Photo by Cyndi Klose, Klose Photography
Photo by Cyndi Klose, Klose Photography
Photo by Cyndi Klose, Klose Photography
Photo by Dani Fresh
The last straw for Melissa Rau came when she tried two skin care products from one company. Her sensitive skin reacted well to one item and poorly to the other. She asked the company about the ingredients in each, so she could avoid the culprit.
Sorry, she was told. That’s proprietary.
The rejection sent Rau on a journey that led to the creation of M&C Naturals. Since its launch in November 2015, the line of 40-plus serums, lotions, scrubs and bath salts has been available online, at retail outlets and through brand ambassadors. And because Rau and her business partner, brother-in-law Chad Rohrbach, seized an unexpected opportunity, M&C Naturals is also becoming a popular choice for healing the beat-up hands of CrossFit enthusiasts.
That search for transparency in skin care was the inspiration for the entire line, but the gears of the business began turning when Rau approached Rohrbach, an experienced business executive, with her pitch. She conducted the research and tested the products, with herself, and a focus group of women living in different climates nationwide as guinea pigs. Rohrbach originated the labels and website and handles the finances.
Rau built this new venture on a foundation of lessons learned from a career in marketing, public relations and customer service. After years of using “cleanser after cleanser after cleanser” on her fickle skin, she says, she began to realize that less is more. M&C Naturals contain no chemicals or preservatives. The naturally derived scents of eucalyptus, mint, lavender, citrus, coconut and peppermint are “welcoming across the board.” All ingredients are shown on the labels.
Building trust anchors the experience. The spa owners and retail partners who are integral to the success of the product “didn’t know us from Adam” when Rau first approached them.
“We’re a little different,” she says. “We’re very forthcoming with our ingredients. We’re transparent. Everything you see on that label and on our website is exactly what we put in. There are no hidden ingredients.”
Rau and Rohrbach also rejected “that expensive price tag on being beautiful.”
“Skin care does not need to be expensive,” Rau says. “It does not need to be $150 an ounce for a serum. We use many of the same ingredients that you find in very expensive, high-end products, and they use a lot of ingredients that we don’t.”
Rau makes all the products herself. That is, of course, when she’s not devising marketing plans, introducing herself to salon and boutique owners, and responding directly to questions and feedback from customers.
“Everything is handcrafted,” she says. “I guess you could say I’m the chef.”
Her customers find uses for the products that she hadn’t thought of. One uses the serum in her hair to lasso flyaways. Some use the Moisturizing Shea Scrub, which leaves a protective moisture barrier on the skin, for shaving.
A holiday visit by Rohrbach’s brother, owner of CrossFit Rhythm in Reading, inspired the creation of W.O.D. Hand Repair. The W.O.D. stands for “workout of the day,” that grueling daily routine that can roughen and peel the skin of the hands. Rohrbach’s brother was so impressed with the effects on his hands of M&C Naturals’ Moisturizing Shea Body Scrub and Soothing Salve that he suggested his CrossFit students would love it. Now CrossFit pursuers and other athletes whose hands take a beating, such as rock climbers and baseball players, are happy customers. Medical professionals, too, like the protective moisture barrier that helps prevent cracked skin on their frequently washed hands.
One construction worker who tried the products marveled that his hands weren’t drying up, as they usually do from creams that moisturize for only a short while, says Rau. “You would think that our skin care products would be focused on women, but we are really breaking through some interesting industries,” she says.
Rau realizes that she and Rohrbach are as much solution providers as beauty-product salespeople. “The fact that we are creating products that are literally helping people and that are affordable—that’s what this company is all about. We are more focused on that helping avenue versus the beauty avenue. It’s great that people enjoy the way our products smell and the way they feel, and it’s a spa-type product, but it’s really not. It’s turning more into a lifestyle product.”
M&C Naturals has also carved out a philosophy of giving. Nonprofits that help their communities can request product donations. For every W.O.D. Hand Repair product sold, one dollar is donated to a U.S. military charity. Through their experience with nonprofits, Rau and Rohrbach know they “rely on unrestricted funds just as much as grants, so when we can support an auction or event by donating product, we will,” she says.
Plus, Rohrbach’s brother Scott—the inspiration for W.O.D Hand Repair—served in the military, “as well as my father and many of our other relatives, so supporting the military is something that is near and dear to us,” she adds.
The future of M&C Naturals looks bright. Holiday plans include booths at craft shows staged at Hershey High School (November 4), Central Dauphin East High School (November 18), and possibly others.
The whole venture is thriving on a foundation of supportive friends and family, including Rau’s husband Chris Rau, Rohrbach’s wife (and Rau’s sister) Tina Rohrbach, parents, in-laws, friends, brand ambassadors and retailers.
Rohrbach is “road testing” new products that Rau is developing for men. Someday, they hope to hire employees, continuing the hand-crafted tradition while making the business “a great employment place.”
“We’re so fortunate,” Rau says. “It was a little terrifying to walk away from a full-time income, but I’m very happy.”
In the Susquehanna River region, current retailers selling selected products include Red Salon, Mechanicsburg; A Razored Edge, Mechanicsburg; Leg Up Farmers Market, York; Zen and Now, Gettysburg; and Kimman’s Co., York. Others are selling in more Pennsylvania regions. Shop online, read product descriptions and find the full list of retailers at mc-naturals.com.
