A local business is creating products that take the mystery out of wellness.
All Things Knatural, a beauty, cosmetic and personal care company in Plant City, is steadily gaining a loyal following as owner Kenee Lee highlights the importance of focusing on what you’re putting on your skin. The Plant City native started making soaps in 2017. As a new mother she began researching the products she was putting on her child and realized that much of the products that are so commonly found in homes are filled with chemicals and unnatural ingredients.
“After I had my daughter I felt like I became a totally different person,” Lee said. “I really started looking at the ingredients that were in our lotions and soaps and I was so uncomfortable seeing some of the things in those products. The more I learned the more I started to critique what I was seeing so I decided I would try to start making these types of items for my family and see if I could create something better. We all just loved it. I said that this was something I really could see myself doing. So I kept studying and learning more and in 2018 I started my business to expand and offer these products to the community. I’ve been expanding what I make ever since.”
Lee is a big proponent healthy lifestyles and uses essentially oils and natural scents in her organic and homemade soaps, lotions, facial serums and other unique products. Many of the items were born after Lee focused on addressing a specific issue from a loved one or a loyal customer. A family member had eczema so she created an oatmeal soap. A loved one suffered from a burn so she created hemp soap to help add relief to the area.
Her soaps are by far her best selling items and not long after a new batch is made and her inventory is updated will they sell out as the customers hop on to grab their favorite products.
You can find everything from Black African soap to “Stay Woke” Coffee Bar soaps. Then of course there are natural soaps with scents like coconut, citrus, vanilla/lavender, wild lemongrass and turmeric and lemon, to name a few. Her specialty soaps like “She’s A Lady” and “Hot Girl Summer” are some of her best sellers and the fact that All Things Knatural offers several unscented and gentle products has cultivated a loyal following from those with sensitive skin.
Customers began to ask for facial care products so she delved into creating a turmeric scrub — made with turmeric powder, cocoa butter, aloe vera and she butter — to combat dark spots and acne and serums and toners like Radiant Glow and Tighten Up so shoppers could have natural ingredients in every aspect of their skincare routine.
Many of her products are unisex, but Lee also has beard oil and beard combs in stock for clients who want to spruce up their beard game.
“These other skincare products go hand-in-hand with my soaps that can be used on your face,” Lee said. “I feel like branching off into that gave people more options on what products they use on their face. Hyperpigmentation and acne are some issues my customers were bringing up and so I wanted to delve deeper into that field and focus on the face. Serums for moisturizing and facial scrubs for exfoliating. Honestly my business is a holistic business so any type of wellness I can bring into lives I see as being a part of that.”
Lee said a simple fact that is often overlooked is the skin is the body’s largest organ and it absorbs what is placed on it. Instead of exfoliating with abrasive chemicals or moisturizing with artificially scented soaps and lotions customers are starting to look for other options. She started this journey by simply wanting to find a product that “gives to the skin instead of taking away from the skin” and that mindset has been echoed by many not only in Plant City, but by consumer trends across the world.
According to a report by Grand View Research, Inc., a rising awareness in environment conservation as well as a focus on eliminating harmful chemicals in personal care products are driving the market more toward organic solutions. The global organic soaps market size is expected to reach $383.4 million by 2025, with North America currently being the dominant market as it accounted for more than 30 percent of the global revenue.
There is also a movement in Plant City for consumers to return back to relying on small businesses. Markets are popping up all over the community and many small shops are turning to the internet to ensure their customers have easy access to their homemade goods.
Lee said while she intends to be more present at markets and vendor events she still gets the majority of her sales online as people have the products shipped directly to their homes.
“I definitely see more people going toward the handmade and small businesses and local businesses rather than large corporations,” Lee said. “The support is definitely there and I want to do my role to show up and make sure I provide high quality products that this community wants and needs. Ideally you’ll have people start to use these local small businesses for as many things in their life as they can so that these massive corporations won’t be the answer anymore. I’ve seen that with my customers. The number of repeat customers I have is very high which tells me I’m doing a good job fitting the needs of those in Plant City. I think people are ready to get those harmful chemicals out of their homes and I’m happy to be a part of that journey in whatever way I can.”
To learn more about All Things Knatural head to allthingsknatural.com. You can also follow the business on Instagram and Facebook @AllThingsKnatural.