For Alexander Werz, new brand AWvi is all about beauty from the inside out.
The skin care meets wellness line, which launches in retail on Nov. 29 and direct-to-consumer in mid-January, includes four stock keeping units: the Skin Biotic, $72, an ingestible probiotic; the Gentle Cleanser, $54, a hydrating wash; the Power Serum, $164, a smoothing and plumping treatment, and the Active Cream, $144, a rich but not greasy moisturizer.
Werz, public relations firm Karla Otto’s chief executive officer and partner, said he’s been inspired by a slew of brands during his 30-plus-year career, but one thing remained consistent: an active lifestyle. Wellness routines, including skin care and supplementation, became even more important for Werz during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. However, after experiencing the brands available, he recognized a gap in the market.
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“I buy supplements on one side and the skin care on another side, but I don’t really feel the excellence to combine that to really have an inside-out effect,” Werz told WWD.
From there, Werz began brainstorming what his own brand might look like. Three years later, it’s coming to market. Behind the scenes, Werz brought on former LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton executive Jean-Michel Vigneau as CEO, and formulator Giacomo Santus as the science and innovation lead.
“I put the six elements together and said, ‘I would like to do something around that in order to create a brand, in order to create products around it which go together,’” Werz said.
Those six elements are sleep, nutrition, movement, nature, passion and relationships. With this, the brand is geared toward those who are living an active lifestyle and are interested in wellness, according to Werz.
As with several brands today, Werz isn’t taking an antiaging approach, but rather a pro-aging one.
“Aging is actually a great thing because aging is something where experience becomes more of your mindset,” he said. “You know exactly what you want to do and how you want to do it.”
This pro-aging ethos is also at the center of the brand’s name, as it is meant to reflect each consumer. “AW” represents Werz’s initials, while “vi” means you or yourself in Italian. For the brand, each user is one of the key ingredients.
With this ethos in mind, Werz is eager to expand the line into other categories, specifically hair care and body care, with the same inside-out approach.
“Wellness is an active behavior and it’s not only what you put on your skin,” he said.
The brand will be available at The Webster, Apropos and on the Niche Beauty website. Industry sources estimate it will reach $3 million in retail sales its first year.
