Beauty history: when an anthroposophical chemist and a beautician created natural and healing cosmetics

The world of Dr. Hauschka, created by chemist and visionary Rudolf Hauschka, we have known it for some time thanks to word of mouth and the many celebrities who use these products with natural DNA. «We can certainly quote Jennifer Aniston, Julia Roberts, Pamela Anderson and recently too Hailey Bieberwho spoke of our concentrated colored fluid as their favorite product for a glow effect on the skin”, they say from the company, but the list doesn’t stop there.

Dr. Hauschka, a brand that is more than sixty years old, has always been a philosophy in addition to cosmetics. Born from the parent company Wala, founded in 1935 by Rudolf Hauschka to produce the medicinal remedies of the same name, it was an almost announced destination given that Dr Hauschka cared above all about health care and already in the 1950s, Wala had come to the decision to wanting to develop natural cosmetics to integrate medicinal remedies.

In 1967, due to the meeting between Rudolf Hauschka and Elisabeth Sigmund, researcher, developer and beautician, the Dr. Hauschka healing cosmetics according to Elisabeth Sigmund, which then evolved into the brand we know and which continues to propose an approach that offers the best possible cosmetic solutions.

The true brains of the Dr Hauschka brand, in reality, was Elisabeth Sigmund, a theater enthusiast who included actors and dancers in her circle of friends and developed the first beauty product for them: a sage foot bath, which relieves fatigue for the feet.

As a cosmetologist, she also emphasized how stressed the actors’ skin was, which was treated and made up with products that were difficult for the skin to tolerate. To Wala, the company for which she worked as a beautician to help develop cosmetic products, she proposed a decorative and treating cosmetic, with benefits for the skin. The rest is history, what we have been told by Paola Baj, CEO of Wala Italia Srl since 2020parent company of the brands, Wala Medicinal Remedies, Dr.Hauschka Med oral hygiene products and Dr.Hauschka Cosmetics.

«Respect for the rhythm of nature, this is Wala, founded by the Viennese chemist Rudolf Hauschka, who for years had interacted with Rudolf Steiner, father of anthroposophy (who considers universal reality as a spiritual manifestation in continuous evolution in its unity with the world physical, ed.). It was Steiner himself who advised him to create products that respected the rhythm of nature because rhythm brings life. So Hauschka founded the company in 1935, starting work on developing a range of natural, alcohol-free medicines using a rhythmic process based on alternation natural polar of light and dark, heat and cold, movement and stasis, totally respecting the rhythm of life of medicinal plants. The same process of extracting the active ingredients from plants is followed for the production of cosmetics. Wala has always aimed to develop medicinal and cosmetic remedies that do good for man and the planet. Man and planet are always at the center of every Wala activity. Its logo, for example, is the graphic transposition of the mission: the dot represents man at the center of everything and the three semicircles the three kingdoms: vegetable, animal, mineral. Wala, in its way of operating, embodies respect for all these elements.”

From this perspective, to pursue its main objective of keeping Wala’s mission intact, that is, to develop cosmetics and medicines that can help do good for man, society and the planet, in a continuous and sustainable way, the company from 1986 belongs 100% to a foundation into which the profits of individual nations will flow. «The profit is therefore totally invested in research and development projects for new products in line with this philosophy and the search for new suppliers of raw materials, even in developing countries, so as to support fair trade, he said. Paola Baj.

What is the healing cosmetics on which the brand has been based since its origins?
«The founder of our 100% natural cosmetics line, Elisabeth Sigmund, wife of Rudolf Hauschka and cosmetologist, stated that “man needs a dual beauty, internal and external”. In fact, at Dr. Hauschka we have a holistic concept of the skin, which is based on the different conditions (vs. types), which can manifest themselves but also change over time. Our cosmetics are designed to support the skin in carrying out its fundamental functions and not replace it: thanks to the targeted formulations based on medicinal plants, every skin need finds an effective impulse at any time from cleansing, to toning, to face and body treatments, up to make-up. Furthermore, to allow the skin to regenerate
during the night, we let it breathe without covering it with fat-based products.”

What has contributed to the brand’s global boom?
«In Germany the brand has always been a leader in its reference segment and has grown with the affirmation of attention to green and sustainability which has an important history in that country. The brand has been present in Italy since 1998 and is a point of reference for premium, quality, 100% natural cosmetics.”

What are Dr Hauschka’s most iconic and recognizable products?
«The most iconic are certainly la Rose cream for the daywhich today still has the same formulation as when it was created in 1967. Elisabeth was inspired by a cream that her grandmother Anastasia made, called “Creme Celeste” (heavenly cream) based on almond oil, and rose water, known for having been one of Elizabeth of Austria’s beauty secrets. Another cosmetic that has a history is la Cleansing Cream created by Elisabeth Sigmund with a unique formula, taking inspiration from the almond paste that her mother used for cleansing. Its composition based on calendula, chamomile, St. John’s wort, antillis and almond flour, delicately cleanses the skin and gives it vitality and refines the complexion. There Toning Lotion instead it was born from her experiences as a child with a lotion that her mother used.”

«He thus developed a formulation based on medicinal plants such as witch hazel and anthyllis which favor the natural activities of the skin, giving it freshness and vitality and regulating its hydration processes and its intrinsic structuring abilities. Elisabeth Sigmund played a fundamental role in the development of the Dr. Hauschka cosmetic, make-up and beauty treatments line. She was one of the first women to attend medical school in the 1930s. After the Second World War she settled in Stockholm and opened a beauty studio where she used the products developed during the years of study and developed the protocols of beauty treatments with these products.” She was also interested in oriental disciplines and traveled to India where she discovered many rituals which she integrated into her practice once she returned to the West.

Can you tell me the story of the birth of Hauschka make-up?
«The first make-up products were launched in 1981, after Elisabeth developed a passion for make-up, attending the theater environments of Jena and Stockholm and a theatrical make-up course. So she proposed that Wala develop a make-up line and worked with them to understand how to create colored pigments of plant origin, but which last on the skin. In 1999, the first complete range of 100% natural and healing make-up was launched.”

Does this mean that the decorative cosmetics conceived by Elisabeth Sigmund was in fact a curative line, so to speak?
«In his own way, yes. The first decorative cosmetics products launched on the market starting from 1981 were dedicated to lip and eye make-up. Their healing base included a selection of medicinal plants suitable for the purpose, just as happened for the line of facial treatments. The makeup products were born in a certain sense from the interests and visions of Elisabeth Sigmund. And even today they combine the aesthetic and decorative aspect with the effective treatment and benefits for the skin that nature offers.”

What are Dr Hauschka’s certifications today and what is the difference compared to the past?
«Wala has always certified its biodynamic crops with the international label Demeter biodynamic certification, and since 2007, the year of birth of the independent international label Natrue, also 100% of the products of the Dr. Hauschka line. Wala’s internal requirements of naturalness, ethics and sustainability are often so high that the certifiers themselves are inspired by our guidelines. In fact, we are one of the founding members of the Natrue label which certifies authentic natural products in the world.”