The Lemongrass House Phuket

Lacquered lemon yellow and lime green, three shipping containers set along the road between Surin and Bang Tao Beaches in Phuket hardly look like a source of products for pamperers. Inside, however, body lotions, skin-calming powders and massage oils are concocted on the spot, using more than 90 natural scents and essential oils.

“From anchan extract to ylang ylang and straight off the farm,” said the American owner, Bobby Duchowny, about his product line during a recent interview at his store. Around him, tourists brushed past to grab from wooden buckets overflowing with just-made lavender soap (from 150 baht, or $4.67 at 32.15 baht to the dollar) and butterfly pea conditioner with aloe vera and green tea (100 to 300 baht).

A former film executive who found the smell of popcorn more intoxicating than the movies he was producing, Mr. Duchowny set off to sniff the world, focusing on natural aromas like Indian ayurvedic oils and Brazilian herbs. His innovations included a lemongrass mosquito spray that caught on with an eclectic clientele from Unicef workers along the Thai-Burmese border to Amanresorts, the luxury Asian resort brand.

After testing the marketability of his wares in Bangkok at the Chatuchak weekend market, Mr. Duchowny opened a closet-size Lemongrass House in Phuket, steps from Pansea Beach, home to three of the island’s top hotels. Their well-heeled clientele quickly spread the word, and expansion was needed.

Opened last year with a spotless mixing station, this latest address is an airy emporium with homespun product stickers that even include the first name of whoever blended the batch. Standard products include jasmine-mandarin Mommies’ Body Scrub with jojoba beads and shea butter (280 baht) and Lemongrass Kids’ Blue Chamomile Body Wash with green tea (250 baht).

Custom orders have put the mixologists to the test, like the recent request for bacon-scented room spray and body lotion made from Swiss chocolate, 24-karat gold flakes and Japanese sake.

Lemongrass House, 10/2 Moo 1, Srisoonthorn Road, Cherng Talay, Ampher Thalang, Phuket, Thailand; (66-76) 271-233; www.lemongrasshouse.com. Open daily, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Written by CYNTHIA ROSENFELD
Published by THE NEW YORK TIMES - travel.nytimes.com