We caught up with the brilliant and insightful LaTesha Conyers a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
LaTesha, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s something crazy on unexpected that’s happened to you or your business
As a rule in pop up: I never break down or leave early. I also never count my money before its over.
One Saturday I was at one of my regular markets in Gibsonville, NC. The hours of the market are 8am-12pm. I usually do well and customers flow from beginning to end. But this one particular Saturday I was not doing well and it was obvious that my sales were 0. it was already a quarter to 11 and I had not sold one bar of soap! I was surprised and I was getting discouraged. I gave myself some positive self talk and kept my head up.
I guy walked up and we exchanged a few words of hi and hello. I talked some about my product ingredients because to me its the most important part of what I do- making truly natural products. He took advantage of my Market Deal, 3 soaps for $20. I thanked him for shopping with me and he went on his way. Maybe 10 minutes later he came back and bought every single bar of soap I had!
He said the Universe sent him. I believe that!
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 back background and context?
Hmm, how to condense this!
So about 10 years ago my daughter was in her worst stages of eczema; and I was in my prime with Bath & Body Works. I was exhausted of going through all the over the counter creams and prescriptions from the doctor, and I began researching natural remedies. At some point it became apparent to me that I needed to make products to help my daughter’s skin. My first bar of soap was made with olive oil, crisco, and canola oil with oatmeal and hibiscus petals. When I look back I can’t believe I used those fats! But they worked. It worked beautifully. After soap I made body butter. I used the body butter myself, and after doing so I tried using some of my wide collection of Bath & Body Works lotions. It was like water and totally ineffective in comparison to the simple ingredient body butter I’d made with shea butter and grapeseed oil.
My products give my clients and customers natural solutions to nearly any skin condition. I have products that help with everything from eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, immune building, wound healing, and everything in between. I started with soaps and body butter. in addition to those I have lymphatic massage oils, tinctures, essential oil blends for aromatherapy, and working on so much more!
What I believe sets me apart from other soap makers is the fact that I do my best to use local ingredients from local growers and crafters. The biggest deal to me is that I only use essential oils for fragrance. NEVER artificial fragrance oils. Not to say much about anyone who does, but its one compromise I’m not willing to make. No artificial dyes for coloring. Only herbs and flowers.
My proudest moment was launching my Apothecary in April 2021. I think next to that is my desire and drive to continue building even through obstacles and excuses. I’m a single mother of 3 kids, a woman in long term recovery from substance use disorder, and I’m also in school for social work. Trust me, I’ve found so many excuses to quit, but this is my passion. In my gut, I feel the fire when I’m in the shop. I was born for this!
What I really want people to know about my brand is that I didn’t decide to launch my official business just because its a lucrative business to get into right now. I created Sacred Bath & Body Apothecary because I believe in the power of healing that Nature has to offer us. Yes, the fruity, fresh, beach, sweet fragrances can be nice, but there is something very sacred about the natural fragrances and healing properties that occur naturally in nature. I am dedicated to making products that you love; that heal, uplift, and change the way you feel about your wellness routines.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Its in the connection. At one point in my career searching journey I was into network marketing. My amazing friend and mento at the time told me about the Clifton Strengths test. I took it and paid for my full report. Learning what my top and bottom strengths are have given me so much insight into how I navigate business ownership, relationships and just society in general.
In my top strengths is winning others over (WOO) and adaptability. Being able to communicate and connect with all kinds of people from all different backgrounds allows me to thrive in any space. Even when I show up at a pop up event and the vibe feels weird, I take a moment to just call in positivity, connection, and abundance. After that I find myself talking to people I would would probably on my own human mind never even think to connect with. I have been in spaces with people I did not feel qualified to even be in the room with, but I thrived as if I were one.
Its in the connection. Its in showing up and just being exactly who I am doing exactly what I love.
Have you ever had to pivot?
There have been many pivots and I think COVID has given us all the opportunity to experience our own moments to pivot. So, there was a pivot pre-Apothecary where I was working as an Office Manager and I was completely unhappy. When COVID hit I received my exit strategy. When I started working as a Therapy Assistant I loved working with the clients, but it was a prn position that didn’t pay what I needed to support my family. Because I’d already started the Apothecary I did the math and my side hustle was paying me more than my part time job, so I decided to invest more time there. And now here we are! I’ve had another successful year of building and looking forward to scaling my business even further in 2023!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.sacredbb.com
- Instagram: @sacredhealth.wellness
- Facebook: Sacred Bath & Body Apothecary, LLC
Image Credits
LaTesha Conyers Tracy Skinner