Brand Profile: CremeKampagne

I first came across Berlin-based organic skin and body care brand CremeKampagne last autumn when I visited Original Unverpackt supermarket in Kreuzberg. Original Unverpackt is Berlin’s first supermarket to sell groceries in bulk and without packaging – you bring your own containers or buy reusable packaging in the store.

I was at OU to write an article for Mintel (read the article here or check out this profile) and was walking around the store, checking out products and taking pics. OU sells a lot of regional labels and in their personal care section they carried a selection of skin and body care products from a small Berlin brand: the aforementioned CremeKampagne.

I tried out some of the products, liked the textures and the fact that the cosmetics were produced in Berlin and mentally filed it away as a possible article subject for a later time. Then, a couple of months ago, I was at the open-air Green Market in Kreuzberg and there was CremeKampagne with a selection of its product range.

I tested my way through most of their creams and hydrosols and was impressed by the quality and texture of the products. What I particularly like about CremeKampagne is the brand’s puristic approach to ingredients. CremeKampagne cosmetics contain only the minimum of necessary ingredients: cold-pressed plant oils and plant butters, lecithin and beeswax and additional ingredients like hyaluronic acid, aloe vera juice and vitamins. If you look at the INCI declaration you’ll see that there is no alcohol, soy or sunflower oils, glycerin, thickeners or other cheap “filler” ingredients – and believe me, this is unusual even for organic brands.

CremeKampagne has been around since 2009. Founder Birgit Raether says that even as a teenager she was interested in ingredients and liked mixing up creams and lotions. At some point she started to look for simply formulated high-quality cosmetics that were suitable for allergy-prone skin and couldn’t find any products amongst the regular retail brands. So she decided to make her own cosmetics and, in 2009, founded CremeKampagne. The brand’s standard line-up includes 18 skin care products (creams, fluids, oils, cleansers), 11 body care products (shower foams, body lotions, butters, oils and deodorants), a fragrance and 2 lip care ranges as well as a range of hydrosols (I bought a delightful orange blossom watercre nu).

However, CremeKampagne also manufactures hand and foot care, hair care and styling products and a whole range of other skin and body care products – most of these are produced on-demand and with a personalised ingredient formulation. What you see in the online store is only a partial selection of CremeKampagne’s portfolio.

The creams and lotions are numbered according to how hydrating they are – #1 is the lightest cream or fluid, #2 is more moisturising and #3 is the richest formula. This makes the products perfect for layering: you can buy two or three creams, oils or fluids in different strengths and use these individually or in combination according to what your skin needs each day. No messing about with day creams, night creams or 24 hours creams!

Most of the products are Vegan to start with but you can also substitute non-Vegan for Vegan ingredients. In fact, all of CremeKampagne’s cosmetics can be personalized. Raether says that almost any ingredient can be substituted or changed so even if you suffer from multiple allergies, you can have products made to order.

Products are generally neutral and fragrance-free which makes them a great unisex cosmetics range. However, when you order a cream, fluid or lotion online you can chose to have it scented with a range of different essential oils, including rose, orange, vanilla, ylang ylang, lavender, lemongrass and chamomile.

Since the creams and lotions are produced in small batches (you order the products online and they are then manufactured on demand), they do well without preservatives. In fact, the majority of products are available as preservative-free variants. Unsurprisingly CremeKampagne has a loyal following amongst customers with skin problems or allergies. By the way, CremeKampagne is not certified organic – with so many individualised products it would be impossible, or at least impossibly expensive!- but I think most products could be certified without any problems.

CremeKampagne’s products are retailed through the brand’s online store www.cremekampagne.de, they are also at a few of Berlin’s open air markets – usually at fair trade, organic or Vegan events – and some of the products are sold in Original Unverpackt.

Definitely a brand to watch. Oh yes, and the prices are also reasonable, especially when you consider the quality of the ingredients: face creams and fluids cost around 10 Euro for 30 ml and 17-20 Euro for 50 ml, shower foams are 5.50 Euro for 150 ml and body lotions are priced around 8 Euro for 100 ml. And personalised products are only slightly more expensive than the “regular” version – depending on the ingredients a 30 ml face cream will cost around 15-20 Euro.