Stefanie Walmsley's journey into the world of natural beauty wasn't exactly a straightforward one.
Born and raised in the Philippines, Stefanie’s original career was as an actress. While on set, she found herself becoming more interested in everything that happened off camera and sure enough, she began to discover her passion for producing. In 2000 she relocated to New York to study film, launching her career as a producer, and starting a whole new chapter.
Her greatest achievement came in 2011 when a film she produced, “God of Love” won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short.
Following the tradition of many young professionals in Manhattan; working long hours, prioritizing happy hour over sleep, pizza over kale (you get the picture!), burnout eventually ensued. She went from having a fairly normal, clear complexion to simply wanting to hide. After testing countless “scientific, revolutionary break through products” (read: loaded with “fancy “chemicals) with little to no success, she was inspired go back to her roots.
In 2013, she returned home to Cebu, the tropical playground in the Philippines where she spent most of her childhood to unplug and recharge. After a particularly hot afternoon on the beach, she slathered herself with fresh aloe vera-- fresh from the source. She was reminded of all the natural beauty remedies she had grown up with, but had completely taken for granted. Gorgeous ingredients like moringa (or malunggay), virgin coconut oil, and tamanu were everywhere- organic, fresh and abundant. She was inspired, to say the least, and upon her return to New York, immediately got to work on all-natural line that used only the best ingredients.
Prim Botanicals launched in early 2015 and what started as a face oil to save her own skin, grew into a full line of botanicals blends with the mission to share as many beautiful ingredients from home, with the rest of the world.
Today, Prim's focus centers around scents and spreading happiness- two of Stefanie's personal obsessions.