A Full‑Circle Homecoming Rooted in Craft, Community, and Care

Hi Megan, thank you so much for taking the time to share your story with our readers. We’re excited to dive into this full-circle moment for Summer Solace Tallow and learn more about what you’re building in Oakland — so let’s jump right in.

After more than a decade of making products from home and shared spaces, you’ve just opened your first brick-and-mortar shop in Oakland. What has this milestone meant to you personally, and how did you envision the space serving not just customers, but the surrounding community?
I came from a humble background and had to bootstrap the business from the start, slowly building capital to sustain it and grow it enough to expand into a brick-and-mortar. I’ve always taken precautionary steps guided by intuition in all my decision-making, so when the stars aligned and the space across from the Temescal Farmer’s market opened up, it was a moment when the business could sustain itself.

For the past twelve years, I’ve had a live-work situation in my family home, but as my kids grow up and need more space, I’ve had to find a way to relocate my fulfillment and production work and open a showroom for my products. I see the new space as a place where I can play and explore more freely – without the constraints of the family home I’ve built for my children.

It was important to me to have the brick and mortar in the same neighborhood that my family lives in, near the farmer’s market community that I started my business at, alongside the diverse North East African community that is the cultural foundation for the neighborhood. Physically, the space is located across from the DMV, alongside other wellness-focused businesses, such as the acupuncture studio down the street and the Pilates studio next door. I see Summer Solace as a space where community members can take a breather, experience our products, and enjoy a cup of tea while being nourished. As an example, we intentionally place a bench outside so our storefront can serve as a gathering space, creating a welcoming third space for people to rest.

You’re also in the process of building a dedicated kitchen behind the shop to bring production, retail, and fulfillment back under one roof. Why was it important for you to keep everything fully in-house, and how does that support your commitment to small-batch, intentional skincare?
Keeping everything in-house allows my team to check in on each other and builds team empathy and collective wisdom, as everyone is involved in all aspects of the product and what it takes to bring it out to the world. There’s consistency in the products we make because my team works closely together to ensure quality control throughout the process, from rendering to packaging. There’s a sense of coherence and transparency when my customers can see the making process and speak to our small team that makes it. What’s happening here is the opposite of outsourcing. Bringing the team together means creating a “resource” rather than an “outsource” role.

Summer Solace Tallow has always centered regenerative suet tallow and regional ingredients like Séka Hills olive oil and calendula. How do place, season, and sourcing influence your formulas, and why do you believe this approach matters more than ever in modern body care?
People are further away from what they consume more than ever before. With globalization, your textiles could be made in a factory halfway around the world, ecosystems are devastated for monoculture food products, and we’re isolated from the consequences of our purchasing decisions.

By sourcing ethical ingredients and products from within 150 miles of our Oakland studio, we’re directly supporting the regional agricultural and artisanal community. The ingredients I use aren’t static – there’s a shift and flow to them, shaped by the nature of each ingredient, each season. Through the relationships I’ve cultivated with each vendor who produces the materials we use in our products, I have a pulse on these shifts and can adapt our products to reflect them.

The brand began by helping friends’ babies with eczema and diaper rash, and you’ve stayed true to that original care-driven intention. How has your definition of “slow body care” evolved over the years, and what does it look like in today’s fast-paced world?
My definition has stayed the same – I stay committed to using regional, regenerative, and seasonal ingredients. For me, this philosophy is a pillar of hope and resistance in today’s fast-paced world.

As you grow with integrity while staying rooted in tradition and craft, what excites you most about this next chapter for Summer Solace Tallow — and what do you hope people feel when they walk into your shop or use your products for the first time?
What excites me most about this next chapter is the opportunity to continue raising the bar for the Slow Body Care Movement® while deepening our commitment to true craft. For more than twelve years, I have set up at the  Temescal Farmers Market, sharing our tallow balms with my community. Now having our brick-and-mortar studio in that very same neighborhood feels like a full-circle moment. We are expanding the space to build an on-site production kitchen where every balm, soap, and candle can be made, poured, and wrapped under one roof. Soon we will also offer classes there, inviting our community into the process so they can see, touch, and understand what intentional skincare truly is.

I am especially energized by the evolution of our natural perfumery. Scent has always been central to my work, and I am now developing a line of standalone botanical perfumes that honor the land and the raw materials with the same reverence we give to suet tallow and olive oil. Perfume, to me, is a bridge between memory and body. It is intimate and ancestral, yet entirely modern.

Summer Solace is also deeply personal. It is my legacy. My daughters talk about helping me one day, learning how to render tallow and pour balms. Knowing that they see dignity and beauty in this work gives it even greater meaning.

When someone walks into our shop, I hope they feel a sense of calm wash over them. I have curated the space as an extension of my daily life. Alongside our skincare, there are provisions, functional medicines, and Fibershed goods such as wool yarns, textiles, and naturally tanned local sheepskins. Everything is chosen with care and purpose.

More than anything, I want people to feel restored. Through scent, warm light, and the welcoming culture of our team, I hope they experience a gentle nervous system reset. When they open a jar for the first time, I want them to feel cared for, connected to the land, and reminded that simplicity and integrity still matter.