As part of the Morning Lazziness series about empowering women who encourage and do incredible things with their ideas in society, I had the pleasure of interviewing Jacine Greenwood.
Jacine Greenwood is an international best-selling author, award-winning Cosmetic Chemist, and founder of Roccoco Botanicals and Australia’s fastest-growing beauty brand. Known as “The Fairy Godmother of Skin,” she’s built a global reputation for solving skin conditions others couldn’t, with results that speak for themselves.
With over 27 years of experience in cosmetic chemistry and aesthetics, Jacine scaled Roccoco from her kitchen bench into a multi-million-dollar business across five countries, with expansion into India set for 2025. Despite undergoing five spinal surgeries and living with chronic nerve pain, she grew the brand without traditional advertising—earning her a spot on the AFR Fast 100 (2021) and the Financial Times High Growth Companies Asia-Pacific lists in 2022 and 2023.
Roccoco Botanicals remains the only Australian brand to win the Allē Awards for cosmetic innovation, taking the title in both 2022 and 2024. Jacine is a sought-after educator, speaker, and business coach, known for her unapologetic focus on results, resilience, and rewriting the rules of skin health.
What inspired you to become an entrepreneur in the beauty industry, and what led to the creation of your brand or product line?
I never set out to build a brand, I was trying to heal my family. My journey into the beauty industry started with my own skin issues, but the catalyst was watching my son suffer from eczema and my daughter battle severe cystic acne. Nothing worked. As a cosmetic chemist, I knew there had to be a better way, so I started researching, formulating, and testing on myself and my kids. What I created changed our skin, and that lit a fire in me to help others who were told there was no hope. I didn’t want to create just another skincare brand. I wanted to challenge the status quo, redefine what results look like for sensitive and inflamed skin, and give people the confidence to show up in their own skin, exactly as they are.
As a woman navigating the beauty business world, what unique challenges have you faced, and how did you overcome them?
When I started Roccoco, I was fighting for my health and my kids. I went through eighteen spinal surgeries, including eight fusions. For four years, I lived with nerve pain down every limb. Some days, it took everything just to stand upright. Psychologists told me most people would’ve ended up depressed from what I endured physically. But I wasn’t going to let pain dictate my future. At the same time, I was constantly dismissed. I wasn’t seen as a serious cosmetic chemist, just a beauty therapist playing with lotions in her kitchen. The irony? I’ve developed award-winning formulas that outperform brands backed by pharma budgets.
The beauty industry can be both competitive and demanding—how do you maintain personal well-being while growing your brand?
You have to build it into your non-negotiables, or you burn out. I’ve learned the hard way that if you don’t protect your mind and body, the business will consume both. After countless spinal surgeries and years of chronic nerve pain, I had no choice but to become ruthless with my energy. I know when I need to stop. I schedule recovery the same way I schedule strategy. I lean into neuroscience and hypnotherapy techniques (I’m trained in both) to rewire stress patterns and keep my mindset razor sharp. Growth without well-being is a liability. The goal isn’t just to build an empire, it’s to do it in a way that doesn’t cost your sanity. That’s real success.
Which networking strategies, communities, or collaborations have helped you build meaningful connections in the beauty space?
I didn’t climb through the usual ladders, I built a reputation from the results I delivered. The most powerful networking strategy I’ve used is solving skin conditions others couldn’t. When dermatologists start referring to you as “The Skin Girl,” word spreads fast. I built credibility through transformation, not talk. That opened doors that cold networking never could. I’ve also been intentional about speaking at aesthetic conferences, writing for professional journals, and mentoring estheticians. That positioned me as both a thought leader and a practitioner who’s in the trenches. It’s not about how many people know your name, it’s who respects your knowledge.
How do you approach mentorship—both as a mentee and mentor—and how has it influenced your growth as a beauty entrepreneur?
Mentorship, for me, is non-negotiable. You can’t scale without perspective. As a mentee, I sought out people who’d already done what I wanted to achieve, business leaders who understood systems, scale, and mindset. I didn’t want cheerleaders. I wanted people who’d challenge me, call out my blind spots, and hold me to a higher standard. That kind of mentorship fast-tracked my thinking and helped me collapse time in my business journey. John Assaraf has been the mentor who has the most impact on my life. As a mentor, I’m direct. I don’t coddle. I coach other entrepreneurs the way I lead my team, with clarity, expectation, and support. I teach what’s worked for me: how to grow a multi-million-dollar brand without paid ads, how to build a resilient mindset. Mentorship is about stretching. I’ve grown the most when someone else held the mirror up, and now I do the same for others.
What strategies have worked best for gaining loyal customers and building trust in your beauty brand?
Results and realness. That’s it. The fastest way to gain loyal customers is to solve what no one else can. We specialise in the hard cases – acne, rosacea, eczema, inflamed skin. The people who come to us have already tried everything. When they see their skin transform in days or weeks after years of disappointment, loyalty becomes automatic. We show real before-and-afters, we educate instead of selling, and we treat our community like they’re part of something bigger, because they are. Trust comes from transparency and consistency. At the end of the day, customers want to feel seen and understood. When you deliver results and make people feel safe in their skin again, they’ll never leave you.
Which marketing techniques (such as social media, influencer partnerships, content marketing, or events) have been most effective for your business, and how do you measure their success?
Ironically, the most effective marketing I’ve done didn’t cost a cent. We built Roccoco without paid ads. No boosted posts. No influencer freebies. What worked? Word of mouth driven by transformation. Skin results became our marketing engine. When someone’s cystic acne clears up or their rosacea calms in days, they tell everyone. That kind of organic referral has more impact than any influencer ever could.
Our biggest assets have been:
Blogs, webinars, and professional training that position us as the expert.
Before-and-after photos that show what our products actually do.
Skin professionals who use our products in treatments and become brand advocates.
We measure success by conversion and retention. If content drives inquiries or stockists reorder consistently, it’s working. If a customer buys once and comes back five times, that’s proof of value. It’s not about likes or vanity metrics, it’s about impact and repeat results.
Can you share a major setback or turning point in your beauty entrepreneurship journey, and how you navigated through it?
The most brutal setback I’ve faced was losing half my team whilst being in hospital. The day I was undergoing spinal fusion in my neck, my operations manager quit. Half my team walked. No warning. I woke up in a hospital bed with a broken team and a business on the edge of chaos.
Two weeks post-op, barely able to sit upright; I was back at work. Not because I wanted to be a hero. Because the business needed leadership, and there was no one else to carry it. I spent my days lying down, directing my team from a bed, managing crisis after crisis while trying to heal. That period exposed everything, what was broken in our systems, who was truly loyal, and how strong my leadership had become. But here’s the thing, I didn’t just survive it, I rebuilt. I recruited smarter, restructured everything, and came back with a team that was aligned, committed, and high-performing. That exodus was the best thing that ever happened, because it forced me to level up as a CEO.
What’s one piece of advice you’d offer to women who are just starting their entrepreneurial journey in the beauty industry?
Your power lies in what makes you different. That’s your leverage. In the beauty industry, it’s easy to feel like you have to fit a mould. There’s a formula most people follow: clean aesthetic, influencer marketing, trendy ingredients. But if you blend in, you disappear. The brands that thrive long-term are the ones that stand for something and often, that “something” comes from what made them feel like the outsider in the first place. That personal story, that specific skill, that unique way you see the problem… that’s your superpower.
Is there a quote, mantra, or philosophy that guides your decision-making and leadership as a beauty entrepreneur?
Absolutely: “Back yourself. Relentlessly.” That’s the mantra that’s carried me through every challenge, from formulating at my kitchen bench with no money, to rebuilding my team after a walkout, to scaling globally during spinal surgeries. When everything around you is uncertain, your belief in yourself has to be non-negotiable. I lead with clarity, not consensus. I don’t outsource decisions that require vision. And I always ask: Does this move us forward with impact, or is it noise? If it’s not aligned with results, values, or service, it’s a no.
Here is our signature question: “What Are The 5 Things You Need To Overcome Self-Doubt and Build Confidence?” (If possible, please share a story or example for each one.)
1. Evidence Over Emotion
Self-doubt thrives in emotional guesswork. Replace it with data and results.In the early days, I wasn’t sure if my formulas were “good enough.” But when a client with severe eczema sent me before-and-after photos with tears in her eyes saying, “I finally feel human again”, that was evidence. Confidence isn’t built by thinking you’re good. It’s built by proving it.
2. Ruthless Focus on Your Zone of Genius
Trying to be everything to everyone dilutes your power. Confidence comes from mastering your lane. I stopped trying to compete with mainstream “luxury” brands and doubled down on treating inflamed and problematic skin. That’s what I’m known for now, because I chose depth over breadth.
3. Action in the Face of Fear
Waiting until you feel ready is self-doubt’s favourite trick. Move anyway.
When I published “Just Go For It”, I was terrified people would judge my story. But I wrote it anyway. That book became a bestseller and helped thousands of entrepreneurs. You don’t need confidence to act. You need courage. Confidence follows.
4. Learn to Self-Validate
If you rely on external validation to feel confident, your self-worth will rise and fall with every comment, sale, or setback. You have to be your own source of certainty. In the early stages of Roccoco, I had no applause, no support, just doubt. But I knew the science. I knew the results I was getting. I backed myself long before the industry did. If I’d waited for approval, I’d still be waiting. Confidence comes when you stop needing permission.
5. Anchor to Purpose, Not Praise
Validation is fleeting. Purpose is permanent. When you root your decisions in why you started, doubt loses its grip. I didn’t create Roccoco for fame. I built it because my son had eczema, my daughter had cystic acne, and nothing worked. Confidence isn’t a personality trait. It’s a byproduct of showing up, over and over again, when it would’ve been easier to quit.
Ok, we are nearly done. You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
My movement would be for women to love themselves, imperfect and all. We’ve been conditioned to believe that our value is tied to flawlessness. That we need smoother skin, smaller waists, fewer wrinkles, less everything. I want to dismantle that. Because the truth is, confidence doesn’t come from fixing yourself. It comes from embracing yourself fully. That includes the stretch marks, the melasma, the scars, the stories. Real beauty is found in rawness, not refinement. If I can help ignite even one woman’s journey back to herself, that’s legacy. Multiply that by millions? That’s a revolution.
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