Back to basics

Entrepreneur, April, 1998 by Frances Huffman

Last year's cinematic odes to the '70s, "Boogie Nights" and "The Ice Storm," depicted the decade in all its tacky glory - a time when polyester reigned supreme, synthetics inspired oohs and aahs, and prepackaged TV dinners delighted convenience-seekers.

But during that same decade, a few daring dissenters shunned the synthetic life-style and tapped into a more natural way of life. During the '70s, for example, Tom's of Maine began selling non-phosphate liquid laundry detergent, natural toothpaste, natural shampoo and, eventually, natural deodorant, mouthwash and shaving cream.

In 1962, Riquette Hofstein, now 50, began working furiously in her kitchen slicing and dicing grapes, strawberries, pears and apples to put in her all-natural beauty-care products - products that shunned chemicals and preservatives and weren't tested on animals.

At the time, some thought Hofstein's idea was a little on the fruity side. The plastic-loving masses labeled these types of natural businesses "granola" or "hippie." When people heard the word "natural," they immediately conjured up images of love beads and Birken-stocks.

Today, more than a quarter of a century later, the concept has come to fruition . . . naturally. Riquette, for one, plugged away and created a niche for her all-natural beauty-, skin- and hair-care products - not to mention an impressive business. Riquette International Inc. now includes a retail space in Beverly Hills, and Riquette has written three books and made frequent appearances on TV talk shows.

But those pioneering entrepreneurs from the '70s are no longer the only players in the field. Indeed, the whole nation is taking notice of what could be called a "natural" phenomenon.

Sherrie Strausfogel, beauty editor for Let's Live magazine, began writing a column on natural beauty products in 1997 and has seen a marked increase in consumer and corporate interest in the natural arena since then. "The recognition of the selling power of natural products is growing," says Strausfogel.

"Even the big guys, like Lancome and Maybelline, are taking notice and adding natural ingredients to [some of] their products," she adds.

You may think that if the big guys are entering the market, there isn't any room for newcomers. Actually, the opposite is true. The participation of the cosmetics giants is actually driving the growth of the natural products industry and helping to educate consumers about the benefits of nonchemical-based products. And as the desire for all things au naturel rises, so does the opportunity for entrepreneurs.

HEALTHY NOTIONS

Just last year, Hazel Colore Cosmetics Inc., which has been selling cosmetics and skin-care products from its Charlotte, North Carolina, headquarters since 1963, added a vitamin C-based facial cream to its line of vitamin-enriched lotions and creams. "Our customers have been really excited to try the vitamin C cream," says Marlene Johnson, 49, one of the company's five co-owners. Hazel Keller's 1997 sales neared $500,000 and, of that figure, about $10,000 came from only six months of sales of the firm's 2-ounce jar of vitamin C facial cream.

"Vitamin C products and products with antioxidants are really hot right now," Strausfogel confirms, "and I'm seeing more and more of them coming out."

"People really want to go back to the basics," agrees Kathryn Weiss, owner of Moonflower Soaps & Sundries in Bellingham, Washington. "A lot of people have built up allergies to fragrances and preservatives, and they want to get back to something that's better for the body and the mind."

That's part of the reason Weiss spent almost a year tinkering in her kitchen developing formulas for her handmade soaps rich with olive oil, palm oil, coconut oil, and organic herbs such as lavendar, rosemary and rosehips. By 1995, she had perfected her recipes and started hitting local arts and crafts fairs selling her soaps for $3.25 a bar.

Like Weiss, whose soaps brought in more than $8,000 last year, many newcomers to the natural-products field take a low-tech approach to marketing: arts and crafts fairs, natural foods stores and the like. But many natural-products sellers are giving their marketing strategies a decidedly high-tech slant by hopping on the Internet in search of customers.

Todd Tavares and his partner, Tiffany Visaggio, 23, are using a Web site as the main marketing medium for Healthy Living Outlet, the Vernon, New Jersey, company they formed in September 1997 as a part-time business they hope will pull in enough sales within five years to go full time. "We thought the Web was the best way to get our products in front of people all over the world for the least amount of money," says Tavares, 25.

Apparently, the world was waiting. Tavares says response to the site has been phenomenal "We've received orders from all over the world - Brazil, Sweden, the former Soviet Union," he says. First-year sales of the company's natural beauty-care products, aromatherapy items, air and water purifiers, books, videos, vitamins, herbs and other health products are expected to reach the $30,000 mark. The pair also believe sales will continue to rise after they add a 24-page mail order catalog to their bag of marketing tricks.