Skincare Brand Woods Wild Botanicals Is Designed To Lift Consumers’ Moods Like A Walk In The Woods

For Woods Wild Botanicals founder Donna Gomirato, skincare is sensorial in every aspect of the word.

“I want to beautify skin while taking care of the mood and soul. The majority of brands refer to themselves as skincare to specifically address skin concerns, but, while studying aromatherapy, [I learned] the most important tool is to enhance someone’s mood and support our soul and the way we feel every day,” says the certified aromatherapist trained at the New York Institute of Aromatic Studies. “Why would you use essential oils only to address skin concerns when you can also create a brand that can help you feel better emotionally and spiritually?”

Gomirato’s holistic approach informed the development of Woods Wild Botanicals products that are meant to foster certain feelings. The Grounding Regenerating Face Oil and Purifying Face Oil, for example, are intended to be comforting and harmonizing. They contain ingredients such as camellia, rosehip, sunflower, jojoba, cranberry, hemp and carrot seed oils, and evening primrose, argan, clary sage, rose geranium, avocado and squalene oils. In an ingredient list on Woods Wild Botanicals, the brand details the skincare and mood-benefitting purposes of the ingredients it chooses.

Gomirato makes the products, which are 90% organic, by hand from start to finish. A former architect turned floral designer, she incorporates scents like calendula, lavender and jasmine that she had grown to adore when arranging flowers into Woods Wild Botanicals’ formulas. Gomirato says, “You can use those flowers in floral designs, but there’s also a ton of hidden potential behind them that you can use on yourself.”

“Why would you use essential oils only to address skin concerns when you can also create a brand that can help you feel better emotionally and spiritually?”

Woods Wild Botanicals’ five facial oils are priced from $64 to $84 for .7-oz. full-size bottles and $33 to $42 for .35-oz. travel-size options. The brand’s only non-facial oil is the 4-oz. Nourishing Body Mousse priced at $58. Gomirato landed on the luxury price range due the extensive research that went into fashioning the brand’s water-free products, and the premium ingredients from organic, wild-harvested and fair-trade sources preferably in virgin, unaltered states they rely upon. She says, “For me, luxury is when you find a product that is actually valuable because of its origin and that is natural [without the] use of any harmful chemicals.”

Woods Wild Botanicals’ recyclable cylindrical exterior packaging topped with a wooden cap is sustainably made from paper. Gomirato notes it can be upcyled by crafty customers. She depends on it to store vitamins in her handbag. The cylinder can be a handy makeup brush container, too.

Gomirato describes Woods Wild Botanicals’ core customers as women aged 25- to 60-years-old interested in living healthy lifestyles and drawn to artisanal skincare. The brand is currently focused on its e-commerce business, but Gomirato, a native of Mirano, Italy who moved to New York in 2010, hopes to build the brand with domestic and international distribution. Independent boutiques as well as spas and alternative health centers are target partners.

“For me, luxury is when you find a product that is actually valuable because of its origin and that is natural [without the] use of any harmful chemicals.”

“I don’t think super big chains would be a good place because I noticed that there’s a big lack of opportunity for the retailer to have direct contact with clients at them,” she says. “One of the most important things for a brand is to be able to explain what the concept is behind your brand.”

This year, Woods Wild Botanicals is looking to lift brand awareness through social media activity, partnering with a brand ambassador, and participating in local events, pop-up stores and possibly the trade shows Indie Beauty Expo and Cosmoprof Bologna. Woods Wild Skincare has men’s care and baby products on the horizon, including a scented skin soothing balm to boost babies’ relaxation.

It took Gomirato two years to complete Woods Wild Botanicals, but the name came to her quickly during a hike in Upstate New York. “I was surrounded by vibrant, living nature that filled me with positive energy. I knew I wanted to find a name that would celebrate those emotions I had and remind me every time I would work on my skincare line how nature is capable of elevating our souls and freeing our minds,” she explains. “Woods Wild Botanicals represents to me that state of mind, body and soul connection I had that day and I aspire to achieve every day.”