When we began Herb ‘N Organics in April 2008, we sold our cleaning products only at farmers markets where we could help build community, support small farmers, and stay local—minimizing our carbon footprint as much as possible. We don’t bring any paper to market except our business cards and product labels, made from paper created with wind energy and printed with no VOC inks.
We began our product line with the big three cleaning products that are all you need to clean your entire home to a natural sparkle; Arctic Blast, O…So Orange Furniture Frappe and Peppermint Power. We added the Dharma Collection, Asana, Monsoon and Shanti, in response to a need to refresh our yoga studio naturally with no artificial fragrances or scents. Then came Paavana, our 64% alcohol skin softening hand sanitizer, created at the request of a pediatric nurse whose hands were red and chapped from using chemical hand sanitizers. Early in 2009, we developed our all natural Go Green Dog shampoo and a bed and crate spray, which we also private label for dog rescue organizations.
We continue to support the Phoenix Downtown Public Market and make our products available in the adjacent Urban Market and Wine Bar. Whole Foods Markets invited us become a supplier in 2009, and we’ve been growing with them steadily since. All our products are available here online where we continue our commitment to the environment by offering our liquid cleaning products only in concentrate form, with customers adding their own local water.
Candice Hartwell, Principal and Creator, started her home cleaning business in 1995 and over the next ten years developed contact dermatitis as a result of her exposure to myriad cleansing chemicals. In response, she created her own cleaning products that are chemical free, earth-friendly and safe for children, pets, and seniors. Since her products are more effective than anything else on the market, her clients never knew that she had progressed from chemicals to ‘green’, they just loved their clean and fresh homes.
Herb ‘N Organics began its life in the summer of 2007 when Candice gave a sample of her products to Dr. Diann Peart, a new friend and an ecologist, for a birthday present.
Dr. Diann Peart, Principal and Visionary, is not given to house cleaning, but Candice’s products produced a cleaning frenzy that led to discussions about how to bring these amazing products to market. Diann’s goal is to design and market Herb ‘N Organics cleaning products following Robert McDonough and Michael Braungart’s cradle-to-cradle imperative; that all our products have multiple uses and containers are refilled rather than recycled; that we accept responsibility for all our products from inception to completion, focusing on re-using materials as we go along, recycling materials from local friends and businesses for shipping and storage and maintaining as small a carbon footprint as possible as we grow.
