Wilco

Wilco, registered as Wilco GmbH, is a German natural-cosmetics company based in Munich and founded in 1983 by Konrad Wild [5]. It began as the first German manufacturer to import jojoba oil from the United States and sell it in pure, unblended form through pharmacies [5], and that oil has anchored its skincare range ever since. The company remains a small family business — reported at one to ten employees — making plant-based face and body oils alongside a separate line of AFA-algae food supplements.

Now run by the founder's son, Wilco positions its work around simple formulas built only from natural ingredients. Its skincare products carry vegan, cruelty-free and organic claims, and the company sums up its approach with the tagline "highest premium quality from field to bottle."

Konrad Wild set up Wilco GmbH in Munich in 1983 [5]. His entry point was jojoba oil: he was, by the company's account, the first German manufacturer to import the oil from the United States and distribute it pure to pharmacies rather than as a blended ingredient [5]. In 1993 his son Marco Wild took over the business, widening the skincare line, adding jojoba-based nail care, and beginning private-label and contract manufacturing for other companies [5]. Wilco continues to offer both its oils and its supplements on a private- or white-label basis to trade customers.

In 2000 the company opened a nutritional-supplements division, becoming the exclusive European importer of AFA algae, sold under the "Wilco Green Foods" name [5]. A series of certifications followed over the next decade and a half. The AFA algae received vegan certification, carrying the Vegan Flower mark, in 2014 [5]. The following year, in 2015, Wilco launched its "Wilco Natur" organic skincare oils and gained NATRUE certification [5]; the algae itself was certified organic in 2016 [5]. In 2018 the company developed a range of children's care products under license with the German storybook character "Der kleine Drache Kokosnuss" [5]. The family firm reached roughly its fortieth year around 2023.

Wilco describes its products as drawn "from nature's treasure chest," favouring what it calls simple and effective recipes made solely from natural ingredients and free of unnecessary additives. According to the company, its aim is to interest people in natural skincare without chemical additives, and to support health and a sense of personal balance through natural products. It frames itself as a transparent, sustainability-minded family business that values fair dealing with staff, suppliers and customers.

The skincare range centres on cold-pressed plant oils for daily face and body care, spread across three lines — La Cura, Classic and the organic Wilco Natur. Jojoba oil is the signature product, sold in several sizes and also as a jojoba nail-care stick, and it is joined by wild rose, almond and sea-buckthorn oils. The company says its body-care oils are gently cold-pressed from the first pressing, and that it avoids paraffins, parabens, silicones and synthetic fragrances and dyes [3].

Beyond the value claims, several of Wilco's products hold third-party certification. Its skincare oils are NATRUE-certified, and the AFA algae is certified to EU, German and US organic standards, checked by the German inspection body Abcert (DE-ÖKO-006) [3]. Wilco states that the algae is dried using a method it calls "Bio Active Dehydration," and that every batch is tested for microcystins, aflatoxins, arsenic and heavy metals before import [3]. The company reports that its products are made in Germany and packaged in recyclable, low-impact materials.

Wilco is active as of the most recent available information. It is a small family-run company headquartered in Munich, with a live website and online shop and a presence on Instagram under the handle @wilconatur. Its product and milestone history runs from 1983 through the late 2010s, and the most recent concretely dated content on its own site is a customer testimonial from February 2022.