We recently connected with Dr. Monica Riley and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Dr. Monica, thanks for joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
When I think back to how I started my business, I have to go way back before 2016. The idea for clean beauty self-care, with special care to women of color, really began in my Nana’s kitchen. I was only 4 years old, but I remember being mesmerized by the plants and flowers that she would boil in this huge soup pot every Saturday. I mean the incredible aromas that wafted from that pot; lavender, lemon, orange, vanilla, lily-of-the-valley, peony and cinnamon, carried me into my own little world of happiness. I was happy, I was safe and I was loved. And, to my 4 year old self, I was living my best life….munching Nana’s homemade biscuits with strawberry jam and peach preserves and watching her create elixirs that healed the body, mind and spirit. Nana gave me the respect for daily self-care. In her words, “no woman, regardless of what stage of life she’s in should ever sacrifice her vim, vigor and vitality.” Nana lived to be 101 years young and she never skipped a beat; no dementia, no medications and no mobility issues. Dr. Monica’s Natural Beauty, LLC is my legacy. My family’s eclectic legacy of longevity just made sense to be the spring board for my company. I had 100 years of family beauty and longevity recipes, I had family support and I had my 30 year expertise in the Holistic Medicine Sciences of Aromatherapy, Herbology and Traditional Chinese Medicine.
I founded Dr. Monica’s Natural Beauty to inspire women, with special care to women of color, to prioritize their daily self-care. When I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease in 2016, I knew that my personal longevity would require me to prioritize my own daily self-care. So, in my huge soup pot in my own kitchen, I curated custom hair, body and skincare essentials free of chemicals, additives and phthalates. My self-care essentials and mood boosting fragrances stimulate optimal wellness and mood. Fragrance controls over 70% of our emotions, evokes memories, and inspires self-confidence. Of the senses, smell alone has a direct line to our limbic system, the part of our mind that deals with emotions, cognitive maturity, and memory. As women, we can decide who we want to be, how we want to be, and BE, unapologetically, awesome every day! But it has to be a choice. And, we have to feel worthy of that choice. My superpower is to empower women to believe in themselves and unapologetically walk with confidence in their skin. I make sense of skin scents. And when I hear a client say: “Your fragrances & elixirs are like miracles in a bottle,” I know I am living my purpose.
We just celebrated our 6th “Bizversary” and at the beginning of this year, I decided to “JUST DO ME.” I decided to walk my talk and make my own self-care my first priority! “Me plus Me equals Me” is my daily mantra and this is where my pivot gets good! I AM Fortified!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?
Dr. Monica’s Natural Beauty, LLC is THE award-winning self-care essential & mood-boosting fragrance brand inspiring women, with careful care to women of color, to prioritize Self-Care for Body-Mind-Spirit. I am a doctor of integrative medicine committed to Luxurious Self-Care Indulging Your Scentsibilities. I believe that how a woman treats her body & mind is crucial. Our spirit needs a strong home in which to live. The first step is honoring and respecting how amazing our bodies are and then look at ways to treat it with loving care. Dr. Monica’s Natural Beauty is an impressive blend of holistic health science & my Nana’s 101-year legacy of natural remedies. Our self-care essentials deliver nutrients & healing essences to your body, mind, and spirit during your daily self-care. Handcrafted in small batches, my award-winning collection is 100% all-natural; no fillers, phthalates, or toxins.
I feel like I arrived when I was featured with MACYS as the NEW & NOW “It” Beauty brand for Summer/Fall 2019-2020, I went from the little girl in the red coat with my Paddington bear, peering through the Christmas window displays at Macy’s Herald Square, to featured Biz CEO with my custom display in MACYS Fashion Show Mall on the Las Vegas Strip. Dr. Monica’s Natural Beauty disrupts the beauty industry standard; addressing self-care in women of color by providing sustainable, luxury haircare and bodycare essentials and mood-boosting fragrances for daily self-care rituals. I believe that Self-Care is the practice of developing an understanding of your needs and creating a space in your life to fulfill them. It means nurturing yourself, being considerate of your personal well-being, cultivating gratitude and meeting yourself where you are. We are the Mindfully Melanated collection that protects your DNA from destruction by the sun.
I am proud of our successful launch of “Zen 4 Men,” grooming essentials collection. And, I’m super stoked that we are now a storefront on Amazon Homemade under “Dr. Monica’s Natural Perfume.” Anxiety in adults 18+ is at an all time high! My natural fragrance collection soothes the nervous system and creates space for peace of mind.
On November 4, 2022, I received the prestigious award Las Vegas Woman of Power in the non-profit and community service sector. This award highlights my work in the greater Las Vegas Valley as president of Women of Global Change – Las Vegas Chapter. This award represents the free wellness workshops and services that Dr. Monica’s Natural Beauty brings to our underserved populations. We are the change we need to see in this world.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I have to be transparent and admit that the loss of my Nana, followed by my beloved Father in 2017, affected my mental health more than I thought. They transitioned just 67 days apart and I was left holding the broken pieces of their legacy. I guess I was just moving through the motions of life. I thought I was keeping myself up and holding steady, but I really wasn’t. I developed an extreme case of anxiety that crippled my lifestyle and my interactions with people. I was triggered into a flood of emotions by just about everything. Leaning into my faith in God and blending my botanicals, on a daily, in my Aroma-Lab saved my life. Remembering that I had a legacy of healing to continue saved my sanity. And, remembering Nana’s words: “you’ve got to commence to gettin’ or get got,” healed my heart. I refuse to “Get Got.” This year has been MY year of self-discovery and self-love. I have to give myself grace and allow myself to just be on any given day.
Here’s a funny, but true story. On September 8th, I celebrated my birthday. And, I was up late blending my fave fragrances for clients and sipping on my fave Proseco. But, at about 2am, I decided that I needed a break so I started to scroll my Instagram. Well, let me tell you, I was tickled when I came upon a sponsored ad for the FAB OVER 40 competition. The brief application seemed harmless enough and I had plenty of “cute” pics to upload to flaunt my fabulosity….so I thought. I clicked submit and forgot all about it. Four days later, I received an email from the “Fab Over 40 Team” of my acceptance into the competition. Oh My!!! Eight weeks and many rounds later; I AM A QUARTER FINALIST and I’m in it to WIN IT! This competition is aligned with the National Breast Cancer Foundation and with my winnings I will create a healing space for women over 40, providing free resources and access to experts for thriving after cancer.
Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.
I LOVE THIS QUESTION! I still lovingly curate and manufacture ALL of my products in all of my collections: self-care essentials, Zen 4 Men, luxury fragrances. This is my happy place! I really haven’t figured it all out. And, I’m good with that.
The ONE thing that has always been consistent, is my personal use of natural remedies and beauty care. In fact, my room at Vassar College was known as a mini-apothecary! I lived in an all-girls dorm and my serums and elixirs for hair, skin and body were sought after. I’m known as “the empathic natural medicine woman.” If I can make someone’s life a little easier and a lot healthier; I’m ALL In! My company has scaled quickly over the last 2 years and with the addition of the Amazon Handmade store, to our thriving e-commerce platform, I need additional resources to fulfill orders. I’m grateful to be in this position, but it’s a little scary too. I want to work with a woman-owned product fulfillment business that I feel will maintain the integrity and quality of my products. I’m seeking them for 2023! The main lesson that I’ve learned, which is HUGE for me, is that I cannot do this alone and I need to reach out for help. “Breathe and Release”
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.drmonicasnaturalbeauty.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drmonicabickerstaffriley/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drmonicasbeautyandselfcare
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-monica-riley-708524174/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/VegasHolistic
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MonicaBickerstaff
- Other: PodBean: https://soulitude.podbean.com/e/soulitude-dr-monica-bickerstaff-riley/ Amazon.com: Dr. Monica’s Natural Perfume
Image Credits
All images were created by Dr. Monica Riley