Heather Marianna sky rocked in popularity with the launch of her Beauty Kitchen YouTube series in 2012 where she showcased simple, do-it-yourself beauty recipes made with common kitchen household ingredients which generated a powerful following of more than 3 million viewers.

The bubbly social media personality translated her passion for looking and feeling her absolute best into the development of her all-natural beauty and skincare product line, Beauty Kitchen, which delivers an all-encompassing, luxurious at-home spa experience for the modern day glamour girl at an affordable price. 

Beauty Kitchen products include a variety of collagen eye gels, face masks, lip masks, body scrubs  soaks and more. In 2019, the brand added a CBD line under their umbrella, which skyrocketed in popularity immediately. 

Celebrity fans of Beauty Kitchen include Christina Milian, Vanessa Simmons, Viola Davis, Tahj Mowry, Dascha Polanco, Trai Byers of “Empire” and “Shark Tank”  entrepreneur, Barbara Corcoran.

Heather Marianna starred on Bravo’s luxury-travel series, “Tour Group” in 2015 and was featured on Oxygen’s “My Super Shopping Addiction”  in addition to appearing on several episodes of MTV’s “Teen Mom OG.”  The DIY guru has also appeared on over 85+  news segments across the country as a beauty expert, showcasing her own simple tricks and tips.  

The bubbly brunette was recently named a “Female Leader Making Moves in The West” by The Ladders and named an “Inspirational Female Executive to Follow” by The Luxury Spot.    

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to the CBD industry?

I’ve always been into beauty and skincare and had been spending hundreds of dollars a month on product for years and years but really had no idea what I was really putting on my skin after all, the majority of ingredients on any given beauty product feature a bevy of fancy-named chemicals that the average person is oblivious to. Frustrated with feeling blind to what I was putting on my skin, which mind you is our body’s largest organ, I began researching all-natural solutions for various skincare issues. In 2012, I launched my YouTube series where I demonstrated DIY beauty treatments using common kitchen household ingredients and within just a few short months, my channel’s popularity skyrocketed, and I had millions of views on each of my videos. During this time, I began gifting close friends with some of my hand-made beauty products and they were always super blown away and captivated with my creations. I knew I wasn’t the only one who was intrigued with all-natural beauty, and in 2013 I launched my own company, Beauty Kitchen by Heather Marianna which encompasses the at-home spa experience with a selection of fun, whimsical and all-natural beauty products including bath bombs, eye gels, face masks, sugar scrubs, lip masks and more. Just last year, I opened Beauty Kitchen Boutique in Boulder City, NV, right outside of Las Vegas and a pop-up shop in Henderson, NV as well. As an avid CBD user, I’ve been working like clockwork to incorporate a CBD line into my brand for the past 18 months.  I spent a ton of time experimenting and testing to craft the perfect products.  I officially launched CBD skincare by Beauty Kitchen in November 2019 and it’s been selling like crazy! We offer a variety of CBD infused products including: Comfort Zone CBD Hair and Body Wash, Charcoal and Lavender Beauty Bar, CBD Pet Shampoo and even the CBD Beauty Bundle  .


 Do you have a funny story about how someone you knew reacted when they first heard you were getting into the CBD industry?

I’ve always been very vocal about my anxiety issues so after giving CBD a try and becoming a hardcore user, all of my friends thought it was funny when I told them I was going to be formally entering the industry.  Everyone kind of laughed and said it was perfect for me. I created Beauty Kitchen using 100% clean ingredients, so venturing into the CBD world, was more of a natural evolution for me. I thoroughly stand behind using nature’s ingredients over chemical products. Needless to say I always make extra products and take them all home.  Let’s just say these days, I am sleeping like a baby. 

 

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?

I want to thank my CBD clients who I make products for and especially, TOKA who had their people teach me the process.  To them, I am very thankful. They are an upcoming brand in CBD and are doing CBD IV therapy which is really cool and cutting-edge. I am very excited to be working with them.

 

Are you working on any new or exciting projects now? How do you think that will help people? 

 I am testing out several new other CBD infused beauty products to add to my line.  Currently I’ve been focusing on a CBD balm, all-natural of course, and also infused with a ton of calming oils including eucalyptus lead, rosemary, ginger root, lemongrass, lavender and more.  This powerful anxiety balm will be amazing for people who suffer from panic attacks, like me.  I’ll be formally announcing it very soon.  

I’ve also been working on a goodnight sleep oil that will relax your mind and tense muscles. I’ve been lathering myself with it nightly and hope to have it perfected ASAP. I’m excited to debut it to the world in the near future! 

 

Ok. Thank you for all that. Let’s now jump to the  main core of our interview.  Despite great progress that has been made we still have a lot more work to do to achieve gender parity in this industry.  According to this report in Entrepreneur, less than 25 percent of CBD businesses are run by women. In your opinion or experience, what 3 things can be done by a)individuals b)companies and/or c) society to support greater gender parity moving forward?

Women are more likely than men to start using CBD for wellness and with that being said, who knows how to market better to women than a woman herself?  Between balancing motherhood, careers, insomnia, stress and cramps, women are crediting CBD as their holy grail and it’s easy to see why.  I think more will step up to the plate and start CBD companies of their own.

Women need to work together to help each other thrive in this business. One of my clients Apothecary CBD is 100% female founded and ran. The owner, Samantha and I worked for hours on the phone creating the vision for her brand. It is part of my job to support, cheer on and uplift other female business owners. Samantha is creating a “Wake ‘n Slay” coffee infused with CBD, to give you a little pep in your step. I’m so excited and in awe of the product and have been having a blast working with her to create the private label subsidiary.  If women come together in the industry then we will have a lot more traction in this cannabis world. Tamra Judge, from “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” just created a CBD line too and its very good. I’m able to private label products for businesses so ladies who are interested in starting their own CBD line, give me a call. 😊  We should actually put together a Women in CBD event, that would be really cool!

 

You are a “CBD Insider”. If you had to advise someone about 5 non intuitive things one should know to succeed in the CBD industry, what would you say? 

Know the difference between the types of CBD: There are several types of CBD than most people know. Specifically, more than 104 types of cannabinoids can be derived from the Cannabis plant and each have their unique specialty in its configuration and benefits. You need to make sure you are using the correct type for your products and that the MG is good enough to see a result if you are doing pain relief, or an anxiety type of product.

Know the difference between Hemp and CBD oil: The Crucial Difference Between Hemp Oil and CBD Oil is that Hemp and Marijuana are cousins in the plant world, but Marijuana has a much higher THC content than Hemp. Hemp Oil contains low levels of CBD – typically less than 25 parts per million – while CBD oil can be up to 15% CBD. Coconut Oil is best carrier oil however a lot of Coconut Oil allergies are popping up so we use rice flower oil and it’s wonderful. There’s a great tip ladies! Full spectrum CBD contains trace amounts (0.3 percent) of THC, while CBD isolate is a pure isolated cannabidiol with plant material removed and you lose some of the benefits, there is a lot to learn on this. 

Never Stop Learning: I’ve had meetings with industry learners, read 50+ books, taken seminars and guess what, I’m still learning. Never think you are a know it all and always be open to learning more.

Establish A Budget: Turning your passion into a thriving business is a dream come true but it is important to strategically plan and save so you can grow. Throughout my CBD expansion, life threw a ton of unexpected curveballs at me. Luckily I had budgeted for a “rainy day” and was able to keep my product development pace up without any weird haults.

Never Rush Perfection:  This is probably the most important lesson and one we often forget when we hit the ground running. My grandmother, a very successful business woman herself, once told me, you only have one shot at making a first impression to your customer.  It’s so easy to get excited and anxious to release your new CBD products but it is so important that you really perfect them before doing so. 

Can you share 3 things that most excite you about the CBD industry?

The fact that it can actually help people makes me so happy because CBD changed my life, PERIOD. So many times in my life, I had a hard time functioning from my insomnia or anxiety which are problems I now have under control thanks to CBD. I am also excited for all the advancements in the industry now that it is booming like never before.  I can not wait to see all these brilliant entrepreneurs and businesses that will emerge from it. What a time to be alive.

 

Can you share 3 things that most concern you about the industry? If you had the ability to implement 3 ways to reform or improve the industry, what would you suggest? 

I think there are definitely some shady people who are much more concerned with making a dollar than the quality of their product. Also, some companies are putting into CBD into just about anything. CBD condoms, really? I just think some of these things are just laughable which hurts the industry as a whole. I just want people to really stay focused and educated on what they are buying and what the labels are saying. This is a new industry so we don’t want people taking advantage of us. 

 

Can you please give us your favorite  “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life? 

Keep going and you are enough. I’ve many times had to remind myself that.  In business especially, it’s so easy to quit when you hit a hurdle but you must carry on. Perseverance will take you to the top!  

 

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂 

Volunteer more.  In 2018, I took a 21 day self-funded trip to Africa, by myself, to volunteer and teach English in some of the poorest villages in the world. It really changed my life and I have such a new-found appreciation and gratitude for life. I wanted to share my entire experience from start to finish with the world, and you can start by reading it here on my blog.  It’s something everyone should experience in their life.

 

Thank you so much for the time you spent with this. We wish you only continued success!