Fatskn (pronounced Fat–skin) is a Calgary local business that focuses on providing minimalist skin care with grassfed/ grassfinished beef suet (aka tallow) all sourced from family ranches across Alberta. We spoke with the founder and formulator Caitlin Warrington to learn more about it.
What is your business called and what does it do?
At Fatskn we make minimalist skincare with grassfed/grassfinished beef suet (aka tallow, beef fat) all sourced from family ranches across Alberta. We don’t use any seed oils (PUFAs) in our formulations and use whole resins like Frankincense and Spruce. As our line grows we have created products with magnesium, a fat-soluble vitamin C, and methylene blue. We hope to launch our newest product made with copper peptides before the holidays.
What made you want to do this work?
It was selfish, really. I couldn’t find anything on the market that suited my needs so I decided to create something tailored to me. My family has always eaten an animal-based diet, and this push for everything to be vegan really turned me off of anything in the stores. I’m proud to say our product is 100% Not Vegan.
What problem did you want to solve with the business?
I was pregnant with my first child and all the skincare I found had artificial scents in them and ingredients my body didn’t recognize and couldn’t use, so I decided to make my own in my kitchen. Most products are also packaged in plastic (something we avoid as plastic tends to leach PFAS) whereas I’ve focused on using metal tins, glass jars and paperboard tubes (coated with food-safe wax).
Who are your clientele/demographics?
Families, people with eczema, psoriasis, any skin conditions. People who have tried everything and nothing works. People sensitive to artificial scents and ingredients.
How does your business make money? How does it work?
I was able to find a core niche market through Instagram, and the business really took off during the shutdowns as we focused on online sales and really avoided any kind of wholesale or brick-and-mortar deals. I was not interested in my product being in stores. Since we’ve grown, we have a third-party shipping warehouse in Ontario to service our Canadian customers and one in Illinois to service our US customers. Everything is made by hand by me in Calgary.
Where in the city can we find your profession/ product?
While we focus on online sales, the Light Cellar in Calgary is our one brick-and-mortar. They are well stocked in the majority of our line.
What is the best question a prospective customer could ask a member of your profession when comparing services? Give the answer as well.
I would want to know what quality of animals they’re getting their fat from (I believe grassfed and finished is the best), what part of the fat they’re using (I only use the suet fat as this is the fat around the organs which is much higher in saturated fat than then trim fats), what other oils are they using (we only use monosaturated or saturated oils like jojoba, squalane), are they using scents (we have a line without scents, a couple items with 1% dilution essential oils, and a couple items with whole resins).
What is the best part about what you do? What is the worst part?
It’s really wonderful when mothers email us about their baby’s eczema finally clearing up or acne issues being solved in just a few days. The worst part about what I do is the shipping costs haha.
What is your favourite joke about your own profession?
One of our company (and customer) mottos is “Do the Don’ts”. For example, when everyone is pushing vegan nonsense, we try and educate on the incredible bioavailability of nutrients in animal fats.
Where can we follow you?
I’m most active on Instagram, however, we have a Facebook page and a Pinterest feed. We also have a fantastic blog where we educate on our views on health and diet.
PAY IT FORWARD: What is another local business that you love?
The Light Cellar, Little Lion Man leather
