About Us

Here life is lived with energy, balance, gratitude and care for the natural world.

Our premium skin and hair care is made here in New Zealand with pure, natural ingredients. We're committed to sourcing as ethically and locally as possible, with a preference for organic. Our products are developed without cruelty and brought to you in zero waste packaging and compostable courier bags.

A little goes a long way. Our line contains no water or emulsifiers, just potent natural actives and nourishing oils, so you’ll find āma lasts longer than typical products. Our development process is rigorous yet simple: we only include the finest, most effective natural ingredients. āma has everything you need and nothing you don’t.

Finding Balance


Āma Balm - The Āma Life - Heidi Mehrtens

“I feel an affinity with the sea, and with our land that gives me the determination to create a business that leaves no trace.” Heidi Mehrtens

In Māori, āma has two meanings. It can refer to the upright boards under the carved maihi at the front of a meeting house, or the outrigger of a canoe – both of which provide balance and support.

Heidi is of Ngai Te Rangi, Scottish and German descent, and believes that the ocean has always been part of her heritage. Her Māori whakapapa hails from Tauranga and traverses the Pacific, her Scots ancestors lived on the Isle of Muck, and the German name Mehrtens means ‘People of the Sea’.

Fittingly for Heidi, a mother of three, āma is also an affectionate form of ‘mother’ in many languages. Creating an ethical business alongside caring for her family is a challenge, and a beautiful opportunity to show her children an example of working for a fairer, healthier world.

Under Heidi’s stewardship, āma has grown with an expanded offering, thoughtfully built upon the original range with products that pamper, nourish and protect. It now includes Nature's Armour Sunscreen, waste-free solid shampoo and conditioner bars, a multipurpose Kawakawa Balm, and the signature āma Botanical skin care range.

āma Botanicals skin care was designed to encourage women to create time for self-love and indulgence in their busy days, offering the chance to perform a salon-facial quality skin care routine quickly, at home, with deluxe exfoliation and hydration products, and deeply nourishing natural skin care actives.

With a long history of volunteering, Heidi continues to coordinate charity initiatives under the āma brand, collecting blankets and warm items for Give a Kid a Blanket and fundraising for various cancer initiatives.

We invite you to enjoy our safe, kind, eco-friendly range for skin and hair.

 

āma Values

We certainly don’t know everything, but there are a few things we believe to be right and true. This is the āma pledge:

  1. We will be conscious of our environmental impact. We will use recycled, recyclable or reusable packaging and ingredients that cause no, or less, harm to our oceans.
  2. We will aim to source natural ingredients from local, ethical and sustainable suppliers. Our customers can be confident that Áma offers natural products that are beneficial for their skin as well as for the environment and community.
  3. We will never test on animals or source ingredients that harm natural habitats.
  4. We will work to make the world a kinder, safer, more beautiful place.
  5. We will treat life as an adventure, always striving to explore, develop and be brave enough to push through boundaries.

    Say hello

    Want to know more about Āma products or business? We'd love to hear from you! Please get in touch via contact form, chat box, or email.