Granado vs Natura: 150 Years of Brazilian Apothecary
The two houses that built Brazilian beauty. Their philosophies could not be more different. Here is how to shop from each.
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# Two Houses, Same Country, Different Planets
Granado — The Imperial Apothecary (est. 1870)
Granado was founded in 1870 in Rio de Janeiro by José Antônio Coxito Granado, a Portuguese immigrant pharmacist. In 1880 they were named official supplier to the Brazilian Imperial Family (Pedro II). Their original Rio apothecary, on Rua Primeiro de Março, is still a working pharmacy today — the oldest continuously-operating pharmacy in Brazil.
Granado's aesthetic is apothecary heritage — glass jars, letterpress labels, pastel soaps, a shop design that hasn't fundamentally changed in 150 years.
What to buy from Granado:
- Vintage Soaps — pink, lavender, coffee, tropical-fruit variants. Genuine triple-milled French-style. $6-8 each.
- Glycerin Glycol Hand Cream — one of the all-time great hand creams. $12.
- Lavender Body Oil — heritage formula, relaxing, not too heavy. $22.
- Pink Toothpaste (Pink Campanha) — the iconic rose-pink toothpaste. More a collectible than a clinical pick.
Natura — The Amazonian Modern House (est. 1969)
Natura was founded in 1969 by Luiz Seabra, an ex-banker obsessed with Amazonian plant science. The company pioneered sustainable sourcing from Amazon cooperatives in the 1990s (before "sustainability" was a word), acquired Aesop in 2013 and The Body Shop in 2017, and is now the largest cosmetics company in Latin America.
Natura's aesthetic is modern-Brazilian-eco — the design is clean, the ingredient stories are specific (pracaxi oil from the Northeast, cupuaçu butter from Acre, andiroba from Amazonas), and the messaging centers on indigenous partnerships.
What to buy from Natura:
- Ekos Castanha Body Lotion — Brazil-nut + cupuaçu butter body moisturizer. Genuinely excellent. $28.
- Ekos Pitanga Exfoliating Sugar — pitanga-fruit sugar scrub, fresh-smelling, not harsh. $35.
- Chronos Hydrating Serum — their anti-aging line, underrated. Good HA + peptide story. $55.
- Ekos Andiroba Body Oil — calming, faintly medicinal scent, great for stressed skin. $32.
The philosophical split
Granado looks backward — Imperial Brazil, Portuguese apothecary tradition, heritage formulation. Its products feel like souvenirs.
Natura looks outward and ahead — Amazonian science, indigenous collaboration, sustainable forest economics. Its products feel like statements.
Both are genuinely Brazilian. Both deserve shelf space in a well-rounded beauty routine.
How to shop them together
- Granado for ritual + decoration: soap, hand cream, body oil, toothpaste.
- Natura for actives + body: body lotion, sugar scrub, serum, body oil.
My personal travel rotation: Granado Vintage Soap in the shower, Natura Ekos Castanha on the body after, Granado Hand Cream on the nightstand.
Both ship internationally. Both price kindly. Both reward you for engaging with the brand story — which is, after all, what Brazilian beauty is actually about.
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