Vintner’s Daughter has become synonymous with celebrity fans such as Heidi Klum, Hailey Bieber, and, most notably, Goop creator Gwyneth Paltrow raving about the brand. The #girlboss behind this luxury skincare brand, April Gargiulo, developed the Active Botanical Serum with the aim of making a desert island, holy grail skincare product that would cure various skin issues. With April’s fine winemaking formulation skills that she picked up from working at her family’s wine business, she went on to develop Vintner’s Daughter, the skincare line dubbed “The Face Oil to End All Face Oils” and a fresh, luxurious solution to clean beauty.
The £185 cult product has taken the US by storm and is now available in the UK. A 100% natural botanical powerhouse that has been formulated with the perfect balance of healing phytonutrients, balancing minerals, smart-ageing antioxidants, strengthening phytoceramides, plumping fatty acids, and brightening vitamins to optimally repair, renew and transform the skin, giving you the quintessential California complexion – just 5-6 drops of the liquid gold delivers visible radiance, clarity, and brightness you (and others) will notice.
KeiKei Travels had the pleasure of sitting down with April Gargiulo to discuss the items she can’t travel without, skincare tips whilst in the air, and her experience in creating one of the most coveted, everlasting skincare brands.
What made you decide to start your own skincare brand?
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 had skin issues with my skin my entire life. I was someone who like many was dealing with cystic acne, discoloration 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 the most expensive and were written about often in glossy magazines. It wasn’t until I was pregnant with my first daughter, that I started looking at the ingredients. I was shocked to realize that they were .01% active ingredients, the rest was low quality filler that were also in many cases toxic. Coming from where I was coming from, none of that sat right with me. I come from Napa Valley, a community dedicated to making the finest wines in the world through attention to detail and craftsmanship. Short cuts are not allowed and practically every grain of dirt is considered for its quality. That to me is the true definition of luxury; beginning with the finest raw materials and honoring them through the most thoughtful formulation practices to achieve something even greater than the parts. These products I was using were anything but.
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 very same philosophical foundations and principles as fine winemaking. There have been many bumps along the way from labs shutting their doors in my face when they find out about our weeks-long formulation process, or retailers who didn’t want to work with me because I had too few products. Overcoming these challenges has made me believe in our purpose to create fewer, higher-quality products fueled by whole plant nutrition even more.
What beauty product could you never travel without?
“Active Treatment Essence + Active Botanical serum. Choosing just one would be like choosing between your children.”
What was your inspiration for the brand name?
I grew up in a winemaking family and am a vintner’s daughter, but the name actually is in honor of my own daughters. It was when I was pregnant with my firstborn that I realized the so-called “luxury” skincare I had been using was filled with low quality synthetics and fillers. It was then that I set out to create a true luxury skincare brand built on the same old world principles of quality, craftsmanship and integrity as the world of fine winemaking I grew up in. This was the genesis of Vintner’s Daughter.
Tell us how we can best be incorporating Vintner’s Daughter into our skincare routine?
Through our whole plant nutrition, Active Treatment Essence and Active Botanical Serum create the bedrock foundation for your most balanced, healthy and resilient skin. Each elevates the other and together they deliver complete skin nutrition, hydration, plant actives and moisture in two simple yet powerful steps. It’s a bit hard to describe, but you know a Vintner’s Daughter glow when you see it. Even better, the results compound over time and skin becomes more healthy, resilient, and strong with every use.After cleansing, dispense one-third of a dropper of Active Treatment Essence into the palm of your hand and apply using our Pat/Press application method. While the skin is still damp, follow with 5-6 drops of Active Botanical Serum using our Push/Press Method for supreme moisture.
Any tips on how to keep your skin feeling hydrated after a long-haul flight?
Drink more water and apply an extra helping of Active Treatment Essence and then even more Active Botanical Serum to seal in the hydration, moisturize and protect.
Do you have any insider’s beauty advice to share with us?
Fewer and better products is the essential step. 16 step skincare routines have been the vogue for years but in reality, they can actually hinder your skin rather than benefit it. Not all products complement one another and the wrong combination can disrupt the skincare barrier which leads your skin more vulnerable. Using fewer and higher quality products that have multi-benefits is not only good for the skin but for the environment too since you are creating less waste.
Beauty and skincare aside, what else makes you feel beautiful?
“When I feel the most connected to myself, the world, and people around me.”
What would you say are the top benefits of Vintner’s Daughter?
At the heart of both of our formulas is our signature Phyto Radiance Infusion, a time-honored infusion process that begins with the world’s most nutrient-dense botanicals and ends with an infusion that supports your skin at the deepest levels. For Active Treatment Essence, we begin with 13 botanicals like nettle, moringa, ginkgo, green tea and astragalus that have been revered since ancient times for their medicinal effects. We spend three weeks extracting their full-spectrum of water-soluble nutrition. This is coupled with an additional two-week-long Phyto Ferment component to amplify absorption and efficacy. Added to the 70+ nutrients in the Active Treatment Essence’s Phyto Radiance Infusion are next-generation plant actives including two different sizes of hyaluronic acid, stabilized natural vitamin C, three plant stem cell complexes, probiotics, prebiotics, marine algae, and gentle micro-exfoliators. Skin is deeply hydrated, more plump, firm, smooth, even-toned and illuminated.
Active Botanical Serum’s 100% active formulation also rests on the multi-beneficial power of its Phyto Radiance Infusion. Botanicals like alfalfa, calendula, dandelion, lavender, and nettle are gently infused into our foundation oils over the course of three weeks. This is how 60+ of the most skin-beautifying oil-soluble nutrients are delivered to the skin in the most beneficial ratios to affect transformational change to the skin. We then add a strategic group of proven botanical and essential oils to amplify the activity of the formula. Skin is brighter, more resilient, deeply nourished and radiant.
Active Treatment Essence and Active Botanical Serum are the yin to the other’s yang. Their formulas were created to complete one another. Active Treatment Essence delivers multi-level hydration and nature’s most powerful water-soluble nutrition, while Active Botanical Serum delivers multi-beneficial moisture and nature’s most effective oil-soluble nutrition. Together, they form a complete skincare system in two simple, yet powerful steps.
The best piece of skincare wisdom you’ve ever been given?
“The realization that aging is a privilege.”
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KeiKei is a London-based award-winning journalist and videographer with a degree in Broadcast Media and Journalism from the University of the West of Scotland and an extensive reporting background in news, entertainment, travel, and lifestyle.
KeiKei has travelled the globe interviewing, reporting and reviewing. Her work has been published in worldwide media outlets including, The New York Post, The Guardian, The Mirror, The Daily Mail, National Geographic and Conde Nast publications.
