Dawn Marie West launched La Botica as a chill, muse-worthy identity and lifestyle. Offering everything from candles to chill wear, the luxury self-care brand evokes the dreamy, effortless and undone. We chatted with West about scent inspiration, her proud Black and Afro-Dominican heritage, what’s on the horizon for her chic concept brand, and more.
Photography provided by La Botica
What prompted you to start La Botica?
Working as a fine art photographer and at an internationally known museum in New York City, I was feeling the effects of burnout. What grounded me was my daily rituals of burning aromatherapy candles and palo santo, and being intentional in what I wore at home. It was what I looked forward to and when I felt most creative. Eventually, I decided to create a brand around self-care because not only did it feel necessary for my own wellness, but I felt that I could create a brand that is done differently — design-centric while maintaining a connection to the earth.
What does La Botica mean to you?
La Botica means challenging myself as an artist. I took everything I learned in the art and museum industries and attached that to fragrance and visualizing what that looks like for self-care. La Botica is an extension of myself, and it allows me to share what I’ve learned about the importance of self-care.
What inspired you to create the different variations of La Botica’s candles?
We wanted to have varieties that are both unisex and complex. For example, Barcelona is a blend of bold florals and musk that entices and was inspired by flamenco. Casablanca was visualized as the Moroccan fig trees that grow in this landscape and the unisex ability this lush fig has in perfumery. Fragrance can be transportive, and we wanted this first collection to play on the idea of travel. When working with perfume and fragrance notes, I kept coming back to the idea of the intentional spaces and the feeling of being on an extended vacation.
You also have designed a line of Chill Wear. Why did you decided to incorporate these street-style pieces into your brand?
I have always been interested in clothing design. Much of my photography career has included working in fashion. When I worked on the candle line, I also felt like the ritual for me was burning a candle, but in my favorite sweatpants and bodysuits. It played back into my connection to the street style of New York City and that attachment to the gallery space. It all felt interconnected to being a New Yorker. I wanted it to be luxurious but not pretentious, so it felt right to bring luxe but down-to-earth pieces into the collection to wear while at home or during a chill day out.
How do your Black and Afro-Dominican background and culture influence your products?
I wanted to bring in culture because it felt so close to me as an artist. Having a connection to the earth was important to the richness of both of my cultures. Using ingredients that are both indigenous and sourced from the Dominican Republic is something we did for the recent release of our República candle. This was very important to my Afro-Dominican culture. Street style also has a cultural influence in the Black community. I’ve taken those elements and brought them together to create a luxury space.
How has the coronavirus outbreak affected your ability to create?
Working during this difficult time has been challenging both mentally and logistically. Mentally, it was jarring to create intentional ritual items in such an uncertain time. I live in New York City, and the landscape was so surreal during the height of the pandemic. We lived in such fear that it felt impossible to create at times. I really just focused on our core collection during that time and did not release any projects we worked on until recently. Logistically, raw materials have been scarce since the pandemic and this time has really pushed me to become very savvy in terms of sourcing.
Are there any new scents on the horizon?
Yes, I have at least two that are being formulated for an end-of-year release. Both will play on earthy notes and aromatherapy elements. They are being formulated in our studio, which has been very exciting for me as I have pushed myself as a creative into the perfumery space.
What’s next for La Botica?
We are looking forward to creating pop-up show room events for visual and sensory experiences. Experience is so huge for us, so this is something we are really excited about. We also are working on expanding on our candle collection to include limited-edition glass, textures and fragrance to curate a line that is ever-evolving and inspiring.
