s great for moisture, for hydration, and for barrier protection, and it’s got tons of antioxidants. And then it’s got this beautiful texture—it sinks right in and feels so good on your skin.”
Customers loved it so much that they asked for more: “I wish I could dive into a tub of this stuff.” Their comments evolved into three products, all based on Golden Hour: a body oil, a body serum, and a body butter. The surprise is that they’re not intended to be used together. “No, you don’t need to layer!” says Emily. “You pick the one you like and that’s it.”
This is heresy in the world of beauty, which runs on stoking constant need. It’s also a powerful approach to saving the planet. Sustainability was always part of the company (it’s written into the original business plan), which became a B-corp in 2020. But Emily’s approach to sustainability goes beyond recyclable materials and ethical sourcing. “The consumerism cycle of needing more is what needs to change,” she says. “Both Oliver and I had hangovers from being on the inside of the beauty industry, where success meant making people buy more things. If your business depends on people using more, more, and more, it’s not sustainable.”
As more people awaken to the true expense of unbridled consumption—to the environment, of course, but also to our own sense of wellbeing and confidence—Emily says Ursa Major will continue its healthy growth. “We’ve been lucky to be supported by customers and investors who’ve enabled us to grow holistically and sustainably—so we haven’t had to be on that product-introduction treadmill that’s so essential to most of the beauty industry.”
The couple’s 8-year-old daughter reminds them to stay on track. “I mean, fifth graders have beauty “haul” videos on social media. And social media is not all bad—we all have that need to be connected. But using it to increase consumption is bad for all of us.”
Emily’s own routine is beautifully simple: “I think a ritual that makes you feel good is great—a go-to system, rather than this thing you have to get just right and takes up all your time. In the evenings, I cleanse with our Fantastic Face Wash, sometimes mixed with our Milky Cleanser to create this creamy foam that I love. Then I put on Golden Hour or our Retinal Serum—that’s it.” Retinal is Ursa Major’s unsung hero, she says: “People hear that it’s gentle and think it’s not as strong, but the results are incredible.”
In the mornings, she uses her Brighten Up serum. “In the shower—I’m a shower person more than a bath person—I like our bar soap,” she says. “Afterwards, I love the Golden Hour body oil.” It’s all aimed at feeling healthy and beautiful in her skin, not at obscuring her age. “Rhetoric about anti-aging—were it even possible not to age—encourages us to feel bad about ourselves and to consume more. Healthy skin is beautiful, full stop.”
