Women Who Win: Emma Lewisham Sandra

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The architect-turned-CEO of Manolo Blahnik shares how she’s helped to redefine her family’s luxury shoe empire—and why her uncle’s perpetual passion for learning has been key to its success.

“I’ve always been particular about my brows—even on shoots with incredible make-up artists, I’d insist on doing my own.”

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On Risk, Resilience and the Courage to Have No Plan B

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I originally studied engineering and worked in that industry for three years, so I launched my business later on in life. At 26, I left my job in France and came to London to study jewellery design. That was almost 10 years ago. I basically used my studies to start working on my business plan. Every time I had a school project, I would design pieces that would be part of my future collection. But I didn’t have a lot of experience in business; I had no idea what a small business was, how to hire, or how to be a manager. I had no connections whatsoever in London – nor in fashion or design.

“Of course, I’m very grateful for the successes we have achieved, and yes, we can celebrate these milestones. But I’m always cautious – I never believe I have ‘arrived’. To me, one day you’re in and the next you could be out. You can’t rest on your laurels.”

“I say ‘work in progress’ a lot or ‘this too shall pass’. Also: ‘don’t forget to have fun’.”

What is your mantra?

“In the beginning, the biggest challenge was doing everything with a small team, but I truly believe it’s important to be hands-on to understand what your business really needs”

“A very old Hermès trench, which I got when I worked at the [brand’s] sample sale in the ’90s, plus a McQueen embroidered cape.”

What is your most treasured fashion item?

£48

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£48

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£31

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£88

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£92

The Vitale Elixir Ritual

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You have to go all in. If you have a Plan B, then Plan A will never work.... I rose through the ranks of a notoriously male-dominated industry at a global Japanese technology company, where I was one of the very few female senior executives. I did it by thinking differently and offering something really unique and distinct: my ability to solve hard problems, execute them, and not give up until they were genuinely solved. Then, when I was trying to get pregnant, my doctor told me I couldn’t use the products I’d been using to treat my hyperpigmentation, as they contained hydroquinone and weren’t safe during pregnancy. I thought, well, I’ll go down a natural path. But natural skincare wasn’t living up to that luxury, evidence-based, efficacy standard that I wanted in my products and what I’d been using up until that point. I could see an opportunity to bring out contemporary natural skincare that was evidence-based, grounded in the highest level of science—that next-generation cut-through, using ingredients that were a next stage from what science and nature had unlocked. I had to choose between staying in my safe corporate career or taking the leap with Emma Lewisham. I had no business plan, no investors lined up, no beauty industry contacts. Just a conviction that there had to be a better way. You have to go all in. If you have a Plan B, then Plan A will never work.

“Back then, I’d use two gels and three brushes just to get them how I liked — I thought that was normal.”

“I had no idea the process would take two years. Our prototype was a world-first, so there was a lot of back and forth. We eventually launched in November 2020 — a strange time, right in the middle of lockdowns. But with everyone on their phones, it actually worked in our favour. I launched Brow Sculpt on my channel with a simple video of me applying it and saying, ‘We have this brow product — hope you love it.’ That clip went semi-viral because of the instant wow factor. “The lab required a large initial order since it was a new product. We forecasted that the stock would last nine months — it sold out in six weeks. We were out of stock for three months, which wasn’t ideal, but it showed there was a gap for a brand that simplified beauty with innovative, time-saving products that did the hard work for you. “I’m not a make-up artist — I’m just a girl who loves make-up and wants to create beautiful looks in under 20 minutes. From then on, we kept asking, ‘What else needs simplifying in our routine?’ That question still drives everything we do.

“We forecasted that the stock would last nine months — it sold out in six weeks.”

“When we got our first negative TikTok review two years in, I panicked. I thought we’d ruined everything and relied too much on social media. But it turned into one of my biggest lessons — we needed to be clearer about who each product is for. Instead of saying, ‘Everyone will love it,’ we started saying, ‘Don’t buy this if you’re not after that specific look.’ “Our community is our biggest strength. It’s at the core of everything we do. We started out wanting to simplify beauty, but now it’s evolved — I’m often the second person to know what’s launching next because it all comes from our community. They influence everything, from product development to shades. We regularly email our database asking questions like, ‘What do you want to see next?’ or ‘Should the next mascara be blue or brown?’ “We’re so fortunate to have such a close relationship with them. Our products are made for them — nobody else. Some of our biggest viral moments have come from everyday customers, not influencers. One girl in America filmed herself applying Lash Sculpt from Sephora in her bedroom — that video now has over 100 million views. It sold out across Sephora US. You can’t buy that kind of exposure — it’s pure community power. “To stay ahead, we have to keep innovating — not just with products but with every aspect of the business: in-house processes, customer experience, and events. Three years ago, we hosted a community pop-up at a Pilates studio in London. We weren’t selling anything — just meeting people. There were classes upstairs, coffees and matchas downstairs, and a space to connect. People queued for six hours just to be part of it. It’s one of my proudest moments and reminded me why community matters so much.

“When we got our first negative TikTok review two years in, I panicked. I thought we’d ruined everything and relied too much on social media. But it turned into one of my biggest lessons—we needed to be clearer about who each product is for. Instead of saying, ‘Everyone will love it,’ we started saying, ‘Don’t buy this if you’re not after that specific look.’ “Our community is our biggest strength. It’s at the core of everything we do. We started out wanting to simplify beauty, but now it’s evolved—I’m often the second person to know what’s launching next because it all comes from our community. They influence everything, from product development to shades. We regularly email our database asking questions like, ‘What do you want to see next?’ or ‘Should the next mascara be blue or brown?’ “We’re so fortunate to have such a close relationship with them. They’re who our products are made for. Some of our biggest viral moments have come from everyday customers, not influencers. One girl in America filmed herself applying Lash Sculpt from Sephora in her bedroom—that video now has over 100 million views. It sold out across Sephora US. You can’t buy that kind of exposure—it’s pure community power.

“I was working three different jobs, filming and editing in the evenings, and spending hours replying to messages and comments. And yet, not one second felt like work.”

Skin Reset Serum

Sunceutical SPF 50 Mineral Face Crème

Illuminating Oil Cleanser

Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos Night Serum

“Like a building, I understood the business’ foundations. Next, came the challenge of how high we could build it; how many more layers we could add.”

brand to Estée Lauder in 1995, and stepped down from the company in 2016. A mere four years later, in the middle of the pandemic, Brown surprised everyone—except, perhaps, herself—with the launch of Jones Road Beauty—a new venture that signalled a return to her makeup artistry roots by championed the concept of looking like yourself, only better. Current estimates place Jones Road at approximately $1billion, with this year’s revenue predicted to be over $150million. But Brown is so much more than her multi-million dollar cosmetics brands. She’s a wellness advocate, teacher, mentor and creative. But at the centre of everything she does lies the same sentiment: that beauty should be simple, real and empowering. Here, in our Women Who Win series, she speaks to Lottie Winter about her reinvention, bravery and lessons learned from building not one, but two of the most influential beauty empires of modern times.

ew women have shaped modern beauty quite like Bobbi Brown. The legendary makeup artist and serial entrepreneur first appeared on the beauty scene with her namesake brand and its refreshing new stance on makeup that focused on accentuating natural beauty rather than covering it. She sold her

Image credits: courtesy of Emma Lewisham GETTY IMAGES

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A scent that reminds me of home: Loewe Tomato Leaves. It captures something essential about New Zealand for me—that green, almost vegetal freshness you get in nature. A sound that soothes me: Walking on Waiheke beach in New Zealand and listening to the ocean. The rhythm of waves has this way of quieting everything else. The book that changed my way of thinking: The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. This book taught me that most of our suffering comes from living in the past or future, and that true peace and power exist only when we bring our full attention to the present moment. A piece of art or object I treasure: A handwritten letter from Dr. Jane Goodall. It sits on my desk as a daily reminder of why we do this work—of the responsibility we have to leave things better than we found them.

Il Porcellino in Chicago

Loewe Tomato Leaves

“You have to go all in. If you have a Plan B, then Plan A will never work”

The best advice I’ve received was… to play the long game. Build slowly, build intentionally, and don’t rush decisions for short-term wins. It’s always stuck with me and I try and live by it. I celebrate my wins quite quietly… I’m not someone who needs fireworks. Sometimes it’s a moment of reflection, a dinner with my family, or just acknowledging how far we’ve come. I’ve learned that celebrating doesn’t always need to be loud to be meaningful. I do like to mark a milestone with a little token that reminds me of the wins. I will never compromise on…the integrity of my work. Every product, piece of content, or decision has to feel aligned with who I am and what I believe in. If it doesn’t feel honest, it’s a no. I wish I could change…the narrative around women’s ambition and timing. Women shouldn’t have to justify their choices, whether that’s building a business, starting a family, or doing both. We need more trust, flexibility, empathy, and representation at every level.

Lewisham

“It’s not about what’s in a product, it’s about what’s not in it”

I never set out thinking “this will be my career”... makeup artistry started from a genuine love and obsession. I was working on makeup counters, training, learning faces, textures, and skin, and at the same time sharing what I loved online with no strategy at all. I was working three different jobs, filming and editing in the evenings, and spending hours replying to messages and comments. And yet, not one second felt like work. The earliest sign that it could really be something was the community forming—people coming back, asking questions, trusting my recommendations. That trust changed everything.

“I’ve learned that growth requires trust, not perfection.”

Emma

When Harvard graduate Emma Lewisham left her role as a senior executive at a global Japanese technology company to create a skincare line that could rival the efficacy of luxury brands while dramatically reducing environmental impact, she had no guarantee it would succeed. What she did have was conviction. Raised in the vast natural landscapes of New Zealand, Lewisham grew up with an instinctive drive to question, challenge and solve problems. Those instincts would later shape both her leadership style and the philosophy behind Emma Lewisham, the science-led, sustainability-driven skincare line that has since gained global acclaim from cosmetic scientists, retailers and consumers alike. Here, she speaks to Lottie Winter about risk, resilience and the belief that true luxury should never come at the expense of integrity.

For too long, women have been encouraged to soften their drive, to make it quieter ... I didn't come from a beauty background. I'd walk into meetings with chemists and biochemists—people with decades of specialised knowledge—and think, "What am I doing here?" But my postgraduate studies in biochemistry and physiology at Harvard validated my instinct that we could do better with the natural laws of our bodies (our physiology) and that nature had untapped potential we weren't even close to understanding, and my work as a senior executive taught me the value of excellence and responsibility in business and honed my ability to solve complex problems. I realised I didn't need to know everything. I needed to know how to ask the right questions and surround myself with the best minds. I also learnt that true passion and grit count for a lot. For too long, women have been encouraged to soften their drive, to make it quieter. But it was my passion and determination that carried me through 52 iterations of our first formulation. Luxury and integrity can, and must, go hand in hand... I lost my mum in 2016 while I was trying to conceive. It was a moment that fundamentally changed how I thought about health, about what we put in and on our bodies. Grief has a way of clarifying what matters. Becoming a mother while grieving my own taught me that legacy isn’t abstrac—it’s the air we breathe, the ingredients we absorb, the systems we contribute to or change. That’s when Emma Lewisham became more than a brand. It became a mission: to create skincare founded on science, transparency and responsibility—and to prove that luxury and integrity can, and must, go hand in hand. When we launched, the response wasn't just from customers—it was from scientists, from Dr. Jane Goodall, from retailers like Harrods, Liberty, and Space NK. When people who don't have to believe in you choose to anyway, that's when you know you're building something special.

We worked with physiologists to develop a new paradigm of skincare... Nature isn't weak—it's the most sophisticated and intelligent bioengineer on the planet. We just hadn't been using it to its full potential. We needed to bring to market the latest of what science had unlocked from nature and to fundamentally transform how formulations are designed: shifting from a focus on single-hero ingredients to honouring the intelligence of nature and our own biology, using the way our bodies actually function as the blueprint for how we formulate. We worked with physiologists to develop a new paradigm of skincare—one that biomimetically works with your skin's cellular pathways, repairing issues at the same biological level where they occur while simultaneously preventing future concerns. We do the opposite of the industry's single-star-ingredient approach and focus instead on how the skin works, using up to 25 ingredients in each bottle. They each play a role in triggering multiple points in the skin, which is needed to drive the highest level of change. We validate everything through independent biomedical testing—I need the proof ... Our formulation methodology produces pioneering results, which we validate through world-leading independent testing at both in vivo (clinical) and in vitro (laboratory) levels. It’s our way of proving that nature, when backed by science, can outperform conventional alternatives. But clinical efficacy is only one part of the equation. If a product doesn’t feel exceptional on your skin, if it doesn’t absorb beautifully, or elevate your daily ritual, you simply won’t use it. That’s why we consider every detail: texture, weight, how it melts into the skin.

“For too long, women have been encouraged to soften their drive, to make it quieter — but it was my determination that carried me through.”

“Luxury and integrity can, and must, go hand in hand.”

To genuinely bring real change to the beauty industry, we needed to share widely how to create a circular business... I couldn’t build a brand knowing it would contribute to the 120 billion units of packaging waste the beauty industry produces each year. A significant part of my corporate career had focused on sustainability and circular systems—and that knowledge became impossible to ignore. So we pioneered a circular product design model: refillable packaging to significantly reduce virgin material use, divert waste from landfill, and lower packaging-related carbon emissions by up to 74%. Emma Lewisham became the world’s first climate-positive-certified, 100% circular-designed beauty brand. To date, we’ve sold over 200,000 refills and saved 120 tonnes of carbon emissions. We should never ask people to compromise luxury and product quality for sustainability. To change the system, both have to exist together. Then we shared our circular model. To genuinely bring real change to the beauty industry, we needed to share widely how to create a circular business. The planet doesn't care who solves these problems—it just needs them solved. Success for me personally has changed so much over time... Now that I've turned 40, I have a much more mature and wiser definition of what success means to me. I grew up in a family where success was about being present and enjoying the simple things in life—spending time with family and friends, the experiences you had, rather than the material assets you were acquiring. I very much feel that's my view of it now. Yes, I absolutely want to grow Emma Lewisham into a heritage, global luxury skincare brand, and I believe we will get there. But I love that I can look in the mirror and know that we've done so with real ethics, thoughtfulness, responsibility, and care toward the world we operate in and our customers.

Emma's Cultural Edit: The World That Inspires Her

The music always playing in my home: Olivia Dean. Her voice is pure soul—vulnerable, powerful, deeply emotional. She loves Emma Lewisham products and uses them daily, which feels like a full circle moment. A city that recharges my spirit: Sydney. There's an energy there that I find incredibly restorative—the harbour, the light, the way nature and urban life coexist so beautifully. One ritual I never skip: My Emma Lewisham skincare routine and our Sunceutical SPF50 every morning. I swear by our products—they're a daily reminder of the standards I've set for myself and what I'm committed to upholding. My go-to London hideaway: Hampstead Heath. I have very good friends I stay with nearby when I'm in London, and ending my days walking the Heath has become essential. The wildness of it, right in the middle of the city—it's where I process, reflect, reset.

Waiheke Beach

Dr. Jane Goodall

Olivia Dean

Hampstead Heath

Emma Lewisham Sunceutical spf 50

“I try to show up as my best for whatever I need to be that day, and understand I can do anything, but not everything.”

“We worked with physiologists to develop a new paradigm of skincare” Nature isn't weak—it's the most sophisticated and intelligent bioengineer on the planet. We just hadn't been using it to its full potential. We needed to bring to market the latest of what science had unlocked from nature and to fundamentally transform how formulations are designed: shifting from a focus on single-hero ingredients to honouring the intelligence of nature and our own biology, using the way our bodies actually function as the blueprint for how we formulate. We worked with physiologists to develop a new paradigm of skincare—one that biomimetically works with your skin's cellular pathways, repairing issues at the same biological level where they occur while simultaneously preventing future concerns. We do the opposite of the industry's single-star-ingredient approach and focus instead on how the skin works, using up to 25 ingredients in each bottle. They each play a role in triggering multiple points in the skin, which is needed to drive the highest level of change. “We validate everything through independent biomedical testing—I need the proof” Our formulation methodology produces pioneering results, which we validate through world-leading independent testing at both in vivo (clinical) and in vitro (laboratory) levels. It’s our way of proving that nature, when backed by science, can outperform conventional alternatives. But clinical efficacy is only one part of the equation. If a product doesn’t feel exceptional on your skin, if it doesn’t absorb beautifully, or elevate your daily ritual, you simply won’t use it. That’s why we consider every detail: texture, weight, how it melts into the skin.

“To genuinely bring real change to the beauty industry, we needed to share widely how to create a circular business” I couldn’t build a brand knowing it would contribute to the 120 billion units of packaging waste the beauty industry produces each year. A significant part of my corporate career had focused on sustainability and circular systems—and that knowledge became impossible to ignore. So we pioneered a circular product design model: refillable packaging to significantly reduce virgin material use, divert waste from landfill, and lower packaging-related carbon emissions by up to 74%. Emma Lewisham became the world’s first climate-positive-certified, 100% circular-designed beauty brand. To date, we’ve sold over 200,000 refills and saved 120 tonnes of carbon emissions. We should never ask people to compromise luxury and product quality for sustainability. To change the system, both have to exist together. Then we shared our circular model. To genuinely bring real change to the beauty industry, we needed to share widely how to create a circular business. The planet doesn't care who solves these problems—it just needs them solved. “Success for me personally has changed so much over time” Now that I've turned 40, I have a much more mature and wiser definition of what success means to me. I grew up in a family where success was about being present and enjoying the simple things in life—spending time with family and friends, the experiences you had, rather than the material assets you were acquiring. I very much feel that's my view of it now. Yes, I absolutely want to grow Emma Lewisham into a heritage, global luxury skincare brand, and I believe we will get there. But I love that I can look in the mirror and know that we've done so with real ethics, thoughtfulness, responsibility, and care toward the world we operate in and our customers.

“For too long, women have been encouraged to soften their drive, to make it quieter” I didn't come from a beauty background. I'd walk into meetings with chemists and biochemists—people with decades of specialised knowledge—and think, "What am I doing here?" But my postgraduate studies in biochemistry and physiology at Harvard validated my instinct that we could do better with the natural laws of our bodies (our physiology) and that nature had untapped potential we weren't even close to understanding, and my work as a senior executive taught me the value of excellence and responsibility in business and honed my ability to solve complex problems. I realised I didn't need to know everything. I needed to know how to ask the right questions and surround myself with the best minds. I also learnt that true passion and grit count for a lot. For too long, women have been encouraged to soften their drive, to make it quieter. But it was my passion and determination that carried me through 52 iterations of our first formulation. “Luxury and integrity can, and must, go hand in hand” I lost my mum in 2016 while I was trying to conceive. It was a moment that fundamentally changed how I thought about health, about what we put in and on our bodies. Grief has a way of clarifying what matters. Becoming a mother while grieving my own taught me that legacy isn’t abstrac—it’s the air we breathe, the ingredients we absorb, the systems we contribute to or change. That’s when Emma Lewisham became more than a brand. It became a mission: to create skincare founded on science, transparency and responsibility—and to prove that luxury and integrity can, and must, go hand in hand. When we launched, the response wasn't just from customers—it was from scientists, from Dr. Jane Goodall, from retailers like Harrods, Liberty, and Space NK. When people who don't have to believe in you choose to anyway, that's when you know you're building something special.