We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rachel Leins. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rachel below.
Alright, Rachel thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?
The name 42N Naturals came from the locations along Lake Michigan that I had a vision of our retail stores making the most sense. 42N is the absolute location running from New Buffalo to Holland. Our storefronts and products are an experience for both local and touring families visiting and living along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
My name is Rachel Leins, I started 42N Naturals during the Covid pandemic. Opportunity called, when people couldn’t get to the store as easily as before and products weren’t available any longer, I started making basic body care products using simple pantry ingredients. My youngest daughter was born with a rare birth defect which left her with sensitive skin so making our own products using gentle ingredients was second nature to me. I just never dreamed this would move from necessity to a growing business! I went to work in the kitchen offering front porch pick-ups with messaging via Facebook to open air markets once the pandemic began to ease. I picked up my first wholesale account in my hometown and from there we just kept growing. I opened our first brick and mortar store in our current hometown of South Haven in May 2021. By December we had outgrown our 200 SF kitchen and 1000 retail space. With several additional wholesale accounts, online store and a customer following we set out looking for a larger location allowing 3-5 years of growth. In April 2022 we moved into our 1500 SF retail space with viewing kitchen in downtown South Haven. Two weeks later we opened a second storefront in Saugatuck, MI. As we continue to grow into the Wholesale market we are striving to maintain our commitment to sustainability throughout the process & locations. The experience of our bath & body care signature scents are plant based with local and regionally sourced raw ingredients. With names like Sandcastles and Tailwinds inspired by Lake Michigan we love capturing memories of days spent along the coastline. Reducting plastics in and around the Great Lakes is important to me as I come from 13 years in the Energy and Sustainability field. We do not wrap our products in plastics, rather they are labeled with recycled materials. In 2022 we implemented a recycling program for our sugar scrub and body butter containers, customers can bring back their empty containers washed and clean for a 10% discount on the next purchase. An exciting feature of the flagship store in downtown South Haven are the two experience bars available. Customers can delight in creating a uniquely designed terrarium planter or craft a signature scent of their own at the fragrance bar. This has been a truly fun addition to the already calm, natural feeling of our space. Friends and families gather here together to create something to remind them of the time in South Haven. I love watching people coming together to do something unique! I am most proud of the experience we offer to our guests. From the bath + body care products to the physical change we see when they take the first step inside the store and smell the aroma and feel the calm, natural atmosphere, that makes my heart happy.
Has your business ever had a near-death moment? Would you mind sharing the story?
Oh my gosh, payroll scares me! I am so thankful for my team and as a small business owner you wear way too many hats, so payroll cut off times are like the scariest thing ever to me as I want my team to get paid on time! I value my staff and missing or messing up payroll is the absolute worst feeling in the world.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
There are several things that have helped build our reputation in the market. The first I think the products we make have helped build our reputation of clean, affordable body care options available locally. All of the products are produced onsite at our South Haven storefront and kitchen. For folks visiting the store, they get to see the process and there is a connection there. Once they try the products however, they return in person or online sometimes for themselves and often time to gift that experience to someone else! The second is product consistency which is critical! As a small batch producer, we work hard to ensure each batch although handcrafted is as close to a duplicate as possible. As we’ve grown rather quickly, some manufacturing processes have been implemented to assist with that effort. And finally, staying true to our brand identity while growing has helped build our reputation and is hard to be completely honest. If I didn’t have a business coach and some amazing entrepreneurial women in my life throughout this process, I would be way behind. There are so many things to distract your vision for the business while trying to stay relevant. Having help to redirect and ask myself “Does this represent me and my vision for this brand?” has been absolutely necessary.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.mi42n.com
- Instagram: 42n_naturals
- Facebook: 42N Naturals
- Other: TikTok @42nnaturals
Image Credits
Holt Bosse, Leo & Laine