Beauty entrepreneur Anna Ross has returned to her roots in Otago after 11 years abroad. 

The CEO and founder of ethical nail polish company Kester Black formed and grew her brand in Melbourne, Australia, but decided after more than a decade overseas it was time to come home.

Her successful brand, launched in 2012, has earned countless awards.

Anna said she had been wanting to return to New Zealand for a couple of years and after a long search, it was finding a reliable company for packaging and distribution was the final clincher.

“That was really the last piece of the puzzle that allowed us to leave Australia and come back to New Zealand,” she said. 

Kester Black products are vegan, sustainable and cruelty-free, certified carbon neutral, B Corp certified. Plus, two per cent of all revenue is donated to social causes.

Anna is now based in Hāwea Flat, and half of the Kester Black team has come to New Zealand with her: Anna and her husband are two of a small but efficient four-person team behind the company.

Going remote has “really forced us to automate and streamline,” Anna said. 

Living back in New Zealand also gives the company boots on the ground to help grow the company’s following here, she said.

After spending her childhood in Dunedin, Anna’s parents made the move to Hāwea Flat, and it was the obvious choice when deciding where to set up a new base.

“Every time I’ve come home for the last ten years I’ve managed to come back here [to Hāwea Flat],” Anna said.

“It is just breathtaking every time I look out the window. There’s something about the smell, I never get sick of the view, and I love the lake and the mountains.”

But moving to the countryside hasn’t slowed down Anna’s life just yet. 

Business has been booming - up around 1000 per cent on last year - something Anna attributes to a phenomenon called ‘the lipstick effect’.

“In times of recession, the sales of affordable luxury goods skyrocket,” Anna said. 

“Instead of buying handbags and shoes, people want to feel really good and they buy lipstick. It also applies to nail polish.”

She’s wary though that Australia and New Zealand are in “a bit of a bubble”. 

Anna said when the recession hits at its hardest here the business will likely go one of two ways: the lipstick effect will either continue its upward trajectory or it will be the complete opposite and things will dial right down. 

But for now Anna is making time to get to know her new community. 

“I think it’s going to be a really easy place to meet people so I’m just throwing my hand up for everything at the moment,” she said. 

“It’s so nice to move home, especially to a smaller town where there is a real sense of community and people are welcoming.”

Kester Black products are currently stocked at the Wonder Room in Wanaka, and online at the brand’s website here. LINK https://nz.kesterblack.com/ 

PHOTO: Supplied