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Lisa Price of Carol's Daughter |
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Lisa Price, founder of Carol’s Daughter
From the humblest of beginnings in her own kitchen, Lisa Price launched her all natural beauty line, Carol’s Daughter. Spurred by her frustration at not being able to find beauty products that met her needs, Lisa began creating her trademark lotions and body butters. Initially, she made products just for friends and family. When word spread and demand grew, she slowly started to sell her products outside of her inner circle. Fast-forward 15 years – Carol’s Daughter includes over 300 products for face, hair, body and home - allowing for endless product combinations and possibilities.
Poised to make over $30 million in revenue this year and with celebrity backers such as Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith and Jay-Z, Lisa is taking the beauty industry by storm. Despite her massive success, Lisa still refers to her loyal clients as “friends of the family.”
Factio recently had the privilege of chatting with Lisa.
FACTIO MAGAZINE: What made you take the incredible leap to start
Carol’s Daughter?
LISA PRICE: Actually my mother suggested I sell the products that I had been making in my kitchen. So I started very slowly doing just that. I began selling at a flea market and the phenomenal response there lead to additional markets and then friends asking for more and past clients were coming back to me with their empty jars asking if I could create more. All of this convinced me that I could do it.
FM: You’ve kept Carol’s Daughter cozy, accessible, natural and familiar, referring to your clients as “friends of the family”- why did you opt to remain so down to earth in your brand marketing?
LP: To me, it makes sense because that’s who we are. I started this as a hobby in my home, and it grew into a business. When I started, there was no budget for marketing- it was all based on word of mouth referrals. Also, the company was very much a family owned and operated business in its early stages and that atmosphere continues today in the company. The feeling of family is still there and there is immense appreciation for that. It wouldn’t make sense to market Carol’s Daughter any other way.
FM: How do your values infuse your products? I noticed that you do not do any animal testing and prefer using natural ingredients over laboratory created ones- was that a value driven choice?
LP: Yes, when we started so small, I was able to make choices in the products that I used to create Carol’s Daughter and those choices were in line with my own values. It was also possible to because I started out simply wanting to make things that worked better than what was out there for women at the time. And I strive to continue that trend.
FM: Do you remember your very first sale?
LP: I don’t remember the actual sale, but I do I remember my first day at the flea market. It was almost like a family outing, I didn’t approach it from a sales aspect. Then I started selling jar after jar and I began to wonder am I going to sell out? I had only two jars left at the end of the day; I felt really good and as though I had made something that people really liked.
FM: Was there a moment when you felt like you could finally breathe and say, ok, I’ve made it?
LP: Yes, and no. You have moments where you achieve something, for example, being on Oprah was a dream, and I lived it. You learn to exhale and then relish your accomplishment for a moment… but then you have to get back to work. Also, another big accomplishment was when we opened the first store, and then the flagship store in Harlem was another phenomenal moment. You don’t relax and say, “we’ve made it,” it’s a series of steps and you enjoy each one of them.
FM: You’re set to make millions of dollars in revenue this year. You have really built Carol’s Daughter from the ground up – did you ever envision yourself at the helm of a multi-million dollar company?
LP: No. (laughs)
FM: What is one of your favorite pieces of feedback that you’ve received about your products from a “friend of the family”?
LP: A customer told me recently that her niece had a scalp condition that was causing her hair to fall out. The family was in our store and advised to purchase a moisturizing product for her scalp, after checking with her doctor. This young, 13 year-old girl was just so devastated by the hair loss and the discomfort that she was experiencing. Well, the little girl’s hair started to grow back. And her aunt couldn’t stop saying, “thank you” to me and just telling me about it, she got tears in her eyes. I was very moved that something I created 13 years ago changed this woman’s life so much that it brought her to tears.
FM: What is one mistake that you made when starting out with Carol’s Daughter, that you could share?
LP: I guess the only thing I regret is not trusting my own instincts. When you have consultants sometimes you second guess your own feelings and go with the industry professionals. There were times when I second guessed myself, and I wished I hadn’t. Sometimes you’re hearing the professional, logical explanation, but your gut is saying “no… I don’t think we should do it that way” and it turns out that the nagging feeling is usually there for a reason.
FM: How do you unwind after a long day?
LP: Hmmm… I know I should say something like taking a pampering bubble bath, but really, I like to watch TV, and just be quiet for awhile. I’ll watch an episode of Law and Order or Grey’s Anatomy- just to have that 50 some odd minutes of quiet is great.
FM: Carol’s Daughter is going to be sold in Macy’s, how will this affect the brand image of CD? Was there any trepidation about launching such a home-grown product line into a big department store market?
LP: I have no trepidation about bringing Carol’s Daughter to Macy’s. I think Macy’s is great and the beauty department is pretty diverse. They have the classics like Chanel, and the more contemporary lines like Origins; so I am not at all uncomfortable. One of the largest benefits of being in Macy’s is that it will give the brand a larger audience and people who might not know about it otherwise can discover our products.
FM: What Carol’s Daughter product are you most excited about right now?
LP: I have a lot of favorites because we have so many different products for different parts of the body. But I have to say Candy Paint lip gloss because we’ve never had make-up before. I love when I take the tube of gloss out and use it; and someone I don’t know says, “that’s a great color, what brand is that?” We launched it in May, but I was wearing it for a year beforehand, as a test. It’s still so exciting to have professional, natural lip-gloss that donates to the Lupus foundation of America and does good along with looking good.
-Kari Skaflen
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