Justine Kahn, founder of Botnia

Tell us a bit about yourself and your company. How did you get started down this path?

I started my career as an esthetician in 2001, working in traditional spas in Los Angeles before moving up to San Francisco in 2004. Over time, I noticed that the skincare I was using on my guests wasn’t delivering the results they wanted, which sent me down a rabbit hole for the next ten years, creating a product line that incorporates cosmetic chemistry, plant biology, skin physiology, and how that intersection actually works.

I started doing facials with an apothecary-style approach, getting more specific and intentional about what I was applying and why, and people were responding. In 2010, I opened a spa and started doing a completely different kind of facial, building everything from scratch. And finally, I was getting the results my clients deserved. 

The philosophy behind Botnia is really about nutrition. Our outside body requires nutrition to be healthy, balanced, and able to thrive in our modern environment, just as our inside body does. When I approach the skincare line, I do so from a nutritional standpoint: how can we bring skin nutrition into the product and the body? You are feeding your body with plants, not because plants are romantic, but because plants are what have the most impactful nutrition for the body. We make everything in small batches and have a microfarm here in Sausalito where we grow many of our ingredients. It’s a real-time connection between our world, our ecosystem, and our skin, the way you’d think about food.

How do you approach staying healthy and relaxed when you travel by plane?

Hydration is everything for me. I don’t drink sugary drinks on a plane, I don’t load up on salty foods, and I try to skip caffeine in favor of something that actually supports my nervous system. I’ll often bring my own chamomile tea blend and just ask for hot water. I’m a nervous flyer, so nerve-supporting teas are genuinely useful for me, and caffeine tends to dehydrate the skin further anyway.

I also always wear sunscreen on flights. People don’t think about this, but you’re getting a significant amount of radiation at altitude, even without a window seat. SPF plus a barrier-protective oil is non-negotiable for me on a plane. I love our Wisdom Oil for travel, because it has strong antioxidants that protect the skin and create an occlusive barrier against cabin air.

And when I land, one of the first things I reach for is our Soothing Repair Mask, it’s loaded with hyaluronic acid and really helps me bring hydration back into my skin after hours in recycled air.

Favorite in-flight snack that you bring/make?

If I’m honest, I always think this will be the trip where I have my snacks figured out. In my mind it’s something healthy and easy, like good crackers and cheese. In reality, I usually end up with a protein bar from the airport and a giant bottle of water. My biggest travel tip is to skip salty foods, Bloody Mary mix, alcohol, and highly caffeinated drinks in favor of water. Your skin and your body will thank you.

How about in-flight skincare?

My in-flight trio is our Rose Geranium Hydrosol, Wisdom Oil, and SPF layered over the top. The hydrosol is quick, refreshing, and easy to use without making a mess. It depends on the time of day of the flight, but that combination does real work.

If I feel like I need to actually cleanse – which I sometimes do on a long-haul – I’ll use our Balancing Oil Cleanser. A few pumps massaged into dry skin, then I’ll dampen a cloth with bottled water I’ve brought from outside the plane and gently wipe my face down. I always bring my own clean water, because I never use the tap water on board. Then: Hydrosol, Wisdom Oil, SPF. It feels like a genuine reset mid-flight.

Playlist to relax?

I love making playlists. This one is my most recent favorite. Flights are also when I finally catch up on podcasts. Jon Stewart, The Daily, and Hard Fork are always in rotation.

Do you take any health supplements prior to traveling or during?

Teas are really what I do. I don’t take supplements before travel, I love bringing a really beautiful tea with me, something that calms the nervous system. Chamomile is always what comes to mind. I really like Traditional Medicinals. Fun fact: the same team that helped us design the manufacturing process for our lab also built theirs, so I know it’s produced in an incredibly safe facility with very strict GMP standards. Outside of the chamomile from my own garden, it’s the tea I trust most.

Any jet lag strategies?

I’ve heard of fun ones like wearing sunglasses during the day before traveling somewhere on the other side of the globe, thinking about blue light and circadian rhythms beforehand. But ultimately, what’s worked best for me is just to keep going with the day as if nothing has changed, once I land. Letting the body do its job by adjusting to the physical light and rhythm of wherever I am.

At night, I’ll take tryptophan—a wonderful way to ease into sleep—and magnesium, which calms the body and helps regulate digestion. Those two have been really reliable for me. Melatonin gives me a groggy feeling, so I don’t tolerate it as well. 

What is your travel uniform?

It really depends, but I always think about something my grandmother used to tell me before every trip: “Fly pretty.” Back then, getting on an airplane was an occasion, and you dressed for it. I still carry that with me. I’m not much of a comfort-over-fashion traveler. I like breathable pants (I recently found a pair from Everlane that I love), a cotton tee or button-up, and a wool or cashmere sweater.

Do you have any rituals you use while on a trip to reset and ground yourself in a new place?

My skincare ritual is genuinely grounding for me. I travel with a complete routine for both morning and evening—cleanser, hydrosol, serums, moisturizer, face mask. It might sound cumbersome to some travelers, but having all my bathroom essentials right there is such a relief (especially if it’s work travel), and gives me a moment of real luxury.

I think one of the most luxurious things you can do while traveling is have your creature comforts—the things that make you feel at home even when you’re far from it. I always travel with my home pillow. Going to sleep with my own pillow, my skincare done, just makes me feel comforted. Kinda like my version of an adult teddy bear, plus it’s an elevated travel experience.

Do you have a workout or movement routine you stick to while traveling?

Sometimes I’ll do some light yoga, a chaturanga series with sun salutations, nothing elaborate but enough to get the blood moving. And then there’s walking. Travel involves a lot of walking, which is always wonderful for those of us who sit for long periods during the day. Sightseeing, moving from here to there, I’m usually doing more walking than usual when I’m traveling, and my body always feels really good for it.

How do you maintain healthy eating on the road?

Just remembering to get enough vegetables. That’s always what I’m looking for on a menu. Sometimes, even in the sides section, you’ll find the broccolini, the carrots, a side salad—and just making sure I’m getting enough of those alongside whatever local food I’m eating keeps things feeling balanced.

I’m also not a big morning eater, so keeping breakfast really light helps my body set the tone for the rest of the day.

Dream hotel bathroom setup: what’s in the shower, by the sink, and in the vanity kit?

In the shower: My cleanser—I love an oil cleanse in a steamy shower, it’s such a nice combination—plus shampoo and conditioner, and a beautiful artisanal bar of soap that I’ve brought from home. That’s the dream. For shampoo and conditioner, I use Under Luna. The Tulsi Bloom Shampoo and Revive Conditioner are absolute ride-or-die products for me. I recently let my natural gray hair grow in, and it gets incredibly frizzy when I travel if I don’t have the right products with me. For soap, I’m obsessed with everything from Dryland Wilds. They harvest in New Mexico and make the most beautiful products. Their Piñon bar reminds me of Santa Fe, where my mom lives, so there’s almost always one packed in my travel kit.

By the sink: Gentle Cleanser, Rose Geranium Hydrosol, Well Serum, Wisdom Oil, Restorative Face Cream, SPF, and Eye Cream. I know I went big there.

And hiding in the vanity kit: the face masks. The Sulfur Mask if there’s a breakout, the Kale Mask for brightening, the Soothing Repair Mask for hydration. Plus the Essential Enzymes for exfoliation. I like having those extras on hand, you never know what your skin is going to need after a long day of travel.

Have you discovered any beauty or wellness rituals abroad that you’ve adopted?

Every culture has a unique way of thinking about selfcare and spa. One of the most memorable treatments I’ve ever had was at Naturhotel Lüsnerhof in the Italian Alps, where they wrapped me in lanolin from wool – essentially a hammock of lanolin-soaked fleece that they just wrapped around my whole body. I sweated, and my skin was completely transformed. It felt so extraordinary to have all of those fatty oils on my skin that it genuinely changed how I thought about body care. It directly inspired our Aura Body Oil. Before that I was really into body creams and hadn’t explored body oils the way I do now. I added them into my regimen after that trip and haven’t looked back.

What are some of your favorite beauty bring-backs from your travels?

Stones. I’ve brought back gua sha stones, soft river stones I’ve found in specific places and polished rocks from crystal shops I’ve discovered on the road. They remind me of the trip, but they also function as tools I use in my own skincare practice at home. It’s a wonderful connection to a place that stays alive in a practical way. I love using it in small circular motions around my eyebrows. I tend to hold a lot of tension there, especially when I’m flying, and it always helps me relax. 

Is there a place that surprised you with its wellness culture, or where you felt especially balanced and restored?

I’ve loved Ten Thousand Waves in Santa Fe for over twenty years. It’s a mountain retreat where you soak outside among the Pinon trees at high altitude with very clean air. There’s something about mountain regions that restores my sense of self: the quietness, the way the oxygen feels. It’s just incredible.

But as far as wellness culture more broadly, Europe has a fundamentally different relationship with it. I’m reminded of spas in Italy where the hotels have an entire circuit of saunas, steam rooms, and salt rooms that guests simply flow through as part of the experience. It’s not a luxury add-on, it’s woven in. Coming back after a day of walking and having that available to you is such a different way of living. I think about what we’re missing here, and also how much space there is in American culture – which is such a rich melting pot – to bring in multiple healing traditions. I hope we keep moving in that direction.

I’ve heard incredible things about Terme di Saturnia in Tuscany. I also had the privilege of soaking at La Posta, which was such a beautiful experience. If you enjoy hiking, there are also natural hot springs in the forests around Tuscany where locals go. They’re free to visit, just be prepared for a little hike to get there.

Your hometown of Sausalito must have some great wellness offerings. What are your local go-tos?

Besides my own Atelier – where you can receive a facial directly over the ocean, with the sound of the waves underneath you – Sausalito is a genuinely special place. It’s where I invent a lot of our skincare, and it’s also a place people find deeply restorative.

There’s a place that just opened called Fjord, which is a floating sauna. Similarly to our Atelier, you can go and sauna and then jump directly into the ocean. I’m so excited about them being in our neighborhood. You can actually find Botnia products in their changing rooms, which is a sweet connection. The wellness community here in Sausalito is small and real and I love it.

Driver’s Market is one of my favorite places to grab a healthy meal. 

My acupuncturist is also incredible. Her practice is called On Point Acupuncture, and she’s a true healer. During treatments she incorporates sound bowls with acupuncture, and it’s one of the most restorative experiences I’ve had. It’s a really special place.

For a herbal pharmacy, Good Earth is incredible. They have such a breath of knowledge and have most things you would find in a European pharmacy. They also have an incredible loose plant apothecary for you to make your own tea blends! 

For hiking, I love a small beach just on the other side of the mountain from Sausalito called Tylers Beach – but in my family we’ve renamed it Casper’s Beach after my daughter’s friend Casper. It’s the most dreamy path down the side of the Marin Headlands surrounded by sand and wildflowers until you reach the beach where it’s got a very secluded feel even though you are literally five miles from San Francisco.

What are a few of your favorite wellness destinations?

Two Bunch Palms, Palm Springs – incredible mineral soaking springs and a 1920s grotto that has its own quiet magic. It asks nothing of you.

Ten Thousand Waves, Santa Fe – a Japanese-inspired mountain retreat situated at the top of the Sandias. Beautiful, restorative, and unlike anywhere else in the US.

Stanly Ranch, Napa Valley – a massive sauna, salt room, lymphatic drainage machines, and a beautiful pool. A wonderful place to spend a day.

The Chelsea Hotel, New York – a beautiful spa with a sauna and rooms that feel incredibly private while overlooking the city.

SingleThread Farm, Healdsburg – while they don’t have a spa yet, it’s a three-Michelin-star and three Michelin key experience where every detail has been considered. Staying there is deeply restorative in a way that’s hard to explain.

Where are you dreaming of going next?

Croatia. It has such an extraordinary diversity of nature – a mountainous region, incredible beaches, ocean, and Mediterranean landscape. When I travel, I love going somewhere where I can swim, hike, and immerse myself in a culture that feels genuinely far from my own. And they cultivate lavender there, which feels especially meaningful to someone who works with plant ingredients every day. That’s next on my list.