It was the best natural deodorant I had ever used, I could work a twelve-hour day and still smell like I had just stepped out of the shower.

I have been using the Black Chicken Remedies Axilla Deodorant Paste for over a decade. I still remember exactly how it started. I had just started my first toxin-free store and had never even heard of a deodorant paste. Chey, the founder of Black Chicken Remedies, handed me a sample. I tossed it into the glove box of my car with every intention of using it, got distracted by the chaos of starting a new business, and completely forgot about it.

It was the summer of 2011. That little sample sat there for weeks, baking in a hot car. Then one of my staff asked if we had a natural deodorant she could test before a Bikram yoga class. I remembered the sample in the glove box, pulled it out, and it still looked and smelled perfectly fine. She took it with her, and the next day at work, she could not stop talking about it. I placed my first wholesale order with Chey that same afternoon, and the rest is history.

And after selling it, using it and talking about it for more than a decade, here are a few things you might now know about the original Axilla deodorant paste.

1. It grew entirely by word of mouth

Axilla grew the same way I first discovered it. One person tried it, realised it worked, then told someone else. 

2. The name means something

The name Black Chicken comes from an old legend about a woman who lived in a village and helped people with her natural remedies. They called her the Black Chicken. And Axilla? That is the Latin word for armpit!

3. It helps absorb moisture without blocking sweat

Axilla is made to help absorb moisture and neutralise odour, without blocking sweat the way mainstream antiperspirants do. It keeps things feeling fresh without trying to stop your body from doing what it is naturally designed to do.

4. There is a bicarb-free version for sensitive skin

If you have reacted to natural deodorants in the past, bicarb soda may have been the reason. It can be a little strong for some sensitive pits, so Black Chicken Remedies created a bicarb-free version, which uses magnesium hydroxide to help neutralise odour and borage seed oil to support the skin barrier.

5. It is preservative-free

Because Axilla is a paste and contains no water, it does not need the same preservatives you often see in water-based formulas. Clove essential oil also plays a clever role here, helping keep the formula fresh and stable while giving Axilla part of its signature scent.

6. It has the perfect family-friendly scent

The original scent is a unisex blend of peppermint, lime, mandarin, geranium and clove. It smells fresh, clean and not overpowering, making it perfect for the whole family.

7. The range has grown a lot over the years

What started as one paste is now a full Axilla range. Alongside the original and the Barrier Booster, each now also come in a Signature scent, a richer blend of ylang-ylang and sandalwood with a calming, ocean-inspired (natural) fragrance. There is also an Axilla Deodorant Spray in a glass bottle, and a 250ml refill so you never run out.