We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brittany & Aubrey Gasparo & McMillan (respectively) a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Brittany & Aubrey, thanks for joining us today. Setting up an independent practice is a daunting endeavor. Can you talk to us about what it was like for you – what were some of the main steps, challenges, etc.

Tennessee Placenta Services was born out of a simple but urgent need: families were asking for safe, respectful, and informed placenta encapsulation—and struggling to find it. Both of us were already birth professionals offering placenta services individually, but we quickly realized how fragmented and inconsistent access to placenta care was, even in larger cities. That’s when we came together with a shared vision: to create a centralized, trustworthy, and heart-centered agency that could serve not just our local area, but families across the country.

In the early days, the work looked like late nights labeling jars, packaging kits by hand, fielding calls from curious (and sometimes skeptical) providers, and educating families one conversation at a time. We developed our own safety protocols, built quality control systems, and shaped our offerings to be grounded in both clinical responsibility and holistic care.

One of the most important steps was transitioning from solo practice to structured business. We created systems to manage orders, track inventory, streamline communication, and train new encapsulators through our educational programs—so more families could be served with consistency and care.

Some of our greatest challenges come from navigating hospital resistance and public misunderstanding. The placenta world remains underrepresented in medical spaces, and advocating for informed consent and access within hospitals requires ongoing persistence. We’re also still learning that boundaries and systems matter—especially as we grow. It’s not just about serving well, but also about serving sustainably.

If we could go back, we would’ve started building infrastructure and growing our team sooner. We waited longer than we needed to begin mentoring and hiring, which initially limited our reach.

To anyone considering starting a practice—whether in birth work, placenta encapsulation, or holistic support—our biggest advice is this: lead with purpose, but build with structure. Passion is essential, but systems will sustain you. Know your values, clarify your mission, and get support early. You don’t have to do it all alone—and you shouldn’t.

Today, TNPS has grown far beyond our Tennessee roots. We now serve families nationwide through mail-in placenta kits and an expanding network of trained encapsulation specialists. We’re proud to offer scholarship opportunities, military family discounts, our Loss Mom Package for bereaved families, and comprehensive training programs to equip the next generation of placenta professionals.

We’re proof that when heart and strategy work together, even a grassroots dream can become a nationwide movement.

Brittany & Aubrey, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Tennessee Placenta Services (TNPS) is a professional placenta encapsulation agency based in Tennessee—now proudly serving families across the entire United States. What began with two passionate birth workers offering postpartum support has become a nationally trusted source for safe, soulful, and accessible placenta services and education.

Brittany entered the birth world as a postpartum doula, drawn to the often-overlooked needs of new mothers. Aubrey began her work as a birth doula after experiencing firsthand how vital continuous support is during labor. From the beginning, we both recognized that while birth receives much of the spotlight, the postpartum season is where deep healing—and often deep struggle—takes place.

We saw a need for better education, better support, and better access when it came to placenta care. That’s what led to TNPS.

We offer:

Placenta encapsulation

Tinctures, salves, and custom remedies

Keepsakes and cord preservation

Mail-in placenta kits (serving all 50 states)

DIY kits for guided home encapsulation

Placenta encapsulation trainings (virtual & in-person)

Programs including:

Scholarships for families with financial need

A Loss Mom Package for bereaved families

A Military Family Discount

A Referral Program for doulas, midwives, and birth professionals

But TNPS is more than a service provider—we are also an educational hub. We’re passionate about empowering families and professionals through education, even if they never hire us. Whether someone finds us through Instagram, attends a local training, reads an article on our website, or messages us with questions about hospital policies—we’re here for it. We believe knowledge is power, and when people understand their placenta’s value, they’re more equipped to make informed, confident choices about their postpartum care.

What sets us apart is our heart-led, high-standard approach. We prioritize safety, integrity, and personalized support—while actively working to de-stigmatize placenta remedies and elevate them as part of a whole-person approach to postpartum healing.

We’re most proud of our steady growth that’s never strayed from our values. We’ve served hundreds of families, trained dozens of encapsulators, and supported a growing community of birth workers and curious parents who just want to know more.

If there’s one thing we want people to know, it’s this:
You don’t have to be a client to be part of what we’re doing. TNPS exists to educate, encourage, and empower. Whether you’re preparing for your first birth or supporting others through theirs, this is a space to learn, grow, and feel supported in reclaiming the sacred postpartum season.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

We built our reputation by focusing on service and education first—not sales. From the start, our mission was never just to make money—it was to get placenta information into the hands of families and professionals who needed it. We saw a major gap in knowledge and access, and we stepped into that space with the goal of empowering people through education, advocacy, and compassionate support.

Rather than pushing a product, we focused on building trust. We showed up consistently—answering questions, sharing resources, providing education through our website and social media, and offering ourselves as a support system for anyone curious about placenta remedies, whether or not they hired us. We’ve always believed that when you lead with clarity, compassion, and consistency, the community will grow with you.

And for us, community doesn’t just mean the families we serve. It also includes the incredible network of birth professionals—doulas, midwives, chiropractors, lactation consultants, and wellness providers—who refer their clients to us and share in our mission. We’ve built relationships with other businesses and professionals who care about holistic, respectful, evidence-informed care. Together, we’ve created a referral-based web of support that allows us to serve more families while also uplifting our fellow providers.

What’s helped us the most is staying rooted in the heart of our work: placentas are powerful, and postpartum families deserve access to their benefits. By prioritizing education, connection, and integrity over profit, we’ve built a reputation we’re proud of—and a community we’re honored to be part of.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

One of our most impactful pivots came when we realized that sales and giveaways weren’t the key to growth—education and trust were.

In the early stages of Tennessee Placenta Services, we tried all the typical marketing strategies—flash deals, discounts, social media giveaways—hoping they would help us reach more families. But what we found was that none of those tactics truly reflected the heart of our work. We weren’t just selling a service—we were supporting a deeply personal, often sacred postpartum experience.

So we shifted. Instead of focusing on promotions, we began focusing on education and connection. We started showing up online and in our local community with valuable information—about placenta health, postpartum healing, informed choice, hospital policies, and more. We leaned into storytelling, into advocacy, and into becoming a trusted voice in our space.

That pivot changed everything. As we began prioritizing real, relationship-based growth, our business started to flourish—not just in numbers, but in depth. Families began referring us. Providers started trusting us. And people who weren’t even hiring us were still engaging with and sharing our work.

We learned that our strongest “marketing” tool wasn’t a discount code—it was being a consistent, compassionate, and educational presence in our community.

That shift didn’t just grow our business—it strengthened our mission.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tnplacentaservices.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tnplacentaservices/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tnplacentaservices/?paipv=0&eav=AfZbDhKQOs_xnS_hc7hsg1gHMhnDkzxN_H4KfOKJGnJVu1-tAQgW5JRK2q77UUWIn1Q&_rdr