We had the good fortune of connecting with GUNILLA EISENBERG and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi GUNILLA, pick a quote or affirmation. What does it mean to you? Has affected your business.

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined,” by Thoreau has been my guiding light in my career as an esthetician and as a business owner.

After I graduated with a business degree from the University of Santa Clara, I found myself working a corporate finance job in the Silicon Valley. I did not feel fulfilled,  inspired or particularly passionate about my work. Beauty, mindfulness and the healing arts were on the other hand what I was intrinsically drawn to. But creativity and running my own business, my practical goals. To follow these steps as the quote from Thoreau suggests, I needed confidence to live my life the way I was imagining.

On one of my visits to Napa, the wine country, I stayed at a beautiful cozy overnight spa. It was that night that something inside of me clicked: “This is what I’m meant to do — I want to connect with people and make them feel good through beauty and healing!”

On that trip, I made a radical change; I quit my job and started working for a destination spa in the redwoods of Northern California, at the same time I went back to school to get an esthetician license. I felt the power of moving in the direction of my dreams, blending my love for aromatherapy and skincare, and starting a whole new career. I felt exhilarated, excited and energized.

These days, I am largely based out of the San Francisco Bay Area but travel to beautiful Colorado a few times a year to do pop-up beauty events, see clients and attend to the shops that carry my products. Many of my clients and customers in Colorado are avid horse women who ride and work outside with horses so they are exposed to the elements. That combined with the high altitude can be harsh for the skin.


Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?

Inspired by my Danish roots, I have always valued sustainability and quality as it relates to aging, skincare and creating a premium skincare brand. My products inspire people to take a minute or two each day to treat themselves to a skin ritual that makes them feel elevated and beautiful. When you feel good about your skin, you feel confident about yourself.

I was born in Denmark but spent part of my childhood in Southern Spain and West Africa before settling in Northern California as a young adult. My travels have been a great source of inspiration for my products and the idea of using oils on the skin. In fact each of the oils in Isa Alex skincare is inspired by a country that I’ve either lived in or traveled to. My process in creating a new product is to pick one or two ingredients and build the formula around that scent or feeling. I wanted my customer to be transported to a different place when using the oils on their skin. For instance, my first oil that I created is my Rejuvenate Face Oil which is built around jasmine and neroli. Two ingredients that remind me of beautiful long summer nights in Southern Spain where the scent of jasmine and neroli fills the air. They only bloom at night time. The scent is magical, sensual and very feminine. These two ingredients are also excellent for reducing anxiety and balancing hormones which both have a positive effect on the health of the skin.

When I first started out making oils for the skin it was a very new concept. The idea of putting an oil on the face seemed counterintuitive for most people but as a holistic esthetician I saw the difference it could make in treating the skin. Oils interact with the skin in a natural way as opposed to a cream which creates more of a barrier on the skin. However, at the time it was difficult to find product lines that included face oils. Most skincare lines offered serums, lotions and creams but no specific face oils to be used as moisturizers on the skin. With this gap in the market I saw an opportunity to create customized oils that would target the 5 main skin types and different skin conditions restoring the skin to a balanced state.

Already having some knowledge of aromatherapy, I researched and studied the effects of using essential oils on the skin and the body/mind connection. I began hand-blending my own custom formulas and using them in the treatment room; spending months testing out and fine-tuning facial oils on my clients to create organic skin oils to fit the unique needs of different skin types. With the encouragement of my clients who loved the feeling of using oils on their skin in place of traditional creams, I launched my product line, Isa Alex. I have since expanded my range of products to include cleansers, face mists, masks as well as a variety of body oils. Again responding to the needs of my clients, I created a pregnancy oil that is safe to use pre and post childbirth. It’s designed to prevent stretch marks, nourish the skin while also having a soothing effect on the mind. So many women work demanding jobs during their pregnancies so applying our Beautiful Belly oil is a lovely way to honor their journey and practice self care during those 9 months.

Isa Alex products are handmade in small batches so the products stay fresh and potent; sourcing only the highest quality and organic ingredients from small farmers who practice sustainable harvesting techniques.

Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges?

My big challenge was to stand out with a quality product by creating something amazing and people seeing that.

As a small business owner another challenge is to stay ahead, adapt to changes in the market and stay inspired. The skincare industry is a crowded market place but I’m very proud of my products and my process. Staying true to my ethos of creating a beautiful sustainable product that is functional, makes a difference in the skin and makes you feel good.

My constraints in creating my products were the ingredients had to be 100% pure genuine oils preferably organic and each ingredient had to serve a specific purpose in the formula. I wanted no fillers or synthetics to dilute the quality and efficacy of the product. I wanted a premium product based on organic and wild-crafted ingredients. Many essential oils have been tampered with but the integrity of the oils make a tremendous difference when you are applying them on your skin as there is a mind/body connection to consider too. It was also key for me that the oils be absorbed properly into the skin; not sitting on top of the skin leaving it greasy. Finally, the scent and the feeling when using the product had to be beautiful. I wanted my customer to look forward to applying their Isa Alex oils on their skin.

Having been in the skincare business for more than 20 years so much has changed. There have been financial ups and downs in the economy which affects all businesses. The pandemic was tough on my brick-and-mortar business but it forced me to get creative and get out of my comfort zone focusing more on e-commerce and collaborating with other creative entrepreneurs.

Recently, I’ve launched a series of online skincare courses designed to educate all ages including teenagers and young adults on how to choose and use the appropriate products for their skin factoring in lifestyle and stress factors.

I’ve always focused on providing quality service and quality products which I think has saved my business in so many ways. I am proud of where I am today with my business and having stayed true to my vision when I created my brand.

What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?

Staying true to yourself and what inspires you. Not giving in to trends in your industry. Create a great product so that people keep coming back. Quality is what sets you apart. Word-of-mouth referrals is the best way to grow your business. Create an amazing customer experience. A business mentor told me a long time ago to focus on your best customers. Oftentimes businesses tend to focus on the customers they can’t please and the good ones get neglected because they are “easy.” That always stuck with me. So reward and appreciate those who really love your brand! Work with people you enjoy and who inspire you. It makes doing business so much more fun!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

What I love about Colorado is the magnificent nature. On my first trip to Durango and Telluride, driving through Monument Valley was magical. Out of nowhere you see these incredible formations in nature. The red rocks were mesmerizing to me and so different to anything I had ever seen in Europe. There is this deep spiritual energy in the air combined with the vastness of the land. It’s powerful. I would pull over with my car just to feel it. And the skies are sublime.

Exploring the natural hot springs, hiking and bathing in the rivers are some of my favorite things to do in Colorado. A couple of beautiful ones are Pagosa Springs and for a more luxurious experience is spending a night at Dunton Hot Springs.


The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

I’ve been lucky that my dreams and goals have always been supported by family and friends. As a child, my dad encouraged me to do something – “I love waking up to do in the morning” and my mom told me to “reach for the stars”. I never felt held back to pursue any interests or ideas.

When I became an entrepreneur running my own spa; it was with the encouragement of my clients that I took my business to the next level. They are the ones who inspired me to create my own line of small batch hand-blended skincare oils they could use at home and who gave me the courage to launch my first online store. I am ever so grateful for their support and feedback along the way.

I could not have survived this long in business without their loyalty and my online customers who refer their friends and family to my brand. It is through their referrals that I have grown my business to where it is now; so my BIG shoutout goes to them. Thank you for making it possible; to wake up to do what I love extending a dose of beauty into your lives!

Naturally I must give a shoutout to my 2 beautiful spectacular children; Isabeau and Joaquin Alexander who are the light of my life and who inspired the name ISA ALEX. My Beautiful Pregnancy oil and my JQ Rebalance products were created with a nod to them.

And to the teachers and healers who have come into my life at different times when I needed it on a personal or business level, I say “thank you!” A special shoutout to my sister Josefine, a professional makeup artist who has been a huge supporter of my business and who has generously done my makeup for photo shoots, been my face model and worn so many hats over the years, deep love!

“The Book of Joy” by the late Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama had a profound effect on me and gave me hope. There is so much beauty and so much love around us, both in people and in nature; we just have to pay attention. As Tony Robbins says, “What you appreciate, appreciates.” – I love that!

Website: www.isaalex.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isa.alex.skincare/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gunillaeisenberg/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ISAALEXSKIN

Image Credits
Aubrie Pick, Kali Alexander, Timothi Jane Graham, Tori Tanigawa, Cass Cleave

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutColorado is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.