We've Moved! Vist our New Store in the Funk Zone & now Open Daily in Carpinteria

 
I am beyond happy to announce that we are fully moved in to our new shop in the Funk Zone at The Waterline, 120 Santa Barbara Street! 

The Waterline • 120 Santa Barbara St. Santa Barbara, CA

 This is a super fun new location where you can sip, shop, eat and hang at Topa Topa and Lama Dog breweries, Fox Wine Co., and the Nook restaurant along with other great shops! We are psyched for this new chapter for The Grapeseed Co. in Santa Barbara.

New Shop at The Waterline • 21 W. Ortega St. SB

The downtown Ortega St. location is now closed, and our office has moved the Carp Store and Warehouse on 4193 Carpinteria Ave #6. We are excited to be open daily, later hours, and Sundays for your convenience, and to be surrounded by such cool and complementary businesses in both locations! 

This sweet lemonade was made from a big fat lemon of a situation...

 2017 ended with the largest wildfire in CA history, the Thomas Fire, ripping through our normally idyllic seaside towns, followed by the tragic Montecito mudslides causing loss and devastation beyond imagination at the start of the new year. This also cut off access between our two locations, and was one of the most challenging times in the history of our 14 year old company! Like everyone in the area, we are still recovering from it. We were nowhere near prepared for the next round of crazy that hit Grapeseed Co. in April.

Ortega St. Scent Bar (after-left, before-right)

Part of the charm of our downtown Santa Barbara flagship store was the old brick building that houses some great businesses on Ortega Street, starting with The Grapeseed Co. The extreme weather has been taking a toll on our corner of the large, old building. On April 9th, our Scent Bar came crashing down out of nowhere! 5 years mounted firm to the wall, and BOOM! Over $5K of glass essential oil bottles hit the floor.

The wall that starts the whole building The Grapeseed Co. occupied on Ortega had expanded and blistered, popping the shelves off the wall.

21 W. Ortega Street • wall blister

Why did this happen? After the last evacuation rain, we had a 90+ degree day... The roof had been leaking all winter, and that water had been dripping down into our wall, causing a wet sponge effect. When the extreme heat hit, the wall expanded and shifted.

We were super lucky no one was hurt; we had 25 kids in there less than 24 hours before for a scent bar party! We became quickly aware as experts checked out the situation that it was no longer safe for The Grapeseed Co. to occupy 21 W. Ortega Street and continue to run business as usual. We had to move.

So, in just a month we secured a new storage warehouse in Carpinteria and moved tens of thousands of bottles and jars out of our current warehouse. With the new found space, we built out a scent bar, opened up the storefront and made it larger, and reconfigured our production lab and shipping areas. We turned my creative loft space into the office for our entire team. This kept us functioning, orders shipping, and business running seemingly as usual while we figured out what the heck to do!

Our main store has always been Santa Barbara based, so we decided the best thing to do was expand in the Funk Zone. A few weeks before the fire hit, we opened a tiny shop at The Guilded Table as an "experiment" for the holidays... clearly Mother Nature did not agree with my holiday sales plan! But the space has amazing potential, and I'm hopeful for what our "normal" Santa Barbara sunny summer days will bring. We've been working around the clock the past week building out the new Funk Zone shop. We can't wait to share it with you, host incredible Scent Bar parties there, blend up your favorite creative scent concoctions and just be surrounded by great people, businesses, food + drink, bubbling ideas and more.

Scent Bar in the Funk Zone • 120 Santa Barbara St.

Please come visit us soon! The Waterline building is located right behind Michael Kate Interiors and opens at noon daily. There's parking at the end of the street. It's a fun place for all ages to hang, and dogs are welcome, too.

2018 has been a whirlwind in business survival, a lesson in resilience, strength and the endless learning that goes along with entrepreneurship. That which does not kill us makes us stronger... The Grapeseed Co. is standing strong, just a mile away from our sweet memories on Ortega Street.

Please help us spread the word about the move! we're looking forward to sharing the new stores with you, seeing your smiling faces and continuing to thrive, no matter what life continues to surprise us with.

Cheers to good things ahead, always keeping your chin up and persevering!

~ Kristin

SANTA BARBARA SHOP 
120 Santa Barbara St in the Funk Zone
Open Daily!
Monday - Thursday 11:30am-6:30pm
Friday - Sunday 11:30am-8:30pm

CARPINTERIA SHOP
4193 Carpinteria Ave #6 at the Warehouse Row
Carpinteria, CA 93013
Open
Monday, Wednesday, Friday 10:30am-5:30pm
Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday noon-5pm 

refresh, reset and recover : navigating running a business through natural disaster

I had the wonderful opportunity to tell the story behind The Grapeseed Company this past week on Indie Cruise in Ixtapa, Mexico.

Sunset in Ixtapa, Mexico

 This could not have come at a better time for me, as I was feeling beyond hope due to 6 weeks of crazy and historic natural disasters in the Santa Barbara area, where we are based. We lived through the largest wildfire in the history of California...

Downtown Carpinteria      photo credit: Alain Julfayan

Followed by the aftermath of horrific mudslides in Montecito -- a small, gorgeous town located right in between Santa Barbara and Carpinteria. We are extremely fortunate that our entire team is safe, and did not lose their lives or homes. Many were not so lucky. Our community is grieving heavily as over 20 have died, and hundreds have lost pets, homes and businesses due to the fire and mudslides. People are still missing. Our community has also been divided by the physical devastation of the mudslides shutting down all road access between Carpinteria and SB.

Montectio and the 101 freeway     photo credit: unknown

The 101 freeway is flooded with mud and has been closed for 11 days with no reopen date. The only way to transport product between our stores is a 5 hour drive around the mountains (it's usually 15 minutes!) The Grapeseed Co. has 3 physical locations: our flagship store and scent bar in downtown Santa Barbara, The Guilded Table collective shop in the Funk Zone in SB, and our warehouse store and production kitchen in Carpinteria, CA.

Our staff has been stuck on either side of this disaster trying to keep the business running the best we can as we usually move product between locations and ship wholesale and online orders daily. It's been stressful as we try to keep perspective of those that have lost everything while we operate day by day trying to keep things going with the roads blocked off. Transport has been limited both shipping our product and receiving ingredients and packaging to continue manufacturing, which we do daily.

I didn't think I'd even be able to make Indie Cruise due to the roads being closed to LA right after the mudslides hit. While the 101 North remains closed, they luckily opened the freeway South out of Carpinteria the day before our flight out of LAX. I felt extremely grateful, but also guilty leaving my community when we are hurting so badly. There was also little I could do staying here a week ago. First responders are the only folks being let in to help right now as the aftermath and cleanup is so dangerous. We've donated both as a business, and personally monetarily, but that didn't feel like enough with the great immediate needs in our community.

Leaving home turned out to be the best possible way for me to refresh and reset my mind so I can help Santa Barbara recover, both personally, and with the power of my company. Honestly, I showed up to Indie Cruise a bit in shock. We went out sailing together the first day. We got to know each other, went snorkeling and even saw whales! Water (especially warm ocean water!) has always been a healing force for me. Being in this beautiful, cleansing environment with such amazing entrepreneurs started to help me breathe again. Instead of just feeling thankful we were alive and didn't lose everything, I began to start thinking how I could help Santa Barbara recover.

The theme of Indie Cruise was Emerge, Engage, Evolve and Expand. My talk was about the Expand Phase. With the craziness of the past 6 weeks, I felt, "who am I to go speak about expanding when I made these huge decisions, signed leases, had to close our stores and now we are floating in the world of unknown in the aftermath of these natural disasters?!" 

We have been in business since 2004, and opened 2 more retail locations in the past 6 months; The Carp location opened at the end of the summer, and The Funk Zone location right before Thanksgiving. I had visions of this being a great growth move as our company is so rooted in the community with what we do upcycling grapeseeds to create our natural skin and body care products. 

I had recently moved from SB to Carp, and was excited to open our 2nd shop in my hometown where we needed to get our own warehouse since we'd grown out of our SB office and had been subletting warehouse space prior to fit our growing company. The Funk Zone is the new "hot spot" in SB that tourists and locals alike are flocking to. I had a grand plan of this being the best holiday season ever! 

Then we were hit by natural disaster and shut down for a great portion of December due to the Thomas Fire, and the heavy smoke and ash that lingered afterwards. Santa Barbara is a huge tourist destination, and tourism has basically stopped since Dec. 5, 2017. Even with 3 stores, we didn't scratch the surface of what we normally do in December sales. Again, perspective... we have our loved, ones, home and business locations still in tact. I learned no matter how much you plan, you can never plan for natural disaster. While I was listening to the 4 other speakers, and even to myself up there telling my own expansion story, something started happening...

@grapeseedco on instagram "Such an pleasure and honor to tell the story of expanding #grapeseedco this week on @indiebusiness @indiecruise and share the stage with these lovely ladies! Together we represent 4 important stages of building your business: emerge, engage, evolve and expand. Each story was amazing, heartfelt and inspiring!"

I felt a new sense of inspiration from this amazing tribe of people in the room with me. I sat alone late that evening on the deck of our room listening to the healing waves lap on the shore, reflected, and made a small step from Mexico to help those that lost everything.

@grapeseedco on Facebook & instagram: We are beyond heartbroken for our community and the tragic loss of lives, homes and businesses in #Montecito ❤️ We’re giving anyone that lost their home a free #organic #shampoo and #conditioner set at our #Carpinteria or #santabarbara stores! If you are stuck on either side of the #mudslide, visit both our main #Grapeseedco locations in Carp or #downtownSB and we’ll hook you up, and give you a hug! #montectiostrong #santabarbarastrong #carpstrong #sbstrong #805strong #community #locallove #givingback

On the trip home yesterday, I knew I needed to research what else we could do to help. Everyone who lives and works in the area is struggling and in different levels of trauma right now. Most have not been as fortunate as I was to escape the madness and are still in day to day survival mode. In addition to the greater loss mentioned above, people have lost their jobs, can't get to work and are worried how they are going to make it. Businesses have had to lay off their entire staff and close. We luckily are healthy enough right now to make it through with our current team in tact, and will actually be hiring another employee and providing a job in the area. Another little step to help the community. Small, local business like Grapeseed Co. provide jobs! 

I spent the travel time reading stories of amazing ways people are coming together and helping our community heal, from candelight vigils, to the Montecito Mud Angels, to registering to become a Red Cross helper. I'm coming back renewed with more energy I can put into recovery efforts. Part of that is sharing my perspective and ways you can help here. I shared my research on how we can help with some of our staff this morning. It touched my heart to see they wanted to volunteer and register with the Red Cross to help or find locations to donate clothing and personal care items. Each person doing what they can, and this is what it is going to take! Each and every one of us reaching out, lending a hand, giving a hug to our neighbors and helping in any and every way we possibly can. 

Since many of our wholesale and retail customers don't live in the area, this is to help you understand what's going on, and why we have been slower in response. We are also extremely grateful for you, right now (and always)! 

I am listing some resources on how to help the recovery efforts here, including ways to donate for those not in the area. Please LMK others in the comments as you come across them.

HOW TO HELP IN PERSON:
Register for training and volunteer with the Red Cross: Sign up for a disaster bootcamp- emotional advocate, crisis management, and shelter training.

DONATE:
Direct Relief International- This locally founded non-profit is providing relief fund directly to locals affected by the mudslides. 


Search Dog Foundation - The search dogs have been critical in the mudslide recovery efforts. They lost their building in Santa Paula during the Thomas Fire and are in great need.

United Way of Santa Barbara - In Santa Barbara County, the Fund will serve the long-term needs of Santa Barbara County families and individuals, as well as the short-term needs of Santa Barbara County nonprofit organizations helping evacuated individuals displaced by the Thomas Fire and floods caused by the fire scar. direct donation link HERE

Montecito Mud Angels - I've known Eric since he started the first TedX conference here in 2010. This guy knows how to rally and has a big heart. He is making sure donations go directly to those in the greatest need! The stories of how they are helping will bring a tear to your eye.

Thanks for taking the time to read this, and your concern. To our wholesale partners and online customers, thanks for your understanding! Please be patient and kind with each other as we wade through this. The road to recovery here will take years, but I'm staying positive as I see our community coming together in beautiful ways. We will come out so much stronger from this! 

my baby... photo bombing our Indie group shot

And lastly, a special thanks to everyone at Indie Cruise for listening, sharing and helping get me out of that deer in headlights feeling, finding ways to take action, loving my baby, and motivating me start blogging again ;)! You are all amazing people and I'm lucky to have met you.

Peace,
Kristin

Join Us at The Grapeseed Co. for a Holiday Open House this Weekend

 

SHOP, EAT, BE MERRY,

and let us take care of the gift wrapping (for free!)

Join us this weekend

for a Holiday Open House at the Shop

WHERE: 

The Grapeseed Co.

21 W. Ortega St. Santa Barbara

WHEN: 

Saturday 10:30-5pm

Sunday noon-5pm

WHAT: 

Enjoy holiday cookies, hot cocoa & tea, free gift wrap and samples with your purchase

PLUS GREAT SPECIALS ON PRODUCTS:

~ 25% off body scrubs

~ $15 and under stocking stuffer tree (all discounted gift sets exclusive for the holidays!)

~ Free Shipping to your out of town friends and family with your purchase of $49 or more!

(it will go out Monday and get there by Christmas!)

Our team can put together custom gift baskets, create personalized products at the Scent Bar, or help you with suggestions for that "tough to shop for" person on your list... Hope to see you there!

Cheers from all of us at

Steam Distilled Essential Oil Kits: Get Creative & Save

The Bare Necessities Essential Oil Set features 10ml glass bottles of orange, tea tree, lavender and eucalyptus  oils for just $36.

This value set includes four essential oil favorites with a wide variety of uses and wonderful aromas. Mix, match and enjoy these premium quality, 100% steam distilled essential oils in an oil burner, bath & body preparations, aromatherapy and more. 

Each of these essential oils is host to a variety of natural benefits, get all of these premium essential oils at a great discount price of $36 for the set (a $41 value):

Orange- sweet citrus scent // energizing and uplifting // great mood lifter, alleviates anxiety, antiseptic, effective against acne, effective as a natural cleaning agent

Tea tree- herbacious scent // antibacterial, antiviral & antifungal properties // known to help clear up acne, athlete's foot & insect bites, topical disinfectant, promotes healing of cuts & scrapes, provides relief from coughs, colds & lung congestion


Lavender- herbal floral scent // calming & relaxing // an antiseptic known to help with burns, cuts & scrapes, relieves tension, promotes restful sleep, anti-inflammatory

Eucalyptus- woody medicinal scent // clearing and calming // helps relieve breathing & respiratory issues, antiseptic, antibacterial, mood stimulating, muscle relaxer, natural pest control

The Grapeseed Co. Signature Essential Oils set includes 10ml glass bottles of our four best selling EO blends: Pink Grapefruit Ginger, Fresh Cut Herbs, Sunshine Day & Surf for just $54.

A set of great smelling natural fragrances with amazing aromatherapy properties. Get the set for $54 (a $60 value).

Pink Grapefruit Ginger- a does of fresh vitamin C mixed with ginger, known in ancient times as an aphrodisiac, warms the senses & soothes the soul

Fresh Cut Herbs- lavender, rosemary & mints mingle creating a fresh spa blend to relax & clarify
 
Sunshine Day- sweet, juicy orange & vanilla intertwine creating a nourishing blend great for evening skin tone, scars & stretch marks       

Surf- one whiff will take you to the beach...notes of fresh lime, coconut & clean sweet mint



Our essential oils are natural scents that are steam distilled from plants, fruits and flowers. All oils are 100% concentration (unless noted otherwise).  

The 10ml amber bottles are double the size of mainstream essential oils available (which are just 5ml) and offer fabulous quality at an affordable price. Since we buy oils in bulk to create all of the amazing signature scents for our product lines and Scent Bar, we're able to pass the savings on to you! The prices speak for themselves, enjoy!

Fiesta Specials!

LIMITED TIME OFFERS!

It's Old Spanish Days & Fiesta time in Santa Barbara, 

here's some celebratory savings for you!

Attention local customers:

We are closing early at 4pm on Friday for Fiesta!

Facial Oils vs. Serums

Rose & Grape Serum, Resroli Serum, & Cali Harvest Serum

It seems a great time to quickly discuss the difference between our Grapeseed Facial Oils and Serums here at The Grapeseed Company! There has been more than one question as to what the differences between them are, so let's shed some light on the situation.

The facial oils are lighter- they aren't as rich in vitamins and antioxidants, have less ingredients overall, and are more quickly absorbed into the skin. They are great for both moisturizing (either worn alone or layered beneath a cream moisturizer or sunscreen) as well as for makeup removal, giving them even greater value for their price (just $18 for 2.3oz)!

The serums are also oil based,  however several differences exist. Our serums have been infused with herbs and flowers for 30 days, have stronger essential oils added in, and are more complex in the ingredients that they comprise of. Each of the serums have special qualities about them which make them more effective in targeted use for conditions such as age spots, sun damage, and blemishes in addition to being effective moisturizers that target fine lines and wrinkles ($30 for 2.3oz, $18 for 1.2oz).

Regardless of your preference, all of the facial oils and serums are packed with antioxidants like resveratrol from botanical ingredients such as grapeseed oil, are free of parabens/phthalates/sulfates/gluten, are vegan, never are tested on animals plus are naturally preserved with vitamin E. Try them out for yourself or give them as the perfect skin care gift to one you love!

Grapeseed Facial Oils: Argan, Avocado, Rosehip & Cocokui

Top 10 Father's Day Gift Ideas

Father's Day is just around the corner and we all know dads deserve the best! We have a list of great gifts to choose from that he's sure to love. See even more ideas on our website here.

 

1) Create Your Own Custom Beard Oil, $22

Our new beard grooming oil with a custom scent blend and name or your choice in 2.3oz amber glass bottle. Perfect for those dad's with mustaches or mandible masterpieces! Helps promote fuller facial hair growth, tames those wily wires plus moisturizes the delicate facial skin that lies beneath.

Give him the gift of your creativity blended with our expertise, here!

 

 

2) Red & White Wine Bar Gift Set, $22

Two of our best selling Organic Wine Bar Soaps, Harvest Crush Syrah + Summer Crisp Chardonnay, paired together with a wooden soap holder in a re-usable sheer organza bag. 

Pappa loves his fine wine, now let him bathe with it, here!

 

 

3) Cali Sun Stick SPF 30, $12.99

Active dad's need to protect their skin just the same as the rest of us, that's where this handy Cali Sun Stick comes in. The beefy tube packaging makes taking sun protection with him easy as slipping it into a pocket or tossing one into the glove box. A natural formula that protects the man that you love!

 

Protect papa from those harmful UV rays, here!

 

 

4) Mojito Man Organic Shave Set, $45

Know he loves the Mojito Man line? Give him the full size products and watch him smile! Features 4oz shaving prep scrub, 9oz shave gel, 4.4oz moisture mist plus 2.3oz aftershave balm. 

Give him the goodies he loves, here.

 

5) Wine Soap Stack, $6.99

Quarter size cuts of four delicious Organic Wine Bar Soaps: Pinot Dreams, Spa'vignon Blanc, Summer Crisp Chardonnay & Harvest Crust Syrah. Perfect for the traveling dad to take on the road or as a way to discover and enjoy our Organic Wine Bar Soaps. 

Small but mighty, these quarter size bars will get the dirtiest of dads clean, here.

 

 

6) Pinotherapy Bath Tower, $29.99

The best way for an active dad to relax is with a good salt soak in a tub. Our Pinotherapy Bath Salts feature a quad-blend of relaxing, restorative salts combined with antioxidant rich ground organic pinot noir grapeseeds that will help a tired body to detox and rest: Epsom salt, Dead Sea salt, pink Himalayan salt & Pacific Sea salt. Featured in the set with a wooden scoop, seasonal lip balm plus a travel soy massage candle to create the full spa relaxation, tub-soak experience!

Give him a day at the spa in his own home, here.

 

 

7) Vinotherapy for Him Gift Basket, $79

Our ultimate gift basket for dads: 8.8oz mojito man face & body wash, 4oz shaving prep scrub, 9oz shave gel, 2.3oz aftershave balm, 4.4oz surf vinotherapy lotion, and Harvest Crush Syrah Organic Wine Bar Soap all grouped together in a natural bark, wood basket. 

 

Give him a big 'ol gift basket of manly goodies, here!

 

 

8) Grapeseed Shower Set, $35

Just the basics, but the basics are good: 8.8oz hand & body wash, 8.8oz vinotherapy lotion plus a mesh loofah in a re-usable sheer organza bag. You choose the scent: Fresh Cut Herbs, Lemon Cake, Pink Grapefruit Ginger, Surf, Vanilla Almond Cinnamon or Sunshine Day.

Keep the man clean and moisturized, here.

 

 

9) Wine Country Amenities Set, $7.99

A travel set for father to keep him squeaky clean on the road: 1.5oz vinothairapy shampoo, 1.5oz vinothairapy conditioner, 1.7oz travel vinotherapy lotion plus a quarter size Organic Wine Soap Bar sliver.

'Tis the season of travels, give him a practical travel kit for cleanliness, here.

 

 

10) Mini Mojito Man Travel Gift Set, $32

A full Mojito Man shave set in all travel-friendly sizes. Featuring 2oz shaving prep scrub, 2oz shavel gel, 2.3oz moisture mist plus 2.3oz aftershave balm in a handy, sheer re-usable pouch.

A Mojito Man set that's built to travel (or for first time discovery of our product!). Find it here!

OCRF’s Super Saturday Los Angeles on May 16

Visit the official website for the event here!

On May 16th, The Grapeseed Company will be supporting #OCRFSuperSaturday LA at Santa Monica’s historic Barker Hangar!  

Get your tickets now to shop the incredible designer brands and support @OvarianCancerResearchFund’s great cause! Hosted by Rachel Zoe & Molly Sims.

Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF) is the largest and oldest U.S. charity funding research on ovarian cancer. All of the proceeds from sales of merchandise, tickets and tables go toward funding OCRF’s programs, including vital ovarian cancer research by the nation’s top scientists as they seek to end this terrible disease.

Click Here for tickets & more info!

 

2015 Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award Winner!

 

the twelve 2015 winners, read more about them here

Our CEO and Founder at The Grapeseed Company, Kristin Fraser, made us proud this past Friday when she took home the 

2015 Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award™ 

 in Wholesale, Manufacturing & Global Trade!

Kristin's quote for the event & award she took home that night!

These are the most prestigious entrepreneurial awards for women entrepreneurs in Santa Barbara County, and Kristin was one among over 90 outstanding nominees up for awards that night.

 

So what are these awards all about? In their own words, "The Spirit of Entrepreneurship™ Foundation’s Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards™ are designed to recognize the contributions of outstanding women entrepreneurs in Santa Barbara County to the economy as well as to support future economic growth through the recognition, financial support, and education of student entrepreneurs."

  

The non-profit behind these awards, the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Foundation, has a mission to, "support entrepreneurship at all levels in Santa Barbara County," and hosts the yearly award ceremony as a means of carrying out this mission. In addition to honoring local women entrepreneurs, they provide the next generation of entrepreneurs with both recognition of their efforts thus far as well as with financial assistance in the form of both scholarships and seed capital to support the continuing efforts of these driven individuals.  

The Grapeseed Company is pleased to have been a part of this effort and honored that Kristin has been recognized for all of her exceptional qualities, not the least of which is her round-the-clock dedication to making our business ever the better, a true labor of love and the reason that we exist.

Congratulations, Kristin!

Kristin Fraser, winner of the 2015 Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award in Wholesale, Manufacturing & Global Trade. Visit her store online here!