ra stores in Europe, the UK and Australia, as well as online in Japan and the US. In addition, a Standard Procedure x Zara range of men’s hats, bags, shoes, robes, board shorts, and clothing is now available in more than 600 Zara stores worldwide. This marks Zara’s first-ever collaboration with a sun care brand, and the first time it has sold a third-party brand’s core range in its stores. We spoke to Standard Procedure’s co-founder Zepha Jackson about how it came about. Inside Retail: First of all, can you tell me about Standard Procedure — how and when did it start, and how is it different from other sun care brands? Zepha Jackson: Standard Procedure is a sun care and lifestyle brand. Although we are relatively new, being almost three years old, my family has been manufacturing sunscreen and topical skin care for my entire life. The factory is still owned and operated by my family, with three generations running the business. Our Standard Procedure formulas are ones that my family has been perfecting for decades. They are clean formulas, perfect for the faces and bodies of all ages – including children. My business partner, Dion Agius, is a professional surfer, and we have a Standard Procedure surf team. They love the product because they are often out in the harshest conditions and know it will protect them without being sticky, running in their eyes, or being slippery. IR: How did the Zara collaboration come about and what was the process like? ZJ: We were flattered to receive an email from Zara. At first, I thought it was fake when I saw it land in my inbox. The initial email had about 20 people cc’d, and I googled all of them, thinking it couldn’t be true. This was about a year ago, and Dion and I flew to Spain a couple of weeks after receiving the email to visit the Inditex headquarters. Spending time with the team was really special. It was hard to believe we were dealing with such a big company when everyone was so excited, down-to-earth, and genuine. After exploring the collaboration further and deciding to move ahead, we started working together immediately. It has been a collaborative effort, working closely with each department. IR: What impact do you expect the collaboration to have on your business? ZJ: The impact of Zara adding a sun care category is enormous. The size of their global audience means that they can bring attention to the importance of sun care on a large scale. Raising awareness of sun safety is significant for the industry as a whole, and Standard Procedure is honoured to have been chosen as the brand for Zara to endorse by stocking — the first third-party brand stocked alongside Zara’s own products. We are excited about the brand awareness that comes with a collaboration of this size, the validity for our brand that comes from being the sunscreen brand of choice, and the platform that Zara has given to the importance of sun safety. IR: Standard Procedure has already hit some impressive milestones — what’s your overarching vision for the brand? ZJ: Thank you! We are thrilled by the response that Standard Procedure has received and the rapid growth we have been lucky to experience in such a short time. Our projects and distribution has happened quite organically so far, guided by working with like-minded people who understand the brand and enjoy creating with us. We are eager for more of that! We want to expand our team, reach more people with our products, and collaborate on fun projects with people we admire along the way. We love our retail partnership with Sephora. It is an incredible company with a tight-knit culture that extends throughout all departments, whether in-store or at HQ. Receiving feedback from the Sephora team about having an Australian-made and owned brand in their stores has been particularly special. Their enthusiasm and support is truly beautiful, and I appreciate that they allow founders to be part of the education process through a hands-on approach. We would love the opportunity to share the Australian-made story and raise sun protection awareness internationally by moving into new regions with Sephora. We definitely plan on bringing Standard Procedure to more physical locations when the time allows. We had a pop-up store in Byron Bay last summer and that was a lot of fun, so hopefully lots more where that came from! IR: What do you see as being the biggest opportunities and challenges in the sun care market right now? ZJ: As Australians become more aware of sun safety, there are many opportunities for brands in this space. However, the biggest challenge is related to regulations. While we are grateful for their existence, they make it a difficult, expensive and complex field to be a part of. Creating a sunscreen product takes a very long time, and rightly so, given the responsibility it holds to protect people.