Never had I been somewhere that was as small as it was, but filled with such amazing diversity of cultures and people. By far, the seemingly desolate sparseness of the little village that lay nestled roughly somewhere 400 miles Northwest of Anchorage. It lies in what is known as the lower Kuskoquim Delta and I can easily say that it offered so much more than just snow and tundra. What I found during my time there was a community full of amazing people with a wonderful perspective on life. The friendly and beautiful Alaska Natives with their enchanting way of traditional life to the teaming expanse of settlers from various countries far outside even those of us from the Lower Forty-eight. Although I can honestly say I do not miss the cold isolation that was winter there, I do miss the people...many of whom I still value as friends twenty-and-some-odd-years later. It is the people that meant the most and still do.
With that being said, I am so proud to introduce a company that is manned by a trio of sisters who I used to look up to in high school and are now paving the way to better skincare while respecting and using the elements of the place where they are from. I see them as amazing entrepreneurs who I respect and admire for their hard work and passion in a time when many are too afraid to make their dreams of a business come true.
Below is an excerpt that one of the sisters, Michelle Sparck, wrote to me when trying to explain just where they came up with their ideas for this amazing skin care company. Take a look at what she has to say and then check our her company's webpage to see their products are:
Early on in our research, we followed trends in the Cosmetics & Toiletries Industry where they were scouring the earth for ingredients with an edge, not just as a 'magic bullet' but with a story to it also. They were moving more toward naturals and even before organic labeling took hold, the more unique and exotic the better. Not just C&T, but look at Snapple (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zoh0tHRXOvE) and snacks carried at places like Wholefoods with exotic fruits and grains like goji berries, açaí and quinoa - oh my!
They were going to the Himalayas, the Amazon and other parts of the equator for good stuff. We realized we were sitting on it in our own back yard. As you know, we are at America's fringe, little would people recognize it as part of the union, but we have untold wealth in cosmetic ingredients. So in the best of both worlds, we are exotic AND American - we make every effort to be Made in the USA even though so many have pushed us to do everything in China.
Rigorous R&D allowed us to assess the antioxidant levels of our high nutrient flora. To make an excellent formulation even better, we use glacier water from Eklutna and extra virgin, cold pressed salmon oil for the Omega factor. With the assistance of a cosmetic chemist (with the proviso that our products not carry parabans or be artificially colored or fragranced) we created a very potent topical skin serum with Arctic super-foods that nourishes your skin for health and wellness. Our little boutique brand may not be well-known, but we are made in the same house as powerhouse names like Chanel and Elizabeth Arden.
As many of you know, I really and truly believe that supporting small business is the way in which our economy is going to get better...each small business is the way to increasing the value of our dollar...small business owners are future employers to others. So check out their website: http://www.arxotica.com/
I love that they use resources from Alaska to create their products!
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