The little soap bars caring for your hair and the planet — chatting to the women behind NueBar

In 2019, Katie Hennah and Kerry Wood launched NueBar to the Sydney Vegan Market. With care and integrity, the couple have created unique plastic-free beauty, hair and skin bars that smell divine.

When do you feel wild? What makes you feel alive?

Katie Hennah: A double-shot coffee makes me feel a bit crazy and inline skating (especially night-time skating escapades) makes me feel alive.

Kerry Wood: I’m more obvious. I just have to go with the cliché answer of getting out into nature! Nothing beats it for me.

When and what inspired you to create your brand, NueBar?

KW and KH: A death in the family made us reassess what we were doing. One of the biggest questions we asked ourselves was how could the path that we were on contribute to positive changes in the world.

KH: I had always resisted working together as a couple, but this just seemed to be the right venture at the right time to combine our skills and see what we could achieve.

What are some of the ways NueBar gives back to the planet?

First and foremost, by contributing to the movement to reduce plastic use. We also work at the other end of the problem by donating a portion of profits to Tangaroa Blue, a local charity involved in ocean clean-ups and reduction of marine debris. Being palm oil-free, cruelty-free and vegan are also ways in which we aim to reduce our impact.

What are some of the ingredients you use in the NueBar range?

We really wanted to be as ethical as possible. We source our coconut oil from an organisation in the Solomon Islands, where 100 per cent of the profit goes back to the locals who are involved in the industry. Our cacao butter is Rainforest Alliance certified organic from a farmers’ collective in Peru. If you could imagine a new world, what would it look like?

KW: A slower, kinder world that’s more thoughtful of how our actions affect every living thing, from our planet to the people who inhabit it.

What does a typical day look like for you?

KH: Research into ingredients that we can source that meet our standards for ethics and sustainability, overseeing the making of the range, which is made on the Central Coast of New South Wales, and providing customer service. Just because we’re online does not mean we won’t go above and beyond to answer questions and provide the best customer service we can with our online store.

KW: Creative collaboration, copywriting and campaigns for the brand. Getting the good word about plastic-free options out into the world and sneaking in a cheeky skating session here and there — we love to do that together.

What is your guilty pleasure?

KH: I don’t believe in feeling guilty about things that give you pleasure.

KW: Definitely coffee, a double-shot soy latte as well as coffee-flavoured chocolate and coffee ice cream.

Any beauty secrets you swear by?

KH: Eating lots of vegetables of every colour.

KW: Stay out of the sun and keep well hydrated throughout the day.

What’s next for you personally?

KH: Can’t wait to see my family in New Zealand after being cut off from them for so long.

KW: More skating. Summer night-time city adventures with a big crew of other skaters is a blast.

What’s next for NueBar?

KH: Well, we have started very small and as the brand catches on, we are having to learn to scale without losing our integrity and our values.

KW: Exactly. Even though the brand may get bigger, keeping the product and our connection authentic and making sure our products are a win for Mother Earth will always be the most important things for the future of NueBar.

For more, visit nuebar.com.