"It's a real coup," says Barbalich. "We're really excited."
The Antipodes range is also stocked in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan, South Korea, Italy and Slovenia, and is the first Kiwi brand to be stocked by North America's health food and body care chain, Whole Foods Market.
This year they also opened their first concept store at Wellington Airport.?Competing with upmarket skincare products from the US, France and the UK hasn't been easy. But they've succeeded, says Barbalich, because of their combination of organic ingredients and "pure science."
Antipodes has 12 products that are certified organic; the remaining are 100 per cent natural. They are tested in vitro, meaning skin cells are biopsied and studied to see how much collagen is produced when the cells are exposed to the product.
"I think it's always best to use the purist ingredients possible, whether it's on your skin or in your body," she says.
"It's like eating natural raw foods as opposed to processed. You're always going to be healthier and look healthier. People want organic because it's the cleanest possible skincare you can buy, and the most premium in the natural category."
Although it's been 25 years since Barbalich got her science degree in chemistry and biology, and you're unlikely to find her in the lab, her idea to start Antipodes stems from a lifelong interest in science and health.
She spent 10 years working for Tiko, a company that markets and sells surgical instruments for minimally invasive surgery, a role that gave her an appreciation for the orthodox approach to healthcare.
Three children later, Barbalich started looking into natural alternatives, and became a raw food and juicing enthusiast.
But it wasn't until a family trip to Europe that she saw the potential for a new range.
"I wanted to pick up natural or organic products which were really grunty. I was using a synthetic brand I liked, but I was looking at replacing it with a natural alternative. And I couldn't really find any I could get passionate about."
Antipodes launched six years ago and now employs a staff of 15 throughout New Zealand.?Eighty percent of their product ingredients are home-grown, and everything is manufactured here. But being made in New Zealand isn't enough to convince consumers to buy, says Barbalich.
Their customers are well-educated and eco-conscious, and aside from wanting results-based skincare, they gravitate to the product for its green values. The products come in recyclable glass and biodegradable cardboard.
Antipodes is also CarboNZero certified, meaning they are audited yearly to ensure that even as their export market increases, they are reducing their carbon emissions. One way they have committed to doing this is by changing from air to sea freight.
Barbalich says the ingredients come from orchards and farms that practise sustainable farming methods, with self-regenerating crops "that don't strip or take from the soil."
"You pay a premium for New Zealand ingredients because there are less residues in raw materials, and they're farmed to higher standards."
