Need to Knøw: Dr. Allyson Brennan
There is no denying the power of a woman living her purpose and Allyson Brennan has taken hers by the reins.
In the ever-expanding skincare industry, quality products, hard work and raving fans are the minimum requirements for entry. What Allyson discovered as she brought her handmade, natural skincare line Emogene and Co. to the public was she had something that far exceeded that barrier, herself.
In today’s Need to Know, meet Dr. Allyson Brennan—a clinical pharmacist, founder of Emogene & Co., mother, and women’s advocate for trusting and following the biggest of dreams.
Tell us a little about yourself, what made you come to Nashville?
I am originally from Mississippi, but came to Nashville 15 years ago by way of taking a Neurocritical Care Pharmacist position at a local hospital. Nashville continues to evolve compared to when I moved here, but I absolutely love this town. I created Emogene & Co. skincare from my interest in bridging the gap between science and nature to improve the health of our largest organ, our skin.
What's the journey been like from pharmacist to founder and creator of Emogene and Co.?
It’s been an intense ride! I have learned many new things along the way in my transition from pharmacist to founding a business—including business strategy, supply chain and inventory management logistics, forward thinking for business growth, etc. But several things have surprisingly translated seamlessly such as managing a staff, compounding topical products, record keeping for our formulas, etc. and using a lot of math! It has not been an easy transition by any means, but I’ve found that my personality craves the spontaneity and creativeness that founding a company requires. Not a single day looks alike in the entrepreneurial space!
“There is nothing more beautiful to me than someone living their life at full capacity of gratitude and genuine happiness.”
Take us through a typical day in your life?
Well, there is not a typical day as an entrepreneur or a business owner! But I commonly start my day with getting my daughter ready for school and after drop off, I immediately get an Orange Theory workout in before I start my work day. After my workout, I drive to our Emogene & Co. warehouse, taking constant calls during the drive. I check in with my staff to see if there are any immediate needs with machinery, customer service, requests from other businesses or event donations, etc.
As my staff is compounding products for our inventory minimums and fulfilling/shipping online orders, I am finishing administrative tasks. Once complete, I start working on new formulas for Emogene & Co. or specific private label contracts we have with other businesses which includes ingredient research and sourcing, calculations, pH testing, tweaking formulas, filling out margin sheets for pricing of potential products, etc.
I try to take a break every 3-4 hours and take a walk on our gorgeous 21 acre, wooded property. Being outside in nature is very calming for me. This helps to clear my mind but most of the time I usually end up taking my phone and responding to emails, pay invoices, and so on during my walk!
When I return, I clean up any formulations I have been working on, check in with our staff for any needs they have from me before I pick up my daughter from school and start her after school activities.
Once she's in bed later that night, I return to my laptop to finish any agenda items from the day, respond to more emails, and usually manage a serious game of calendar tetris to book live events, deadlines for private label contracts, speaking engagement requests, etc.
“If women can learn how truly powerful they are in their capabilities, they can change the lives of every living thing around them. This is a fact. “
What’s been a defining moment for you in your career and entrepreneurship?
There have been so many moments that have filled me with complete gratitude in this entrepreneurial journey, but I would say each time I hire a new woman on our staff. I am so grateful to have a growing company that is founded on integrity and kindness with a purpose of creating healthy skin products that provide women with confidence in their own skin. Also, each time I receive a kind message or email from a customer who is absolutely in love with her skin after using our products, I get teary eyed and I am so thankful for being able to share my passion for chemistry and effective ingredients to create beautiful products for women. I also recently won two awards from anonymous nominations that were pinnacles in my career: DSN Top Women in Beauty/Health/Wellness Rising Star Award and Marquis Who’s Who in America Award.
How have your own personal experiences and growth impacted your desire to help women?
Without a doubt, I am very passionate in supporting women to follow whatever dreams they have that would lead to them being absolutely in love with their life. As women, we are absolute forces of nature and can endure and achieve much more than we even think we can. I live for being an advocate and cheerleader for women to follow their dreams, follow their heart, listen to their intuition, etc. If women can learn how truly powerful they are in their capabilities, they can change the lives of every living thing around them. This is a fact.
What’s your personal skincare routine?
I am consistent with my morning and nighttime skincare routine, not only because I own a skincare company, but because consistency leads to healthy skin, and healthy skin leads to glowing, beautiful skin! My morning routine includes cleansing with Emogene & Co. Ritual Milk Cleanser followed by our Glow Vitamin C Serum combined with a new hydration accelerator I’m currently working on. I follow that with Emogene & Co. Refine eye serum, Revitalize Facial Oil, and I never miss sunscreen application. I start my night time routine with our Double Cleansing System (a game changer!), Then I apply Emogene & Co. Renew Facial Toner. Next, I apply our Prime Niacinamide Serum and Refine Eye Serum, followed by Nashville Skin 0.5% Retinol. Lastly, I apply what I call a “moisture sandwich” which includes Emogene & Co. Restore Night Cream, Repair Facial Oil and a thin layer of The Healer All-Purpose Balm.
What’s been your biggest lesson and personal breakthrough in starting Emogene and Co?
The biggest lesson I’ve learned so far is “slow and steady wins the race.” I live my life at warp speed and live with a never ending to-do list. However, by approaching tasks at hand one at a time and with intentionality, I have found this is much more effective to building a solid business. Another lesson is learning that asking for help and delegating specific tasks to the right people is mandatory to growing a business.
What’s a gift you naturally have that makes you great at what you do?
I LOVE connecting with people and I have always been an over the top extrovert. I think growing a successful business requires financial discipline, forward-thinking, a solution focused mindset, impeccable time management skills, and being able to truly enjoy connecting with other people.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
“Betting on yourself is the best debt you will ever accrue but also learn to recognize when your need for control is preventing you from growing your business.” I had a mentor once tell me if I think that I can “wear all of the hats” that growing a successful company requires, I will be the main stumbling block to our growth. Basically, learning to ask for help and delegate tasks to the right people when necessary helps to use your gifts more effectively.
What’s something you hope people say about you when you aren’t in the room?
“She genuinely cares about my well-being.”
How has your belief about beauty changed throughout your life? What does beauty mean to you?
I truly focus on aging gracefully. I am 43 now, and every line on my face has been EARNED. I put a very intentional focus on internal and external health, because my body has done so much for me and I want to always be active and able to enjoy the life I have been given. To do that, I need to treat my body with kindness and love. When that is translated into my opinions on beauty, there is nothing more beautiful to me than someone living their life at full capacity of gratitude and genuine happiness. There is an energy that a person with gratitude and happiness carries, and it is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen someone wear outwardly.
“Hard work is never wasted. If you have a dream, go for it but do not be afraid of the hard work that is required to fulfill that dream. And never abandon your heart or your soul just to please others.”
What’s one thing you hope your daughter carries with her from having you as her mom?
There are SO many things I want to impart to my daughter as she grows into a woman one day, but two things that are important to me: Hard work is never wasted. If you have a dream, go for it but do not be afraid of the hard work that is required to fulfill that dream. And never abandon your heart or your soul just to please others.
Thank you for taking the time to share more about you with us and our readers!
Dr. Allyson Brennan
EMOGENE & CO | NASHVILLE, TN.
www.emogeneandco.com
@emogeneco
