DECIEM CEO Nicola Kilner
Few beauty leaders embody calm conviction quite like Nicola Kilner. As the co-founder and CEO of DECIEM – the parent company of The Ordinary – she’s championed a new era of honesty in beauty, one where clarity replaces hype and kindness leads the way.
With The Ordinary opening its first Malaysian boutiques in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur and Mid Valley Megamall, Kilner discusses the lessons that shaped her journey: the power of purpose, the discipline of transparency, and why in 2025, kindness might just be the ultimate form of beauty.
1. Purpose & Personal Journey
You’ve spoken before about leading with kindness and purpose. How has your own sense of purpose evolved since co-founding DECIEM?
You can catch more flies with honey than vinegar, meaning being kind gets you further. I think in the year 2025, kindness is a trait of beauty.
DECIEM was founded on the principles of transparency and honesty. We know that if we stand for something, we must really believe in it and do something about it. We take our insides matching our outsides seriously. And we know change isn’t easy. So, we own our mistakes.
We also can’t trick our consumers. They can see dishonesty, and they want transparency. That purpose was our founding principle and one that still guides us today.
Was there a defining moment—personal or professional—that clarified your “why”?
It was literally sudden. We first launched eight products on our website in the UK and everything sold out within 12 hours. It’s hard to predict what people want and sometimes I think consumer research is the worst thing a brand can do, because what consumers tell you they want is very different from launching something and seeing what consumers really like.
When we showed the concept of The Ordinary to global retailers, they said: nobody is going to understand this, you need to rename the products, the packaging will never work, you need more color. Because we had other brands, we had more confidence in The Ordinary. So we thought: let’s just follow our gut.
In the UK, beauty journalists are very well trained and they really understand beauty. They understand skin care, science, so I think they were very involved. They also knew Brandon (Truaxe) had met me. When we launched The Ordinary, they were like, wow, these are really scientifically incredible formulas at an accessible price point. So I think it grew by word of mouth. And frankly, it was chaos when we launched the first products.
2. Building a Purpose-Driven Brand
What does “purpose-driven leadership” look like in practical, everyday decision-making at DECIEM?
As a woman in leadership, I’ve felt the pressure to constantly prove myself, something many women face in this industry. But I’ve learned that failure is not to be feared, it’s a crucial part of growth and innovation. Purpose-driven leadership at DECIEM means embracing that mindset every day: being open to new ideas, learning from challenges, and making decisions that stay true to our vision.
How do you ensure your global team remains connected to DECIEM’s mission and values as you scale?
Keeping our teams connected begins with a shared commitment to our vision. At DECIEM, each of our pillars brings our values to life through their work. For example, our Scientific Pillar is dedicated to discovering the latest innovations that we can democratize, staying true to our belief that quality skincare should remain accessible and affordable
Our People team ensures that our value of Doing Good extends beyond the workplace. One way we support this is through initiatives like our Doing Good day. A paid day of leave that empowers our teams to give back to their local communities.
3. Resilience, Reflection and Inner Growth
Your journey has included incredible highs and heartbreaking challenges. What have you learned about resilience through it all?
What I’ve learned is that resilience isn’t about never falling, it’s about how you rise each time you do. In the early days, doubt was constant; it almost felt like the only certainty. Over time, I realized that doubt doesn’t need to be feared – it can keep you humble, curious, and willing to grow. Resilience has also meant holding onto our values when everything around us felt uncertain.
What rituals or practices help you reflect, recharge, or realign with your purpose?
For me, reflection often comes from returning to why we started, reminding myself of the frustration that gave birth to DECIEM, and the excitement of doing things differently in an industry that needed change. That simple act of remembering helps me realign when things feel overwhelming.
On a personal level, I find grounding in kindness – whether that’s in small daily interactions with the team or making time to be fully present with my family.
I also try to listen — to our community, to our team, and to myself. Making space for honest conversations, even the difficult ones, helps me recharge
4. Innovation with Intention
Photo: The Ordinary
How do you foster creativity and innovation while staying authentic to your brand’s core values?
We have an incredibly creative team that is constantly looking for ways to push The Ordinary and DECIEM forward. We conceptualise, develop and produce The Ordinary products in our Toronto Lab and production facilities. By doing everything in-house, our lab team has the freedom to explore cutting-edge technologies and ingredients while ensuring each formula aligns with our core values of integrity, transparency and efficacy.
Where do you see the future of beauty heading—and how does DECIEM fit into that evolution?
The future of beauty is becoming increasingly science-led, transparent, and sustainability-focused, and DECIEM is well-positioned to lead that evolution. We currently have a 3-year plan in development for new product innovations, but we remain flexible as we explore ingredient efficacy, formulation stability and real-time scientific advancements.
Beyond formulations, we’re thinking about long term environmental impact. We’re actively building our sustainability strategy – acknowledging that there’s still much to be done, but committing to meaningful and actionable change. For us, the future of beauty isn’t just about what goes into a product, it’s about how we create it, why it exists, and the responsibility we carry in bringing it to the world.
