The Six Degrees Creative brand is all about connection. With the Connecting Creatives segment the goal is to highlight creatives and entrepreneurs in our communities and share their journey. No matter the outlet or industry, it is important we support each other’s growth both professionally and personally. Together we can make being a creative or running a small business sustainable and successful.
This week we highlight Sabella Lichtman of Bella’s Botanicals. A small business born in Leucadia, San Diego that offers magical hand-made self-care products including body butter, nourishing hair oil, after-sun moisturizer, and more. With holidays just around the corner, Bella's Botanicals make great gifts and you will have the satisfaction of supporting a small business!
Read more about Bella’s Botanicals below and support her small business by following her on Instagram, purchasing an item from her store, or by simply telling a friend!
Hi! Thank you for taking the time to be part of Connecting Creatives. Can you tell us more about your background and how you got started on your small business journey?
Hi! I am so incredibly grateful to be highlighted on your sparkly platform this week. Thank you for this opportunity to share my passion with the community. Back in 2017 while I was deep into my clinical Herbalism studies at a small family school in Ocean Beach, Self-Heal School, I was inspired to create a simple self-care balm for expecting mothers.
I owe my deepest reverence to John Finch & Jane Richmond, whom are my mentors in herbal wizardry. Before this, my holistic health journey began in 2015. A fresh transplant from New Jersey, I found my dharma in massage therapy school which led to the infinite world of therapeutic modalities. I specialized in Hawaiian-style bodywork and Reiki energy healing, and to this day I have a deep enjoyment channeling that somatic wisdom through my hands.
My curiosity lit up like a comet as I discovered the magical healing benefits of wildcrafted herbs and flowers. You know, the ones that grow in our backyard! I realized we were surrounded by natural healing and it was my mission to create blends that were plant-based and rid of synthetic products that we, as a society, are accustomed to lathering on our skin and inhaling into our lungs.
For fun, I started making topical salves, smoking blends, aromatherapy bong water, and medicinal teas that helped friends overcome colds. I also explored the world of CBD therapy. After years of sporadic small-batch production, my support system begged me to start sharing the wealth and legitimize a business out of these magical handcrafted products.
In early 2020, I committed to entrepreneurship and by spring I wrote my business plan which is one of my biggest accomplishments thus far! Being the sole proprietor of Bella’s Botanicals, I enjoy wearing all the hats of designer, saleswoman, accountant and beyond. I thank my dad Howie, who has owned his automotive business since age 23, for the genes of passion and work ethic.
What keeps you engaged and passionate about your small business?
Continued education keeps me fresh and engaged. I am constantly itching to take a new workshop or class that builds my craftswoman’s “tool box”. Whether the training is taking night classes at a specialized school or enrolling in a community college for business classes it helps to be surrounded by like-minded and driven people. My friends and cohorts who are also small business owners inspire me to keep building my empire. I take pride in choosing people in my life who challenge me to grow.
If you could give advice to your younger business self what would it be?
Steer away from self-doubt and comparison. The journey of starting a business takes non-linear patience, requires trust and full devotion, and each business faces their own special challenges. We are truly our own worst critic; therefore, humbly accepting our shortcomings and choosing to adapt from failures will result in gifts of resilience and tremendous growth.
What is a challenge you have faced as a small business and how have you overcome it?
The pandemic has created challenges in selling my products to the San Diego community. I started selling at local farmers markets, but I’ve noticed a scarcity in foot traffic and social interaction as a result of COVID-19. I also noticed the mild hesitation to try products within my target markets.
Also, having low capital to expand to bigger operations has presented challenges. I have funded every step of Bella's Botanicals with my personal income and since I don’t yet have a hefty budget to work from it has challenged me to get creative with low overhead and use minimal supplies.
What do you want people to take away from your small business?
What I strive for in every recipe and educational offering is to encourage my clients to reconnect to their roots of Mother Earth. I strive to empower the connection and reliance on naturally grown medicines through my simple crafts. Like I said before, we are surrounded by cures to common diseases. They grow along the walking trails and in our backyard.
I have personally experienced exponential change and optimal health by including simple self-care practices and herbal supplements in my daily life. I hope to be the reason people achieve their dreams of feeling amazing in their own skin and grow an intimate appreciation for their organic herbal allies.
What is the next milestone for you?
In the near future, I will be processing higher quantities of products out of a commercial kitchen/production facility, developing wholesale accounts with retail stores and boutiques, and expand my product line into more focused intimate essentials such as feminine care and personal lubricants. I see my cannabis-infused products in dispensaries over California, Oregon, and Colorado, so I will enter a whole new industry with my CBD products. Determination mixed with manifestation of dreams will fuel the tanks of creation!
Any fun facts about your business or information you want people to know about your business?
We celebrate sustainability in our brand! We use shipping material that is recycled and our bottling/packing material is 100% recyclable glass and tin. In my daily life, I geek out over reusable items because it feels good knowing I’m not producing extra waste, therefore reducing my carbon footprint. It really just takes simple habits to shift the mindset into becoming eco-conscious.
We encourage our consumers to get creative with their future house projects. A quick sanitize, dry, and removing of a label with warm dish soap and there’s a new household friend that can be repurposed. Let Bella's Botanicals take care of your skin and body needs and I hope to inspire you to live in harmony with Mother Earth.
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