Our Story
Our story is the life-time story of our late founder, Peter Francis:
World Master Hairdresser, Trichologist, & Organic Formulator
OUR FOUNDER
The story of Peter Francis extends far beyond the creation of Abaché Organics.
He was the global pioneer of certified organic Haircare and Skincare.
Peter began his professional life as an apprentice hairdresser in 1978, working in a barber shop at the age of 17.
“When I finished high school I wanted to become a fine artist at university, so I took a summer vacation job helping at the local salon. I fell in love with doing hair in the first week, so my career found me,” he said.
Peter was a natural talent, and by 19 he was working as a stylist at a prestigious salon in Adelaide city center and had taken on ladies' and men's hairdressing, becoming the first dual (Men's & Ladies) apprentice in his State.
By the young age of 20, he had won the South Australian Junior Chamber of Commerce "Apprentice of the Year Award," funding him to study overseas for several months, which he used as a springboard to becoming a successful salon entrepreneur in his early twenties, opening his first salon, Abaché Hair & Body, in 1984.
A lifelong student with a passion for hair and skin science
“I had a passion for hair and my clients! It’s almost like a fire inside me and it drove my every waking moment.” Peter Francis
1986: Awarded the World’s highest honour in Trichology.
1986 Peter was the recipient of the "Ronald Salinger Award"... for excellence and outstanding contribution in the field of Trichology, which is the world’s highest honour in Trichology (the science of scalp and hair).
An award winning World-class Stylist in his mid 20's
Peter began to have an ever greater interest in the science of hair, scalp, and skin, and enrolled to study as a Trichologist with the prestigious London based organisation, The International Association of Trichology (IAT), where he was first trained in the science of cosmeceutical formulation, crafting products to treat and care for hair loss, and skin and scalp maladies.
Internationally Awarded Hairdressing Educator
Following his passion for learning, Peter extended his career journey as an educator and artistic director for several international professional salon product companies, touring the world for more than a decade sharing his passion and knowledge with the beauty industry.
He was, during the same period, the Australian Artistic Director for Pivot Point International, the World's leading hairdressing educational instutution.
Having children fundamentally changed my focus and priorities.
With the birth of his first daughter in 1997, and his second in 1998, Peter began to reconsider his international travel lifestyle and his salon business model.
"Having my children in my life fundamentally changed my focus and priorities. I realised that true beauty is directly linked to the beauty of the world around us, rather than the beauty found in the pages of fashion magazines.
I had become progressively concerned about the synthetic chemicals I had been using and promoting in my professional career, and their lack of integrity with regard to long-term health, sustainability, and biodegradability."
As a Trichologist, Peter was primarily concerned about the skin & scalp absorption of the chemicals dissolved in the cosmetic products he was using on his clients, and in particular he was using on his young children.
Sharing his concerns with his wife, Chess, an early childhood educator, who was also concerned for the health and wellbeing of the three and four year old children she was teaching, Peter drew on his trichologist cosmeceutical formulating heritage and decided to create formulations that he was confident & comfortable with using on his own kids.
Initially his formulations were made in the back room of his salon and shared with friends, family and his salon clients. They became so popular that he soon outgrew the capability of his cottage-industry approach and in 2002 Eco.kid Organics was born with the vision to create the healthiest choice botanical products that would be good for all kids, our Planet and its communities.
A pioneer in certified organic haircare.
Peter’s foresight is a testament to how far ahead of his time he was, with Eco.kid Organics in 2008 becoming one of the first haircare brands in the world to become certified organic to the Ecocert (France) Natural & Organic Cosmetic Standard, across all of his formulations.
From the ancient-wisdom of medicinal plant use comes new inspiration...
Building on his early formulating experience, Peter became ever more passionate about formulating with sustainably-sourced plant derived raw ingredients.
He began studying the traditional use of Australian indigenous plants, formulating many of these unique plant essences into Eco.kid Organics to create functional haircare, skincare, & personal care for kids.
"I realised that my raw material formulating choices could make a meaningful difference to the sustainability of our Planet and its village communities".
In 2009, Peter began to study traditional use of plants of the Amazon and Africa, and began to incorporate sustainably wild-harvested ingredients into all of his formulations wherever possible.
Abaché Organics, was launched in 2014
Using these novel ingredients in his experimental formulations with his clients in the salon on a daily basis delivered solid proof that these ingredients, used indigenously for centuries, produced tangible results.
"I began drawing on the wisdom of these legendary people and cultures to formulate entirely unique, innovative, plant-based haircare products to heal, treat, nourish, style, beautify, and transform", Peter said.
The World's first haircare brand to achieve COSMOS Organic Certification.
In mid 2014, after 8 years of in-Salon formulation research and development, Peter's first salon-professional range, Abaché Organics, was launched, and became the very first haircare brand in the world to achieve certified organic status under the, then newly formed, European COSMOS Natural & Organic Cosmetic Standard.
From the ancient art of Ayurveda comes new innovation.
Through Peter's exciting product development success, in late 2014 he was invited to partner with the largest Personal Care and Ayurvedic Medicinal manufacturing company in India, Emami Ltd.
To further pursue his passion for ancient traditional plant-based wisdom, from early 2015 - 2020, Peter moved to Kolkata (India), as his primary residential base, enabling him to immerse himself in the ancient-wisdom of Ayurveda.
5,000 Years of Ancient Plant-based Science
Ayurveda, a natural system of plant derived medicine, originated in India more than 5,000 years ago. The term Ayurveda is derived from the Sanskrit words Ayur (life) and Veda (science or knowledge).
"My time in India represented a new turning-point in my formulating evolution."
For the ensuing 5-years, Abaché Organics became my in-house research and development brand, available exclusively to my existing client base, providing me a direct conversational-loop between my latest formulation innovations and my client's experience of each new evolution", said Peter.
Studying Botany, Ayurvedic Traditional Medicine and Modern Plant-based Science
"My time in India working with and learning from Dr. Uniyal and Dr. Katiyar over four years was one of my most enlightening and important pivotal moments of my formulating career.
Their combined understanding of the unique combination of Botany, Ayurvedic Traditional Medicine, and Modern Medicinal use of plants inspired and influenced me vastly.
Together they changed my way of interpreting ancient Ayurvedic plant use and practices into modern scientific cosmeceutical formulating, and I will forever be grateful to have been afforded the honour of working so closely with them", said Peter.
Plantworx Organics is born.
In late 2019, Peter relocated permanently back to South Australia and created a new entity called Plantworx Organics.
Drawing on his unique newfound knowledge he was inspired to return to his laboratory, above his original Salon, to begin a dedicated two and a half years of reformulating all new Abaché Organics formulations.
Abaché Organics (version-2022) is Peter's Salon-Professional Brand with many inspired new product concepts...
"I would describe my formulations as a fusion of all of my life's professional and personal journey.
You can never take the hairdresser and trichologist out of my formulating foundation, nor the influence of my immersion of over two decades of research into the traditional use of indigenous Australian, Amazonia, African and Indian Ayurvedic plants... together these unique circumstance guide and inspire my raw ingredient selection and final product outcomes," said Peter.
Today, Peter’s legacy continues to inspire the creation of bespoke and uncompromising certified organic personal care formulations, guided by the principles of always choosing the healthiest options for customers, our Planet, and its communities.
Peter's ultimate goal was to craft formulations exclusively from 100% natural, sustainably sourced raw ingredients. He believed that each formulation should be Prebiotic in its foundation—free from biocidal preservatives, 100% Vegan, 100% readily biodegradable, and free from synthetic moieties wherever possible. This commitment to purity and sustainability remains at the heart of the brand he created.
Abaché Organics - Leading a new era of Green-beauty
In 2022, Peter partnered with Professor Colin Raston & Flinders University (South Australia) as an industry partner for The ARC Training Centre for Green Chemistry in Manufacturing.
"Together, Professor Raston and I were researching and developing new green-chemistry technologies for certified organic skincare, scalp care, hair care, and preservative-free manufacturing," Peter once shared.
The ARC Training Centre for Green Chemistry in Manufacturing is an interdisciplinary research and training hub focused on green and sustainable chemistry. The Centre, which includes collaboration between universities, industry, government authorities, and key industry bodies, seeks to transform and revitalise Australian manufacturing by adopting green and sustainable chemical technologies. Peter's vision continues to guide this important work even after his passing.
A career of extraordinary leadership.
-1986 Peter was the recipient of the "Ronald Salinger Award"... for excellence and outstanding contribution in the field of Trichology, which is the world’s highest honour in Trichology.
-1995 Peter became the first Australian to be awarded the title of ‘World Master of the Craft’ by the Art and Fashion Group International (New York, USA).
Peter also holds a string of key national awards from Hair Expo Australia, including twice awarded ‘Australian Excellence in Hairdressing Education’ 1995 & 1996, and the title of ‘Australian Image Styling Champion’ in 1995.
He was also a finalist for ‘Australian Hairdresser of the Year’ in 1996 and was awarded the ultimate title of ‘Australian Image Styling Champion of Champions’ in the year 2000.