For the last five years, I’ve been micro-focused on building a skincare business. If you were to ask 100 entrepreneurs what mode they’re in during the first few years of building a business, I’d bet a decent amount of money that they, like me, were in what I like to call ‘grow mode’ a.k.a a time focusing solely on the growth of your business. For me, year 1-4 (I’m now in year 5) was all about building a website, building a better website, affording help, building a plentiful product range that I was proud of, and of course, growing your social media following, your retailers, and your overall presence in a very crowded industry.
When you’re in ‘grow mode’ it’s easy to become fixated on the task at hand. After all, I was growing a skincare business, nothing more. Or so I thought. Now, as I report from year five, I find myself wanting to explore other aspects of what SkinOwl was meant to do. I can’t deny that my love for healthy, efficient skincare is and will always be a passion of mine. But if I’m honest, and as I look back on the last five years, my passion lies more in the act of helping people. In talking to people. In hearing their stories. And above all, giving human beings the space to just ‘be’ and loved in return. What I know to be true: When you’re helping people with their skin, you’re actually helping them with everything I just listed. And what I know to be even more true: this interaction with people opened my world up in a way I never imagined.
Out of nowhere came a desire to host people for dinner. To give strangers (to myself an each other) an opportunity to ‘break bread.’ To motivate those dinner guests to share their life’s chaotic moments but then work together to heal from them. Thus came The Parliament Project. From this exposure came a deep desire to help people open up about their life even more. I felt the world getting more chaotic, more loud, and less empathetic. I wanted to talk about that too. And other things, like bad rap music, marriage, divorce, and loss. Cue SkinOwl’s first ever podcast, Off The Record. What began as my search for meaningful dialogue in a deluded space, evolved into a magnetic epicenter of inspiration entrepreneurs, wellness experts, and influential individuals from all backgrounds — presenting vulnerability in a truly raw, and transparent way. By deep diving into universal truths by way of humor, heartache, and hope, SkinOwl has become more than just a skincare brand. It’s become a way to be, a way to treat people, and a way to feel. As I look back over the last five years, it dawned on me that all I really ever wanted was to be is a good influence on people, by way of skincare or selfcare.
In sum, sometimes when you set out to do one thing, it lends itself to other things. One thing begets other things of that nature. Care breeds care in a myriad of ways. And it’s really cool when you stop to think about it.
So, for everyone that has been on SkinOwl’s team over the last five years, I want to say thank you. Thank you for letting this ‘brand’ be ‘human.’ For allowing it to change and grow and not be this or this, but everything in between. To try things and fail. To try again in the hopes of succeeding. You are at the center of our nest and have taught us how to treat you. With care, with love, with acceptance, and with a boatload of delicious skincare to help pick you up when life brings you down.
With all of my love,
Annie
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