In an era where the beauty industry often chases trends and perfection, Kristina Rasmussen, the visionary CEO and Founder of The Heart Company, stands apart by redefining beauty through emotion, kindness, and authenticity. Built from the ground up during the global pandemic, The Heart Company is more than a fragrance brand—it’s a heartfelt movement that celebrates emotional wellness as the new luxury. Rasmussen’s mission is simple yet profound: to spread love, kindness, and connection through vegan, cruelty-free fragrances that inspire people to feel beautiful from the inside out.
Taim Al Falasi – Can you share your journey into the beauty industry and what inspired you to start The Heart Company?
Kristina Rasmussen –
My journey into beauty and fragrance has always been guided by emotion, not ambition.
After a corporate career in luxury PR & brand building in Europe, and HR in New York City, I wanted to build a brand that wasn’t driven by trends or vanity metrics, but by purpose and emotion.
As a mom and founder, I’ve learned to balance heart and hustle building The Heart Company from scratch during the global pandemic, fully bootstrapped, with a mission to make beauty feel more human. I wanted to create a brand that helps people reconnect with their emotions and values. A beauty experience rooted in kindness, authenticity, and inner strength.
Taim Al Falasi – What is the core mission and purpose behind The Heart Company, and how does it differentiate itself from other beauty brands?
Kristina Rasmussen –
Our mission is beautifully simple: to spread love, kindness, and emotional connection through beauty and vegan perfumes.
We are an intercultural, purpose-driven beauty brand that believes in emotional wellness as the new luxury. While other brands focus on external transformation, we focus on how beauty can make people feel: confident, loved, uplifted and seen.
We celebrate diversity, empathy, and sustainability, uniting global voices under one belief: that love is the universal language of the world. Every product we make – from fragrances to self-care tools is a giftable small act of emotional kindness to yourself and others.
Taim Al Falasi – How do your vegan and cruelty-free products integrate values of love, kindness, and compassion into the customer experience?
Kristina Rasmussen –
Kindness begins long before the customer unboxes a product.
Our fragrances are 100% vegan, certified by The Vegan Society in Birmingham UK. We believe beauty should never come at the cost of another living being.
All our signature fragrances like Love in a Bottle, Happiness in a Bottle, Positivity in a Bottle and Kindness in a Bottle are created by master perfumers from Givaudan, the world’s leading perfume house. Each Eau de Parfum scent is crafted to evoke positive emotions, allowing people to literally wear love and kindness. Every heart-shaped perfume bottle is a small message of care. A proof that luxury and empathy can coexist beautifully.
Taim Al Falasi – Can you explain how positive affirmations in your product packaging and marketing help build an emotional connection with your customers?
Kristina Rasmussen –
Every product of The Heart Company carries a positive affirmation – a small emotional anchor. We see affirmations as micro-moments of healing. When someone reads “You are loved” or “Kindness looks good on you,” it can change the tone of their day. In a world filled with filters and comparison, positive affirmations remind people of their inherent worth. That’s what turns customers into community and products into rituals.
Taim Al Falasi – How has your approach to heart-first leadership shaped the culture and operations of The Heart Company?
Kristina Rasmussen –
Heart-first leadership means leading with empathy, clarity, and trust. At The Heart Company, we prioritize creativity over hierarchy and emotional intelligence over ego. Our team operates remotely, giving us flexibility and space to live with balance and intention.
This approach has helped us stay lean, innovative, and human – proof that compassion can drive performance.
Taim Al Falasi –What strategies have you implemented to grow The Heart Company sustainably while maintaining a lean and purpose-driven business model?
Kristina Rasmussen –
We’ve built The Heart Company as a digital-native, bootstrapped brand with sustainability and positive messaging at its core.
Our growth model is based on value creation. We started our journey on Amazon in the US. We scale through authentic community building, Amazon US and Germany, our own website, Tik Tok Shop in Germany, collaborations with like-minded partners and selected retail partners. Every decision we make from packaging to partnerships is guided by one question: Does this create value and align with love, kindness, and purpose?
Taim Al Falasi –How do you leverage AI tools or digital technology to enhance brand growth and reach in the beauty and fragrance market?
Kristina Rasmussen –
AI has become an empowering, creative daily partner for us.
We use ChatGPT and other AI tools to analyze emotional customer insights, create visual storytelling, and optimize communication across platforms.
But we always say: AI should enhance humanity, not replace it. We use technology consciously to listen better, connect deeper, work more efficiently and express our brand story in a more personalized way. Our approach is “AI with heart” blending innovation with emotion, data with intuition.
Taim Al Falasi – What trends are you seeing in sustainable, ethical, and vegan beauty products in 2025, and how is The Heart Company adapting?
Kristina Rasmussen –
The future of beauty is emotional and ethical. Consumers are choosing brands that feel human, not just high-performing. They want transparency, diversity, connection and authenticity – products that align with their personal values.
We call this movement emotional sustainability and beauty that makes people feel good about themselves and the planet. That’s exactly where The Heart Company thrives. Our vegan fragrances are designed for conscious consumers around the world who value emotional connection as well as emotional gifting.
Taim Al Falasi – Can you share a story of how your brand has positively impacted your community or inspired meaningful connections among customers?
Kristina Rasmussen –
One of the most touching moments is receiving messages from women who mention our fragrances helped them through anxiety and self-doubt.
They described Love in a Bottle and Kindness in a Bottle as part of their morning rituals – a way to start the day with confidence and calm. Moms, teachers, nurses, and marketing executives of various age groups keep sending these messages to us on Social Media. That’s when I realize we’re not just selling perfumes, we’re creating emotional companions.
That impact means everything to me.
Taim Al Falasi – What advice would you give to aspiring female founders aiming to create purpose-led, sustainable, and heart-driven businesses?
Kristina Rasmussen –
Start with your why and make it your compass. Don’t chase trends; build something that feels deeply true to who you are. Be brave enough to lead with love, even in business. The world doesn’t need more products, but it needs more purpose, empathy, and emotional intelligence. And remember: success feels different when it’s aligned with your values.
When you lead with love, everything else follows. Even when it gets tough. At The Heart Company, we exist to spread love, kindness, and connection in a world that often forgets how powerful they are. We believe that beauty is not about perfection, it’s about how you feel. Each of our vegan fragrances is an invitation to express your authentic self and radiate love. We’d love to expand into the UK, the Middle East, and Asia, because love is universal and the world needs an extra dose of love and kindness these days.
Conclusion
Kristina Rasmussen’s journey is a powerful reminder that success in today’s world isn’t measured solely by profit or popularity, but by purpose and impact. Through The Heart Company, she has created a brand that blends compassion with creativity—proving that beauty, at its best, is an expression of love. As she looks ahead to expanding into the UK, Middle East, and Asia, Rasmussen continues to inspire a new generation of conscious entrepreneurs to lead with heart, authenticity, and purpose—because, as she says, “When you lead with love, everything else follows.”