# Lakshmi ## Facts | | | |---|---| | Founded | 1990 | | Origin | Germany | | Headquarters | Wolpertshausen | | Status | Active | | Previous names | Lakshmi® Ayurvedic Beauty | | Manufacturing | Hohenlohe region (Wolpertshausen), Baden-Württemberg, Germany (own manufaktur) | | Distribution | Multi-channel | | Website | https://www.lakshmi.de/ | Lakshmi is a German natural-cosmetics company that makes Ayurvedic beauty and care products in a small workshop in Wolpertshausen, in the Hohenlohe area of Baden-Württemberg. It was founded by Katharina von Nagy, who still runs it, and it began with natural perfumes before becoming known chiefly for its kajal eye pencils. The company's own account dates its start to 1990 [4], while a 2008 anniversary text put the founding in Munich in 1988 [12]. The brand's identity rests on two strands: the Indian healing tradition of Ayurveda, which von Nagy encountered on trips to India in the 1980s, and biodynamic agriculture. Much of its range carries the Demeter label, the trademark for products from biodynamic farming, and the company is listed as a member of Demeter's Baden-Württemberg regional association [11]. Its kajals, made with a base of clarified butter (ghee), were awarded the Demeter declaration in 2007 [13]. ## Origin & founders Katharina von Nagy describes Lakshmi as the result of a personal search rather than a business plan. According to the company's history page, several stays in India in the late 1980s and her own experience with Ayurveda left a deep impression on her. In her own account she met the Ayurvedic doctor, meditation and yoga teacher Dr. Balaji Tambe in 1988, and the journey that led to the company "began in 1990" [4]. She says she founded Lakshmi not only as a brand but as a refuge for people who, like her, were looking for more. Her stated aim was to make products that nourish the skin without harming it and that help people find their inner balance and beauty. The company started with natural perfumes. Kajals came next, followed by lip care and then skincare. ### Founding date Two founding years circulate. Von Nagy's own text on the company website gives 1990, and the company's profile on the Demeter website also says it has been making perfumes "since 1990" [11]. A promotional article published in March 2008 to mark "20 years" of the company instead stated that it was founded in Munich in 1988 [12]. The two-year gap may reflect different starting points: 1988 is also the year von Nagy gives for her meeting with Dr. Tambe. This article follows the founder's own date of 1990. ## History & milestones The perfume work gave the company its first public profile. Lakshmi says that in 1998 it presented, at the BIOFACH organic trade fair, a designer set of natural perfumes made entirely without synthetic ingredients, which it describes as the first of its kind in the world [3]. That set became the line "Im Reich der Sinne" ("In the Realm of the Senses"). The 2008 anniversary article credited von Nagy with having made her name a decade earlier as an initiator of natural perfumes in the German organic market. In 2002 she created a further scent, Masala, built on flower essences, vanilla and amber. The company later moved from Munich to Baden-Württemberg. By the 2008 account, von Nagy and her team had been producing the Ayurvedic khol kajals in Wolpertshausen since early 2006. The kajals brought the next milestone. In February 2007, timed to the Vivaness natural-cosmetics fair held alongside BioFach in Nuremberg, the kajals received the Demeter declaration. Von Nagy said at the time that this was a novelty in decorative natural cosmetics, since it was the first time a product in that segment had been organic-certified [13]. The same 2007 article stated that the kajal was also organic-certified by Ecocert International. At that fair the company presented its stand under the motto "Ayurveda meets Bollywood", showing the kajal used as a complete eye make-up and even as a lipstick. For its twentieth anniversary in 2008 the company introduced new packaging for the perfume line, presented at Vivaness that year. The same article stated that the company had by then become the market leader in Europe in the production and sale of Ayurvedic kajal [12]; no independent figures are available to confirm that. ## Ownership Lakshmi is an owner-run business. The legal notice on its website names Katharina von Nagy as the provider, trading as Lakshmi Ayurvedische Naturkosmetik in Wolpertshausen, and the Demeter member listing describes her as the owner [11]. No parent company, outside investor or acquisition is documented. ## Philosophy & positioning Lakshmi presents itself as a specialist in natural cosmetics made by authentic Ayurvedic methods. A central idea in its self-description is that every product, including colour cosmetics, is meant first of all to care for the skin. The company says its colour kajals, lipsticks and lip glosses were all developed with care in mind, so that make-up can be worn while also supporting the skin. The firm's account of its formulas centres on what they leave out. It states that its products contain no preservatives, no synthetic or mineral oils, no stabilisers and no synthetic fragrances. To avoid preservatives, it explains, it makes water-free products, which are less prone to microbial growth. Natural raw materials are purified by gentle Ayurvedic methods, refined with herbs and then combined. The company says the products are made by hand. Ingredients, according to Lakshmi, come almost entirely from certified organic farming, mostly from biodynamic Demeter cultivation. Animal-derived ingredients such as butter, honey and beeswax, it states, come from Demeter-certified animal husbandry. It also says it takes care throughout the value chain that no living being is harmed because of its products, and it describes its range as timeless rather than driven by trends. Lakshmi has described itself as a pioneer of natural cosmetics. Its history page goes further, stating that it is the only manufacturer of decorative cosmetics in the world whose products are Demeter-certified [3]. These are the company's own characterisations. ## Products & innovation The kajal remains the product most closely tied to the brand. The Khol Kajal is sold for use on the waterline, the inner rim of the eyelid, and comes in several variants, including black, a version for men, and "Cold" and "Supercold" versions. According to the company, the khol kajal in black, brown and green carries Demeter certification. A separate range of colour kajals comes in many shades, and the company says these can also be used as cream eyeshadows. A cream eyeliner sold as "Duo" sits alongside them. The kajals follow a traditional Ayurvedic recipe. Their base is ghee of Demeter quality, and the black pigment is carbon made from ghee. Other ingredients named by the company include camphor, almond oil, sesame oil and beeswax. Lakshmi says the carbon in its kajal binds dust, pollen and other particles; this is a company statement rather than a tested claim. The kajals are produced, in the brand's words, in a small workshop in Baden-Württemberg using authentic manufacturing methods. Fragrance is the brand's other long-running line. "Im Reich der Sinne" consists of six scents. Three are floral: Rose, Sita, built around jasmine and woods, and Lyra, which includes neroli. Three more masculine compositions, Achilles, Baga and Dhuup, draw on sandalwood, petitgrain and frankincense. The company says all of its perfumes are vegan [7]. That statement covers the perfumes only, since the kajals contain ghee and beeswax. Today the fragrance range also covers alcohol-based natural perfumes, attars and other alcohol-free perfumes, aromatherapy products and hydrosols. The company suggests using its hydrosols, the fragrant waters left over from distilling plant materials, as a facial toner, an aftershave or a refreshing spray. Beyond make-up and fragrance, the catalogue has grown into skincare for sensitive, dry and oily or combination skin, body and foot care, cleansing, sun protection, hair oils, hair tonics and shampoos, and a men's line for face, beard and shaving. The company also sells Ayurvedic health products, including items for the ears, nose and eyes, oral hygiene, sleep, the immune system and muscles and joints. Not everything is made in Germany. The company states that its Radha face oil is produced in India, at the Atmasantulana Village [6]. ## Sustainability Lakshmi's environmental claims rest largely on its ingredient sourcing and its Demeter certification. The company says all products are packed in environmentally friendly packaging and made under ethical conditions. It rejects animal testing outright, and it describes its Demeter-certified range as free of preservatives and mineral oils. ## Current status Lakshmi is active. The company continues to operate from Wolpertshausen under von Nagy's ownership, and its website remains in service with a 2026 copyright notice. Its blog was updated several times in 2023 and 2024; the most recent dated post, on hydrosols, appeared on 8 October 2024 [2]. ## Timeline {#belagg-timeline} | Year | Event | Source | |---|---|---| | 1988 | Founder Katharina von Nagy meets the Ayurvedic doctor, meditation and yoga teacher Dr. Balaji Tambe (founder's own account) | https://www.lakshmi.de/pages/impressum | | 1990 | Lakshmi founded by Katharina von Nagy (founder's own account; 2008-2011 sources give 1988 in Munich, see conflicts) | https://www.lakshmi.de/pages/impressum | | 1998 | Presents a natural-perfume designer set without synthetic ingredients (line "Im Reich der Sinne") at the BIOFACH trade fair; brand calls it the world's first | https://www.lakshmi.de/blogs/lakshmi/lakshmi-eine-geschichte-von-indischen-traditionen-ayurvedischer-heilkunst-und-naturverbundenheit | | 2002 | Natural perfume essence "Masala" created (per 2008 advertorial) | https://www.ayurveda-portal.de/ayurveda-artikel/allgemein/656-20-jahre-lakshmir-ayurvedic-beauty | | 2006 | Khol kajals produced in Wolpertshausen, Baden-Württemberg since early 2006 (per 2008 advertorial); company originally founded in Munich | https://www.ayurveda-portal.de/ayurveda-artikel/allgemein/656-20-jahre-lakshmir-ayurvedic-beauty | | 2007 | Ayurvedic kajals receive the Demeter declaration, announced at Vivaness/BioFach in Nuremberg (February 2007); the same 2007 advertorial states the kajal was also organic-certified by Ecocert International | https://www.ayurveda-portal.de/ayurveda-artikel/allgemein/565-demeter-guetesiegel-fuer-ayurvedische-kajals-von-lakshmir-ayurvedic-beauty | | 2024 | Most recent dated blog post on the brand site (8 October 2024, on hydrosols) | https://www.lakshmi.de/blogs/lakshmi | ## Certifications {#belagg-certifications} - **Demeter** — “Ihr Demeter zertifiziertes Sortiment enthält keine Konservierungsstoffe sowie keine Mineralöle, Tierversuche sind ebenfalls tabu.” — https://www.lakshmi.de/ ## Signature products {#belagg-products} - **Khol Kajal (Schwarz / Men / Cold / Supercold variants)** — Lakshmi Khol Kajal - extra für die Wasserlinie! — https://www.lakshmi.de/ - **Farbkajal (colour kajal range)** — Diese Farb Kajal Stifte gibt es in zahlreichen wundervollen Farben — https://www.lakshmi.de/ - **"Im Reich der Sinne" natural perfume line (Rose, Sita, Lyra, Dhuup, Achilles, BAGA)** — Die Naturparfum Linie " Im Reich der Sinne " besteht aus drei blumige Düften - Rose, Sita (Jasmin-Hölzer) und Lyra (Neroli u.a.) - und drei mehr männlichen Düfte — https://www.lakshmi.de/blogs/lakshmi/parfum-naturkosmetik-von-lakshmi%C2%AE - **Creme Eyeliner "Duo"** — Khol Schwarz, Braun sowie die Farbe Grün wurden Demeter zertifiziert und zählen zu den beliebtesten Produkten der Eyeliner Naturkosmetik. — https://www.lakshmi.de/ ## Key ingredients {#belagg-ingredients} ghee (Demeter) · carbon made from ghee · camphor · almond oil · sesame oil · beeswax Source: https://www.lakshmi.de/blogs/lakshmi/die-magie-des-kajals-tradition-trifft-moderne ## Mentioned in {#belagg-press} - **Beautyjagd (German beauty blog)** (2011) — Review of the Khol-Kajal Schwarz Cold; notes camphor content, Demeter ghee base and a price of about 33 EUR per 1.5 g — https://beautyjagd.de/2011/10/17/lakshmi-augenwunder-khol-kajal/ - **Die Testbar (German beauty review blog)** (2013) — Review of Lakshmi Kajal Gold No. 214, including its INCI list (ghee and beeswax marked Demeter quality) — https://die-testbar.de/ayurvedische-naturkosmetik-goldener-kajal-von-lakshmi/ ## Sources 2. (T1) https://www.lakshmi.de/blogs/lakshmi 3. (T2) https://www.lakshmi.de/blogs/lakshmi/lakshmi-eine-geschichte-von-indischen-traditionen-ayurvedischer-heilkunst-und-naturverbundenheit 4. (T2) https://www.lakshmi.de/pages/impressum 6. (T2) https://www.lakshmi.de/pages/pflege-von-lakshmi-mit-naturlichen-inhaltsstoffen 7. (T2) https://www.lakshmi.de/blogs/lakshmi/parfum-naturkosmetik-von-lakshmi%C2%AE 11. (T3) https://www.demeter.de/betriebe/lakshmi-ayurvedische-naturkosmetik 12. (T4) https://www.ayurveda-portal.de/ayurveda-artikel/allgemein/656-20-jahre-lakshmir-ayurvedic-beauty 13. (T4) https://www.ayurveda-portal.de/ayurveda-artikel/allgemein/565-demeter-guetesiegel-fuer-ayurvedische-kajals-von-lakshmir-ayurvedic-beauty --- Glowpedia · · Published 2026-10-01 Please cite with a link to the article URL.