Derya Şanlı: A Natural Success Story Born from Passion
Derya Şanlı: A Natural Success Story Born from Passion
June 3, 2025 | Sedanur Albaş
Derya Şanlı is a chemist who turned years of experience into a purpose-driven journey. What began with small experiments at home grew into a brand built on care, sustainability, and the belief that science can serve people in simple, meaningful ways.
Her journey began a few years ago when a friend developed a skin condition after using a commercial liquid soap. In response, Derya created a natural soap at home—and it worked. Encouraged by this success, she began formulating more products, including one that aided another friend’s treatment process.
For Derya, this was never just about business. It was about creating something meaningful and raising awareness around sustainability. In June 2024, she founded Şansan Kimya and launched the Arbre brand (meaning “tree” in French). Her products go beyond cosmetics—they reflect a deeper environmental commitment. Within just three weeks, she developed biodegradable packaging made of cellulosic fibers containing tree seeds. Once discarded, the packaging dissolves in nature, allowing the seed to sprout and grow—a tree planted with every product. The packaging also includes illustrations for children to color, turning the experience into a fun and educational moment that promotes reforestation.
Arbre products are made with natural ingredients and eco-conscious formulas. Committed to advancing her expertise, Derya earned an internationally recognized aromatherapy certificate and is now working on a line of natural makeup. She brings the knowledge gained through her master’s degree and current PhD studies into every product she develops.
While her business is currently based in Gaziantep, Derya has global ambitions. With support from Building Markets, she recently joined a program designed to empower women entrepreneurs in earthquake-affected regions. Through this program, she received export training, benefited from one-on-one mentorship, and was connected with potential buyers and business contacts in countries such as Turkmenistan, Iraq, Uzbekistan, the UK, Germany, Italy, and Nigeria. These opportunities helped her refine her international strategy, strengthen her business plan, and begin to see tangible results. She is now focused on launching her website to expand her global reach.
Your support has been wonderful, and you always find a way for every business. That’s such an important kind of support. Your team’s approach is also very valuable; all your staff are really great at connecting with people and understanding them,” she says.
Throughout her entrepreneurial journey, Derya has faced many challenges. It was not easy to establish herself as a female entrepreneur in a male-dominated sector within her cultural context. However, she saw each challenge as a hurdle to overcome and tackled them with determination.
“You need passion to succeed. When someone has passion, nothing can stand in the way of their work,” she says, emphasizing that her motivation comes from within, not from others. Her family has also been a great source of encouragement and support during this journey.
The February 6 earthquake disrupted Derya’s business setup process. Although this traumatic experience had a psychological impact on her, she took a lesson from it: nothing in life should be delayed, and one should pursue their passions without wasting time.
She currently employs two women, one of whom is Syrian. One of her employees has a disability, and Derya specifically chose to hire her, believing that the sense of responsibility and effort shown by individuals with disabilities is truly inspiring. In the future, she aims to build an inclusive employment model by hiring socially excluded individuals, ex-convicts, or those who have difficulty finding work.
Derya hopes to be a source of inspiration for other women entrepreneurs.
“Success comes from working hard, having passion, and making time for your loved ones. People need to connect with one another for success to happen,” she says, underlining the importance of human relationships.
These activities are being implemented with the generous support of Islamic Relief USA. Any views expressed herein are solely those of Building Markets.
