Luna Delgado Botanicals had its grand opening Friday afternoon at the newly configured retail location at 800 Dempster St.
City officials and community leaders – including Mayor Daniel Biss, Katherine Gotsick of the Main-Dempster Mile community organization, Fourth Ward City Council Member Jonathan Nieuwsma and Garrett Karp and Annette Patko of the Evanston Chamber of Commerce – attended to show support.
Delgado said she has been making botanicals her entire professional life, initially for friends on an individual basis and then wholesale since 2020. Now all products will be made on site in the Dempster Street location.
The retail section is at the front of the store and Delgado makes her products in a large open room in the back. She also plans to offer a monthly lecture series in the front section of the store.
Delgado said she was tutored in Ayurvedic medicine by a practitioner who taught her how to use essential oils to create products.
Delgado’s specialty is formulation and blending, using plants to create products applied to the skin. Her seasonal approach to skin care also takes into consideration the environment.
“All of my products are topical,” she said. “I don’t do any ingestibles because that’s a whole different can of worms. The amazing thing about the skin is that it is a digestive organ and it absorbs things 200 times faster than if you were to ingest something. So application of medicinals or herbals on the skin is quite effective.”
She cited as her most popular item the Deeper Sleep foot cream, which she said “helps soothe and relax.”
All of Delgado’s products, described on her website as “daily essentials with seasonal skincare rituals designed for the individual,” are made without toxins, gluten, pesticides, parabens or genetically modified organisms, also known as GMO. The products are cruelty-free, natural, vegan, sustainable, organic and antioxidant. Prices range from $15 to $108.
Parked outside the store on Sherman Avenue sat a portable sauna owned and managed by Ryan Cohler. His venture, Sauna Club, offers devoted sauna fans and first-timers the opportunity to reserve a space and time in his sauna at various locations around town.
His sauna has wheels and travels, so it’s available to rent for private events and overnight. Prices start at $15 for 30 minutes and reservations are recommended.