Barbara Filokostas, Founder of Botani

5 Minutes With Barbara Filokostas, Founder of Botani

Barbara Filokostas, Founder of Botani

When Barbara Filokostas chats about natural skincare and how she discovered the benefits of Golden Seal for the skin. The timing was nothing short of serendipitous. Working as a naturopath, Barbara had seen first hand how profoundly acne could negatively affect the confidence of her patients. It was this experience and emotional connection to the subject that prompted Barbara to start looking for a natural cure, which is when she experienced the natural acne healing powers of Golden Seal. Golden Seal can go head to head with traditional acne treatments such as Benzoyl Peroxide. The difference? Golden Seal doesn't compromise the health of the skin surrounding the pimple. The potent anti-inflammatory qualities of Botani's Rescue Acne Cream provides immediate relief from red, itchy acne lesions, plus laboratory tests proved a 99.99% kill factor of acne-causing bacteria in as little time as 30 minutes. It was this discovery that led to the creation of the Botani brand, and while it all began with a little pot of Barbara's signature Rescue Acne Cream, the range has since expanded into something of a natural beauty empire. A cleanser was dreamt up next, and the discovery of Olive Squalene followed- arguably Barbara's most iconic and skin salving innovation to date. We sat down with Barbara to chat about the fusion of nature and science, what it takes to create a company and build a beauty empire and precisely what it is that makes Botani's Rescue Acne Cream so unique.

Why Did You Choose The Rescue Acne Cream As Your First Product?

At the time I was working as a naturopath and herbalist and would work with many patients that had acne. Seeing how emotionally debilitating this was for my patients, I became inspired to create a natural and effective treatment. It is what started Botani, it all happened very naturally. I started with one key and simple ingredient - Golden Seal. I used it as an extract on the skin and in about 2-3 weeks I was already able to see the results.

Was The Process Quick?

It was a very long journey, and it took me years to finish the formula. When we talk about "created from the heart" this is what we are talking about - we dedicated a lot of time and resources to create this, and our goal was to create something authentic and compelling. I had the incredible opportunity to work with Derio Comar, a leading microbiologist and industrial chemist. This is where we created something that truly stands out, and the brand was created. The product was trialled and tested by Derio and third parties and registered with TGA.

Did You Both Focus On Creating The Acne Rescue Cream At This Time?

While the Acne cream was what inspired me, it was an obvious choice to create a natural cleanser to ensure the work that was done by our Rescue Acne Treatment wasn't destroyed by a cleanser that strips everything away. While the Acne cream the Purify Facial Cleanser go hand in hand, I then discovered the amazing benefits of squalene which paved the way to our Olive Skin Serum and of course is a hero ingredient for Botani.