JOURNEYMEN LAUNCHES NATURAL BODY CARE FOR MEN

A new kind of men’s body care has hit the market.

Journeymen, a new men’s body care brand designing premium products, just launched earlier this month with two initial sku’s: a deodorant stick and a spray retailing for $18 each.

The brand was founded following a run-in between two friends, Sean Donovan and Brandon Rich, while they were out surfing in Southern California. After one of the founders relayed a story of being publicly accused of smelling like a mass market deodorant brand beloved by teenage boys, they were inspired to transform an overlooked category and provide a sophisticated alternative to drug store brands that would elevate every guy’s dopp kit.

After experimenting with all-natural deodorants that weren’t working, Journeymen visited a lab and shared the products that they didn’t like to help the lab learn what not to do. They then worked closely with the lab to formulate a deodorant stick and spray that was made with natural ingredients but was still high performance.

“The initial product development and refining the formula was the most difficult to make this happen,” Donovan told MR. “We also did tons of different testing on the product, from temperature control to a third-party auditor that tested the product for us.”

The brand pulled inspiration from the high-end fragrance world to create an aroma that was pleasant, subtle and relevant to their target consumer. The founders experimented with different scent formulas before agreeing on their first fragrance. Fragrance No. 1 kicks off with a whiff of cypress , followed by a mix of vetiver and patchouli that make up the body of the scent and finishes off with a hint of red cedar.

With their eyes set on trend-setting boutiques, Donovan and Rich has initially launch in Kinfolk, Blends, General Admission, American Rag, Thalia Surf Shop and Sun Diego Boardshops and online. They’re not stopping there though, as they set their sights on larger stores for long-term growth. “We’d ultimately like to expand into the action sports lifestyle space and eventually ending up at stores like PacSun, Tillys and Zumiez,” says Donovan.

So what’s next? “We’d love to build out our ambassador program and have a creative culture attached to the brand,” says Donovan. “We are launching a video series entitled We Are Journeymen that follows the story of our first brand ambassador from Brooklyn’s Kinfolk.”