Former British Vogue beauty editor Kathy Phillips is hoping her aromatherapy assortment, This Works, does just that when it arrives in the U.S. this fall, after launching in the United Kingdom two years ago.
After years of experimenting with whatever beauty products landed on her desk at work, Phillips would wind up using Aromatherapy Associates bath oil for more than 20 years, claiming it not only smelled good, but also offered healing benefits. Four years ago, she partnered with oil-blending experts Geraldine Howard and Sue Beechey of Aromatherapy Associates, a company known for supplying royalty and high-end spas. Together, they developed a range composed of all-natural ingredients with high dosages of essential oils.
“Normally, organic oils associated with aromatherapy have an old-fashioned connotation and have a surgical or earthy fragrance. I thought, ‘Why not produce sophisticated products that have the same eco-friendly, all-natural ingredients and clinical therapeutic benefits, but that look modern and attractive on bathroom shelves?'” said Phillips.
This Works offers 17 products, ranging from bath oils to a dry leg oil, shower gel, lotion, muscle rub and oil burner. The products are preservative-free and hand-blended with natural plant oils sourced from around the world — lavender from the South of France, frankincense from Somalia, cedarwood from Morocco and geranium from China.
The ingredients are each designed to offer a specific benefit, said Phillips. Deep Calm Bath and Shower Oil, made from ingredients including lavender and chamomile, is designed for relaxation, while In the Zone, a blend of frankincense, coconut oil and patchouli, is intended to restore and rejuvenate the skin. One of the line’s top-selling items, Skin Deep Dry Leg Oil, is composed of eight exotic oils, including Moroccan rose, Indian sandalwood, tuberose, evening primrose, patchouli and macadamia oil, and designed to nourish and rehydrate skin. By early next year, the company plans to bring to market two moisturizers and a body treatment.
Phillips had her former colleague, Marissa Bourke, British Elle’s creative director, design the packaging, which features white bottles with labels printed in a brightly colored, lower-case font.
The products, which range in price from $30 for the Muscle Therapy to $60 for the Skin Deep Dry Leg Oil, will enter seven Barneys stores in September. Select products will also be available through the Bliss catalogue. After a one-year exclusive contract with Barneys, the company plans to expand within the U.S. into other specialty and department stores as well as boutiques and is considering opening a freestanding boutique in Los Angeles.
Related Articles
Industry sources estimate that This Works will bring in about $1 million in first-year retail sales in the U.S.
The line launched in April 2004 in the U.K. with a flagship in London’s Chelsea neighborhood. It is now sold at Harvey Nichols in England, Dublin and Hong Kong. The company has also launched the brand in Germany and Scandinavia and has plans to enter Dubai over the next year.