Farewell from The Nature of Beauty founder, Terri Bly

Five years ago, I launched Natureofbeauty.com with one goal: To make it easier for women and men to find top-notch, non-toxic beauty products. At the time, selection was limited, and what was out there could pretty much only be found in natural food markets. After trying to find the right natural mascara with the help of a middle-aged gentleman whose area of expertise was clearly limited to the supplements section of the Health & Wellness Department, I knew something had to be done.
For the past five years, I have worked to build a space where eco beauty lovers like myself could find the products and the guidance they were looking for. I love and am extremely proud of what I have created, and want it to succeed. This is why, last week, I made the extraordinarily difficult decision to sell my company to Jennifer Baskin, the proud new owner of The Nature of Beauty.
Allow me to explain.
Although widely regarded as one of the top online eco-beauty shops anywhere, The Nature of Beauty hasn’t even begun to reach its potential. Both the website and store are still very much rough sketches of what they can be, and what they should be. After months of difficult introspection, I have concluded that the skills and resources needed to take The Nature of Beauty to the next level of success are not ones I would list as my own. It is time for me to pass the torch to someone I think has what it takes to pick up where I left off, and make The Nature of Beauty the best damn green beauty store in the world.
Which brings us to Jennifer Baskin.
Some of you may have met Jennifer already, as she played an integral role in the creation of our Mendota Heights spa, overseeing much of the initial design and development. In 2011, I wrote a piece about Jennifer on this very blog. An esthetician for nearly ten years, both in private practice and with one of the Twin Cities’ top dermatology clinics, Jennifer comes to The Nature of Beauty with a comprehensive understanding of the latest skin care trends and technologies, along with a passion for natural, organic, and non-toxic beauty products. She brings to her new role an incredible amount of drive, and a ton of great ideas for improving and growing the company. I have the highest hopes that Jennifer will be able to take what I have started and make it a billion times better. I cannot wait to watch it happen.
Before I sign off, I want to thank all of you so very much for your support and enthusiasm for my little company. This experience has given me the opportunity to meet the most amazing, awe-inspiring people, to learn more about myself than I ever thought possible, and at least 3 books and a memoire’s worth of tales to tell. Throughout it all, I was, and forever will be, humbled, grateful, and – to be honest – surprised at how many people from around the world have chosen to shop at The Nature of Beauty. It has been an honor serving all of you, and I hope you will give Jennifer the opportunity to do so as well. For those of you who stopped shopping at The Nature of Beauty on account of my flaws and foibles, I hope you will consider coming back and giving Jennifer the chance to succeed where I did not. Because the best, I can assure you, is yet to come.
Thank you all again, from the very bottom of my heart.
Sincerely, Terri Elofson Bly