Canadian Goods Go Grammy

With award season in full swing, we are, as usual, wondering: what’s in those celebrity swag bags? The answer: purely Canadian Scentuals Natural & Organic Skin Care products (when it came to the Grammy Awards, at least). Lucky red carpet-ers received this based-in-B.C. company’s de-stress aromatherapy roll-ons, natural lip conditioners (in vanilla tangerine and peppermint, yum) and yoga collection items (a bath soak and body lotion), all 100 per cent natural, toxin- and cruelty free, and made in small batches just outside of Vancouver. We chatted with Scentuals founder Mai Mowrey about her mission, her vision and her rise to the top of the charts. —Noa Nichol

Tell us a bit about yourself and your company.

I founded Scentuals in 2005 when we found out my brother had been diagnosed with cancer. That’s when we learned about the impact that toxins in products we’d used and trusted all our lives have had on our health. It really led us to look for healthier alternatives that we are happy to have our family use in their day to day.

How did your products end up on the Grammy organizers’ radar?

We had the opportunity to attend the Golden Globes last year and we received such overwhelmingly positive feedback. It really started some buzz around us and our products, and they asked if we would be able to send products to the Grammys this year to be gifted to celebrity attendees. We were just thrilled! To be a part of such an amazing event and to be able to share our dream of natural and healthy self-care on such a scale is surreal and incredibly exciting.

What makes your stuff special?

We are a small family-run company, we hand-make everything in house and each product is made in small batches to ensure quality. But what I think really makes us unique and what not a lot of people know is all of our products, save those in our scent-free collection for exceptionally sensitive skin, are made with pure essential oils. So each time you use a self -are product from one of our lines you are also immersing yourself in an aromatherapy experience. We think that healthy bodies and minds go hand-in-hand and aromatherapy is such a wonderful way to uplift, relax and engage the mind and spirit.

What makes you a proud Canadian producer?

We are proud Canadian makers for so many reasons. The people we get the opportunity to work with, the community support and love, the diversity, being able to see how what we do impacts people in their daily lives—the list goes on and on. I also think that being in Canada and especially B.C. where we are surrounded by nature and all of these incredible natural elements has truly shaped how we view healthy lifestyles, making, and the importance of how we impact the environment and people around us.

scentuals.ca