When Nashville's Diana Lussenden Stewart couldn't find organic products for her baby's skin, she started making her own. Here's how BABYBEARSHOP went from her kitchen to your local store.
Meet Diana
Necessity really is the mother of invention. Take Diana Lussenden Stewart, for instance. When she couldn’t find products free from fragrance and synthetic ingredients for her baby’s itchy skin, she decided to make her own. With her knowledge of aromatherapy and healing remedies, she began blending organic oils, such as sunflower seed, Roman chamomile, olive, rose hip, and lavender, to make a soothing cream. As her daughter’s skin cleared, Diana’s friends began asking for their own jars of the baby cream. She mixed up more products in her home kitchen, including a stretch mark belly oil.
BABYBEARSHOP
“I wanted to help moms and their babies by utilizing the healing aspects of essential oils,” says Diana. “I never set out to create a business.”
But that’s exactly what happened. As demand for her creams and oils grew among her friends, she decided to turn her craft into a business and try to market it to boutiques. Using her background in art direction and design, she created a label, choosing the name BABYBEARSHOP, because it sounded like something out of the fairy tales she loved reading to her child.
Starting a Business
Then one day, Babies “R” Us called Diana. The company was in search of products to add to the launch of their Organic Baby section. “I really wasn’t expecting that,” she says. With that call, Diana (now a mom of two daughters) transitioned the business from her kitchen to a certified organic lab, which produces her organic skin-care line. Now her tot and mommy skin soothers can be found in stores worldwide.
Editors' Picks
We asked moms and a mom-to-be on our staff to test products from BABYBEARSHOP. Here are their favorites.
All the Better To Kiss You With Organic Lip Balms
“I don’t usually wear lip balm, but I like this because it leaves your lips feeling soft but not gummy. The Chai Mandarin scent is spicy and reminds me of hot tea.
- Sara Askew Jones, Healthy Living Editor and mom of a 24-year-old
- Lip Balm: $5.99 each or $17.99 for the Eco Kiss set of three
Cheeky Baby Butter
Where To Buy: All products available at www.babybearshop.com. Bonus: Enter “southernliving09” at checkout for free shipping on orders over $30 (U.S. only).
