The Butter Bar Skincare Serves Up A New Retail Location And Collaboration With Vanessa Simmons

The Butter Bar Skincare has opened a retail and manufacturing location in Houston. Next, the natural brand could be branching out to a city near you.

“A lot of people are afraid to do retail, but, with the following we already have and what we are trying to build, I feel like we can do it. I feel we can be like an Origins or Kiehl’s, have our own stores and maintain the integrity of the brand,” says The Butter Bar Skincare founder Kimberly-Chloe Wilson. “I want to be a destination where you’re able to walk in, see a demo of a product, have them applied to you, pick up your products and get services.”

Wilson doesn’t envision The Butter Bar Skincare expanding everywhere. She foresees 15 locations experimenting with different concepts. There could be spas, skincare kitchens of sorts where products are mixed to order and roomy flagships. The Houston outpost is 2,400 feet, about 20% of which is dedicated to retail space and the remainder to manufacturing. The Butter Bar Skincare had previously been manufacturing at Wilson’s home across the street from the location. It manufactures for other brands as well as itself.

“My husband was tired of the business being in the house. We always knew we wanted to do it, and the opportunity presented itself,” says Wilson, whose husband Abdul manages production for The Butter Bar Skincare. “It was the perfect time and opportunity for us to make the move, so we said, ‘Let’s do it,’ and it came together beautifully. I think we get a lot of traffic from people just wanting to come in and look.”

“A lot of people are afraid to do retail, but, with the following we already have and what we are trying to build, I feel like we can do it. I feel we can be like an Origins or Kiehl’s, have our own stores and maintain the integrity of the brand.”

In addition to The Butter Bar Skincare’s retail venture, it’s venturing into a product collaboration with actress and producer Vanessa Simmons, the daughter of Joseph “Rev Run” Simmons. “She’s a hard-core fan of ours,” says Wilson, revealing that products from the collaboration are scheduled to be introduced in August. “She reached out to us personally and said, ‘I trust you when it comes to manufacturing. I know your products work, and you have integrity behind your ingredients.’ We have done the formulation, and we will be doing the manufacturing. It’s really exciting. I really respect what her and her sister have done with their entrepreneurial endeavors. I think it’s going to be a really great partnership.”

The Butter Bar Skincare began with whipped butters, sugar scrubs and bath bombs, but its Flawless Facial System sets with items, including “Apples & Mustard” Blemish Banishing Face Mask, Apple Tea Tree and Green Tea Face Toner, and Black Tea Tree and Peppermint Wash, designed to combat acne and hyperpigmentation solidified its serious skincare positioning. The brand’s natural skincare has garnered mentions in Jet, Refinery29 and Sheen Magazine. Today, Melan-In Skin Nourishing Serum is its number-one product and hyperpigmentation is the number-one reason customers flock to The Butter Bar Skincare. In total, its assortment spans around 45 items priced on average at $25.

“Our main customer base is multicultural women, and it’s a segment that’s not necessarily catered to when it comes to skincare. Hair care is way ahead when it comes to multicultural products, and skincare is behind,” says Wilson. “We get a lot of attention because we are addressing those who feel they are unaddressed.”

“Our main customer base is multicultural women, and it’s a segment that’s not necessarily catered to when it comes to skincare. Hair care is way ahead when it comes to multicultural products, and skincare is behind. We get a lot of attention because we are addressing those who feel they are unaddressed.”

Wilson, an avid DIY’er, concocted natural beauty products for friends, family and colleagues to remedy eczema, a skin condition her kids suffered from, prior to establishing The Butter Bar Skincare. The brand launched in January 2015 after Wilson left her accounting job a week before Christmas. “I went into my controller’s office and let him know I would no longer be working there because I had a fantastic skincare business that was taking up so much of my time,” she recalls. “I was lying. I was tired of working at a thankless job and not seeing my four children. I had a business plan that I had made up for Butter Bar, and I quit my job with only my last paycheck.”

The risky decision paid off. In its first year in business, The Butter Bar Skincare generated in excess of $150,000 in sales, three times the income Wilson had been receiving in accounting. Last year, it hit nearly $500,000 in sales and, this year, The Butter Bar Skincare is on track to reach $800,000 in revenues. Wilson reports 51% of its sales come from repeat customers. Up until now, the brand’s sales have largely been online, although it has a wholesale program that has spread The Butter Bar Skincare to select stores and aestheticians interested in holistic treatments.

The Butter Bar Skincare has been solicited by big retailers such as Target, but Wilson has opted not to put her brand in them. She’d be willing to consider a sizable retail partnership, though, if it fits the brand. “We don’t need larger retailers to grow. I want to have control of my brand and release products to people under my standards and not necessarily under a larger retailer’s standards,” says Wilson, indicating that The Butter Bar Skincare’s customers trust the brand more because it’s stayed out of massive chains. “We listen to our customers as much as possible. They are very vocal, not just about how much they love our skincare, but also about what products they want from us. Our customers have helped us grow so far, so listening to them is nothing but beneficial.”