Well, one year at a time- that’s how.
And if I really think about it, I can pretty much remember every year. There were different phases of the business and pivots when things didn’t work out. There were hard times, incredible times, and everything in between.
Some of the things I remember best from our past include:
The first time we set up our scrub at a house party, we sold just about every jar we brought. I don’t remember the name of the woman who hosted, but I do remember hearing her friend in the kitchen raving about our scrub and wanting to borrow money because she didn’t bring enough for multiple jars. We didn’t have our credit card system set up yet!
Las Vegas. My hubby and I went out for a walk and lasted about 10 minutes in the sweltering heat, so we ducked into one of the casinos. It was about 9 am and the only person sitting at a gaming table looked familiar to me. He was the owner of a chain of salons on Long Island, and I’d been to the one in my neighborhood. I introduced myself, told him about Scrubz, and said I could make a customized scent for his place. He loved the idea and set me up with a meeting with his spa buyer. I won big that day because I sold in his salons for years, and I still have customers now who met me while I was doing a demo at one of the shops.
The trade shows in Atlanta. My late sister, Michelle, and I got to stay at our friend Amy’s house, so it was not only work, but a really great time. We would ship the boxes of product to her house and then schlep them to the trade center. We would shop at Home Goods for things to make the booth look better. We did it all on a shoestring budget, but it was fun, and we still have customers we met at those shows.
Getting our scrub into over 20 Whole Foods stores up and down the NE region, all because of a whim and a bold move. Let’s start with the “Pink NYC” scent we made to donate money to Komen NYC. I sent out a small press release and heard back from a local magazine. The editor wrote a story about the scent, and I was thrilled to have our first piece of publicity like that. Well, lucky for me, the editor’s sister was the buyer for a local chain of natural food stores called Wild by Nature. She called me after the article came out and set up a meeting to potentially sell our product in their stores. What?? I was so excited.
After I brought my product into all the Wild by Nature stores, I would go in periodically and do demos by washing people’s hands. The butcher, who used to work at Whole Foods, told me after I washed his hands that I should call the local store and ask for the Health and Beauty buyer. Before Whole Foods sold to Amazon, they were allowed to select local products as 10% of their purchases. So I started with the Jericho, NY branch and slowly got into more and more stores. We did stop selling there when we opened our own store, but I was selling up and down the NE coast for years.
And it all started because of a donation scent.
Speaking of fundraising, Michelle and I, along with our friend Shari of Women Together Fighting Cancer (WTFC), hosted a fundraiser for 10 years, starting it in my house and finally moving to a hotel ballroom. That is how big it grew. In those 10 years, we raised almost 250K. We had the most wonderful vendors and donated raffle prizes. My sister was the queen of cellophane when she was wrapping the raffle baskets. It was rewarding and wild and fun and exhausting all at the same time.
And then there are the places we called home.
After 5 years in business (2006-2011), we moved out of my converted garage and into our first store on Stewart Avenue in Bethpage. It was originally going to be for production and shipping, but as we painted and tiled and decorated, we realized that a store had been created, and we started to pivot to retail over wholesale. That’s when Angela, our soap maker and now longtime friend, entered the picture. She introduced herself one day and suggested we should sell her soap. So we did, first in her scents and then in ours. It was a match made in bubbly heaven. We stayed at this location until 2014, when we moved again.
Our move to Broadway, in Bethpage, became necessary when our party business started to grow. We created a fun party space, a bigger front store, and more production space. We met Tina of Thyme on Your Side (now the chef at Nutty Recovery Room), and our party food reached a fabulous new level. We loved hosting Ladies Nights, Birthday Parties, Bridal Showers, Girl Scouts, and more, and the parties kept growing. We stayed in that space until September of 2017.
As much as we loved our first 6 years of having a shop and the welcoming people of Bethpage, after losing my sister, I needed to get out of that space. Michelle was a product marketing genius, a bright light, and so much fun to work with. Plus, she and I had designed that space together, and it just didn’t feel right staying. Plus, Tina had moved her cafe to Farmingdale, and we saw how the town was booming.
We wanted in.
Wendy, my bestie since 1977, quit her other job, and instead of only helping out during her off hours, was now able to work full time with me. We put in many hours getting the new store ready.
We created a space that felt like our brand: clean, fresh, vibrant, and homey. Like an apothecary and a fun party place in one. My architect Jennifer and contractors Rich and Billy brought the vision to life. We opened in November of 2017, and we love being here.
Since moving to Farmingdale, we have expanded our line and started carrying other products besides Angela’s soap, like Olive My Home Candles and Lip Balm by my friend Laura, and Bubbleaux Fizzie Bubble Bath in a bottle by my friend Sandy. Our party business has flourished; we have created events at the store, hosted pop-ups, had other vendors sell here, and participated in all the Farmingdale Business and Chamber of Commerce offerings.
Our commitment to the community is strong, and we love being a destination space, a friendly hello space, and even a safe place for all the school-aged kids who come in to “just smell for now.” We are beyond grateful.
ScrubzBody Skin Care Products has brought me joy, friendship, pride, humility, tear-my-hair-out moments, jump-for-joy moments, and everything in between.
Twenty years, one year at a time. I feel blessed and lucky, and it’s all because of you and your loyalty. Thanks!!
