Elsa Prencipe’s emerging beauty brand, Forest Riot, harnesses the treasures of the Finnish forest, offering a sustainable alternative to lab-concocted products. We head into the wilderness to discover the secret to Prencipe’s products
Elsa Prencipe is on a mission. “I want to conquer the world with Nordic forest skincare,” she says firmly over a video call from her home in Turku, southwest Finland. The vehicle for Prencipe’s world domination? Her conscious beauty brand, Forest Riot, which she established in 2023. Despite its recent launch, the label has garnered significant interest in the skincare world thanks to its pioneering ingredients and no-nonsense, fully transparent approach to sustainability.
To understand Prencipe’s quest, one must return to its roots. Born in Milan, she was sent on a plane to her mother’s native Finland at the age of five. “My grandparents met me there with open arms, and I quickly adapted to the simple way of living on a farm,” she recalls. As a “wired-up little girl”, Prencipe found calm and comfort in the serene landscapes of rural Finland, particularly in the nearby forest, where she would frolic for countless hours. “We explored its beauty, soundscape, and rich textures, and I remember my grandmother always saying, ‘Hush Elsa, you have to listen to the forest’,” she says. It was there she discovered the magic of nature. “I felt this surrounding presence of something greater – something far beyond us. Healing me and grounding me,” she says. “And I never left that forest: that same forest is my skincare mission.”
Before founding Forest Riot, Prencipe, 47, built a career in clean beauty (“I’ve always been a bit in the shadows behind the bigger brands”), working for another Finnish skincare company before deciding to make the leap and start her own. After taking a year off, self-reflection crystallised the direction she wanted to pursue. “I wanted to do something meaningful. I didn’t want to just create a cute little brand... I wanted to create something that truly ignites my passion,” she says.