TGC: Dion, tell us about your past-life pre Triumph & Disaster.
DN: Basically I started out in life as a sports jock. A cricket mad sports jock to be precise, I chased this as far as I could and was lucky enough to play professionally and represent New Zealand for a decade before retiring due to a series of back injuries. In hindsight this was a lucky twist of fate as it gave me time to refocus and have another dig. After sport I ran into Geoff Ross and the guys setting up New Zealand Vodka brand 42Below and hung on to their shirttails long enough to learn a bit about selling, branding and marketing, all of which sort of leads me to today.
TGC: What inspired you to make the leap from Sport & Booze to creating a range of (we don’t discern) skincare products?
DN: Basically I am unemployable due to not taking direction very well, so it was either do my own thing or go to the beach and learn to surf. Truth is owning my own brand and starting a business scared the shit out of me and to some degree still does, but it’s the same feeling that keeps me alive. So I sort of had to have a go. Skincare was a more natural calling that you might think, its actually very close to a cricketers heart because when you stand in the sun and wind everyday for hours on end you learn to appreciate the finer points of a moisturiser, sunscreen and the joy of exfoliation. So I felt like I had an industrial knowledge of the category, and I had learnt some skills I wanted to put into practice.
TGC: Where did the inspiration come from?
DN: At about 13 years of age my father gave me a framed poem called ‘IF’ by Rudyard Kipling. The poem is advice from a father to his son on how to be a man. It is about humility, honour, risk and reward. Values that would help mould a brand capable of reminding us that acts of ritual and preparation are worthy endeavours and that being well presented is something of which to be proud. So when a tattered old poem that my dad had given me years before was uncovered in the bottom of an old chest and I read the line, ‘if you can meet with Triumph & Disaster and treat those two imposters just the same’, well, the deal was done and the brand was born. The rest of story is still ahead of us…
TGC: Lets talk ingredients: are there any ingredients in the products that we really ought to be aware of? (Their benefits and the products we can find them in)
DN: We use a lot of native NZ and pacific region ingredients, below are a couple of standouts;
HOROPITO - Horopito is an ancient herb that grows only in New Zealand. A sturdy shrub that has survived 65 million years by developing chemicals that resisted not only animals and insects but also microbes like fungi and bacteria. The plant also contains powerful antioxidant flavonoids, including quercetin and taxifolin. Indigenous Maori used Horopito to treat wounds, as a tea tonic, a poultace and they chewed it for toothache. We use it to treat blemishes as a sterilizing agent in our Gameface moisturiser.
Oil of Tamanu – from Tahiti.
Used for centuries in Vanuatu and Tahiti. Often referred to as ‘miracle oil’ Tamanu oil possesses a unique capacity to assist the formation of new tissue, thereby accelerating wound healing and the growth of healthy skin. Tamanu oil is employed by Polynesian women for promoting healthy, clear, blemish-free skin, and is also used on babies to prevent diaper rash and skin eruptions we use it in our Face Cleanser as it is a great treatment for skin irritations and mild acne.
Ponga Fern - polysaccharides extracted from the fern when applied to the skin in lotion form have been clinically proven to have an immediate mechanical tightening effect that decreases wrinkles and increases tonicity and firmness, so we think it makes for a killer ingredient in our Gameface moisturiser.
TGC: Oily skin is a really common problem for guys, and with the matte complexion being the only acceptable way of presenting ourselves, what products from Triumph & Disaster collection will assist in our quest for the ultimate shine-free finish?
DN: Firstly guys really need to exfoliate, even more than girls. We have larger pores and in generally oilier skin, so cleaning it out, drawing out the dirty oil deposits and taking away the top layer of dead skin is essential to an oil free surface. Rock & Roll suicide is our all natural exfoliator designed to do just this job. It has two types of clay and volcanic ash that act to draw out and the slough away the impurities. It’s named after a David Bowie song and a game-changing product – a must, must have, use twice a week once for business, once for pleasure.
Triumph & Disater Rock & Roll Suicide Face Scrub, find it here >
Secondly find the right moisturiser for your skin. I believe guys use moisturiser differently to girls, we do not need a creamy tacky moisturiser that works with foundation. We tend to slap it on and want instant hydration. Triumph & Disaster’s moisturiser ‘Gameface’ has been designed to tone and tighten skin using a polysaccharide chain stolen from a native NZ fern that has been clinically proven tot reduce wrinkles. It combines with Jojoba oil to balance out oil production and to trap in the natural good oil we are producing, keeping cells plump and hydrated. Finally we added horopito oil, another native to NZ, the chemical defence system of this plant kills bacteria ad fungi making it an excellent combatant for any blemishes on the skin. This incredibly unique combination of ingredients combines to deliver a light balancing, toning moisturiser that does not leave skin oily, but does leave it hydrated and looking translucent. Voila!
TGC: When you’re on the road, which Triumph & Disaster products are you never without?
DN: Rock & Roll Suicide, Gameface, Old-fashioned Shave cream and shearer’s soap.
Triumph & Disaster Gameface Moisturiser, find it here >
TGC: Aside from Triumph & Disaster, what other brands excite you?
DN: Acne jeans, black ‘Stolen Girlfriends’ tee, Zambesi leather jacket, old school sneakers of any kind and form – I’m a simple man : )
Interview by Graham Matthews.
Shop the complete Triumph & Disaster Collection here >