We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Allyson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Allyson below.

Allyson, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

“The idea for Emogene & Co. really came from a personal and professional intersection in my life.

I spent 15 years as a neurocritical care pharmacist in a hospital in Nashville, so science, medicinal chemistry, and evidence-based decision-making were already deeply ingrained in how I think. Around that time, I had a daughter who was about 14 months old, and I found myself paying much closer attention to what I was putting on her skin—and mine.

I distinctly remember looking in the mirror one day and thinking, I need to be more intentional about how I care for my skin. I bought a very expensive vitamin C serum, and out of pure curiosity, I turned the bottle over and started reading the ingredient list. That’s when my pharmacist brain kicked in. I wanted to understand why those ingredients were being used and whether they actually made sense together.

I started doing deep research on what makes a truly effective vitamin C serum—concentration, stability, and supporting ingredients—and suddenly everything clicked. All of my medicinal chemistry background from pharmacy school and years of clinical practice applied perfectly to skincare formulation. At that moment, I decided I wanted to try making my own.

Very quietly, without telling anyone, I calculated what an effective vitamin C serum should look like, chose the ingredients I believed in, ordered supplies, and literally measured everything manually. I made my first formula and started using it every day.

Two weeks later, I went out for a girls’ night, and my friends kept asking what I was doing to my skin because it looked so good. I told them—half joking—that I was making a bootleg vitamin C serum at home. They immediately asked if I would make some for them.

Over the next year, I continued formulating and refining different formulas, blending naturally derived ingredients with medicinal chemistry principles from my years as a clinical pharmacist. During that time, my friends encouraged me to turn this into a real business and taught me how to actually start a company. That’s how Emogene & Co. was born.

From an execution standpoint, I was completely self-invested and chose not to take private investment. My very first hires were an accountant and a bookkeeper, because I wanted to be responsible and strategic with my funds from day one. I was formulating and manufacturing everything myself, so I kept overhead extremely low.

The biggest investment was time. I worked a full-time hospital job while staying up until three o’clock in the morning building the brand, creating formulas, and learning how to run a business—then turning around and going back to the hospital at seven each morning. That level of discipline and belief in the vision is what ultimately brought Emogene & Co. to life.

Allyson, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

For those who may not be familiar with Emogene & Co., I’m Allyson Brennan, PharmD, the founder of Emogene & Co., a skincare company built on the belief that your skin deserves safe, effective, and intelligently formulated products that fit into real life.

My journey into skincare wasn’t accidental — it grew out of years of scientific training combined with a very personal need. As a pharmacist, I saw firsthand how many people tolerate irritation, sensitivity, and ineffective products because they don’t have access to straightforward, trustworthy solutions. I also noticed a significant gap in the market for products that are not only naturally derived, but truly pregnancy and breastfeeding safe, as well as gentle enough for children. There was a real need for skincare that couples science and nature in a way that improves the health of your largest organ — your skin — without compromise.

That insight became the foundation for emogene & co, a completely female-founded and female-run business that handles everything in-house — from formulation and manufacturing to fulfillment and shipping. We don’t outsource, we don’t white-label, and we don’t take shortcuts. Being hands-on at every step means greater quality control, unparalleled transparency, and products our customers can trust.

One of the things I’m most proud of is how we’ve incorporated our own proprietary herbal blend, grown on our 21-acre property, into eight of our 26 skincare products. That connection to the land — and to the ingredients themselves — allows us to offer something both authentic and scientifically sound.

At emogene & co, we don’t just sell products — we offer education. Our website is designed to help people understand their skin, how it works, and how to care for it responsibly. We focus on streamlined, customer-focused regimens that improve skin health while making compliance — the number one predictor of results — easy and sustainable. We want skincare to work and to make sense.

Our products are available online and in select skincare boutiques and dermatology clinics across the South, bringing safe, effective skincare to people both digitally and in trusted local spaces.

We also place tremendous value on customer experience. From personalized support to thoughtful product design, it’s incredibly meaningful that we have one of the highest repeat customer rates in the nation compared to our online competitors. That kind of loyalty doesn’t come from marketing alone — it comes from people feeling genuinely cared for and seeing real results.

What I want potential clients, followers, and fans to know about emogene & co is this:
We’re rooted in science, grounded in nature, and guided by integrity. We make skincare that’s safe for the most vulnerable moments of life — pregnancy, breastfeeding, childhood — without sacrificing efficacy. And we do it with care, education, and an unshakeable commitment to your skin’s long-term health.

Have you ever had to pivot?

The entire creation story of Emogene & Co. is rooted in a major pivot. At the time, I had spent 15 years in neurocritical care pharmacy and invested many years in education to earn my doctorate. Walking away from a long-established medical career to start a business from scratch was terrifying. But I approached it with intention—building a solid financial plan, surrounding myself with experienced business mentors (even outside of skincare), and leaning on people who were stronger than me in areas like accounting and bookkeeping.

That leap required grit, resilience, and a commitment to not compare myself to others. I kept my head down, trusted the value of what I had to offer, and reminded myself that there is room at the table for everyone—even in saturated markets. When you believe in your gifts, you realize you can create and serve in a way that only you can, and that’s where true differentiation lives.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

I’m completely self-funded, and that was a very intentional choice for me. I wanted the freedom to work for myself and maintain full control over how money was spent and reinvested in the business. I launched Emogene & Co. while I was still working full-time as a pharmacist, which gave me the security of a steady salary. I started with just $5,000 and built from there.

Where you place your initial investment is just as important as what you’re selling. If funds are spent in the wrong areas instead of improving the product or service, a business can fail very quickly. I worked my pharmacist job during the day and came home to build Emogene & Co. at night. It required discipline, dedication, and very little sleep—but that season of hard work laid the foundation for the brand’s long-term success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.emogeneandco.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emogeneco/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emogeneco/

Image Credits

Kylie Hull photography