We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Allana Caslin. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Allana below.

Allana, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What do you think it takes to be successful?

I believe success is not the result but the cause of our growth and evolution in life and in business. I use to see it as a destination that I could measure only through the amount of profits or sales. What I learned on my journey is that my success is my belief in my purpose, and my commitment to staying the course. Success to me is tied more to what I’ve accomplished by maintaining my focus despite the failures along the way.

Sometimes people ask me about how I was able to create my original natural product formulas or how I came up with my business name “The Be Well Shop”. I smile and share with them that it took years of trial and error, research, and failed attempts. That I have what I call my “business card graveyard” full of reminders of how I have evolved and grown. My success is the person I became in that process and the person I am always evolving into. My success story is still being written every day I show up in my purpose, committed to my beautiful journey.

Allana, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My journey to “The Be Well Shop” started at Cheyney University (PA), the 1st HBCU campus. I noticed dry skin patches on my body and didn’t know the cause. I picked up my bottle of lotion and read the long list of ingredients, many of which I couldn’t pronounce. I decided then and there to replace the chemical-laden personal care products with natural alternatives, starting with my lotion. I began using natural oils and then started using shea butter blended with oils. This was a great start! I began to see improvements in the overall quality of my skin.

Once I moved to Georgia, the climate change was great for me, but the warm temperatures caused my personal care concoctions to cause a greasy residue. So, I returned to the “lab” for a unique, non-greasy formula with all the benefits of shea butter and essential oils without the hazard of sliding around in my sandals all summer.

After years of trial and error, chemistry homework, and what I can only describe as divine guidance, “Skin Be Well” was born! It was the solution to dry skin without being greasy!

Skin Be Well was full of all the nutrient-rich oils my skin loved and lasting non-greasy moisture. But how would it smell? I topped my formula off with the essential oils of lemongrass & eucalyptus oils for their healing benefits to the mind and body and called it Citrus Mint.

After receiving such great customer feedback, many asked for a hair product for dry hair and scalp, so back to the lab I went! I made the necessary adjustments to my original formula to make my “Hair Be Well,” specifically formulated for the benefit of those who suffered from dry hair and scalp issues.

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

The most effective strategy, so far, for growing my clientele has been connecting personally and sharing samples of my products.

I spent the start of my business journey behind the camera and mainly posting about the details of my products. Although I think this is a necessary part of my growth, I was missing the human element, which was me. Once I began doing more vending events, I gained the connection I was missing. It allowed me to find out more specifically who my target customer was and gain feedback about my products and what they wanted. The most important part was the trust I established.

While online, I also began to post my journey in wellness and share my love for words via inspirational and informative posts. This was not easy for me to move the personal side of myself into my business, but I’m glad I did.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about selling platforms like Amazon/Etsy vs selling on your own site.

I currently sell my products on Etsy and my business website.

When I first started selling my products online, I began on Etsy. Websites like Etsy are a great way to get your product out without figuring out all the details and incurring the initial costs of setting up a website.

Although I still have an Etsy account, I only share my website with my customers. My website is my “home” site and allows my customers to learn more about my brand and me to track my customers’ shopping habits better.

Contact Info:

• Website: thebewellshop.com/shop
• Instagram: instagram.com/thebewellshop