Farmers’ produce brighten DearJamie skin care lineup

MANILA, Philippines -  With the evolution of medical research through the years, curing health problems today is easier compared to the days of our ancestors.

But while prescription drugs help solve our health issues faster, they also use harsh chemicals which may cause side-effects to other areas of the body.

It was this realization that led one woman to accidentally start her own business. Thus came DearJamie,  a local crafter of handmade soaps and modern apothecary, which use all natural ingredients.

“It started out as something that I wanted to do for myself because I have a lot of allergies,” said Angeli Soriano, founder and owner of DearJamie.

Soriano said she had suffered from eczema - a  condition where patches of skin become  red, itchy, inflamed, and cracked - most of her life and eventually grew tired of using medications to relieve her condition.

“Sometimes I drink meds to soothe it but it doesn’t really come and go.  New allergies develop,” Soriano said.

It was at that time when Soriano embarked on a quest to look for alternative ways to manage her skin condition.

While Soriano continued her research on natural alternatives for caring for her skin, she stumbled upon a soap making workshop. 

After a series of workshops, Soriano found herself swamped with logs of handmade soaps she made at home. Not knowing what to do with all of them,  she decided to give the soaps to friends and family as Christmas gifts.

Soriano said that after she gave away her handmade soaps as presents, her family and friends asked for more.

“I was getting a lot of requests,” Soriano said.

As requests from friends and family grew, Soriano knew there could be a business in her products.   So In May 2016, she began selling her handmade soaps on Instagram.

Around the same time, Soriano said she also participated in pop bazaars to sell her products.

She funded her business with about P200,000 capital, which she used to buy ingredients for the soap making process.

The business has since grown as Soriano expanded her product base to include salt scrubs, shampoo lotion, agran oil, insect repellent, foot scrub, hand sanitizer, foaming facial wash, toner, lip balm, and dry shampoo among others.

DearJamie now offers 50 all-natural products or more than double the 22 product portfolio it had when it started.

Soriano said the ingredients used to make DearJamie products are 70 percent locally sourced.

“We choose local but local in a sense that we get from the small entrepreneurs like our coffee grounds we use in scrubs are barako from Batangas farmers, locally grown cocoa butter for balms, we used elemi resin from Bicol, honey for our soaps and body wash from Bukidnon,” Soriano said.

“I know it’s not that big of a gesture but we source locally as much as possible and we get directly from the source, “ she added.

Soriano said  she is still working to develop a new line of products targeted toward moms and babies .

Handmade soaps are not new to the market, but what makes DearJamie unique  is its brand name and packaging.

According to Soriano, Jamie refers to the future son or daughter she may have in the future.  She’s still undecided though whether to have children of her own.

“Until then, I will be taking care of all the Jamies in the world. Jamie could be you, Jamie could be anyone,” Soriano said.

Every DearJamie product comes with a letter addressed to a so-called ‘Jamie’.“These are pieces of advice. It’s sort of a love letter to the future son or daughter. Whatever problems she or he may go through,  I want every  Jamie to know they are not alone in that journey,” Soriano said.

DearJamie products are also avalable at The Parenting Emporium, a one-stop shop that features products catering to the mommy-baby market.

Soriano said a portion of sales from The Parenting Emporium is used to help educate mothers in rural areas.

Her overall goal is to educate people on the importance of taking care of their skin.

“What you put on your body is as important as what you put in it,” she said.