January the 23rd, 2022 - Croatian cream from Dugopolje, close to Split in the Dalmatian hinterland, has been winning over hearts (and skin) for half a century now, and the recipe has been passed down from generation to generation of this family.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Slavica Vukovic/VL writes, Zora's ointment (Zorina mast), a natural Croatian cream for the treatment of burns and various other skin problems, has gained in fame for 50 years now, having been made by 84-year-old Zora Cipcic from Dugopolje. People came from across the country to Dugopolje because of Zora's healing ointment, and she made it according to a recipe that has been passed down through her family.

However, as the years went by, she gradually stopped making this much loved Croatian cream because her health no longer allowed for what was involved in its creation, but her 23-year-old grandson, Goran Cipcic, made sure that her beloved old recipe did not fall into oblivion. Two years ago, as a student, he founded a startup and won the Start Croatia competition, Zora's ointment was declared a hit and he fought for its place on the shelves of the likes of Spar and Interspar.

This much loved Croatian cream made using an old family recipe has obviously helped very many people, thousands of comments from satisfied users have been recorded on social media, and as a good name is heard far and wide, it has opened the door to other stores for young Goran. Not only that, he has also expanded the range, and since last September he has been offering a very similar Croatian cream for hands under the Zorina mast brand, and in mid-February this year, a new, unique face cream will be on the shelves.

“We designed Zorina Mediterranea face cream, which is completely different from everything else on the market. It's completely natural, it has most of the ingredients Zorina mast has in it, but it's additionally enriched with magnesium, salt flower and some seaweed. It lasts for more than 12 hours on the skin, strongly moisturises and deeply hydrates it, and it also improves the skin's elasticity and firmness. It will be on sale in about a month,'' Cipcic proudly announced.

These Croatian creams are more suitable for application on the face and hands because they are easily and quickly absorbed. "Given that Zorina mast is a brand of natural cosmetics and helps with many types of skin problems that people often face, we first expanded the range to include hand cream. Why did we do that? Well, ever since the novel coronavirus appeared, people have treated their hands extremely harshly with disinfectants, many of which irritate, damage and dry out the skin. We went it because our hand cream repairs damaged skin and protects it. All the ointment ingredients are also in this Croatian cream, but we've supplemented them more. One of the key ingredients is probiotics, which create an additional protective layer for the skin. That's how we connected Zora's traditional recipe with modern trends,'' explained Goran.

We do make cosmetics, but we didn't really focus on dermocosmetics, but instead on what helps the skin to be healthy, and thus beautiful and youthful,'' added Goran, revealing what makes this Croatian cream and the rest of the range unique.

“We're the only ones in production who boil a part of the substance used, thus avoiding the addition of other raw materials. It’s that recipe that I got from my grandma. Everything she did, I do too, only what was a litre to her, I have 15 litres, there are machines, nothing is industrial, we do everything by hand. My goal is not to grow enormous production, but to continue in the traditional way. That gives our products a soul,'' added Goran.

He makes this special Croatian cream and his sister helps him. Since he is an economist, he develops the recipes in collaboration with, he says, the formulator of natural cosmetics.

“I tell her what I want and she advises me on how best I might achieve it. We're already preparing some new products, the first will be a face serum,'' concluded Goran Cipcic.

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