Meet Aicha Sebaa: Doctor of East Asian Medicine & Skincare Formulator

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

Hi Aicha, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
What was your thought process behind starting your own business?

It really started as an idea that simply wouldn’t leave me.

In my clinical practice, I have a front-row seat to the range of health issues and insecurities that plague women today. So often women come to me seeking bodily healing and rejuvenation—a return to healthfulness on a level that satisfies the body in spirit and aesthetic. But the divide between wellbeing and skin’s appearance was/is very palpable.

The beauty industry too often has women turn to solutions for their skin from a place of shame, rather than healing and self-love. More products, more tweaking, more there, and less of you.

Listening straight from the heart, I’d tune into my ladies’ words as they’d speak about how they feel about their skin and what they’re using to essentially “attack” their problems. It wasn’t far off that more invasive measures were being examined. The issue isn’t the interventions, the issue is more so the gaping disconnect from wholeness and the amazing vessel that houses us.

After a few sentences of questioning those impulses and folding in some empowerment, most women would get it. An inner-knowing would kick in and a reclamation of her worth would begin to bud. Approaching skincare from a place of healing both inside-out and outside-in was like a familiar revelation.

I sensed a longing for authenticity and healing, efficacy and integrity, nature and a polishing of the mirror inside.

When the women I treat began requesting their own skin-nourishing formulas, I saw a chance to create skincare that truly cares.

And from there, I began to share my formulations with the undercurrent of *that which heals, beautifies.*

It was through those early consultations, concocting skincare for those I love and myself through life’s challenges, that a synergy of ancient herbal wisdom and modern science married into each formula–always, from a place of honoring the skin’s innate healing capacity and defending against modern circumstances.

But taking skincare from the intimate setting of my office, colleagues, and loved ones to the broader online sphere terrified me. All my insecurities came pouring in…

Would others understand outside of the one-on-one setting of my clinic?
I know the worth of this formula. I know what goes into it. I know the difference from industry-standard but will others get it?
How can I charge a premium like this?
“They” will say “Who does she think she is?”
How does e-commerce even work? I’m not a marketer. I didn’t go to school for this.
Just shelf this idea or keep it small.

And so on…

But the idea to bring my formulas forth to more amazing people became more painful to keep inside than to just do it.

“How can you *not* share this?” was the response of one patient with feedback the following week of trying ELIXIR (my facial oil serum) after hearing my hesitancy with creating an online shop. I felt a flame at that moment to make this a reality.

Now, after two incredible online seasonal launches at this point for Dr. Sebaa’s ELIXIR – Facial Serum (Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer), I’m thrilled to connect with so many more amazing human beings who get it, who feel the same, and who were searching for formulas like mine.

“I’ve been waiting for something exactly like this” was one of the first of many affirming words from customers I haven’t personally met but instantly feel a connection with after rejoicing in this form of skincare together.

My thought process has and will always be from a place of healing.

I’m not here to add sameness to an already saturated industry. If it isn’t truly unique, if it doesn’t bring wellbeing and a deeper connection to wholeness, I’m not releasing it. My name won’t go on it.

My skincare curations are carefully crafted to integrate into your skincare routine with multi-functional body so that your product deck can be cut down. You often need so much less than you’re told. Worth with your smart body and you’ll see.

How can I bring healing wherever I am, launch, go? That’s where my thought process grows from.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If my friend was visiting, we wouldn’t miss the Getty museum. There’s nothing like Malibu beaches, specifically Point Dume State beach. We’d stop by Open Sesame for some delicious Mediterranean food. If we had more time in Southern California, I’d head us right down to San Diego. We’d visit Balboa Park and immerse ourselves in the botanical garden there. Old Town would be our spot for some delicious Mexican food. For some coffee/tea and a nice discussion, we’d stop LeStat’s on Park before a night drive back up the coast.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I pray for Guidance in every effort I pursue and that my intentions are distilled in what is good. I also pray for beautiful people to connect with a greater purpose. Fortunately, I have found this through the hardships my father endured in illness, which widened my eyes to the insatiable pursuit of holistic streams of medicine, my mother and sister through their you-can-do-anything attitudes, to my beloved companion, Edreace, who kept me going through countless iterations and insecurities that come with the vulnerability of entrepreneurship, to my patients who always taught me more than they’ll ever know. The list can continue. We are the sum of so many touchpoints. I have so much to be grateful for.

Website: https://www.drsebaa.com/shop/

Instagram: @drsebaa | @drsebaaskin

Linkedin: @drsebaa

Facebook: @drsebaa