We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Porshia Ward a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Porshia, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

Saintly Naturals started while I was in college as a way to earn extra income. What began as a side hustle eventually grew into a business, but over time I found myself being unfulfilled.

What’s interesting is that even though the business looked very different back then, the name Saintly Naturals always carried a deeper meaning for me. I’ve always been drawn to the idea of purity and intentional living. In many ways, the vision was there from the beginning, I just hadn’t fully grown into it yet.

As the business grew I found myself chasing trends and selling products based on what was popular and what I thought people wanted. While there was nothing wrong with that, I began to realize that the brand no longer reflected who I was or what i truly wanted Saintly Naturals to represent.

During that season, I spent time praying and seeking God’s direction.I felt let to transition the business into a faith-based brand where every product would carry meaning and encouragement. I wanted created products inspired by scripture, products that cared for the body while also uplifting the spirit.

Making that transition came with challenges. I assumed that stepping into my purpose would immediately lead to success, but instead I lost customers and experienced a season of uncertainty. Looking back, I realize that while the business was transitioning, God was also transitioning me.

He was teaching me that success isn’t measured only by sales or numbers, but by impact. Another part of that transition was learning how to show up as myself. For a long time, I worried about coming across as too “churchy” or what others would think. It felt safer to keep certain parts of myself separate from the brand. I realized that being authentic required me to surrender. If God was calling me to build this business differently, then i couldn’t pick and choose which parts of that calling to embrace. Over time I stopped seeing it just as a business, but as a ministry. Every product, conversation, and customer interaction is an opportunity to encourage someone, serve someone, or point them toward hope.

That changed how I define success. Success is no longer just about sales. It’s about being faithful to the assignment God has given me and creating something that positively impacts the people it reaches.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Porshia Ward, and I’m the founder of Saintly Naturals, a faith-based body care brand.

What makes my brand unique is that every scent has meaning. Rather than naming products solely on fragrance notes or trends. Scents and collections are inspired by scriptures and biblical themes. Whether it’s a reminder of God’s unconditional love or intimacy with Christ. I want the products to carry a message beyond what’s inside the bottle.

While my products are designed to help care for the body, I believe they also create opportunities for encouragement in everyday moments. Sometimes people need a reminder of God’s love, His promises, or their identity in Him, and I love being able to intertwine those reminders into a customer experience.

Beyond Saintly Naturals, I also share faith-based content through Saintly Living and help other entrepreneurs bring their God-led visions to life through branding and web design with Launch with Porshia. While those projects look differently on the surface, they are all connected by the same mission: to encourage and create with purpose.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Last year I unexpectedly lost my aunt, who was truly the heart of my family. After her passing, I found myself in a place where I had no desire to continue. The passion I had for my business faded, and I made the decision to close it down because I simply didn’t have the emotional strength to carry it forward at that time.

But what that season taught me is that resilience doesn’t always look like pushing through immediately, it can also look like pausing, grieving, and surrendering what you though things would look like.

Eventually I began to feel that pull again. What I had closed, He reopened in me with a deeper sense of clarity and purpose.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Instead of trying to appeal to everyone, I stay true to my vision and allow by brand to speak to the right audience. Not focusing on the growth but showing up as myself and being authentic.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.saintlynaturals.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saintlynaturals/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/saintlynaturals/
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@saintlynaturals

Image Credits

Head Shots: Luxuree Photography
Event Shot: Melinda Harkley Photography and Videography