Darren Kennedy launched his brand new Kennedy & Co. men’s grooming range.
The range contains five amazing products: a face scrub, a beard oil, eye gel, a daily moisturiser with SPF20 protection and matte hair clay.
Speaking exclusively to Goss.ie about the new range, Darren told us that he has wanted to create these products for a long time.
“This is something that I’ve had ambitions for for years. For four or five years I kind of thought ‘I’d love to do that’. The timing wasn’t right and then about eight months ago the groundwork and the framework was set and it’s just been full throttle,” he said.
“I’ve known what products I wanted and how I want them to work, I mean I’ve worked with the biggest brands in the world internationally and at home so I know what I like. I know what works and I know what I don’t like.”
“It’s been a goal of mine for a number of years now. It’s all about getting it right. A lot of work goes into these things as you can imagine when you’re starting something from scratch,” he continued.
“The ambition is, we started with five products, so you literally have the five products that every man needs in his wash bag, gym bag, in his cabinet. They’re all under 100 millilitres which is really important to me because I travel so much. So you’ve got all your boxes kind of ticked off there.”
“It’s really simple, it’s like an abc or grooming. It’s not a complicated regime. Any man can do it. It’s not a huge amount of time. Also, it’s that thing of we’re so busy, everyone is so busy with social media, work, family or whatever, everything is pulling at our time. So it’s just to take even two minutes every day of ‘me’ time,” Darren explained.
“Put your eye gel on, put your moisturiser on and chill out and get ready for the world. Like women have known for a long time it’s all about how you feel on the inside as well.”
As for finally being able to release the range to the public, Darren revealed that it’s a very strange feeling.
“Well it’s kind of like giving birth if I’m being honest. It’s like from cradle to grave and I’ve been so involved in everything I’ve done in the past year and a half. Or at least a lot of it has been focused around building this brand and launching Kennedy & Co. skincare and grooming.”
“It is very exciting, but it is one of those things I can only imagine what it’s like when you have a baby. You put all that work in and then all of a sudden it’s there and you’re like ‘I can breathe..kind of.’ But it’s great, I’m very excited.”
The presenter’s passion for the range is very clear and he was involved in each step of the process of creating the products.
When asked how involved he was, Darren said: “The easy answer is every aspect. You can only do so many things in a day, in a week, in a lifetime. I’m all about investing in the projects that I do.”
“We come from this amazing country, it’s green, we have fresh air and I was like ‘Why aren’t we using Irish-made products?’ So it’s all made in Ireland, it’s all vegan-friendly, no animal testing sulphate free. It’s a beautiful product that I’m so proud of,” he explained, as the products are all Irish-made.
“The province is so important to me. I’m so proud to be Irish when I work abroad and I was like ‘I want to make something at home.’ It’s important to me where it comes from and I’m from Santry in north Dublin and I’m really proud of my roots.”
“So to have something that is mine, made in Ireland using the best of Ireland and we’ll go internationally is very exciting. It’s something I’m very proud of,” he continued
Darren wanted Kennedy & Co. to be a range of products that men can use on a daily basis, rather than a range to save for a special occasion.
“My whole motto in life and the whole motto behind this range is ‘life is the occasion.’ We’re all guilty of having ‘the good room’, we’ve got the good room and we only use it at Christmas and weddings or whatever. I’m like ‘let’s use the good room every day if it’s the good room, why are we saving it?’ It’s the same kind of principle behind the product.”
“You should feel good every day, you shouldn’t be saving it for those moments where you think you should feel good. Every day is the occasion,” he told us.
Darren has a strong passion for the products he has created and although he doesn’t have a favourite quite yet, the presenter thinks that the matte hair clay is very special
“They’re all babies, it’s like asking someone to choose between children. A product that I’ve been using, it’s actually the one that we developed first, it’s the hair product. It’s a matte hair clay, I love it.”
“It creates texture, volume, it’s not greasy. My hair is malleable, it’s not stuck to my head, it’s got a lovely little scent to it. It’s also got a superpower ingredient which is baicapil. Which is a trademark ingredient which helps stimulate hair growth and prevent hair loss. So introduce a man to me, he doesn’t want that and I’ll be amazed.”
Darren also opened up about the stigma surrounding male grooming and skincare, as he feels that men are becoming more comfortable using products to look after themselves.
“I think the time is now for men, for Irish men in particular. We’ve come into our own, we’re ready. We know that it’s not only nice to take care of your skin and look good, but it’s important because actually we’re going out there and people want to live their best lives. Whatever that means to them, it’s the little things that are important.”
“Making sure that you’re wearing your clothes and that you look good, taking care of your skin, going to the gym. Even for the man who doesn’t have time for that, a little bit of eye gel in the morning can make you feel a million dollars. A nice moisturiser on the skin and actually our moisturiser has SPF 20 which is pretty rare amongst the category,” he explained.
“All the products are priced between ten and fifteen euro, which is really affordable. It’s going to be available in Dunnes and all pharmacies nationwide so there’s no excuse,” the presenter concluded.
Check out our full interview with Darren below:
