Worth Anne Herrell, who co-founded of Addison, TX-based Oilogic along with two partners, talked to Happi about her essential oil brand, motherhood, and the difference between working for a small business and starting one.

What is the story behind Oilogic’s creation? As moms, we were searching for alternatives to the harsh chemicals that only offer mildly-effective treatments for children who are not feeling well. We were excited to discover essential oils, but quickly became overwhelmed trying to determine how to blend or dilute them properly. We realized that if it was confusing to us, with our backgrounds in product development and marketing, then it must be even more confusing for most moms out there. We wanted to make Mom’s life a little easier with natural essential oil products for her little ones that are ready to use so Mom can feel good helping her little one feel better.

How did your previous experience in personal care make it easier to launch? Our combined experience of over 30 years in consumer packaged goods helped tremendously. We understood white space opportunities, how to bring products to market, developing strategic marketing plans to reach our target audience and develop relationships with key retailers in order to drive distribution. We also had a wealth of knowledge about the retail space and our audience from our previous experiences.

What makes Oilogic unique? Our ease-of-use makes us unique. Our essential oil products are already blended, diluted and packaged, and ready to be used as they are for a particular age range. Our roll-ons are easy to use on-the-go. Parents can simply apply them to their kids anywhere they need them. And we also offer other personal care products, like vapor baths and epsom soaks that use properly diluted and formulated 100% pure essential oils. Plus our baby and kids’ products are pediatrician and dermatologist tested.

What continues to be the hardest part when it comes to running your own business? The hardest part is handling the pressure between building a business while navigating the daily joys and trials of motherhood. This is a very competitive category and we are dedicated to growing our company. But as moms who were driven to create the company because of our own children, we have to balance the needs of growing the company with the needs of our own family. It is a daily struggle. Knowing that we are developing quality products for families like ours helps us keep focused on both our families and our company. 

Is there something you wish you had a “do-over” for— and what would you do differently now? Due to our past experience as CPG executives, we were confident that we knew how to speak to retail partners and customers as well as create products. However, working for a small company and owning a small company are two very different things. In hindsight, we wish we had reached out to more entrepreneurs and/or other small business owners. Having a network of other professionals who have created companies to reach out to, would have allowed us to navigate the common growing pains of operating a business—office space, accounting systems, vendor selection, among other items—much more efficiently. Now that we are more established, we have a broader network of people we can reach out to for referrals and we also know more about the right questions to ask. But in hindsight, we would have developed that network earlier.

Gerald Crosby (CEO of Body Detailer) wants to more about your packaging: Our packaging design is a result of a combination of our vision, our experience and our graphic designers. We used our past experience in the CPG world, combined with our preferences as moms to determine the packaging components (bottles, caps, boxes, etc.) We initially worked with my husband on the graphic design, as that is his area of expertise. Once he got us to a great place, we transitioned to another graphic designer, who works full-time for us to this day!

What’s next for Oilogic? We just launched our Nervous & Anxious and Attention & Focus Roll-ons at CVS Stores in time for the new school year. During the fall and winter, our focus will be on cough and cold season and helping babies and kids with our Essential Oil products.