A vast physical distance separates the birthplaces of traditional Chinese medicine and Alpine health resorts. But a new partnership between the beauty brand Herbar and the hotel Schloss Zermatt brings those two traditions together for a unique range of facial treatments at the world’s first CBD and adaptogenic spa.
Herbar’s founders Catarina Oliveira and Rui Liu met five years ago in a Berlin cafe when Liu overheard Oliveira speaking about mushroom coffee. (Oliveira has a Master’s degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine and Liu has one in nutrition). Liu, who grew up in China and first learned about adaptogens through TCM, interjected. The two began a conversation about medicinal herbs, skin care and natural healthcare which eventually led to the development of their adaptogenic skincare line, Herbar.
Herbar’s mushroom-powered facials at the Schloss Zermatt spa
Currently comprised of four products – the ‘Face Oil’, ‘Barrier Cream’, ‘Face Serum’ and ‘Skin Pearl’ supplements – the brand harnesses the power of adaptogens in all it does. Herbar also makes the ‘Gua-Shroom’, a fungi-shaped tool for face massage crafted from materials such as feldspar, quartz, tourmaline and tiger eye stone. (From first-hand experience, my skin looked dramatically brighter and healthier after just a few days of using the Herbar ‘Face Nectar’ and ‘Barrier Cream’ and the ‘Skin Pearls’ work outside as well as inside, acting a little like caffeine pills without the crash afterwards).
So what are adaptogens? Simply put, they are a category of plants and plant-based extracts that adapt the body to physical, biological and chemical stressors. A range of them is packed into every Herbar product. These include reishi mushrooms, known as the ‘immortality mushroom’; bakuchiol, a natural alternative to retinol; the vitamin C-packed jujube date; and the tremella mushroom – which almost beat hyaluronic acid for its moisture-retaining properties – to name just a few.
Oliveira initially began studying TCM because she was fed up with the curative, as opposed to preventative, healthcare model behind most Western medicine. Hailing from Portugal, the Herbar co-founder struggled to understand why most people waited until they had an issue to get medical treatment, rather than staying in tune with the body no matter what. After spending time with her and Liu at the Schloss Zermatt, I learned that every part of the body is linked to a part of the mind. During dinner, I watched people tear up as Oliveira read their tongues – a common TCM practice – because of what she discovered. The shades, patches and cracks in a tongue can reveal a wealth of information about a person’s physical or psychological state.
For instance, a pale tongue means there is an issue with the lungs, which is also connected to grief; a yellow coating in the back of the mouth indicates issues with digestion and the necessity of getting off sugary foods or starchy foods; a cracked tongue means you need more hydration, and so on. At that same dinner, Liu told me that the easiest way to ensure you have a healthy diet is to try to eat twenty-five different foods a day. That might sound impossible, but it can be done by snacking on mixed nuts or fruit; eating a salad with a base of mixed grains and different vegetables, seeds and, of course, mushrooms.
I was also able to experience one of Herbar’s signature facial treatments at the Schloss. The spa is built around the philosophy that better health can be achieved by relaxing your mind and working your body through yoga, skiing, good food, restorative sleep and the spa’s very own range of CBD and adaptogenic treatments. Inside its doors, you can find a range of different saunas, a cooling CBD shower, a pink salt room and treatment rooms for Herbar’s facials which combine the brand’s products with techniques such as acupressure, extraction and deep tissue massage.
Included on the menu is ‘Make Me Glow’, a revitalising facial designed to bring radiance and vitality to your skin; ‘Detox & Go’, a detoxifying facial to cleanse and purify the skin; and the ‘360 Sculpting Facial’, a sculpting treatment that tones, lifts and rejuvenates.
The Schloss Zermatt spa is Herbar’s first hotel collaboration. But, if you’re unable to make it to Switzerland any time soon, I am told that there’s more to come in 2025. So watch this space.
