Luke and Corina Ryan were living in New York, thousands of miles away from the Aussie coastal lifestyle they grew up enjoying, when daughter Willow came along. As they searched for natural products for their new baby, the couple noticed that baby skin products which claimed to be ‘organic’ or ‘natural’ still contained additives, fillers, and chemicals.

Following their decision to move back to the fresh sea air of coastal Newcastle, New South Wales, they started a small batch business creating their own truly natural products and, in 2018, Willow By the Sea was created.

“We spent a long time researching if it was possible to create products that are 100% certified organic, without the use of chemicals, water, emulsifiers and preservatives,” said Luke. “It took a lot of research and experimentation, but we’re very proud to have our whole range certified organic by the ACO (Australian Certified Organic) and free from additives, fillers and chemicals.”

All Willow By The Sea products are designed and manufactured locally in Newcastle, with formulation knowledge passed down to Corina by her herbalist grandmother who taught her all about the power of plants and essential oils whilst growing up. They use only the highest quality and cruelty-free botanicals, waxes and oils, in just two short years, Willow By the Sea has proved a huge success with Aussie customers, and is continuing to grow.

This small Aussie business has recently partnered with Amazon Launchpad, a program designed to jumpstart and accelerate businesses with Amazon. “We were enjoying success in retail stores and with our own direct-to-consumer site when the Amazon Australia team approached us,” explains Luke. “The Amazon Launchpad program brings innovative products from emerging Aussie brands like us to the forefront – it’s been awesome for our business.”

Matched with Corina’s product knowledge, Luke is well-versed in all aspects of marketing, having a background in brand and advertising. Using Fulfilment by Amazon, which takes care of inventory, storage, delivery to customers, customer service and returns, means Luke can spend more time applying his expertise and focusing on engaging with customers.

Made in small batches by the beach in Newcastle (NSW), Willow By The Sea create 100% organic skin care products for pregnancy, baby and postpartum, that are cruelty and toxin free.

“We were surprised by the results,” said Luke. “We’re constantly sending products to the Amazon Fulfilment Centres and we’re really pleased with the amount of orders. There is plenty of room for growth and we’re keen to invest more time into widening our Amazon customer base.”

Next up for Willow By The Sea? A foray into Amazon’s US marketplace, including selling to customers back in New York, where the seed of Willow By the Sea was planted.

Amazon.com.au is putting small Australian businesses front and centre through their ‘Shop Local’ store in the run up to the massive shopping event, Prime Day and beyond. Head to www.Amazon.com.au/shoplocal to shop products from hundreds of Australian small businesses.