Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Adams.
Ashley, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My company’s official launch was July 4th, 2019. The foundation of my business began after a routine Doctors appointment with my then 5 years old daughter. She had extremely aggressive eczema and I was ready to make the switch to a professional dermatologist. At this time, she was on a prescription so strong that she was only allowed to use it two weeks on and two weeks off.
After raising concerns about the long term effects of the medication I asked for options. My Doctor was very honest with me and told me if I went any further down a medical route she would simply be placed on an even stronger medication. Her suggestion to me was to try something natural.
After deciding, I would take the natural route I headed to a few stores to find products that would help improve her skin without harmful chemicals. I went to about 5 stores and I was unable to find anything so I decided I would try to create a solution myself. This is when the idea of Simple Dot Natural was firstborn.
When I made the decision to find an All Natural solution I made a commitment to learn all that I could. I knew I wanted my products to be natural, child safe, and chemical-free. During my researching stages I went through a lot of trial and error. I tested different products, shelf life and effectiveness. After months of researching, reading, and trying different combos, I finally found a combination that was effective, felt great and smelled great. This is when 9PM was born. This product helped relieve the most important issue my daughter was facing which was constant itch at night. Combating this issue was my first and most import issue that I wanted to resolve.
Next, I needed something that would help heal the skin after we reduced itching and inflammation which was accomplished by our 9PM formula. This is when our second product, 7am was born. This Butter is unscented and great for skin rejuvenation because it is packed with oils containing vitamin E.
Prior to my launch, I talked to my community and let them follow my journey to find relief for my daughter. As I talked about my process, I realized there were a lot of parents, like myself, who were suffering in silence and looking for relief. As I began to finalize my products, I was able to send samples to people all over and received success stories. After realizing this was an opportunity to help more than just my family, I decided I would turn my products into a business.
The next step I worked on was branding. I knew my approach to skincare was much like others. My products are a Shea butter Based whipped body butter much like other company’s on the market. So my creativity and honesty helped build a strong foundation for my brand.
One thing that really attracts people to my products is my branding. The Theme behind my brand is “Healing Takes Time”. I realized during my research process that most times, the reason products are not being effective is because the application has not been consistent. In order to see a true change in your skin you have to be dedicated to the change and be consistence with your application regiment.
To reinforce this, I named my products after Times of days. For example, my products are 9PM, 7AM, and 5AM. By naming the products after Times, it reminds all of my supporters that if you use our products at least once per day you will begin to see softer, healthier skin.
Since Launching in July, we have shipped our products from coast to coast to over 23 states. We have seen consistent growth on our on Instagram and Facebook pages. We are a 5 star rated company and we plan on continuing to grow.
Today, we are working on launching more products that will enhance your body butter experience. It is very important to me that before expanding I know exactly what my community is looking for. I have been collection market research and we have a few products that will be released during the Spring/Summer season.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road to launching this business has been full of ups and downs, The first struggling is making sure you have a quality product. There are several companies similar to mine so what I take the most pride in is the quality and consistency of our products. I make sure our Butter is triple Whipped so it is light and fluffy and not stiff like most body butters. After your first application you will understand the difference when it melts directly into your skin.
The next and biggest struggle I had was labels. I am a bit of a perfectionist so all the design and marketing work for my brand was done by me. This was extremely hard because your products labels must be eye catching and informative but also creative. When I first launched I has a basic idea of how I wanted things to look and I took a lot of criticism for that. I had a company that I entrusted to print my labels and they were incorrect twice. My labels have been incorrectly sized, included typos, and a host of other issues. When I finally found a design I was comfortable with and a company I could finally trust with my printing, I finally started to feel more confident.
The last struggle I had to overcome was gaining the trust of new potential clients. I wanted to find more creative ways to get my name out there and get my products into more states. I attended several pop ups, speaking engagements, giveaways and much more. Finding a good balance of new and old marketing techniques has been a struggle but we have been seeing consistent growth with our efforts.
Please tell us about Simple Dot Natural.
Simple Dot Natural is an All Natural Skincare company. We handcraft Whipped body butters which provide dry skin relief and is safe on all skin types.
Our specialty is Dry Skin relief using only ingredients provided by nature. We are dedicated to keeping our products chemical-free. They include no additives, preservatives, and no fragrance oils which really set us apart from our competitors.
One thing we are known for is hand making our products. On our Instagram we showcase the process of creating our butters from start to finish. Our products are made in small batches and hand whipped weekly to maintain its quality and freshness. During this process, we give our viewers the opportunity to see exactly what is going on behind the scenes, exactly what they are applying on their skin, and how it is created. We show the process of whipping all the way down to the bottling and labeling process. This is something larger companies don’t take the time to showcase. We also do Instagram Live sessions to answer questions and interact with all of our community.
Our most popular product is our 9PM Whipped Body Butter. This product is a non-greasy butter that leaves your skin moisturized with a light scent. It is a very creamy Butter and is our bestselling product. This was the product that launched our company and it is always the most talked about.
Something that sets us apart from other similar companies is our Branding. The history of how our company was created and how everything is incorporated really has helped us gain brand loyalty. People like the theme “Healing takes Time”, the reminders in our product names, and the poems on each bottle.
I am most proud of the growth we have experienced in such short time. Our Facebook Business page has a 5 star review rating as well as over 1.6K Likes. We have also earned high sales numbers, with a 12% customer retention rate. Theses are small victories but ones I am very proud of for reaching so quickly.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
One of my favorite memories from childhood was starting my first company.
When I was in 3rd grade my mom used to take my siblings and I to a wholesale candy store. We would go to celebrate and get candy for low prices. One day I brought some from my personal stash to school and a few friends inquired about me sharing. I told them I would sell them two suckers for $0.50 instead of giving it away for free. One friend agreed and told me he would pay me the next day so I agreed. The next day he came in snacking on peanut butter crackers moments before he reached in his pocket to pay his debt. He gave me the money covered in peanut butter not knowing I was VERY allergic to Peanuts. After the exchange, I rubbed my eyes that were starting to feel irritated, and the next thing you know, my eyes were swollen completely shut.
I was immediately sent to the office to leave for the day. When my mom arrived she was so worried and she was asking me how could something like this happen. I told her I was selling candy. I explained to her I had serval request after bringing my personal stash to school and I was exchanging money when the incident happen. After pleading my case and letting my eyes go down to normal human levels my mom then let me explain my idea and we opened our first family business, a Family candy store, run by me.
This was one of my favorite memories because I was in control and I learned so much at a young age. This taught me the importance of money and customer service and it has always been a reminder that I was meant to be an Entrepreneur. Plus telling people about my eyes being swollen shut over $0.50 is a story you don’t hear everyday.
Pricing:
- 80z Body Butters $19
- 4oz Body Butters $14.99
- Mini Sample Pack (Try for Free) Just pay shipping
Contact Info:
- Website: SimpleDotNatural.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/simpledotnatural?igshid=68kb8fe6nem4
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SimpleDotNatural/?eid=ARC788e-NYXtsPnc8awE49Z-rFwnQfCp2af0j1vpMZqxH1OtDBIcDKyrymISDuj0LHHU0YNIfq5dOCyk
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/SimpleDotNat
Image Credit:
All Pictures were taken by Simple Dot Natural Ashley Adams
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