Sirenas Launches Skincare Company

SAN DIEGO – Spun out of a science-forward company researching the ocean for more than a decade, Terns is shedding some light on an untapped part of the skincare market.

Founded this year by Eduardo Esquenazi, Terns is an after-sun care CPG company and an offshoot of Sirenas, a business Esquenazi founded in 2012.

Sirenas is a marine-focused chemical biology discovery company that was born out of UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The company has built collections of ethically-sourced marine organisms and plants from diverse ecosystems and geographies.

It uses proprietary chemical extraction and analytics and tests them with in-vitro biological assays relevant to human health. Sirenas creates extracts and single compounds that modulate inflammation, pathways in cancer, infectious disease and microbiome dynamics.

For more than a decade, Sirenas has been studying the biodiverse organisms of shallow reefs and intertidal zones – areas that have experienced intense levels of UV light for millions of years which has led the organisms to evolve and produce compounds that help protect and manage the impact of sun exposure.

Some of the analytics, proprietary findings and ingredients Sirenas has manifested from the ocean studies are used to make Terns’ skincare products. Sirenas also invested about $1.5 million toward the launch of Terns. The company also received some funding from a small, private group of investors.

Terns’ skincare products and ingredients were preceded by Sirenas’ work supplying ingredients for Hume Supernatural, another San Diego-based beauty and wellness product company that specializes in natural deodorants.

Skincare, Sun Protection Disruption

Sunscreen and skincare protection are nothing new in the beauty industry and health market, with thousands of products lining store shelves and online.

Fortune Business Insights reports that the global skincare market size was valued at nearly $110 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $194 billion by 2032. But despite the huge market for products focused on pre-sun needs, items for after-sun skincare are scarce.

“The after-sun care market really hasn’t evolved a whole lot,” Esquenazi said. “There’s aloe which has been around awhile, and it’s got its benefits for sure, but it’s limited in what it can do. Aloe provides some extra moisture, it’s a humectant, but we really haven’t addressed what happens during sunburn.”

That need has paved the way for Terns, which has been backed by Sirenas’ marine biologists, immunologists, dermatologists and chemists long steeped in studies on the skin.

Behind Esquenazi and a core group of scientists at Sirenas, Terns developed innovative after-sun care solutions derived from natural, marine-based ingredients intended to minimize the impact of daily UV exposure.

First Launch in August

Terns late last month launched its initial pair of after-sun care products made from organic ingredients derived from the sea that reduce chronic low-level inflammation – also called inflammaging.

The products are designed and created in laboratories in San Diego and manufactured in Los Angeles.

Terns’ initial two products – Everyday and Mayday – have been found to help boost skin elasticity, reduce the appearance of fine wrinkles and hyperpigmentation, improve skin barrier function and tone and minimize pores.

“The brands are really geared toward outdoor people,” Esquenazi said. “I didn’t want it to become a beauty brand. I don’t have a lot of beauty products, and I don’t identify with that world, but I do identify with the outdoor world.”

Esquenazi said the key difference between Terns’ after-sun care products and others on the market is effectiveness – Everyday and Mayday are crafted to both soothe and tackle several inflammatory mechanisms.

The Everyday product is for use after typical sun exposure. The formula incorporates proprietary Sirenas ingredients with other supporting natural ingredients to reduce signs of inflammation caused by UV exposure, pollutants and other irritants.

The Mayday product helps with relief after overexposure to the sun. A gel-cream, it contains squalane and a higher concentration of proprietary Sirenas ingredients to soothe and heal burned or irritated skin, promoting skin regeneration, reducing redness and swelling, and enhancing moisture retention.

“We’ve found great extracts that can actually address some of these pathways associated with sunburn,” Esquenazi said. “The goal has been to make the best after-sun care that’s out there, and I think we’re pretty confident that we’ve done that, but if we haven’t, we want to keep iterating on it.”

Both products are now available at terns.com with hopes of moving into the Amazon space and into local surf shops and other specialty retail stores, he said.

Once Everyday and Mayday are “squared away,” the company will expand its line to include lip balm and a full-body balm, he said, as well as other products currently being developed.

Taking Terns Moving Forward

Few have had as much skin in the game for after-sun care than Esquenazi, a cancer survivor, chemical biologist, professor, entrepreneur, fisherman and surfer who has spent his career looking to nature for sustainable answers to medical needs. Esquenazi also did his doctoral studies at Scripps, first studying neuroscience before transitioning to the field of natural products/metabolomics for his dissertation work.

He was the recipient of the National Institutes of Health Training Grant in Marine Biotechnology in 2008 and has published more than a dozen works since 2007 that are associated with novel approaches to the identification and study of marine natural products.

Esquenazi, also founder of Galileo Biosystems, has served as advisor to a global investment fund since 2007 with additional board appointments. He is also one of the San Diego Business Journal’s Leaders of Influence in Life Sciences for 2024.

Esquenazi said moving forward, the hope is to find like-minded investors “who are excited about making a positive sustainable business and supporting ocean conservation, education and environmental awareness, while at the same time focusing on traditional growth and profitability.”

Esquenazi said that many of the core people from Sirenas have come on board at Terns including Paige Stout.

Stout is head of research and product innovation for Terns and scientific director of discovery chemistry at Sirenas.

“As far back as I can remember, I have been in awe of nature and how living organisms evolved strategies to survive and thrive,” Stout said. “I am excited to apply the knowledge and skills I have gained over the last 20 years of nature-based chemistry research towards developing effective consumer products at Terns.”

Terns
FOUNDED: 2024
FOUNDER AND CEO: Eduardo Esquenazi
HEADQUARTERS: San Diego
BUSINESS: Health and performance/CPG
FUNDING: Initial $1.5 million from Sirenas
EMPLOYEES: 5 full time, several consultants
WEBSITE: terns.com/
CONTACT: terns@crowepr.com
SOCIAL IMPACT: Terns has a commitment to give back to the environment and community, and is donating $1 from every product sale to bolster ocean conservation, research and youth education initiatives.
NOTABLE: Terns’ products are the culmination of years of marine exploration, scientific research and a desire to empower people