On Rebranding, Instagramming and Believing in Yourself. Meet Ashley Dion

We first met Ashley at a holiday marketplace featuring women-owned businesses in the Bay Area, and we were immediately drawn to her story! 

After taking over a natural products line that was first started by her mom, Ashley has tackled rebranding, pricing challenges — even a cross-country move. We asked her to share with us the big lessons she's learned so far as a small business owner, and the one question she has for all of *you.*

Name: Ashley Dion 

Business: Herbs + Oils Bath

Started: January 2013

What originally inspired you to start your business?

Funny enough, today as we're talking I'm celebrating my four year anniversary running this business!

Originally, though, my mom started the business back in 2008. She'd become allergic to any products that were store bought, so she started making her own soaps and sharing them with family and friends.

At the time, I was dancing competitively throughout middle school and high school. That got to be really expensive. So, my mom started selling her products to a larger crowd and even at farmer's markets to help offset the cost.

When I went away to college, my mom got sick for a bit and had to stop working on the business. Since I was working a middle-wage job and going to school at the same time, she suggested I take over the business and it kinda went from there!

Up until a little over a year ago, I was still trying to balance running the business and going to school as a dance major. After I decided to focus full-time on Herbs + Oils Bath, I made the move from Florida to San Francisco.

Who were your very first customers?

When my mom first started the business, most of her customers were part of an older crowd and they were only interested in the natural soap thing.

That changed dramatically when I took over, and a lot of that had to do with the packaging. In the beginning, our products had a very handmade look. I looked at everything and thought, "Okay, this is not the direction we want to go in. Let's rebrand everything and start with a clean slate and a new mission statement."

To start the process of rebranding, I asked my mom:

What do you want this business to say for you?

What do you want this to become? 

What is the story that you want people to connect with?

We talked about it and decided that our goal is to help people know more about a natural lifestyle, and that there is a way to use natural products to help you relax or deal with day-to-day skin issues. We also wanted people to know that using natural products doesn't have to be expensive.

From there, we decided to go with a more minimal look for our products and we started using recycled glass bottles. We also wanted to demonstrate that there are no unnecessary ingredients in our products.

Did you feel like it was risky to rebrand your business at that point?

I was a little scared because I didn't know if people were going to be receptive to the new design. But I also knew that I wanted to change our core customer base. At the time, we were only selling to older women with more of a hippie vibe who were in their 50s and 60s. 

In our experience, older women in Florida are also a lot less receptive to trying out new products in their skincare routines. I decided that if we wanted to attract different clientele and move forward, we had to take the risk and rebrand. 

We had nothing lose, so we decided to go for it!

How are you getting new customers today?

A lot of our new business comes in through referrals. I've also had a lot of success going to events like Renegade Craft Fair. With our products, you really have to see it, touch it and feel it. People love to hear the story behind our products online, but if they can't see it and they can't touch it, they aren't as inclined to buy it.

The other advantage of going to events is that I often have a better chance of getting into retail stores if people see my product in person. After someone sees the product, they might let me know that they're starting up a spa, or that they'd like to try selling my products in their store.

Have you been able to land any wholesale customers yet?

I'm not in any spas in the Bay Area yet, but I am selling my products at a salt flotation therapy spa in Louisiana — they were one of my first wholesale customers.

The woman who runs the business contacted me over email and said that she was just starting up, and wanted to carry our haircare products for customers to use after flotation therapy. She said that she couldn't meet my minimum, but asked if I was willing to go under. I thought about it and decided to accept her offer. They're now one of my biggest wholesale customers.

Her husband is also a business consultant, and he helped me get into the Canadian market through his family connections. The big lesson I learned there is that sometimes you have to go out on a limb when you decide to work with people — it just might pay off.

How do you use social media to promote your products?

For a long time, I hit Facebook hard. But unfortunately, I'm starting to feel like things on Facebook are getting lost in the shuffle. 

I think Instagram is the next big thing. People don't want to read something, they just want to quickly scan through their feed and "like" things. Therefore, Instagram has become my main focus. I love being able to follow people based on my likes and what I want my company to reflect. I've also been able to find cool partners for my business on Instagram.

On top of that, we have customers who will post photos of our products on Instagram as kind of a "hey, this was my haul of the day" post or "just got this in the mail!" post. 

I love seeing how people use our products, and I'm very open with customers. When I sell face-to-face at events, I'll be open about how the product works and I tell someone to email me directly if it doesn't work for them.

What are some of the biggest lessons you've learned in pricing?

Originally, my pricing was pretty low. Everything was under $10. 

As a result, I got two responses from people: 

1) People were thrilled that the products were high quality, but also affordable.

2) People thought the products were too cheap, so they wouldn't buy them.

Right now I base my pricing on what's in each product and how they are packaged. I do need to raise my prices again, but I won't do it unless I have a reason to improve the packaging or improve the quality. 

Some people still think that the more expensive a product is, the better quality it is. I'm a bit old school. Just because something is a "designer" product doesn't actually mean it's good. This is an issue I've run into more since I've been in California. Everything here is so expensive in general, and maybe that's why people expect things to be on the pricier side. 

But I don't feel like something should cost $100 if it didn't cost that much to make. I know that if I walked into a store and something was $100, I'd be like, "That's my grocery bill! I can't buy it!"

If I won't buy a product myself, how can I expect someone else to buy it?

If you could go back in time, what do you wish you knew when you were just starting out?

There's a lot I wish that I knew! Google is definitely a powerful tool.

When I was starting out, I was only 20 years old. It was hard because I was so young. A lot of people looked at me and said, "What are you doing? Why are you running a business?" They thought I was a kid and that I was just "playing."

If people tell you that you're just playing, I say keep at it. Your ideas can turn into something serious — they can start to work, click and become something. 

If I could go back in time, I wish I didn't give so much weight to what people were saying to me. It's important to listen to other people — especially as small business owners — but other times you have to close yourself off. They're not in your shoes, and they're not living your day to day. That doesn't make them bad or dumb, it just means they can sometimes give you the wrong advice, or say things that will make you doubt yourself. 

That will kill you. Once you start doubting you and your purpose, it'll kill your motivation and your drive. Then, how can you move on and grow your business?

I do wish I'd had more confidence in myself back then. Coming to California helped me find more likeminded people who said, "Wow, you're 22 and running a business! That's great!" 

In Florida, it was very different. It's a pretty diverse state, but it isn't as progressive as it is out here. Fortunately, I have a mom who broke the mold! She always pushed me to be different and do something different with my life. 

What are your big goals for 2017 in your business?

I want to be more organized! The first part of the year is all about cleaning house and getting organized on the internal side of things.

I was recently contacted by Vogue magazine, so I'm also getting ready to put some products together to send over to them. I'm doing a segment on Etsy beauty, as well.

I thrive on meeting new people and going to events, so I want to continue to do more of that this year. I especially want to meet people I can collaborate with.

What's one new thing you're hoping to learn from the other members here in OWN IT?

I want to know: 

How do you move from working in your house to working in a studio?

That's the next big step I want to take this year. I have a small workspace cornered off in my apartment where I have all my supplies and products, but little by little I'm growing out of it. It's time to look for a work studio, and I'd love to know how others here have made that transition!

Do *you* have tips to share with Ashley that will help her make the transition from working out of her home to working in a studio?

If you, like Ashley, have a creative business and you've successfully made the move from working at home to working in a studio space, we want to hear your story!

Share your own experiences with us in the comments below. :-)