The New Manhattan Spa With a Cure for Every Ailment

In 1995, when the herbalist and aesthetician Barbara Close opened her Naturopathica apothecary in East Hampton, the world was not ready for the unusual tinctures and ointments that lined the shelves. “It was sort of nut-and-granola back then,” she explains of the crunchy connotations that accompanied the idea of healthy living. But the forward-thinking wellness studio attracted a fierce local following (including Martha Stewart and Heidi Klum) and, before long, Close had launched a line of natural-minded skincare rooted in her deep knowledge of plant-based medicine. Two decades later, as she sets up shop in Manhattan with a highly anticipated new Chelsea spa, holistic juice bar, and storefront, the world has finally caught up.

Conceived as a place where energy-sapped urbanites can recharge with an array of nontoxic cure-alls, Close’s space takes a from-the-inside-out approach to wellness first. On one side of the store sits a Vitality Bar, where cold-pressed juices—sourced from Brooklyn and available on tap—come spiked with house-made tinctures, like the anxiety-quelling lemon balm found in the Mood Lift tonic. Kombucha, also on tap, and cow’s-milk yogurt from a biodynamic farm “gives us the ability to talk about gut health,” the founder stresses, not to mention the importance of stemming inflammation; The calm culminates down the rear hallway to the spa, where the six treatment rooms are blanketed in midnight black paint and accented with spherical light fixtures that glow like full moons. Treatments range from the toning Bio-Energy Lift facial, which employs gentle liquid microdermabrasion, to the Alpine Arnica massage, a deep-tissue unwind that is tailor-made for fitness diehards flocking in from nearby studios.

There’s also an airy white retail area up front, subtly scented with cedar incense, featuring the full range of Naturopathica’s potent antiaging and restorative skincare (don’t miss the Beech Tree & Ginseng Daily Moisturizer or the Mighty Mint Rescue Cream, starring the “Swiss Army Knife of herbs”). Other shelves contain cobalt jars that hold loose-leaf teas that Close and her nephew, a tea sommelier, source from estates around the world. “They’re a great way to get the active benefits of an herb in a mild form as an ongoing daily dose,” she explains, pointing out a traditional fermented pu-erh tea that the Chinese developed for journeys along the Silk Road, as well as her Bengal Chai blend, spiked with the adaptogenic herb rhodiola.

It’s an all-encompassing strategy that is meant to extend far beyond its downtown New York City neighborhood. “We want this to be a touchstone where people come back to learn new rituals and new recipes for health,” Close reveals of her goal to reacquaint all people—not just the wellness-obsessed—with the transformative benefits of self-care.

Naturopathica Chelsea Healing Arts Center & Spa opens December 7
127 W. 26th Street, 646.979.3960

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