Furry Hippie offers products for the bearded
Apr. 18—Jason Askins has had some form of facial hair for about as long as he can remember, but it wasn't until he linked up with the Rocket City Bearded Villains in 2018 that he really discovered the world of specialty beard products, which led to his launching his own company, Furry Hippie, a year later.
"I started finding out more about beard products and it just got my wheels turning a little bit and I thought I could do that to make a little bit of side money," Askins said.
The Madison, Ala., resident said he started small, putting together a small line of beard oils to sell at his friend's barber shop. Once he realized that demand for his products was increasing, he began to create what would become the Furry Hippie brand.
His younger brother, Chase, who passed away from a rare form of childhood brain cancer in 2012 at the age of 10, became somewhat of the heart of the company. "He used to always call me a hippie because of my long hair and beard."
Chase is also well represented in the Furry Hippie logo. Those who look closely will notice a gold ribbon — representing childhood cancer — placed squarely on the mascot's headband and a small letter "C" with a heart at the bottom of his beard.
Askins said each September he releases a new scent in a limited run of white and gold bottles to help support the Isaiah 41:10 Foundation, whose mission is to encourage children battling pediatric cancer.
Furry Hippie has come a long way in just a short amount of time. Askins has now created a full range of oils, balms, beard washes and butters in a variety of scents such as Hippie Mojo (incense and patchouli), Old Man's Money (bergamot, vanilla and cedarwood) or Wicked Grind (Peppermint Mocha). Askins said the formula he uses to develop the scents he does is a fairly simple one.
"I just tried to think of things that I liked. That's one of the reasons to start your own company, to make a product that works for you. I wanted some stuff that was nostalgic for me. For instance, I have one scent called Groovy Grove that is an orange creamsicle. It just makes me think of when I played baseball as a kid and, win or lose, after the game they would send you out to the concession stand to get an ice cream," Askins said.
The products Askins created to work for him must be working well for others as well. Brick and mortar locations in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina currently carry the Furry Hippie brand and he said he was able to leave his job with FedEx last year to focus on the company full-time.
Askins would like to open a brick and mortar of his own and has been looking into the possibility of creating a women's line of products. Anyone wanting to check out Furry Hippie products can stop by Askins' booth at this weekend's annual Bloomin' Festival on the campus of St. Bernard Abbey.
The event runs Saturday, April 20 and Sunday, April 21, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, rain or shine. Admission is a suggested donation of $10 per person with children 5 years old and younger admitted free. Pets are not allowed. Proceeds benefit St. Bernard Prep School.
