Skincare, Simplified: SOHL SKIN Founder Samuel Pohlner On Modern Skin Wellness

Face masking has long been one of those skincare rituals we love in theory, until it comes with messy fingers, jars, brushes and a bathroom sink that needs cleaning afterwards. SOHL SKIN founder Samuel Pohlner believes there is a simpler way.

Born in Dubai and shaped by the city’s fast-moving approach to beauty, wellness and modern living, SOHL SKIN was created around a deceptively simple idea: skincare should enhance your routine, not complicate it. Its signature twist-and-glide sticks transform the traditional face mask into a clean, portable and intuitive ritual, with four targeted formulas designed around different skin needs.

From Green Tea and Rose to Turmeric and Volcanic Mud, each formula offers a different approach to the skin reset, while the brand’s philosophy of “Less Waste. Less Mess. Less Excess.” sits at the heart of its approach.

We speak to Samuel about why modern consumers are becoming more selective about their skincare, how Dubai influenced the creation of SOHL SKIN, and why the future of beauty may be less about adding more steps and more about making the rituals we already enjoy work better for real life.

What inspired you to create SOHL SKIN and what gap did you see in the skincare market that you wanted to address?

Skincare has always been something I’ve genuinely enjoyed, but I started to feel that routines were becoming increasingly complicated. There were more products, more steps and, particularly with traditional face masks, a lot of mess for something that should feel enjoyable.

I wanted to create something that fitted more naturally into modern life. The idea behind SOHL SKIN was really about simplifying that experience without taking away the ritual of skincare. The twist-stick format makes face masking much simpler. You twist and glide it directly onto the skin, leave it for up to 20 minutes and wash it away. It feels elevated, but still very uncomplicated.

That thinking eventually became one of the principles behind the brand: Less Waste. Less Mess. Less Excess.

SOHL SKIN was born in Dubai. How has living and building a beauty brand in the UAE influenced your approach to skincare?

Having lived in Dubai for over 30 years, I’ve had the opportunity to watch the city and its approach to beauty and wellness evolve enormously. Over that time, I’ve also noticed how people’s relationship with skincare has changed. There’s a desire for products that feel meaningful, but that also make sense for the way we actually live.

Dubai is such a fast-moving, international city. People are travelling, working, exercising and socialising, often all within the same day, so convenience really matters.

At the same time, there’s a very sophisticated understanding of beauty and wellness here. People care about ingredients, performance, design and how a product fits into their lifestyle. That balance really shaped SOHL SKIN. I wanted the products to look beautiful on your bathroom shelf, but also be something you could take with you to the gym or while travelling and actually use.

I’m incredibly proud that SOHL SKIN is Dubai-born. This has been home for most of my life, so creating the brand here feels very personal to me.

Your collection uses four targeted formulas: Green Tea, Rose, Turmeric and Volcanic Mud. How did you decide which skin concerns and ingredients to focus on?

I wanted the collection to be very easy to understand. You shouldn’t need to be a skincare expert to know which product is right for you.

Each formula has its own clear identity: Green Tea for refreshing and cleansing, Rose for radiance and nourishment, Turmeric for brightening and evening the appearance of skin tone, and Volcanic Mud for purifying and oil control.

I was also drawn to ingredients that people recognise and understand, from Green Tea and Rose to Turmeric and Volcanic Mud, and then building each formula around a specific skin need.

I also wanted the collection to give people choice because your skin doesn’t necessarily need the same thing every week. Sometimes you want something purifying, sometimes you want that sense of radiance, and sometimes you simply want your skin to feel refreshed. The four formulas make choosing what your skin needs at that moment feel quite intuitive.

What was behind the decision to create the signature twist-and-glide stick format, and how does it change the masking experience?

The format is really at the heart of SOHL SKIN. I’ve always loved face masks, but I never loved the application, and I realised through conversations with friends and people around me that I wasn’t alone. Dipping your fingers into a jar, using brushes or spatulas, getting product under your nails and then having to clean everything afterwards can take away from what should be an enjoyable skincare experience.

That really shaped the twist and glide format. You remove the cap, twist and apply it directly across the skin. It’s clean, simple and quite satisfying to use, while also allowing you to target exactly where you want the product.

For me, good design should make an experience simpler. The idea was to take something familiar like a face mask and rethink it for the way we live today.

With busy lifestyles becoming increasingly common, do you think consumers are moving away from complicated routines towards more targeted, efficient skincare?

Absolutely. I think people are becoming much more selective about what they use and why they use it. Life is busy. We’re balancing careers, families, the gym, social lives and travel, and skincare needs to fit naturally into all of that.

There will always be a place for longer, multi-step skincare routines, but increasingly people want products that serve a clear purpose and are easy to incorporate into their day.

For me, efficiency doesn’t mean compromising on the experience. Skincare can still feel elevated, enjoyable and like a moment of self-care without requiring ten different steps.

That thinking is very much part of SOHL SKIN. I think modern luxury is increasingly about that sense of ease: thoughtful products that work around your life, rather than asking you to structure your life around them.

The masks are designed to deliver a skin reset in up to 20 minutes. What does a “skin reset” mean to you and can skincare also become a form of self-care?

For me, a skin reset is simply taking a moment to give your skin what it needs at that particular time. Some days that might be a five-minute refresh, while other days you might have the full 20 minutes to slow down and enjoy it.

I absolutely see skincare as a form of self-care. It doesn’t always need to mean an hour-long routine or a trip to a spa. It can be those smaller moments you create for yourself, whether that’s before going out, after the gym, while travelling or at the end of a long day.

That was important to me when creating SOHL SKIN. I wanted self-care to feel accessible within real life. Even on a busy day, that can still be a moment where you switch off, focus on yourself and do something positive for your skin.

SOHL SKIN is designed for all skin types and made for everyone. Why was inclusivity an important part of your brand philosophy from the beginning?

Inclusivity was important to me from the very beginning because I’ve never believed skincare should feel limited to one type of person. Being surrounded by an incredibly diverse community of different nationalities, cultures, skin types and approaches to beauty and wellness naturally influenced how I wanted SOHL SKIN to feel.

Skincare is personal, but it’s also universal. We all have different needs at different times, which is why I wanted the four formulas to offer choice while keeping the overall brand approachable and easy to understand.

I also never wanted SOHL SKIN to feel defined by gender. From the packaging and visual identity to the way we communicate, the intention has always been to create something modern and welcoming to everyone.

Ultimately, I want someone to discover SOHL SKIN and simply think, “That’s for me.”

Dubai’s beauty and wellness market is incredibly competitive. What do you think makes SOHL SKIN different, and what do you hope people remember about the brand after using it?

There are so many incredible beauty and wellness brands available today, so from the beginning I knew SOHL SKIN needed to have a clear point of difference and a genuine purpose.

For me, what makes SOHL SKIN different is the way skincare, design and lifestyle come together. The products are visually distinctive, the four targeted formulas are straightforward to understand, and the twist-stick format turns masking into something clean, portable and intuitive to use.

I wanted the brand to feel elevated without being intimidating, and innovative without overcomplicating skincare.

Ultimately, I hope people remember how easy and enjoyable SOHL SKIN made masking feel. If someone uses one of our sticks and thinks, “Why wasn’t masking always this easy?”, then I feel we’ve achieved what we set out to do.

Where do you see SOHL SKIN evolving and what role do you believe skincare will play in the wider wellness conversation?

I see SOHL SKIN evolving beyond facial masking while staying very true to the idea that started the brand: bringing skin wellness into modern life.

I think skincare is becoming increasingly connected to the wider wellness conversation. We’re thinking more holistically about how we look after ourselves, from movement and nutrition to sleep, travel and the small rituals we build into our everyday lives. Skincare naturally sits within that.

For SOHL SKIN, there’s so much opportunity to explore how our twist-stick format can evolve into other areas of skincare. What’s important to me is that we grow thoughtfully. I don’t want to introduce products simply for the sake of launching something new. Each product needs to have a reason to exist and add something meaningful to the way people care for their skin.

Ultimately, I want SOHL SKIN to become a brand people associate with a modern approach to skin wellness: thoughtful, uncomplicated and designed around real life.