12-Year-Old Solves A Major Problem For The Cosmetics Industry

The U.S. personal care industry surpassed pre-recession levels in 2011, exceeding $38 billion in revenue, and there is still room for it to grow.

While there are many options for skin care for babies, teens and beyond, the cosmetics industry has one emerging demographic left unturned – the pre-teens or tweens.

Four years ago, Christy Prunier, a former Hollywood producer whose work includes movies such as "The Thin Red Line" and "The People vs. Larry Flint," found herself at a loss of what skin care products to get for her then 8-year-old daughter Willa Doss.

Willa didn't want to use baby skin care products, and the chemicals in adult cosmetics lines were too harsh for her skin. She didn't like the texture of the "sticky and gooey" generic sunscreens.

Despite lacking any background in cosmetics, Prunier decided to start an all-natural skin care company, named after her daughter, catering to the 7-14 age group.

She worked with dermatologists, chemists and labs to create sulfate- and paraben-free cleansers, moisturizers, lotions, sunscreens and lip gloss products that appeal to the pre-adolescent demographic.

Willa, now 12, serves as a creative and inspiration director, and her friends make up the focus groups that test all the products the company develops.

The sunscreen made by Willa has a dry finish and just enough tint to camouflage super white Zinc. Its lip gloss containers are designed to address what tween girls feel the traditional lip balms found in the market are lacking.

Willa, the company, has found support in the startup industry, having Joanne Wilson among others as investors, and its line is currently sold in Henri Bendel, J.Crew, and in 300 Target stores.

Watch below Prunier and her daughter talk about what the challenges of catering to the tween demographic are, and what Willa, the young entrepreneur, plans for the future.

Produced by Kamelia Angelova & Robert Libetti