Sara Lynn Panton, co-founder and CEO of Vitruvi. Photo by Reece Voyer
By Alison Sinkewicz
@alisonsi
Life’s most vivid memories are often linked with scents. The olfactory bulb is closely associated with areas of the brain (amygdala and hippocampus) that are connected to the production and recollection of memory. It’s why sunscreen instantly takes us to the beach, why our partner’s sweaters are so coveted, and why CK One should be illegal.
“Sometimes the only thing that you can control is the way that your environment smells,” explains co-founder of Vitruvi Sara Panton. Vitruvi, based in Vancouver, creates, distills, and blends essential oils for a range of wellness and beauty applications. “Our first collection, was all about creating rituals around aroma,” Panton. The blends, which are meant to be applied at certain times of the day, take advantage of the brain’s unique and strong associations with smell. “We designed a scent to wake up with, something at your desk with, something to go to bed with. So, making a perfume using essential oils, and that really was what our focus was weather you’re in a plane or a hotel room, by applying that it can help the brain get into the zone.”
Today, Vitruvi has expanded to a collection that not only includes these custom blends, but an entire range of essential oils developed for beauty, diffusing, skincare, and homecare. Panton, who continues to operate the business with her brother Sean Panton, brings her background healthcare to Vitruvi’s rigorous dedication to specifically-designed products. “Coming from a science background, there are some [important] physical properties of essential oils,” she explains. “Weather its antimicrobial properties or antibacterial properties like tea tree and lavender or showing people how to clean their homes with them or even their own skincare, and its more about the chemical properties of the oils.”
The brand, which can be found at major retailers like Nordstrom, Goop, Holt Renfrew, was founded in 2011 right when health and wellness became part of our more mainstream discourse. “It started as a passion project, I built the original website with my brother who was my roommate while i was in school,” Panton says. “I would come home and write emails and articles from my bathtub.” Quickly, the game became less about getting known (the brand was picked up by Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie early on) and more about retaining the core values of the company as the scale began to escalate. “The company started being customer centric and that’s what we care about, our customer services drives our operation,” explains Panton. “We want to know what everyone is saying, we want to hear the feedback, and our customers are the nicest people in the world.” It’s a proven formula. In June of 2018, Vitruvi will be the first essential oil company to launch across North America with Sephora.com.
As the market continues, so seemingly, does the uses of the products. The essential oils which are available from the familiar lemon to the less-common Geranium, aren’t just made for the diffuser. “I do all sorts of weird stuff with them,” Panton laughs. “For handwashing dishes i always put 7 drops of orange oil into the water and it helps to naturally break down grease and it smells really nice.” Panton also suggests taking that Geranium oil and adding it to a warm washcloth for an uplifting facial. And if tea tree oil is too harsh on your skin for a blemish treatment, Panton suggests lavender oil which also contains antibacterial benefits.
Even as Vitruvi continues to grow, Panton retains that the focus of their operations continues to be centred around the experience. “We just want our customers to feel special,” Panton reflects.
“If anything, as a company, we just care about helping people help themselves and help them take on the world.” A feat accomplished one drop at a time.
Alison Sinkewicz is a writer and curator based in Vancouver, BC but from Vancouver, WA. Her words can be found in VICE, Pitchfork’s October, Dwell Magazine, Nuvo Magazine, Canadian Art, and emails to her mom, Debra.
