BROTHERS TURN MUM’S CANCER BATTLE INTO GLOBAL CLEAN BEAUTY SUCCESS

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In a tale that resembles a Netflix drama more than reality, three brothers from suburban Sydney have turned a deeply personal crisis into one of Australia's most notable clean beauty success stories - and it all began on a kitchen bench.

Cannabella, the brainchild of brothers Matthew, Tim and Michael Stiegler, is now an internationally stocked skincare brand formulated around 100% unfiltered hemp seed oil - the only Australian brand to do so.

The journey began in Caringbah, NSW, when the Stiegler brothers’ mother, Denise, was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Watching the brutal side effects of chemotherapy ravage her skin, leaving it painfully dry, inflamed and hypersensitive, they decided to take matters into their own hands.

“We came from an artistic background, Tim and I were in a band, The Dark Hawks, and Michael was working in fashion with people like Kate Moss and Chrissy Teigen,” Cannabella co–founder Matthew Steigler said.

“But when Mum got sick, everything changed. We started instantly researching skincare and got the Bunsen burners out.”

Armed with nothing but a kitchen bench, YouTube tutorials and fierce determination, the brothers began melting down Denise’s existing moisturisers and rebuilding them with natural botanicals, most notably, unfiltered hemp seed oil.

“I was stunned by what I found in her products, so many ingredients I couldn’t even pronounce, some linked to cancer,” said Matthew. “But once we started experimenting with hemp oil and clean plant extracts, her skin began healing almost straight away. That changed everything.”

With visible improvements and growing curiosity from family friends, demand snowballed. The trio transformed a spare bedroom into a lab, and Matthew enrolled in skincare formulation courses to deepen his understanding of the science behind their success.

As word spread, the brothers formalised their efforts into a brand — Cannabella — named after Carabella Street where they grew up.

“What really sets Cannabella apart from other hemp-based skincare brands is that we use 100% unfiltered hemp seed oil,” Matthew said.

“A lot of brands use refined hemp oils, but through that process, so many of the nutrients are stripped away.

"We only use raw, unfiltered oil — it’s packed with chlorophyll, antioxidants, and omega fatty acids, which help heal and hydrate the skin without clogging pores. Combined with our clean botanical ingredients and no-compromise formulations, we’re delivering natural skincare that’s not only effective, but also ethical.”

Now based on the Gold Coast, Cannabella continues to operate with a plant-first, people-focused philosophy. Key ingredients include avocado, rosehip, broccoli seed oil, jojoba, and Coenzyme Q10 — all carefully selected for their ability to soothe stressed, damaged and post-treatment skin.

“It’s like comparing a cold-pressed juice to a regular one; we retain all the goodness without the processing. Our unfiltered hemp oil is the powerhouse by-product that helps treat redness, scarring, and inflammation. A little goes a long way, and it doesn’t get cleaner than this when it comes to skincare,” Michael Steigler said.

Their flagship Healing Balm has earned cult status for its ability to treat everything from baby rash to sunburn. Meanwhile, their Renewal Serum took home Product of the Year at the Australian Cannabis Business Awards.

“We never set out to build a business,” Michael said. “We were just trying to help Mum. But once we saw the difference it made, not just to her, but to so many others, we knew this was something special.”