Stoic Beauty

Stoic Beauty is a Canadian skin care brand based in Toronto. They create natural skin care that includes cleansers, serums, moisturizers (and more) using water-safe ingredients. Their website is easy to use and can be searched based on product type, skin concern (hyperpigmentation, eczema, fine lines, etc), or by skin type.

Stoic Beauty Toronto Skin Care Company

How would you describe your business?

Stoic Beauty is a mission-driven skincare company that bridges science, sustainability, and ethics. We focus on creating high-performance skincare that doesn’t compromise the health of our waterways. Every product we make is designed to be both effective and fully biodegradable in water—ensuring that what we put on our skin returns safely to nature.

Our process always starts with research. When developing a new product, we focus on a specific skin concern—whether it’s dehydration, rosacea, eczema, or fine lines—and dive deep into the scientific literature to identify the most effective natural ingredients. But we don’t stop there. We also examine the environmental impact of every ingredient, selecting only those that meet our high standards for both performance and biodegradability. To date, we’ve built a research database of over 400 cosmetic ingredients. Once we have a formulation, the products are made in small batches in our in-house lab—ensuring freshness and quality in every jar.

At Stoic Beauty, we believe that the ethical life is the beautiful life. Our goal is to set a new standard—one where scientific integrity, environmental responsibility, and luxurious skincare go hand in hand.

What was the inspiration to open your business?

The inspiration for Stoic Beauty came from a moment of crisis and a moment of discovery. Before the pandemic, I had been working as a theatre artist for nearly a decade, creating physical theatre for social change. But when the world shut down, all my work disappeared.

In that uncertain time, my mother—Dr. Jolanta Wodzinska, an organic chemist—told me to come to her lab. We started making creams together, at first as a personal project. Our bestselling formulation, Harmonia, was created during that time to help me and my aunt manage rosacea flare-ups triggered by stress. But as we worked, my mother made an offhand comment that changed everything: “It’s so strange how in pharmacology I have to study how medicines interact with water systems, but in cosmetics, I don’t.”

That realization hit me hard. My background in theatre had always been rooted in advocacy, and environmental justice was a passion of mine. Suddenly, I saw the gap in the beauty industry—the lack of attention to how skincare products impact water systems. That was our lightbulb moment. We knew we had to create a new standard for water-safe skincare.

Stoic Beauty was born out of necessity, curiosity, and a deep sense of responsibility. What started as a personal project in a lab became a mission: to make high-performance skincare that doesn’t compromise the health of our waterways.

What’s your bestselling product?

Our best-selling product is our Harmonia Balancing Night Cream.

Why do you think it’s so popular?

We originally created Harmonia to soothe rosacea flare-ups and redness, but it quickly became a favourite—not just for those with sensitive skin, but for anyone seeking a deeply nourishing night cream.

Harmonia is more than just a moisturizer—it actively calms redness and inflammation while strengthening the skin’s natural barrier. Formulated with all-natural ingredients, it has a luxurious, silky texture that melts into the skin. In 2024, it even won an Alle Award (the “Oscars” of cosmetic formulation) for the most significant indie formulation.

People love Harmonia because it works. It reduces redness and evens skin tone, it’s rich but non-greasy, deeply hydrating yet lightweight, and above all, it’s wonderfully replenishing for the skin.

What’s your favourite product from your own shop?

While I still use my Harmonia cream every night, I’ve absolutely fallen in love with our latest product—Lakhesis Vitamin C Pumpkin & Dill Day Cream. I use it every morning. It’s lightweight yet packed with so many powerful ingredients that I don’t need multiple products. Which is a lifesaver, because I have a toddler! The more time I spend in the beauty industry, the more I’ve become a staunch believer in skincare minimalism. This day cream truly has it all.

What’s your favourite Toronto shop?

That’s such a tough question, but I have to say—Roselle Desserts (an Ontario bakery) has my heart.