Desperate mom’s search for natural health products leads to North Texas business venture
Out of desperation came inspiration for Trang Nguyen.
The Keller mom thought she had tried everything to save her children from their suffering from eczema. Then, she came across a discovery that not only gave them comfort, but led to a business venture that is now helping others in similar situations.
Nguyen is the owner of CVA Products at 255 S. Main St. in Old Town Keller. The store, named after her children, opened just after Thanksgiving in 2023. It features natural health products with the company slogan “Be healthy AND be happy.”
“I tried different prescriptions, creams, skincare products, and nothing was working — until we came across goat milk products. The products worked great in terms of reducing the eczema that they had been struggling with for years,” Nguyen said.
Today's top stories:
→ Dad of toddler who died of fentanyl poisoning waited hours to call 911: warrant
→ OU student from North Texas killed in car crash, remembered as ‘cherished friend’
→ DNA analysis IDs remains found almost 40 years ago as missing North Texas woman
🚨Get free alerts when news breaks.
Nguyen decided to develop and make her own soaps, lotions, laundry detergent, and shampoos to help with the twins’ skin. Her daughter’s suffering was such that she couldn’t wear a dress and shorts like other children, Nguyen said.
Nguyen decided to expedite things and learned to make her own soaps. She took classes, read books, researched and experimented — and sure enough, she came up with a recipe for the soap and a soothing balm without preservatives, unscented and natural.
“The soaps and soothing balm that I made have helped control the flare up. It has been over three years that my daughter didn’t use any prescriptions, store-bought skincare products, or laundry detergent,” she said.
“I knew other parents were struggling with the same issues as I was, and I wanted to help.”
That’s how the idea for CVA Products was born in February of 2021. Nguyen wanted to be able to share her handmade natural products with those who would benefit from them the most.
Nguyen originally named the business after her three children at the time, twins Charlotte and Vincent, age 7; and Alexander, 3 And though she didn’t officially change the name after her youngest son, Zander, was born in 2022, she wanted to include him.
“I wanted Zander to be part of the business name, so I decided to take Alexander name and split it into Alex plus Zander,” she said.
Another challenge, another solution
Zander suffered from cradle cap at birth, a skin condition sometimes seen in babies in which a crusting and white or yellow scale is on the scalp. She was familiar with the condition as the twins also experienced it for six months.
“Believe me, there was no treatment for it. Our doctor prescribed ointment and told us to change to medicated shampoo and it didn’t work,” Nguyan said. “We had to shave their heads to clean them. It broke our heart as we tried everything.
“When Zander had it, we were worried. All soaps that I made with goat milk and beer didn’t work. It made the condition worse.”
Thinking of a customer whose son had cradle cap at age 16, Nguyen began researching to help Zander as well.
“I knew for a fact that coconut oil helps with the condition, so I made a coconut soap. We used it to bathe Zander daily on the scalp, and surprisingly the condition calmed down after a week and eventually went away after three weeks.
“We were shocked, but very happy that we got it solved.”
From skepticism to success
Nguyen admits that, like many people, she was skeptical of natural handmade soaps at first. But seeing her daughter unable to go outside when it was too cold or too hot as her skin would turn red, flare up, itch and become a rash drove her to try anything.
One day she came across an advertisement for Bend Soap on Facebook, so she I decided to research.
“I read their blogs where their son also had eczema and how goat milk helped a lot, so I decided to try the honey oatmeal goat milk soap and the unscented goat milk lotion,” she said. “Surprisingly, those products helped to control the conditions temporarily, so I researched into the ingredients and the conditions of eczema and what can’t be used in the ingredients.
“I found that when a person has eczema, the skin is very sensitive. All skincare products must be unscented, natural, no preservative, no dye, no parabens. In addition to that, the skin must be moisturized all the time.”
Living in Keller, Nguyen does not raise her own goats. However, she and her family recently purchased a farm in west Texas where she will raise animals, including goats.
For now, she gets raw goat milk for her products from a farmer in Weatherford.
And yes, she does plan to continue operating her store in Keller.
Market to own store
Nguyen first introduced her products at farmers markets throughout the area, along with a consignment store in North Richland Hills. However, her dream was to have her own storefront, preferably in her hometown of Keller.
“I came across this location that was closer to the house and small enough for me to manage so I decided to lease the space,” she said. “The store is still new and used to be vacant prior to this, so it’s difficult for the public to notice what’s inside the store. I greatly appreciate all the support from the City of Keller, Community Impact, Old Town Keller, Keller Farmers Market, and local customers who came by to support us.”
Nguyen still attends farmers markets regularly in Keller, Fort Worth, Decatur, Denton and Carrollton. All are on Saturday, with a few also on Sunday, she said.
“Since I’m a one-person show, unfortunately, I have to close the store when I attend the markets. However, customers can follow me on Facebook/Instagram for an update schedule,” she said.
Testimonials
Theresa Saunders’ daughter was experiencing a similar condition to that of Nguyen’s children. Her daughter’s hand had cracks and rashes to the point she was in severe pain.
“The eczema went under her fingernails, and she was cracking under her fingernails in so much pain. Nothing worked.” Saunders said.
Then, after trying Nguyen’s soap, Saunders noted, “Literally, the next day she woke up and her hands, we could see her skin color and not cracked red blotches everywhere. I cried, it was so amazing.”
Ericka McMickle praised in a blog, “Just have to say the aloe cucumber soap was the perfect solution to my husband’s thick beard. He loves how gentle it is and how clean it makes his beard feel. It also seemed to help with dry skin he would occasionally get in his beard.”
Taylor Adam added, “I love the handmade soaps. They are the best. I’ve tried the coffee soap and a couple of the soaps made with beer from the local breweries.”
Nguyen stresses, however, that none of her products are being tested in a lab and she’s not guaranteeing a cure for medical conditions.
“But they helped a lot of people,” she said. “My goal is to educate my customers about what to look for and how to read the label when buying skincare products when either they have sensitive skin or their love ones.”
For more information, visit their website at https://cvaproducts.com/.
