Homemade remedies that Maria Brown created for her own family are now helping other people with sensitive and eczema prone skin.

Maria, who has just completed her third Staffordshire University degree, launched skincare brand Callidora in 2023 while studying for the Peter Coates MSc in Entrepreneurship, holding down a full-time job in project management and raising her family.

She still personally handmakes all her products at home using her own carefully formulated recipes but now sells them through a website and at events.

“I do everything myself, from the initial concept to the end product,” said the 40-year-old, who has an undergraduate degree in Product Design and an MA in Creative Futures.

“Everything I sell is homemade by me rather than being bought from another manufacturer. It’s made with care, with love and with good intentions.

“I’ve dedicated a lot of time to working on the right formulas, initially with my own family’s needs in mind. I’ve tried different natural ingredients such as coconut oil, shea butter and mango butter and made sure that everything I make and sell is effective.”

It was only after joining the MSc course in January 2023 that Maria developed her skin products into a business and launched Callidora.

She’s now aiming to move production from her home to a commercial premises and to collaborate with other businesses.

Maria hopes to grow the business so that it can become her full-time job and she would like to recruit a team.

She has entered the Innovation Award, Alumni Business Person of the Year and Small Business of the Year categories of the Staffordshire University Business Awards.