Cosmetic line by Manitoba mother-son duo picked for Oscars gift bag

A Manitoba cosmetics company, Mermaid Cove Cosmetics, will have some of its products in swag bags given to Oscar nominees.

Some Manitoba-made products are set to go home with the entertainment world’s most celebrated stars on Hollywood’s biggest night.

Products from the Winnipeg-created Mermaid Cove Cosmetics have been selected for the nominee gift bags at the 97th annual Academy Awards on March 2.

Co-founded in 2019 by mother-and-son duo Ildikó and Béla Gyarmati, the line draws inspiration from the sea, with ingredients like aloe and pearl.

“When we created this company, Mom was joking about the fact that, ‘Oh, wouldn’t it be cool if we could be in the Oscars?’” recalled Béla.

“But I kind of took that seriously. And I’m like, ‘You know what? It’s been done before. We can do it.’ I just needed to figure out how.”

Figure it out he did.

Béla connected with the company that creates the bags and pitched their products and the unique story behind them.

A month ago, they got word that their products will go home with the likes of Demi Moore and Timothée Chalamet.

“This was just such a wonderful, wonderful opportunity, and we feel really proud to be representing Winnipeg and Manitoba on this huge international stage,” Ildikó said.

The inspiration behind Mermaid Cove Cosmetics is a deeply personal one for the Gyarmatis.

Ildikó was diagnosed with stage 2A breast cancer in 2003. Her battle with the disease inspired her to turn to an all-natural beauty routine, wanting to remove toxins and pollutants from the products she used.

She decided to formulate her own creams, giving samples to friends and family to try out.

“It got to the point where they were actually wanting to buy it and so slowly but surely, that’s how we developed the products that we now sell,” she said.

Béla came on board in his teens, after mother and son took a soap-making class while on vacation in Florida. They launched the business in November 2019, right before the COVID-19 pandemic upended the world and soap became a panic-bought necessity.

Thanks to a grant, they hired a Toronto chemist and expanded their line further.

Today, they exclusively sell their products online. They plan to expand to retail stores and spas, and hope the Oscars will give them a push in that direction.

When asked who amongst the A-list they are most excited to have try their products, they answered without hesitation.

“For me, it is Ariana Grande. I love her. ‘Wicked’ is such a gorgeous movie. I saw it, I don’t know, three, maybe four times in theatres,” Béla said.

Ildikó had a different answer.

“I’ve been telling anyone who will listen, I’m very excited that Ralph Fiennes is going to be getting my cream, and I’m swooning at the thought.”