I PROMISE, JUST A FEW MINUTES TO TELL YOU ABOUT OUR STORY.
WELCOME TO TETRA ZEBRA!
I’m Matty Riches, founder of Tetra Zebra. Based in Kent, UK, I live with my wife, son, and our dog—and this is where elite soap making takes place.
Over the last few years, I’ve built a crazy passion for making top-tier, natural soap for men. Why? Because I’ve always had sensitive skin—acne, dry patches, itching—the works. When I finally looked into the stuff I was rubbing on my body every day, I was blown away. Full of palm oil, harsh chemicals, fake scents, and ingredients I couldn’t pronounce. That’s when the mission hit me:
Give men a proper, natural alternative to wash with. Every day.
WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?
WHERE'S THE BUZZ IN SCRUBBING?
Walk into any supermarket and try to find a bar of soap that’s 100% natural, smells masculine, and actually lasts. It’s near impossible. We’re getting done over, and it needs to change.
Why I started Tetra Zebra:
- “Natural” doesn’t always mean natural. In the cosmetics world, that word gets twisted. You can slap “natural” on something that’s truly not great for your skin.
- Palm oil is everywhere. It’s cheap, used across multiple industries—and a big reason for deforestation. Even my son’s favourite peanut butter got hit with it to make it “more spreadable.” Unbelievable.
- Most colours are synthetic or made with mica. We didn’t like how mica is sourced (check out the mica mining belt), and synthetic colouring has a long history of health concerns.
- The scents? Mostly synthetic too. That “fresh” smell is usually lab-made and carefully labelled to hide the truth. If you see the word 'fragrance' or 'parfum', they're liekly hiding something.
STARTING TETRA ZEBRA
THE BUILDING BLOCKS.
I work a traditional 9-5 job. This is my second full time job. Before I started learning how to make soap, I learnt about what is good for your skin. I also decided very quickly that nothing but mother nature will be present in a block of soap that I produce. I will stand by that.
I have spent countless hours in my shed at the bottom of my garden, through all the seasons, trialling different soaping methods, ingredients & scent profiles and studied how they develop & perform over time. After producing over 150 variants, I landed on a base bar that works and a starting range of 7 scents.
I remember having my first shower with my own soap and being blown away by the fact that you don't need chemicals to produce outrageous scents and a top level bubbly lather. And to top it off, you can use some serious great ingredients that are heavily researched and championed for their skin benefits.
WHERE IS THIS GOING?
THE MISSION.
We will show men, that there is a better way to a proper scrub down & significantly accelerate the usage of natural soap across the UK, in the next 5 years.
How we are addressing the problem we see:
1) We will stay independent.
2) We will only ever use clays, charcoal and plants to colour our blocks.
3) We will not use palm oil.
3) We will only add additives that have skin sprucing properties like nettle root powder, bladderwrack seaweed and bamboo powder.
4) We have made our blocks larger than most competitors and cured them for 6 weeks which is longer than standard, allowing them to harden to the maximum for proper longevity and great lathering performance. The aim is for men to get 30+ scrubs to avoid using more than 1 block per month. We can't guarantee this but we will be surprised if you don't get close. Disclaimer: It depends how wild your technique is too!
5) We will always show full transparency. Check out our ingredients page to support our fully natural claims.
6) They will smell tremendous. We create bespoke, bold scents, all in-house, using natural essential oil. Never synthetic.
If you want something that is going to give you a naughty scrub down, contributes towards creating a clean positive vibe for you and gives you full faith that you have a legit natural product in your hands, then get spruced up and give us a go.
It doesn't matter what you do or who you are. It's about how you feel and how you look after your body. And that is where we can help you.
We are bringing soap back.
How's your vibe?
Matty Riches AKA Chief Cedarwood Lover.
how it started
creating tetra zebra.
WHAT A RANDOM NAME!
who is tetra zebra?
Inspired by the Mexican Tetra Fish who can regenerate its own heart tissue without scarring.
Infused with the ability of the Zebra Fish who has a locker full of skills, which includes the ability to regenerate not just their heart, but its fins, spinal cord, and retinas.
TETRA ZEBRA IS BORN and he is the champion of new beginnings.
Tetra Zebra has mastered starting over and he was brought into this world to inspire the men of today and future generations, to truly look after their bodies & souls, by selecting natural products as a first preference when it comes to decisions over their scrub down routine. That means helping men shower and bathe like an absolute pro. In some cases, it means inspiring a new beginning and providing men with a proper choice to step into natural. It might feel weird to start with because why change from what you've always known?
What you rub on, is just as important as what you put in. When you think about what you apply to your skin and hair on a daily basis, are they good for your vibe?
New beginnings don’t have to be difficult.
That includes going natural and taking care of number one. You.
TZ.
