From e-commerce to eco-hub: Wonderhome Naturals’ journey to its first physical store

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The local wellness brand that was born out of the pandemic opens its first brick-and-mortar store, where customers can buy, refill, and help save the planet

MANILA, Philippines — At first glance, the new Wonderhome Naturals store on the third floor of Quezon City’s Opus Bridgetowne Mall evokes the look of any other chic lifestyle boutique — rows of soft-toned bottles, baskets woven from beige fibers, and well-stocked wooden shelvings that would make any shopaholic’s minimalist heart sing.

BLUE, GREEN, and brown all over. The storefront is inviting, spacious, and filled with fragrant products. All images by Angela Divina/Rappler

But its mission represents something deeper and more ambitious: the online brand is now a full-scale physical model of how homecare can work in a circular economy, one refill at a time.

Sowing pandemic-planted seeds

Launched on June 17, the Filipino brand’s flagship store hopes to be more than a retail space.

For the first time since its 2021 pandemic-era founding, the sustainable homecare brand has brought its entire product line — over 100 general-use and niche homecare products, including multipurpose surface sprays, wood top cleaners, yoga mat cleaners, desk and gadget cleaners, pre-poo sprays, hand sanitizers, and laundry detergents — into a physical, refillable, sensory setting.

“This is the culmination of everything,” Marvin Chua, one-half of Wonderhome’s brother co-founders, told Rappler. “This is the first time where people can actually experience the brand, not just to see all the products in front of them and smell them — we have scent tests — but also to do the refill.”

The brand, born out of lockdown restrictions, grim statistics, and ecological urgency, wants to be an effective companion for Filipino households looking to live sustainably.

“The Philippines is actually one of the top ocean polluters in the world. We’re such a small country pero we’re in the top five contributors,” Chua explained. “So we wanted to make it very easy for people to help the environment […] you can swap out any of your household cleaning products with Wonderhome.”

FROM THE refill wall. Reusability in this manner is the brand’s guiding ethos.

Theirs is a pursuit grounded in daily life, first made accessible to Filipinos through online storefronts, and now, a standalone venue that invites users to refill instead of rebuy.

With a tagline introducing Wonderhome as “the Philippines’ most complete and sustainable home care brand,” Chua further explains their branding as such.

“Our advocacy is being natural and plant-based so it’s safe for people at home… even babies, kids, and pets. The second one is being sustainable for Mother Earth.”

Coconuts, cockerspaniels, and circularity

You’ll find biodegradable formulas made with Philippine coconuts, bottles molded from upcycled ocean plastic and compostable materials, and a design engineered to reduce shipping-related carbon emissions through modularity; yes, even the bottle shapes are custom-cut to reduce wasted space in transit!

FEELING INDECISIVE? See the products’ modularly-designed products while selecting from store-exclusive scents.

Beyond their packaging, the brand’s commitment to local sourcing is central to their strategy. 

“One of the main product ingredients of Wonderhome cleansers is Philippine coconuts,” Chua highlighted.

“The Philippines is one of the top producers of coconuts in the world, pero it’s not really super recognized to everyone. It’s 2-in-1. It’s to promote local products, and we have so much coconuts here, and also to make a superior product. Kasi using that as a surfactant base, it really makes the product unique and eco-friendly.”

KNOW WHAT’S in your cleaning supplies. The storefront displays information on how key ingredients function.

The brand has long been active online, and has built a loyal base through e-commerce and social media. The flagship store marks a pivot to in-person community-building.

Customers can walk in, try scents, get assistance on product pairings, and refill everything from surface cleaners to pet shampoo.

On the topic of pets, several dogs were present at the launch event, and even as an adorable piece of store decoration; this alludes to the soft-launch of WonderPaw: the brand’s new sustainable pet care line marked by distinct purple bottles.

ANIMALS ARE stakeholders, too. Fur parents can also tend to their pets’ needs in sustainable ways.

“It’s a full line of cleaning and grooming […] from shampoo, conditioners, to urine sprays,” Chua explained, promising a formal rollout soon. Like its parent brand, WonderPaw commits to plant-based ingredients and refillability for pet owners.

Beyond the bottle

Wonderhome Naturals’ sustainability model also speaks through its partnerships. The company’s coastal clean-up efforts and collaborations with Planet CORA, known for initiatives like Eco-Ikot Centers, demonstrate their commitment to a circular economy and marine conservation.

Chua teased an upcoming collaboration with their collaborators on a limited-edition sanitizer scent, where proceeds will go toward shared advocacies.

As the store opens its doors to curious passersby and longtime followers alike, Wonderhome’s team hopes the space becomes more than just a shopping stop. In a city increasingly choked by plastic and excess, a habit like this — refillable, actionable, and locally-made — might be exactly the kind of daily revolution worth rooting for. – Rappler.com