Charlotte Vøhtz | Green People

Women to Watch | Beauty Founders

Charlotte Vøhtz: Green People founder Charlotte Vøhtz reflects on pioneering organic beauty, sensitive skin and leading one of Britain’s most trusted skincare brands.

“We’ve never formulated for trends. We formulate for skin health.” – Charlotte Vøhtz

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Long before “clean beauty” became one of the industry’s biggest talking points, Charlotte Vøhtz was quietly changing the conversation.

When she founded Green People in 1997, the beauty landscape looked very different. Products marketed as natural often still contained ingredients that could aggravate sensitive skin, leaving families with limited options and little transparency. As a nurse and natural health practitioner, Charlotte wasn’t driven by trends or commercial opportunity. She was driven by something far more personal: finding skincare that could genuinely help her daughter, Sandra, who lived with severe eczema and allergies.

What began as a mother’s determination to find a solution has grown into one of the UK’s most respected organic beauty brands. Along the way, Charlotte became a pioneer, helping establish the world’s first certified organic standards for health and beauty products while proving that high-performance skincare and natural ingredients could go hand in hand.

Nearly three decades on, Green People continues to champion skin health, sustainability and integrity over trends, remaining true to the values it was founded on. Even after the heartbreaking loss of Sandra in 2021, Charlotte has continued the mission that first inspired the brand, helping millions of people with sensitive skin find products they can trust.

As part of Darling Magazine’s Women to Watch | Beauty Founders series, we spoke to Charlotte about purpose, pioneering organic beauty, building trust over trends and the legacy she hopes Green People will leave for generations to come.

“Healthy skin doesn’t come from using more products. It comes from using the right ones consistently.”

1. Tell us about yourself. Who are you outside of your business?

Outside Green People, I’m someone who cares deeply about people. Kindness, compassion and helping others have always been important to me. I recharge by spending time in nature. Having grown up by the sea in Denmark, I’ve always found the coast incredibly restorative, and these days I also love exploring the Sussex countryside with my Cavapoo. Being outdoors gives me perspective, keeps me grounded and continually reminds me of the remarkable power of the natural world.

2. When did you first realise beauty was going to become part of your career?

Beauty was never the plan. My background was in nursing and natural health, and I became interested in skincare because my late daughter, Alexandra (Sandra), suffered from severe eczema and allergies as a young child. She was the inspiration behind Green People. What began as a search for gentle, effective products that wouldn’t aggravate her skin grew into a lifelong mission to help others with sensitive skin.

3. What problem were you trying to solve when you launched your brand?

In the 1990s I couldn’t find genuinely natural products that were suitable for Sandra’s sensitive skin. Many products marketed as “natural” still contained harsh ingredients, synthetic fragrance or alcohol (ethanol). I wanted to prove that natural and organic skincare could be both exceptionally gentle and genuinely effective.

4. Was there a defining moment where you thought: “I’m actually going to do this.”

There wasn’t one dramatic moment, but there was a point when everything changed. I had created the products for my own family, and friends started asking if they could try them too. As more people came back saying how much calmer and more comfortable their skin felt, I realised this wasn’t just about helping my daughter anymore. I could help other families facing the same challenges. That was the moment I knew I had to turn my passion into a business.

5. What has been the biggest challenge you’ve overcome as a founder?

One of my biggest challenges was convincing retailers that Green People was genuinely different. In the late 1990s, many ‘natural’ skincare products still contained synthetic ingredients, so education became a huge part of my role. At the same time, I kept pushing the Soil Association to introduce standards for health and beauty products because I believed consumers deserved products they could truly trust. I’m incredibly proud that this ultimately led to the development of the world’s first certified organic standard for health and beauty products.

6. What’s one thing people assume about running a beauty brand that simply isn’t true?

People might think it’s glamorous. In reality it’s hard work – keeping up with science, regulations, manufacturing, logistics, sustainability, customer service and thousands of decisions every week. There’s an enormous amount of work behind every formulation – it is science and nature in balance and there is no room for shortcuts.

“My own journey began with a mother’s love and a determination to help my daughter.”

7. What does success mean to you today compared to when you first started?

Success has never really changed for me. From the very beginning, it was about improving the lives of people with sensitive skin. Looking back over almost 30 years, knowing Green People has helped millions of people find products they can trust is what makes me most proud.

8. How do you look after your own wellbeing while running a business?

I’ve learned that you have to make time to recharge. For me, that’s walking in nature, being by the sea whenever I can, enjoying a long bath with mineral salts and essential oils, and starting the day with a fresh juice or homemade smoothie. Looking after yourself isn’t selfish—it’s what gives you the energy to look after others and run a business.

The Brand

9. Which product best represents your brand and why?

Our Scent Free range best represents Green People. It brings together everything we stand for: gentle, effective formulations made with organic ingredients where possible, designed for sensitive skin and suitable for the whole family. Whether it’s skincare, body care or sun protection, our aim has always been to create products people can trust, whatever their age or skin concern..

10. If somebody had never heard of your brand before, what would you want them to know?

That we’ve been pioneers of certified organic beauty for sensitive skin since 1997. We’ve never formulated for trends—we formulate for skin health. Our products are genuinely certified organic, dermatologically tested and trusted by families across generations, with more than 60,000 five-star reviews.

11. What are you most proud of building?

A company that has stayed true to its values for almost thirty years. We’ve never chased fashion. Instead we’ve built trust, and that’s something you earn one customer at a time.

12. What’s next?

I’m as passionate about innovation today as I was when I founded Green People. I love discovering new natural ingredients backed by credible science and finding ways to create even better products for sensitive skin. Although I lost my beautiful daughter, Alexandra (Sandra), in 2021, I continue the mission that inspired Green People from the very beginning. I know she would have wanted me to carry on. My dream is for Green People to remain the trusted name people think of first when they have sensitive skin.

Darling

Complete this sentence…

Beauty means…

“…feeling comfortable and confident in your own skin.”

Complete this sentence…

The one thing I wish every woman knew is…

“…healthy skin doesn’t come from using more products – it comes from using the right ones consistently.”

Why do you think women should continue supporting independent beauty founders?

Many independent founders start with a deeply personal purpose. My own journey began with a mother’s love and a determination to help my daughter. That purpose has never changed. Independent founders have the freedom to put people before profits, creating products because they genuinely want to solve a problem rather than simply follow the latest trend.

“Trends come and go, but purpose, integrity and determination will take you much further.”

Charlotte Vøhtz

• Green People was championing clean beauty long before it became mainstream. What kept you committed to that vision?

For me, it was never about “clean beauty” because that phrase didn’t even exist when Green People started. My vision was to create genuinely natural and certified organic skincare that put skin health first. I never wanted to take shortcuts. Green People has always been formulated around pure, nutrient-rich organic aloe vera, highly concentrated plant actives that work in synergy, and a commitment to avoiding unnecessary skin-irritating ingredients. As science has evolved, it has consistently validated the philosophy that Green People was founded on nearly 30 years ago.

• What does true sustainability mean to you beyond the label?

True sustainability is about making decisions that are better for people as well as the planet. It’s not enough to have recyclable packaging if the formulation inside isn’t responsibly made. Sustainability has to consider ingredients, sourcing, manufacturing, packaging, longevity and creating products people genuinely use rather than throw away.

• If you could give women one piece of skincare advice they’d benefit from for life, what would it be?

Think of sunscreen as skincare, not just sun protection. Choose a skin-friendly broad-spectrum SPF that’s rich in protective plant actives and antioxidants to help defend your skin against the visible effects of UV exposure. Wear it every day, all year round, and combine it with sensible sun habits—apply enough, reapply regularly when outdoors, seek shade during peak UV hours and wear protective clothing. Looking after your skin today is one of the greatest gifts you can give your future self.

Quick Fire

Favourite book? Probably The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. Its message about purpose and perseverance has always resonated with me.

Morning or night? Morning.

Coffee or tea? Herbal tea.

One beauty product you couldn’t live without? A fragrance-free daily moisturiser with SPF.

Favourite place to travel? Denmark -it will always feel like home – but I also love anywhere surrounded by water and woodland.

One piece of advice for aspiring founders?
Build something you genuinely believe in, watch your cashflow and trust your gut. If it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Trends come and go, but purpose, integrity and determination will take you much further. And whatever happens—never give up.

Charlotte Vøhtz’s story is a reminder that some of the most influential brands are built not by chasing what’s popular, but by staying true to a purpose.

For almost thirty years, Green People has remained committed to creating products that genuinely support sensitive skin, while helping shape the standards that many consumers now expect from natural and organic beauty. It’s a legacy built on trust, transparency and an unwavering belief that skin health should always come first.

What makes Charlotte’s journey particularly inspiring is that, despite the industry’s evolution, her motivation has never changed. Every product, every innovation and every milestone can be traced back to one simple goal: helping people feel comfortable and confident in their own skin.

As Green People continues to innovate for future generations, Charlotte’s influence extends far beyond skincare. She has helped redefine what responsible beauty looks like, proving that purpose-led businesses can create lasting change without ever compromising their values.

Visit: Green People