Skincare Can Be More Than Skin Deep. Divya Malpani Wants That to Sink In.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the world as she knew it fell still, Divya Malpani got moving on her first big venture. Her gap semester in India wasn’t a “gap” in learning at all. Instead, it was a way to start building bridges with the future manufacturers and consumers of Skinvest—her skincare brand with offerings formulated to pamper and protect brown skin.

Malpani’s calling to skincare first emerged in childhood, when she sampled products from her grandmother’s own regimen. Though her experimentation was initially a source of joy and confidence, Malpani’s teenage years brought new stressors. Hormonal acne eventually landed her in dermatology offices, and what was once a hobby soon morphed into a “chore.”

Skinvest is anything but a drudgery; it returns Malpani—and, she hopes, many others—to a feeling of excitement about skincare. 

It’s also a direct response to frustrations experienced by her friends with different skin types. Malpani remembers her spring break at Northeastern University, when the same bottle of sunscreen was passed among and applied by all members of her group. As Malpani and her friends would learn later, the formula’s efficacy varied widely because it hadn’t been made for nor tested on their range of skin colors.

“We need certain ingredients, and in certain percentages,” says Malpani. Her solution—an Indian skincare brand dedicated to Indian customers—combines products backed by science with an overall wellness mission to serve a more diverse customer base. Malpani’s brand is broad: In addition to consumers with different complexions, Skinvest invites those of all gender identities and expressions to participate in what’s often considered a stereotypically feminine experience. For her, the act of nourishing our largest organ is an inclusive opportunity for self-care.

“Everyone has skin, so skincare is for everyone,” says Malpani, who studied business administration at Northeastern. Her line of products, now stocked by international retailers such as Amazon, encourages users to prioritize both their physical and mental health with each layer and lather.

With her 2020 experience as a catalyst, Malpani powered through time differences and worked late into the evenings on Skinvest once she’d returned to Northeastern’s Boston campus. Just after her 2021 graduation, she officially launched the brand in February 2022. With her sights set on a successful expansion to the U.S. market, Malpani recently pitched Skinvest to this year’s Innovator Award judges. 

But they weren’t the only ones in the room. Founders from advocacy, cybersecurity, venture capital, and other industries assembled to support their Women Who Empower peers. The organization’s annual celebration of ambition and impact, hosted by the Office of University Advancement at Northeastern, has in three years honored 69 entrepreneurs and awarded more than $800,000 in financial support. It’s a tether to an international network of driven, like-minded professionals—which Malpani says she’s come to expect from Northeastern.

The opportunity to walk “in the shoes of an employee” and immerse herself in U.S. business practices while on co-op certainly drew Malpani to the university. After all, her family’s endeavors in real estate, entertainment, and chewing tobacco back home in India meant that entrepreneurship was already in her DNA. But Malpani credits her success with Skinvest in large part to Cheryl Mitteness.

“She changed the whole game plan for me,” Malpani says of the associate teaching professor of entrepreneurship and innovation at Northeastern’s D’Amore McKim School of Business. The pair first connected for a Dialogue of Civilizations program that brought them to Sicily, where students like Malpani acted as consultants for local entrepreneurs eager to expand across the world. Soon after, Malpani enrolled in Mitteness’s course on marketing strategies for startups.

When Mitteness asked her students to reflect on what makes them passionate, what makes them get up in the morning, Malpani had her answer. She shared her vision for Skinvest, and her classmates decided to pursue it as one of their projects that semester. 

“They were a dream group,” remembers Mitteness. “And I think that’s because Divya was the leader.” As she explored the Skinvest voice and developed brand guidelines with her group members, Malpani began to shed her own expectations of her entrepreneurial path—that she’d follow her family into real estate. As it happened, she had that in common with Mitteness. And though it’s not off the table as a future venture, real estate took a back seat so that Skinvest could soar.

Malpani has combined her skincare passion with her strong family network and now operates out of their headquarters in India. She’s grown her team from a “one-woman army” to include colleagues tasked with everything from orders and operations to graphic design and performance marketing. The warehouse that stores her products—like the memorable “Bomb Bum” cream Mitteness once heard about in class—is just a 10-minute drive away. 

Charisma and professionalism, far more than familial ties, have propelled Malpani and her business, says Mitteness.

“Without those family connections, she’d still be wildly successful. She’s one of those people that you meet and you think, ‘She’s going to go places.’”

Skinvest’s topical solutions are just the start. Dietary factors, environmental conditions, and stress levels all contribute to skin health, explains Malpani. Her latest brand extension, SkinVision, is a service that connects customers with a certified cosmetologist for personalized lifestyle recommendations. It empowers customers to reduce toxins and boost their “good dopamine” endorphins, Malpani says.

From clinical to calm, cool, and collected. Just like Skinvest.