I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Anita Knotekova-Patel of Rodina Botanicals.  Please read on to hear about her organic botanical skin care line, and advice she is passing down from her mother to her children, her favorite local restaurants, and more. 

Please tell us about yourself and your family.  How long you have been in the area, and where you are originally from? 

My husband and our two boys have been living in Barrington for 10 years now. We originally moved here for two reasons. One, we wanted our boys to be able to attend the Barrington 220 Chinese Immersion Program and two, we love spending time outdoors, and being surrounded by nature.  We enjoy living in Barrington and have met some of our dearest friends here. We joke that in a small town like Btown, we all are one or two degrees separated from knowing the person sitting next to you at a ball game or at Cook Street coffee shop.

I am originally from Slovak Republic and met my husband in Chicago while we both lived in the city, and I was in graduate school.  In my previous life, I used to work for a large international property insurer. I trained and mentored underwriters and account managers after going through the ranks myself. At some point I realized that the fast pace of that lifestyle was not sustainable for both our family and my health and so I decided to retire from the corporate world.  

What is Rodina Botanicals, and what prompted you to start your own company?

Rodina Botanicals is a small indie organic, plant-based skincare brand based here in Barrington. Rodina means family in my native Slovak, as either our family’s needs or needs of our close friends, that are like family to us, were the inspiration for our products.

It all began one sunny afternoon when I picked up our two boys from their summer camp. They were peppered with nasty looking mosquito bites, some the size of glass marbles. On the way home, we stopped at a few health and drug stores, looking for a gentle and natural solution to our mosquito emergency. None of the products seemed safe for their sensitive skin though.

Modern herbalism, Ayurveda, and aromatherapy have been interests of mine ever since I remember. When I was growing up, my family always turned to natural and toxin-free options first. So instinctively, I sought these out for reference and inspiration.

Necessity being the mother of invention (no pun intended), after working tirelessly the entire week, while the boys were at their camp; I finalized my prototype formula. This later became the basis for our natural and toxin-free Post Mosquito Bite Salve that helps to soothe and calm the mosquito bites and works on no-see-ums as well. 

At that point, I was no stranger to skincare formulations. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease, a form of autoimmune disease in my late 20s. I have been very cognizant about ingredients in food and skincare products, especially gluten, soy, and hormonal endocrine disruptors such as synthetic fragrances. I have a very sensitive and acne prone skin and so in my 30s while still in the corporate world, I started making my own skincare for my personal use as even many natural products on the market would irritate my skin.

What is your mission or motto?

Our mission is to help our clients enjoy their lives to the fullest without being bogged down with pesky skin concerns such as mosquito bites, dry skin and cuticles, cracked heels, chapped lips, basically all that non-sexy stuff.

Our motto is Keep life simple; LESS IS MORE! LESS as far as the number of ingredients. LESS as far as the number of products required as well as number of applications needed.

I must admit I am a total ingredient snob and am not apologetic about it! We kind of joke about this but not really as I have very high and uncompromising ingredient standards. We turn to Mother Nature for all our ingredients and strive to source as much locally as possible, including our beeswax and some of the herbs that we infuse our organic carrier oils with.  All our products are created in small batches so they are fresh and can be customized for our client’s needs if needed.

We really like to keep things simple, including our simple zero-waste packaging. We encourage our clients to either upcycle or recycle our metal tins, glass jars, and glass bottles. Being a very busy mom, I am all about being practical, and as result many of our products come in travel size versions too, so they are not only perfect for travel but also to keep in one’s purse or backpack while you are on the go, running those errands or to your kiddo’s soccer game.

Which of your products is your favorite?

Hmm, that’s a tough one! As I am behind all our formulations, I consider them all like my children, so I don’t necessarily have any favorites. Depending on what season we are in, I gravitate to different products. In spring, I enjoy our Down To Earth Hand Balm. During summer, you can always find in my purse or backpack our Post Mosquito Bite Salve for those pesky mosquito bites and Botanical Goodness Calendula Balm for those unexpected but inevitable cuts, scrapes and sunburns. For autumn season, I gravitate towards the earthy and calming scent of our Wild Meadows cuticle oil. In general, I belong to the low maintenance camp, including my nails that I keep very short. However, I do like to keep them healthy and neat. I just use our cuticle oil and occasionally apply a clear nail polish. Honestly, who knew that so many folks would be practically addicted to our cuticle oil which seems to have its own following and is our best seller.

Over the winter months, you can always find our Unscented Too Double Whipped Body Butter on my bathroom counter. Plus, since my lips get chapped very easily and my hands get dry from frequent washing, I carry our Pure and Simple (Unscented) Lip Balm and one of our MyLotionBars on me all year round. I also like to keep our Sweet Es Gardeners Hand Balm on my nightstand as I like to apply it not only on my hands but also use it as a natural alternative to paraffin dip for my feet as I tend to walk barefoot a lot and am pretty rough on my feet.

Where can customers find and purchase your products?

We launched our Rodina Botanicals website in March of 2021, so folks can find all our products on our website. Over the last three years, we have been very fortunate to find local like-minded women-owned small businesses that share our values, and we partnered up with them. Each of these businesses carries their unique assortment of our products that is the best fit for their respective clientele. If you are local to Barrington-area, you can find our products at Ahavah Organic Salon and Spa, Ambrosia Euro-American Patisserie, Bente Vintage, G&G Women’s Boutique. Salon Anovin in Carpentersville also carries an assortment of our products and so does Elawa Farm in Lake Forest during their summer market season.

What do you like best about being an entrepreneur, and what is the most challenging aspect of it?

I enjoy the variety, where not one single day is the same. One day, I will be researching and working on a new formulation prototype as I still create all our product formulas and reviewing feedback from our client test groups and the next day, I might be researching a topic for our next BLOG post or our client email in the morning and meeting with one of our retail partners in the afternoon.  And of course, I always enjoy communicating with our incredible clients, whether in person, via DM, text, or email. We are very fortunate when it comes to our clients. They are very loyal, and we never take that for granted. 

Even though I love the variety, I think what I find the most challenging is wearing myriad of different hats as some hats I really fancy while others not so much, especially the behind the scenes the administrative aspect of running a small business.

How do you divide your time between work, family, and self-care?  How do you unwind?

Let’s face it, the struggle is real or at least can be, especially if we go through our day on an empty tank. Maybe because I know from personal experience, what it feels like to experience burnout; we at Rodina Botanicals and I personally am big proponent of what we call METime. In a nutshell, METime to us means the time we set aside to fill our hearts, nourish our souls, minds, and sprits again. It can involve spending some alone time or with some of our favorite humans. These days I am more intentional about scheduling my METime each day whether it is a yoga class, walk with my close friends in one of the nature preserves around Barrington, cooking with our boys, curling up with a good book in my favorite reading nook or going on a bike ride with my husband. Some days, it is a 5-minute meditation and other days it is a one-hour phone call with one of my close friends. However, it is not one and done type of a situation. Especially as women and moms, we tend to put everyone else first, but we cannot help those around us, including our loved ones if we are running on empty all the time. I am very blessed that my three guys keep me accountable and remind me to take my METimes as I occasionally still burn candle from both ends myself. We got to put that oxygen mask on first before we can assist those around us!

What are you currently reading?

You can typically find 3-5 books on my nightstand at any given time as I like to mix things and depending on the mood I am in. Some evenings I might gravitate to more non-fiction and sometimes I enjoy reading fiction. One of the books that I am currently reading is the Hormone Intelligence by Dr Aviva Romm. These days there is so much noise out there about perimenopause, hormones, and menopause. I find her holistic approach to getting one’s hormones in check with the help of food and more holistic means refreshing.

I am also re-reading a modern classic, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I do not usually re-read books, but this one is one of those books that every time I read it, I get something else out of it.

Which local restaurants are your family’s favorites?

For breakfast or brunch, we enjoy Southern Bells. For a quick healthy snack, breakfast, or lunch on the go, I like to grab my favorite acai bowl from Nektar Barrington. As we enjoy cooking and prefer to eat at home, we do not eat out too often. However, when we go out for dinner in Barrington, our boys enjoy Ciao Baby! and Chessie’s Restaurant. My husband and I like our date night dinners at gigi Wine Bar and Bistro.  As far as sweets and special occasion treats, Ambrosia Euro-American Patisserie is our definite go-to. I mean who could resist a slice of their chocolate torte with raspberry mouse and dark chocolate ganache.

What is a little-known fact or talent about yourself?

Well, if I shared it with you, it would not be little-known anymore 😊. But in all seriousness, I think some folks think I am extrovert, and some think I am total introvert, but I am very much of an ambivert. It typically just depends on the situation and the company I am with. I am not a big fan of small talk though.

What was the best advice that you regret not taking?

I do not have any regrets as I tend not to operate in the realm of “should have-s/should have not-s”. I like to live in the present and look towards the future. One piece of advice that I am glad I took was from my mom. When I was growing up, she would always remind me to never compare myself to anyone else at school or in life. The only person to compare myself to is Moi! I used to get annoyed when I was young and she would remind me but now, I appreciate it.  And yes, now our boys hear the same advice from me and usually roll their eyes like I used to when I was their age.  But one day, maybe, just maybe they will appreciate it too.

What advice can you offer to the graduating class of 2024?

A personal and hand-written Thank you note goes a long way, especially in today’s fast-paced world. One of my mentors at my last corporate job told me that it was my follow-up hand-written Thank you card that convinced him that I was the right person for the job when it came time to decide who they hired. He kept it in this desk drawer for close to 10 years and showed it to me on my last day when I retired from the corporate world. 

You can check out Rodina Botanicals online at https://www.rodinabotanicals.com/, or visit one of the stores listed above.