Behind the Brand Vintners Daughter
The first time Jess tried this serum, she was blown away. It immediately made her skin brighter, healthier and left her glowing. That was all it took to get her hooked and have her start spreading the word.
Jess is a lover of Vintner's, and so is her mom. Showing that no matter what age you are, this product works wonders for all.
What was the first product you developed and why did you create it?/What is your best selling product and why do you think that is?
Active Botanical Serum was the first product to bring our core principles of efficacy, quality and safety to life. Four years in the making, Active Botanical Serum was created to be so much more than a face oil, which is why we called it a serum. What drives this distinction is our commitment to the absolute finest quality ingredients, craftsmanship and performance. It takes 3 weeks to make every bottle because we do not take shortcuts. If you want to make the very best, you have to honor that intention every step of the way. At the heart of Active Botanical Serum lies our Phyto Radiance Infusion, a 3 week-long process that uniquely begins with the world's most nutrient-dense whole botanicals and over the course of 3 weeks captures their full spectrum of nutrition. With every drop, your skin receives the most optimal ratios of brightening and protective antioxidants, balancing minerals, renewing vitamins and firming phytoceramides. The level of communication between skin and product is unlike anything else. It has been hailed as “the face oil to end all face oils,” and is a multi-year award-winner. Most importantly, when you use it, you not only feel the Vintner's Daughter glow, you see it.
What was the inspiration for the line?
It may come as a surprise, but I don’t come from the world of beauty; I come from the world of fine winemaking in Napa Valley. My family still makes wine there today. I consider myself incredibly lucky to have spent so much time in a community that places such a high value on craftsmanship and quality.
What you may not have guessed is that I was someone, who like many, was dealing with cystic acne, pigmentation and all the fun things that come along with getting older. I was using what I thought were the very best “luxury” products. They were certainly the most expensive and were written about often in glossy magazines. One day I started looking at the ingredients. I was shocked to realize that they were .01% active ingredients, the rest was low quality filler that was also in many cases a harmful ingredient.
Coming from Napa Valley, a community dedicated to making the finest wines in the world through meticulous attention to detail and craftsmanship, short cuts are not allowed and practically every grain of dirt is considered for its quality; these “luxury” products were in fact not luxury. To me, the true definition of luxury is beginning with the finest raw materials and honoring them through the most thoughtful formulation practices to achieve something even greater than the parts.
This was the genesis of Vintner’s Daughter. I wanted to build a true luxury skincare company that made products from the finest ingredients in the world, using time-honored techniques in order to bring about profound and lasting balance and health in the skin.
It sounds lofty, but I wanted to build a skincare company on the same philosophical foundations as the winemaking world I had come from. I am grateful to have achieved that and more. Not only are we making a positive impact on the health and balance of our customers’ skin, but we are helping to build a powerful and trusted connection to their extraordinary skin.
What is the brand philosophy?
At Vintner’s Daughter we exist to make a profound and positive impact on the skin and lives of our community. We do this through the highest quality sourcing and meticulous formulations that drive serious multi-beneficial results. We believe that fewer and better products serve the skin better as well as our earth. Ultimately we hope that everything we do helps to change our customers’ relationship with their skin from one of struggle to one of celebration and gratitude.
What's your favorite product in the line and why is that?
We offer two award-winning products, Active Treatment Essence and Active Botanical Serum. Selecting just one would be like choosing between your children.
What makes the brand unique?
For a product to wear a Vintner’s Daughter label, it must be game-changing, category-defining and deliver transformational multi-beneficial results. We have extraordinarily high standards around product introductions, and are able to uphold them because we are not a revenue-driven company – we are a skin-driven company. This means that we do not have to create new product introductions to drive marketing and sales. We only introduce products that will dramatically improve the skin and lives of our customers. It is a very high bar and one that we take seriously. We know that with fewer and better quality products, we can affect the skin in far deeper ways; ways that bring about lasting health, balance and vitality to the skin.
What's one surprising thing people might not know about the brand?
We exist to not only impact your skin in the most beneficial ways, but to have a positive impact on the world. Social and environmental responsibility are infused into every aspect of our business, from sourcing and packaging to distribution, voluntary certifications and donating 2% of revenue to charities benefiting women, children and the environment. This way of operating requires more time and resources, but we believe it is the best way to do business. We are proud of the strides we have made but also for our customers and stockist partners. Your and their conscious decision to invest in products made with a sense of
responsibility and respect for each other and our planet is what allows us to continue this work. We are deeply grateful for this partnership.
What do you want people to think of when they think of your brand?
So much of traditional skincare is about creating a fear or struggle with our skin. I hope that we can shine a light on what true beauty is, which for us is made up of so many qualities including joy, gratitude and confidence. We want all people to celebrate their beautiful skin no matter the age, issue, tone or gender.
What was one of the biggest challenges you faced when you launched?
Gifts come in all shapes and sizes and sometimes they come in a basket covered with thorns. That is how I try to look at challenges, both professionally and personally, as something I can learn from. An early professional challenge was when I took my formula to the top labs in the
world, I was turned away time and time again because they told me that no product should take over 6 hours to produce, much less the three weeks it takes to make every bottle of Vintner’s Daughter. They encouraged me to substitute synthetics, powders and extracts for my powerful whole botanicals. They said ‘Trust us. It will be cheaper, faster and better.’ Thankfully, I didn’t follow their advice and trusted my own gut. As a result, our products are able to communicate with skin in a profound way that amplifies the skin’s own powers of rejuvenation, healing, brightening, firming and radiance. This would never have been possible with cheap extracts, powders and synthetics. Of course, today I am happy I stood my ground, but at the time it felt crushing.
How did you know you'd made it as a brand?
There have been many amazing moments along the way including major celebrity mentions, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hailey Bieber, and Tracee Ellis Ross to name a few. One of the biggest press moments came from Into The Gloss when they wrote a story entitled “The Face OIl to End all
Face OIls” and of course a dedicated story in Vogue was a major moment. But, perhaps the greatest moments come from our customer testimonials that gratefully come in everyday detailing the impact we are having on their skin. That means everything.
What is your proudest moment as a founder?
Creating a skincare brand that helps people connect to their beautiful skin in a joyful and confident way. So much about the beauty industry is intended to break that trusted connection to yourself in order to sell the next new product. We have deliberately set ourselves outside that commodity-led paradigm to create timeless products that change people’s relationship to their skin in deeply positive ways. That is something I am very proud of.
What can we expect from the brand in the future? Any exciting news you can share?
We have a few collaborations coming soon that we cannot wait to announce and launch.