Over 30 years ago, Jessica Iclisoy embarked on a journey to create a non-toxic environment for her family. In 1995, launching in her kitchen with ingredients she had sourced, Jessica began to create the beloved formulas for what is today, the industry standard in natural skincare, California Baby.
Since then, Jessica has built California Baby into a globally recognized brand, with more than 200 products available at retailers nationwide and through a global distribution network. California Baby is a recognized Women Owned Business, with its own certified organic and FDA registered manufacturing operation and organic farm.
Jessica is a member of the Plant Based Product Council and serves on their Policy, Education and Communication Committees. She is also a member of the Fast Company Impact Council which is an invitation-only collective of innovative leaders and the most creative people in business. Jessica is the chair of Female Arts Initiative, which is a nonprofit to support women in the arts. She is a Board member of UCLA – Santa Monica Hospital and serves as the Board Chair of the committee for their Integrated Medicine Initiative.
Jessica believes that her mission extends far beyond creating products that are safe for children and healthy for the environment. In 2016, she launched The Natural Advisory Council (NAC) to form a coalition of natural, organic, and “green” product manufacturers, retailers, and non-profit consumer protection organizations to advocate, collaborate and educate (ACE) on the definition and use of the term, “natural” in all consumer products.
Resources:
https://www.californiababy.com/
https://www.youtube.com/c/californiababy
Key Takeaways:
00:24 - 01:16 🎙 Episode overview: California Baby and Jessica Iclisoy
01:25 - 07:26 🧑🍳 The most important ingredient in every California Baby product, and more about the company
07:26 - 12:13 🧪 Creating recipes with scientists, and what that process was like
12:14 - 14:33 💎 What inspires Jessica and her team to create new products?
14:40 - 19:17 👏 Jessica's thoughts on organic and natural practices spreading across industries
19:18 - 24:13 🌼 Being a stickler for ingredients and the capability to grow all California Baby's own ingredients
24:53 - 28:37 🧩 The organic industry, marketing strategy, and doing the research
28:37 - 33:03 🐝 Beekeeping failures, learnings, and considerations
33:05 - 35:58 🌳 The Natural Advisory Council's relation to California Baby
35:59 - 37:21 🎉 Reflecting on 30 years of business
37:21 - 40:56 🌔 The stages of California Baby's life
40:57 - 42:59 🗝 "When did you know you would be wildly successful?"
43:01 - 45:21 ♻️ What the pandemic was like for California Baby from a supplier standpoint
45:25 - 51:29 👯♀️💪 On encouraging other women in business
51:31 - 59:19 🔮 Jessica's reactions to people wanting to buy California Baby, and her future outlook for the brand
