Artisan Spotlight: Skincare creator Tam Mason shares 4 pieces of priceless advice
Whether you'd like to start a small business or love buying artisan homeware, clothes and gifts, there's a lot to learn from budding makers turning their passions into profit.
In our Artisan Spotlight series, we introduce you to a British small business to see how it's done. Each one is a Country Living Artisan, available to shop from on our Marketplace or at our in-person shows and events.
Today, Tam Mason tells us how she turned her love for natural ingredients into her own skincare business. Keep reading for her four pieces of entrepreneurial advice.
With a degree in textile design from Central Saint Martins and a successful marketing career in London behind her, you'll now find Tam Mason whipping up batches of nourishing sugar scrubs and hand oils in the glorious South Somerset countryside.
"Juggling family life over the years, I have taken time to develop my knowledge of pure and natural ingredients within the skincare field, particularly those that are relevant to hand care.
"As the business has grown over the years, I have moved from the kitchen table and spare bedroom to a bespoke barn where I am able to blend and package all of the products. With over twenty wholesale contracts, I never know when a large order might come in, and the barn allows me to keep a level of stock available for when I need to fulfil the wholesale orders as well as the lovely individual online ones.
"I feel very lucky to be listed as a Local Maker with the National Trust in the South West, as well as being stocked in some of the very best historic houses and gardens in the area. I have kept the original small Kitchen Aid that I began blending with as a reminder of where it all started."
"Combining my interest in natural ingredients, my love of design and my passion for exceptional quality, I blend and produce a range of beautiful, handmade, boxed sugar scrubs, using the very best natural ingredients and essential oils (most of which are organic), formulated for the hands and body, and which restore skin to its natural softness.
"Perfect to use at any time of day and designed to moisturise long-term, no follow-up hand creams or moisturisers are needed. The scrubs are blended with essential oils to soothe, uplift and rejuvenate, creating rich yet subtle fragrance blends.
"In addition to the sugar scrub range, 2022 saw the launch of a nourishing hand oil. It’s already a best-seller, so I’m currently developing a new floral blend of the hand oil, which will be launched in the coming weeks."
"I’d been interested in natural skincare for many years, but when my children (now 18 and 20-years-old) were born, I really started to question what I was putting on our skin and the effects.
"I rediscovered a book called The Natural Pharmacist, and a book by James Wong called Grow Your Own Drugs, published in 2010. I could be found hand-blending salves, hand creams and lotions using natural ingredients from the garden or store cupboard, and I soon realised I wanted to learn more.
"I have to admit that it was my design team that convinced me to be brave and use my name for the business – I needed a lot of convincing!"
"Fast forward to 2016, and having identified a gap in the market for a high-quality natural hand scrub, my aim was to produce a product that, once used, did not need additional follow-up hand cream (most exfoliators require additional moisturising after use). I wanted it to be completely unique in the hand care market, and also look beautiful on the shelf.
"I launched with just five blends so that the market and product could be tested before developing additional blends. Importantly, this soft launch established and tested all my routes to market: online, retail (including events), and wholesale.
"It quickly became clear that customers were returning and buying more, as well as receiving lots of exceptional feedback and recommendations, which boosted my confidence.
"I now have 10 blends in the hand scrub range, two body scrubs and nourishing hand oils."
"I adore working with essential oils and blending the range, and I'm lucky enough to be able to do that every day.
"I take pride in that I continue to ensure that the quality of the product is never compromised and will always use the very best ingredients (not just those dictated by the best margins).
"My eye for detail as an absolute perfectionist ensures I take as much care in the sugar scrubs and hand oils blended today, as those when I launched.
"I’m proud that the majority of ingredients are organic and that all packaging is reusable, recyclable and plastic-free."
"As my business is a completely integrated business – in that I undertake all product development, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, sales, marketing, social media, and the financial and business administration – I would say that it’s finding time in the working week for everything that needs to be done! It’s always a challenge.
"I was lucky to have an established website when the country went into lockdown in 2020, so I was able to pivot the business and focus on online pop-up sales and building my social media presence."
"That’s a hard question to answer as each of the blends is so individual. However, I am always drawn to citrus blends, so I would have to say it's the Bergamot & Blood Orange Hand Scrub.
"It was one of the first scrubs I formulated and it's still a best seller. The balance between the essential oils means it can work at any time of the day and it gives a gentle, uplifting boost (as well as leaving you with super soft hands)."
"The beauty of running a lifestyle business from home is that no day is ever the same. However, I always start the day with a good dog walk (in all weather), where I clear my mind and plan the day’s tasks and social media posts so that as soon as I get home, I can hit the ground running.
"I generally blend every day (either in the morning or afternoon), and then catch up with online orders, wholesale orders, deliveries, social media content and my accounts.
"As the business has grown, I’ve realised that it’s really important to look after my body too, so a couple of days a week, I will squeeze a pilates session in the morning. I have to be able to lift heavy bowls of sugar scrub into the 20-litre mixer with ease!"
"Follow your gut instinct! When I launched, there were a lot of people who couldn’t understand why I wasn’t developing a complete skincare range, but I felt strongly that, having identified a gap in the market, I needed to master one hand care product.
"I wanted to produce a small, bespoke, artisan range known for quality, consistency and, most importantly, to offer a product that worked with no empty promises.
"Make sure you put time aside at the end of every week to manage your accounts. Whilst it’s the least creative part of the business, it’s essential you are on top of invoices, your cash flow, stock levels and if any ingredients need to be ordered.
Follow your gut instinct
Stay on top of your accounts
Be yourself
Make friends with other small business owners
"One of the best pieces of advice I was given at the beginning of my journey was to just be ‘you’. It’s hard to manage a social media presence and the confidence needed to put yourself and your product out there, but if you are being anything other than genuine, I think followers and customers notice. I realised quickly that it wasn’t about chasing the number of followers, but about conversations with those interested in the range.
"Make friends with other small business owners – I am lucky enough to count many as good friends now, and it’s such an incredibly supportive and talented community."
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