Nature holds the secrets to most of our beauty needs. And Sheree Fletcher found a way to harness the power of natural ingredients to restore and nourish skin. Thus was founded Whoop Ash (www.whoopash.com [3]).
Motivated by the book “The Secret Life of Bees”, Fletcher was intrigued with what she had learned about the healing properties of honey as a natural beauty product. "Ironically, it was the reading of Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees that ignited my interest in honey. As I started to read more about honey, I found that there are all different types, colors, tastes, consistencies and textures. I was first introduced to white honey in the café of my church at the time. Unlike the other types of honey, white honey tastes like icing on a cinnamon roll. I love to cook, so I started playing in the kitchen trying to come up with something delicious and edible. In this “playing process” I began researching recipes online that contained honey, and to my surprise, popping up were mostly recipes for the body," explains Fletcher, founder and CEO of Whoop Ash. "This is when my direction and focus changed to skincare. My mission became to create a rich and powerful body butter that would rival dry skin. There wasn’t much on the market that was action packed and effective when it came to dry, ashy skin. I got tired of countless victims suffering unnecessarily…so a heroine was born and came to the rescue."
After unlocking the beauty secrets of honey, Fletcher, who was married to actor/rapper Will Smith from 1992-1995, focused on creating a honey-based, natural organic skincare products. "Necessity was my inspiration," says Fletcher, who is remarried to former NFL running back Terrell Fletcher who is the pastor of a church in San Diego. "Whoop Ash is a highly-concentrated product. We cut the normal ratio of water content by more than half, which means our customer gets a richer product and better value. Unlike most brands, our combination of organic shea butter, organic mango butter, organic coconut oil and grapeseed oil, make up approximately 40% of the ingredients in every jar of Whoop Ash. This is what makes it so thick and creamy. We are also introducing a new ingredient to the skincare world: white honey. We are the first skincare company to incorporate the use of this rare honey into its line of products."
And for her company, which was formally introduced to the market in early 2009, Fletcher came up with a name that no one would forget. Whoop Ash! conquers dry skin. "The name is an in-your-face, to the point, solution for a tough problem (dry skin/ash). It has a sense of humor…laughter does the body good, and coupled with an effective product you can’t lose. The name does exactly what it says: it whoops and annihilates ashy, dry skin. Let us fight your battles," says Fletcher.
Whoop Ash! contains all natural and organic ingredients that soften and moisturize dry, ashy skin. It also claims to revitalize and rejuvenate. "Whoop Ash 'whipped' body butter cream is infused white honey, organic Shea & mango butters, making it ultra rich and creamy, but never greasy," offers Fletcher. "Our 'whipped' butter is lighter & creamier (less dense) than our original butter, but offers the same overall intense, moisturizing, full body treatment experience."
Though Whoop Ash! has proven a success, like other entrepreneurs, Fletcher had her share of challenges. "One of the biggest obstacles was accessing what was needed to run a business and then plugging in the right people that will function in that aspect of the overall business and execute the overall vision," she points out. "It's a work in progress and I'm constantly learning. I've had to be very patient with myself as a new business woman, realizing that I will indeed make mistakes but that it's all par for the course."
