When Malin + Goetz launched 20 years ago, the men’s grooming landscape vastly differed from today. Few brands were specifically made for men, and those that did exist were either very pricey or standard washroom staples like Old Spice. Recognizing this gap in the market, founders Andrew Goetz and Matthew Malin sought to create better grooming products — effective formulas that looked great and offered a distinct, better quality that guys wanted to use.
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Here, we highlight brands that should be on your radar, featuring Blu Atlas and Selahatin in this editionAnd they succeeded brilliantly. Since then, the landscape has completely transformed, with new brands constantly launching and a baseline for a certain level of specialized quality of what we expect of our grooming products. Malin + Goetz has been ahead of the curve all along, a genderless brand that appeals to men and women alike and is a trailblazer in the ever-expanding and evolving grooming market.
Founded in New York City in 2004, Malin + Goetz set out to uncomplicate skincare. Inspired by the diversity, inclusivity and energy of city living, a primary brand mission was to design products for every skin type, tone and gender, and thus, began with six essential products. The deodorant, with natural eucalyptus, has achieved a cult-like status, and their now iconic grapefruit cleanser and the vitamin E moisturizer are among their 20-year best-sellers and favorites amongst grooming aficionados. M+G also became known for its distinctive packaging — an apothecary-esque font paired with bold colors, set against a white backdrop — which became a staple in trendy barbershops and niche boutiques. Although they have expanded their line since then, the overall ethos remains the same: a bare-bones approach to grooming products that guys want to use and even flaunt on their grooming shelf. They are highly effective, natural enough for sensitive skin types, smell amazing and look cool — a welcome addition to any stylish medicine cabinet.
We would be remiss not to highlight Malin + Goetz’s home and personal fragrances (more on that below). Many grooming brands elicit side-eye when launching home or personal fragrances, but M+G has crossed over with much acclaim due to their fantastic-smelling artisanal scents, many of which are now cult classics. The cannabis candle, a pioneering scent in the cannabis-as-cologne movement, has adorned many stylish apartments since its release. The sage and vetiver candles offer intoxicating interpretations of these classic notes. Another favorite is their oil-based rollerballs, perfect for travel. “Leather” contains wood notes and evokes a well-worn vintage find. Home and personal fragrances aside, all M+G’s products smell fantastic — a brand hallmark.
As Malin + Goetz celebrates its 20th anniversary, its growth and success speak for itself. With 25 standalone apothecaries worldwide and pop-ups in cities like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London and Shanghai, their products are available in 44 countries across six continents. Malin + Goetz has partnered with over 1,200 hotels and amenities worldwide, including restaurants, gyms, hotels and airlines, and their travel kit sells every 10 minutes. And the brand shows no signs of slowing down. They recently debuted their Eucalyptus Duo, which includes the Hand + Body Scrub and Body Gel, and will launch a new product in the home category in late August. We had the opportunity to sit down with the founders to discuss the grooming industry, their brand, and what makes them unique 20 years on.
InsideHook: The niche men’s grooming market has exploded over the past 10-15 years, and Malin + Goetz has been at the forefront and is a trailblazer of this movement. Returning to the beginning, what was the impetus to start the brand? Did you see a gap in the men’s grooming market then?
Andrew Goetz: While we absolutely realized men were being significantly underserved, and what they were served was completely dumbed down, we approached this from a gender-neutral perspective. Our goal was to put women and men on equal footing with the quality of products that we created. So our trailblazing was not just thinking about the men’s market but rather elevating the men’s market to the same standards as the women’s market. And we loved the idea of couples being able to shop and use our products together. In New York, bathrooms tend to be extremely small, so we thought, “Wouldn’t it be great if couples could share great products that looked as good as they worked and saved a ton of space?”
Matthew Malin: We started the brand 20 years ago to make skincare easy and uncomplicated for a couple to share. This, of course, included men and the opportunity to provide to men in a way that was also missing in the market.
How did you create the now instantly recognizable packaging, with its old-school apothecary-esque yet modern and distinct typeface?
AG: When we started thinking about the brand, we aimed to take something classic and make it modern. We didn’t want to create a pastiche aesthetic or protocol. We have always liked old apothecary bottles and have a small collection.
MM: We both love classic apothecary jars and labels and wanted something with the same — albeit modern — staying power 100 years from now. This included aesthetics and functions, with our packaging being practical and easy to use in all the ways we use products today.
I have found it often difficult for men’s grooming brands to create equally captivating scents or quality with candles. That is not the case with you, as Cannabis, for example, has become a cult classic. Can you tell us what thought you put into these scents that made them as revered as the grooming line?
AG: Matthew and I have an intuitive sense of what will translate. Cannabis is an excellent example of a scent that works equally well as a personal fragrance and candle. Leather would be another example. There are, however, plenty of scents that do not translate. While this may indeed be an intuitive skill, we are honest enough with ourselves to kill something we want to or think should work, but it doesn’t.
MM: Thank you for saying that. We put a lot of thought into this. If I first start with skincare — face, body, hair — our focus for all ingredients is on efficacy and skin sensitivities. However, as a luxury brand, we also provide sensory experiences, including scents that support our formulas (like chamomile, grapefruit, etc). These tried, true and trusted apothecary ingredients are the basis for perfumery. And perfumery today allows us to be more playful and conceptual as we integrate scent into our regimens. Most of our scents, like Cannabis (now 15 years old for us), have some medicinal origin that we have developed from its single note to a more conceptual, dynamic perfume. It is fun, playful and sexy (to us). Andrew also lived in Amsterdam in the ’80s, so there is a nostalgic and romanticized idea to Cannabis as well.
With so many men’s grooming brands launching all the time, what do you think is unique to Malin + Goetz? What are the brand’s guiding principles?
AG: I like to think we are unique in our approach from both an efficacy and design perspective. We are not interested in trends or beauty/grooming fashions. We only want to create superior products that will be enduring. We use the best natural ingredients possible and fuse them with the human-scientific formulation. Mother Nature does many things very well, but so does human ingenuity. And just because something is natural doesn’t always mean it’s better for you — poison ivy being case and point. We are big fans of taking the best from both worlds.
MM: The same as 20 years ago — to make skincare easy and uncomplicated, starting with sensitive skin. We have been gender-neutral for 20 years, and the brand was created to show how a modern couple would shop for and use products together.
Please share a little inspiration for where you came up with your scents and olfactory pyramids. Are they actually one note, or is that just for simplicity and branding? And why do you choose certain scents for different products?
AG: Our olfactory journey is inspired by several things. First, we are committed minimalists; there is not one note —always top, middle and bottom notes for all our fragrances. We don’t like things that are overcomplicated. Like everything at Malin + Goetz, we always look to our apothecary roots for inspiration and consider how to take something traditional and make it modern. Our olfactory endeavors are no exception. Every single scent we offer does have a link to the past. For example, we are avid gardeners, so some of our scents, such as tomato and strawberry, are inspired by our garden. But anything can inspire us — having lived in Amsterdam, the smell of Cannabis was always my Proustian Madeleine when we created that scent. The scent is not just about what smells nice but about memory. All our scents are infused to tell a personal story and trigger unforgettable memories for us. And while our customers will most certainly have their own memories, we hope our scents will also help trigger theirs.
MM: Generally, we start with single-note apothecary and traditional perfumery ingredients. We use these traditional base ingredients and notes to create something modern and gender-neutral. While we start with a single note, our perfumes are dynamic and complex like all our formulas. Inspiration can also come from personal experiences like our garden in the Hudson Valley, where we grow strawberries. While it seems obvious, strawberry scents are often saccharine and associated with a specific audience. We wanted a more sophisticated version of the plant — the same plant and fruit that anyone can love and share.
What are your most popular scents? And what are the most cult classic “niche” scents with a devoted fanbase?
AG: Dark Rum and Cannabis are usually the two most popular scents. And we have several niche scents with a really devoted fan base. Strawberry probably garners the most obsessive fanbase. When people think of strawberries, they usually think of something sweet and cloying — certainly something for teenagers. Our strawberry is none of those things. There is nothing sweet or fruity about it — it’s quite green. So, the name probably puts as many people off as it attracts. But once you try it, it’s hard not to be enthusiastic — even for men. Outside of our Fragrance division, scent is, of course, still incredibly important to our products. Eucalyptus has a cult following among our customers. This is not just in our popular deodorant but also in our Eucalyptus Hand + Body Wash and our new Eucalyptus Hand + Body Scrub and Eucalyptus Body Gel. Eucalyptus is definitely a cult classic for our customers.
Sustainability and transparency are essential for any grooming brand today. How do those ideals relate to Malin + Goetz?
AG: Sustainability and transparency are essential for everything. But unfortunately, it often remains elicit. It’s always been part of our personal and brand culture. We aim to always be completely transparent. We never over-promise what our products do — integrity is very important to us. Sustainability is also incredibly important to us — although often difficult. But we do our best, always using new technological and environmental offerings. We use as little outer packaging as possible. We incorporate post-consumer plastic into our packaging and strive to use recyclable aluminum tubes whenever possible. We also offer large sizes of many products so customers can buy in bulk and refill their products. We even encourage customers who buy our candles to repurpose them as drinking glasses after burning them. And we are always looking for ways to be as sustainable as possible.
MM: For 20 years, we have strived to be sustainable and transparent. All the information about each product is right on the bottle! We have always focused our manufacturing locally, supporting other independent businesses long-term while reducing our carbon footprint. Our products and packaging are regularly reviewed and updated to support customer and environmental concerns.
Any news you can share with us for 2024 into 2025?
AG: There is always something new and exciting at Malin + Goetz, and we eagerly look forward to a number of product launches later this year and in 2025. I’m afraid you’ll have to check back later in the year for more details, but it’s definitely something to look forward to!
MM: We are excited to launch a new category and will happily keep you updated.
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