THE COCOVERA STORY
How it all started
It all began in 2015 in Vanuatu where I was married.
The island’s hot weather and salt water dried our skin, so my new wife and I used local 100% virgin coconut oil as a natural moisturiser. At first the results were fantastic: our skin felt nourished and renewed, but we soon became uncomfortable with the greasy feeling we were left with after application.
I thought there must be something I can reduce the greasy feeling of coconut oil while maintaining its skin and health benefits. So, I packed 10L of virgin coconut oil in my backpack and flew home to Cairns.
“After many years of trying the well known moisturiser brands, I stumbled across Cocovera creams. Within 3 weeks it has cleared up my dry skin patches and sun spots on my arms from many years of sun exposure. I don’t use anything else now and love the products.”
John Mayson, Cairns (Dec 2018)
Stirling Tavener, Cocovera Founder
At the time I was an entrepreneur starting a business and agribusiness financial consulting firm, but I had studied science for my first degree. I'd barely used my scientific training since university, so I was deeply excited about my “coconut oil project”. As soon as we returned home, I started experimenting with aloe vera plants I had growing in my garden. I called it 'Coco Vera'.
The first attempts of coconut oil + aloe vera gave a great lotion, but the oil and water separated quickly, it didn’t smell all that nice and the shelf life was only a few weeks. But it was great on the skin, so I persisted. My wife was supportive as she loved the product, could get as much as she wanted, and really wanted a reason to return to Vanuatu.
The perfect formula occurred by happenstance early in the morning several months later. But life got hectic, as it tends to do. 2016 gave us some wonderful things: we had identical twin girls, we moved house, my wife took a significant promotion at work, and my consulting business kept me busy with new and exciting projects. I kept working on Coco Vera but only when I had spare moments in the evenings or on weekends.
During this time I lodged a trademark application for 'Cocovera' with IP Australia. Little did I realise that standing by the name Coco Vera so adamantly would get me into a 4 year legal battle with a global brand. But I still stood by my product and worked tirelessly to improve the texture, effectiveness, scent and shelf life. By 2017 I decided it was time to get serious and try and test the creams in the market commercially. While I was attempting to get my product out there I was in the middle of these legal battles over the brand name, so I decided to repackage as “Aeonian” with the help of some marketing professionals. I began producing the coconut oil and aloe vera based creams with a machine that I designed and built myself (out of a beer keg, no less), and launched the Aeonian website in 2018.
It was hard-going at first. Retailers were hesitant to stock a new and unknown product and it was hard to drive customers to the website. But I wasn’t willing to give up just yet.
By April 2021, my trademark application for the logo and name ‘Cocovera’ was finally approved and I was able to revert back to the product’s original name. Note a change to a single word, rather than two, was required for the global brand to drop their trademark opposition and allow approval. With the help of various marketers throughout the years, the beginning of 2022 saw the launch of the product I had so carefully created over the years.
From a 10L container of virgin coconut oil crammed into a backpack in Vanuatu, to a range of 16 diverse and naturally derived products designed to address a broad spectrum of skincare needs. I hope you appreciate all of the passion and persistence that this product represents. But more than anything, I hope you enjoy all of the wonderful benefits that Cocovera has to offer.
“Cocovera is not just a cream - it's a magical cream! I first used Cocovera due to severe sunburn. It cooled and soothed my sore burnt skin and left if feeling soft. In Germany, every time I got burnt I peeled, but after using Cocovera for a week, I had a tan and hadn't peeled. No other after-sun cream has ever done so much to sooth and repair my skin. I really love this cream and recommend it to anyone for burns or dry or damaged skin - and it smells really good! Thank you Cocovera!”
Lena Deutchler, Germany