Juniper Ridge

PEOPLE: Hall Newbegin along with 5 full-time employees

ABOUT: Hall, an avid nature-lover and backpacking enthusiast, started his business at the Berkeley Farmers’ Market by making soaps out of local native plants such as Black Sage from the Big Sur coast and Cedar from the Sierra. He'd hike during the week to pick the plants, and show up at the markets on the weekends. All products except incense (which requires a special machine) are made by hand in the Alameda warehouse where the company is based. They use 100% recycled chipboard for all of their packaging, organic string for smudges, and biodegradable vegetable-based plastic for all of their bags.

SOURCING: All of Juniper Ridge's wild ingredients are harvested in the West, mostly in California and Oregon. All wildcrafting (harvesting of wild plants) is done with permission on both public and private lands. All of the plants that Juniper Ridge works with are large trees or shrubs that can be pruned in a way that stimulates growth and ensures that no damage is done either to the plant or its ecosystem. Other ingredients (including olive oil, jojoba, coconut oil, and palm oil) are organic, and most come through a local importer from overseas.