The skincare brand introducing CBD beauty to the Middle East

This winter, mother-son duo Yann Moujawaz and Juana Martini will launch their skincare brand in the United Arab Emirates, becoming the first to introduce CBD-based products to a region traditionally known for its strict drug laws.

While there are some exceptions — such as the legality of hemp seed oil cosmetics in Dubai — CBD-based products remain largely prohibited in the UAE. (Note that hemp seed oil does not contain CBD.)

With approval from Dubai authorities, Juana Skin will bring CBD — a non-psychoactive compound derived from the hemp plant’s stems, leaves, and flowers — to the Middle East in the form of brightening moisturizers, night creams, face oils, and body butters. Unlike its psychoactive counterpart THC, CBD does not induce a high and has been shown to help treat conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, itchy skin, and inflammation.

However, Moujawaz was not interested in catering to a market already flooded with choices. His goal was to pioneer a new path, introducing the health benefits of CBD to a region that had remained closed off to it.

“I wanted to venture into uncharted territory,” he explained.

A shared venture

While studying at the London School of Economics in 2013, Moujawaz and his team clinched first place and a 5,000-euro prize in the LH Forum, a French economics and entrepreneurship competition. Their winning proposal aimed to transform fruit scraps into a sustainable skincare brand. Looking back, Moujawaz admits that the idea was inspired by the homemade skincare remedies his mother had made from natural oils and food scraps during his childhood in France.

This tradition was passed down from Martini's childhood, spent on olive farms in Syria, where she learned to craft Aleppo soap, a Castile-style bar made from olive and bay laurel oils.

“I’m deeply passionate about natural products, particularly oil-based ones, as I grew up in a family that produced olive oil,” Martini shared during a Zoom interview from Dubai. “I watched my mother make all-natural remedies, and I’ve continued that tradition with my own children.”

After graduating from LSE, Moujawaz took on key development roles in the Middle East as a principal consultant at the Boston Consulting Group in Dubai. However, the demands of his jet-setting career began to affect his health: he lost his hair, suffered from chronic back pain and insomnia, and eventually had to have his gallbladder removed.

“There was a moment when I realized that, no matter how successful my career had been, it would never replace the health I had lost,” said Moujawaz, 32. “That’s when I truly understood the cost of living with poor quality of life.”

At the same time, Martini was grappling with life as a single empty-nester in Paris, after all three of her children had moved abroad.

Faced with his own deteriorating health, burnout, and his mother’s worsening depression, Moujawaz had an epiphany. He invited his mother to partner with him on a new venture. This time, instead of using orange peels and fruit scraps, they would create a brand centered around their family’s new passion: CBD oil.

During a family trip to California in 2019, Martini discovered the powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of CBD oil — how it quickly alleviated her eczema and accelerated the healing of a scar.

“I’ve always used olive oil as the foundation for my remedies, but when I added CBD oil, everything changed,” said Martini, who keeps detailed handwritten notes of her formulas. “I was truly amazed by the results.”

Moujawaz, too, became a firm believer in CBD after it helped alleviate his insomnia and reduce his stress levels. He immersed himself in research, discovering how CBD can support the body’s endocannabinoid system — a vital network that regulates everything from sleep and appetite to memory, fertility, and skin health.

Beyond correcting the misconceptions about CBD, Moujawaz emphasized the importance of showcasing its true benefits. The brand’s approach focuses on positioning its products not merely as beauty items but as natural, pharmaceutical-grade treatments designed to address skin conditions.

Given the harsh desert climate and the prevalence of air conditioning in the region, demonstrating the need for such treatments was not difficult. A study suggests that the rate of atopic dermatitis or eczema in Dubai is four to five percent, which is double the global average.

Upholding the highest standards

However, creating products that would pass local drug regulations and meet strict quality standards was a lengthy process. Moujawaz and Martini partnered with certified organic hemp farms in Spain and Portugal to source their CBD strains, ensuring their products were more potent — two to four times stronger than typical Western market products — to guarantee effectiveness. Throughout development, they eliminated over 2,000 potentially harmful ingredients, while the final formulas underwent rigorous clinical trials in France and Germany. Moujawaz calls the challenging process a 'blessing in disguise.'

“Given the high standards here in the UAE, we knew we had to prove our brand’s medical and pharmaceutical credibility. That’s why we challenged ourselves every day to perfect and reformulate our products,”

For added confidence, the duo also submitted their products to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a US-based non-profit that works with scientists and toxicologists to assess product safety. As a result, they earned the coveted EWG Verified certification, which signifies that their products meet stringent standards for health, safety, and transparency. In addition to being the first CBD skincare brand approved for sale in the UAE, Juana Skin is the first CBD skincare brand from both the EU and the Middle East to receive this certification. Their products are paraben and fragrance-free, and are packaged in eco-friendly glass bottles inside hemp bags.

Though Juana Skin has overcome significant regulatory challenges, Amna Abbas, a beauty and health consultant for Euromonitor in the Middle East, believes its next hurdle will be convincing Emirati consumers that CBD is both safe and effective.

“Cannabis awareness is still limited in this region,” she noted. “The term cannabis often carries a negative connotation.”

Moujawaz recognizes the importance of education in this context, which is why when Juana Skin launches in the UAE this winter, its first point of sale will be at healthcare and dermatology clinics. This will give consumers the chance to ask questions and learn about CBD from trained professionals. In addition, Moujawaz organizes educational events in the region, including a recent sold-out “TED Talks”-style conference held at The Arts Club Dubai.

In more established CBD markets like the UK, US, and France, Juana Skin products are already available for purchase online. This summer, the brand also made its debut at Lanserhof, an exclusive private health clinic in London, where their CBD moisturizers, oils, and body butters are incorporated into hour-long facial and massage treatments.

Abbas also notes that while many women in the region are accustomed to wearing full makeup, the pandemic has sparked a shift towards preventative skincare and a preference for more natural beauty. This shift could work in Juana Skin’s favor.

“Since the pandemic, there has been a growing focus on wellness and self-care in the region,” she observed. “This has led to a shift away from heavy cosmetics and a greater emphasis on skin health.”

For Moujawaz, launching Juana Skin represents a break from convention. He points out that female cannabis plants, which produce the highest concentrations of cannabidiol, are the primary source of CBD.

“For my mother, it was a chance to prove that it’s never too late to begin something new,” Moujawaz remarked. “She demonstrated the opposite of what many think — that you can pursue even the wildest ideas, like starting a cannabis business in the Middle East.”