Jocelyn Jimenez

Significance in your Skin: Creating "Yo."

Our biggest organ is our skin. Our skin does so much for us: it protects us from toxins, helps regulate body temperature, even provides a waterproof barrier, and the list goes on. It does so much for us, yet some of us do so little for it. In fact, a study in July 2019 concluded that only 1 in 10 Americans use sunscreen daily. That percentage was significantly lower based on race, financial status, and location. When creating this company, I realized how many women, specifically women of color, neglect their skin. Even worse, the skin care industry itself neglects that audience, too.

Prior to creating "Yo," I always struggled with my skin. I am someone who does not strive for a Western beauty standard and has severe sometimes even painful acne, I never felt comfortable in my skin. I never saw myself in beauty ads, but I was always cautious of what I applied to my skin because I didn't have the resources to perfect my skin. I remember looking at magazines and seeing Latinx models, but with completely airbrushed skin. Marketing language practically made it disgusting and shameful to have acne, wrinkles, and more. How is it when we want representation, we get the most altered versions of ourselves? The more and more I researched the history and evolution of the skin care industry, the less I found comfort in it, and the more I disliked the morals within it.

By creating this company I have turned what I didn’t like into what I loved: "Yo." I created this brand to combat the global issue of misinformed skincare, specifically the harmful process of skin bleaching. This brand's primary influence is various countries/cultures I have researched and their own ingredients which cultivate multiple products catered to multiple skin concerns. "Yo." welcomes any woman who is looking for a reason to love themselves in their skin. From the woman who wants to know more about their fine lines like my mother, to the woman who gets excited to unwind at the end of the day with a face mask, like my older sister, and even the young girl who wasn't always the happiest in their skin, like me.