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Blissoma Buys a Building Love Fund

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Blissoma began over 15 years ago based on the simple but radical idea that authentic, healthy, kind living brings about the best kind of beauty - one that shows up on the surface because it sprouts from deep inside. 

In the time since our inception we have touched and changed thousands of lives. We help people solve persistent skin problems and bring about the confident, comfortable version of themselves they have always dreamed of.  What started as a few bottles of essential oil and a lot of hours of tinkering with herbs has turned into a globally recognized and award-winning brand, and the life's work of founder Julie Longyear to provide an antitode to the fear-based, critical mindset of conventional "beauty".


Through our many years of well-earned growth we have used debt financing to accomplish our goals.  We are a bootstrapped company, earning our way to each next tier of success through service, hard work, amazing products, and person-to-person referrals.  


All business growth requires capital.  Due to the materials and space-intensive nature of how we work our business requires more than the typical skincare brand.  We manufacture all of our own products and purchase top tier botanical ingredients from around the world.  At every step we reinvest more into inventory and capabilities so that we can continue to provide the integrity our clients have come to expect.


We are on the verge of a major step in our business growth and are requesting the help of our community to make it there.

Two years ago we leased and renovated a gorgeous commercial building in the Historic Flower District of St. Louis.  The building was ideal for our work needs, having enough space for manufacturing growth and office activities, refrigeration for our sensitive ingredients, and showroom and education space for our community to gather.  In November 2015 we opened our doors to the public, and it has been a wonderful 18 months of community building, fun, and expansion.






We need to purchase our building, and have limited time to accomplish this task.  

We have put our hearts on our sleeves and every card on the table over the last 18 months to get ourselves into position for this leap.  We are nearly there and just need a bit of financial push to make it.  

Commercial loans require a minimum 10% downpayment.  Over the last 18 months we have saved about 50% of our downpayment through rent credits that are saved in escrow.  We have continued to grow despite the pressure this has put on our finances and the bumps we experienced during our first year open here.  We are scrappy, creative and 100% dedicated. 

Our big Summer Sale is this week, which should generate a chunk of the needed downpayment.  
The entire goal must be met, though, and given that summer months can be slower for us we need to exceed all past years' earnings right now to secure ourselves for the coming 2 months and have our downpayment ready to go.

We have never asked for assistance before, but this is a moment that will set us up well for years to come and great future impact on the health of people, the environment, and as a model of sustainable, ethical business.


We are currently bearing as much debt as is wise for us to have.  Our goal is to finish this task without further burdening our business so that we are no longer financially stressed once the purchase is made.  

We have been in contact with bankers and the city agencies that would preside over our loan.  Everyone is giving us positive feedback about our financial paperwork we have submitted so far.

One of the mortgage estimates we received back would allow us to finance the building to where our monthly bills would be decreased significantly, making us that much more stable.

We are a quality employer in the St. Louis area and will be adding more staff as we grow.  We support other local producers, host free and low cost community events, and offer our time freely on a regular basis to help people improve their health.

If you are inspired by our success story, and believe that conscious business has value in our world we ask for your support at this time.  Any amount is helpful.

If you would like to support us by purchasing products you can do so through our Sale this week. Click here to join our email list and receive the sale code.

The sale will offer you 30% off on our brand of products for 2 days 6/16 and 6/17.


If you miss those dates but would rather support us by shopping you are welcome to visit our website http://www.blissoma.com or our retail store in St. Louis and shop at any time.  

We are always happy to earn our way forward, and we provide amazing products so your dollars will be well-spent on a great value that way.

This GoFundMe is intended to be a place for people to leave love donations, or to support us even if they do not need any product at this time.  

We have set a modest (modest for business capital) goal.  If response exceeds that goal we would be incredibly excited, as this is just a portion of what we must accrue.

We appreciate your contribution as soon as you are able to make it.  We will be working on bank paperwork over the next several months, so we will leave this campaign up while we are in that process.

We know there are other people out there that believe that a self-loving, holistic beauty paradigm is needed just as much as we do.  
We want to meet you.  We want to get excited about herbs with you.  We want to help you be healthy and reveal your totally beautiful self in the ways that we have discovered over our years of work.  We think you'll be pretty delighted that we exist, and that you'll probably want us to stick around.

It has taken over a decade to get ourselves into position for this opportunity, and we really need this purchase to work.  We hope you will come forward at this time to show you believe in our work and affirm that you want businesses like us as part of the fabric of society in the USA.

In kindness,

The Blissoma Team

Julie Longyear, Herbal Chemist and Founder


Frank Wilderspin, Production Manager and Herbal Chef Extraordinaire


Laurie Beetner, Natural Makeup Artist

Lauren Merten, Holistic Staff Esthetician

Some loving words from our community:

"Dear Julie and staff,
Yesterday we had Corinne's baby shower at your shop and I loved everything about it. Your ability to create an atmosphere of beauty and calm and amazing products is wonderful. 25 people were there and all were commenting on the shop and the quality and when they got to make their own scent with your tutelage....what could have been more special?  We ate , we talked, we created, we celebrated this new little baby in our family with your help. Anyone who is looking for a unique setting and quality program should immediately contact you. This will always be a special memory for our family! Much luck and growth to you in the future! Love, Nancy, Amanda and Andrea."


Greatest moisturizer ever!
"Ordered the sample size to try, and fell in love with it. I've switched to natural products a year ago, did tons of research, and tried tons of products. A blog review brought me to Blissoma, and life as I knew it changed. This is the first all natural/organic/everything face moisturizer that actually worked for me."  - Aditih Shah

TRY THESE PRODUCTS

"I have struggled with dry skin my entire life (and when i say dry skin, i mean nonstop dry patches all over my face that would flake). God forbid i would wear makeup because it would accentuate the dry spots even more. I had tried everything from brands you would find at your local target to expensive brands like Dior, but nothing would help. I even went to a dermatologist, but no luck. Finally i got desperate, and following the advice of a friend, i started slathering on coconut oil multiple times a day. To my surprise my skin got even worse (which i didn't even think was possible). After googling why this would be i came across an article by Julie Longyear that explained it all. I emailed her and she was so patient and kind about discussing my skincare with me. She recommended a few solutions and the Lavish Loving Recovery Beta Glucan Mask. I went on the Blissoma site and discovered the entire sensitive skin line! I will admit, at first i thought, "Here we go, another line of products that i'm going to spend money on only to see no relief." But i figured why not try one more brand before seeking the help of a dermatologist again. I decided to order the mask recommended by Julia, but i also figured i would grab the Free Rejuvenating Herbal Gel Cleanser/Makeup Remover, and the Pure Sensitive Skin Soothing Complex for a moisturizer. I could not believe it, within the first week i started noticing my dry patches disappearing and the overall look of my skin becoming healthier looking!!! I'm not a celebrity trying to promote a brand or whatever, and i get nothing from sharing this info with you, i am only sharing to tell you that if your experiencing anything like what i was going through and you are frustrated, self conscious of your skin, and ready to give up on it, TRY THESE PRODUCTS!!! I am so glad i did and i will continue to use the products i mentioned in this review. (A special thanks to Julie Longyear for all of your help and patience)" - Samantha 

You can read more of the glowing reviews we have received on our website.

Reviews can also be seen by product by visiting their individual pages.

See more company reviews on our Facebook Page.

Also check out 65 Reasons to Love Shopping with Blissoma.

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Donations 

  • R. Shawn Williams
    • $20 
    • 7 yrs
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Organizer

Julie Longyear
Organizer
St Louis, MO

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