New Address: Two Embarcadero Center, 8th floor, San Francisco, CA 94111     

Tara Cooper, ‘Ohana Organics

Thanks to North Coast SBDC for this story!

TaraCooperOhanaOrganicsNorth Coast SBDC client ‘Ohana Organics beat out 100 companies to win the 2014 NEXTY Popular Vote Award in the Beauty and Natural Living category for their innovative Tattoo Butter, a vegan blend of organically-grown herbs and shea butter, which naturally decreases tattoo healing time.

The award was presented by New Hope Natural Media and Sterling-Rice Group, and the winner was chosen by consumers, manufacturers, and retailers in the natural products industry.

“We are so honored by this award and share it with everyone who voted for us and helped us grow: Headwaters Fund, Humboldt Made, the Small Business Development Center, and Redwood Acres, who has given local producers like us a beautiful space to work,” said Tara Cooper, the owner and creator of ‘Ohana Organics.

Cooper was born in Hawaii and moved to the area to attend Humboldt State University. She started ‘Ohana Organics in 2000 and her line of hand-crafted Hawaiian perfumes, botanically-scented organic shea butters and herbal salves are infused with organic herbs grown on the Cooper’s small farm.

“Because I graduated with a Natural Resource degree, business was not a strength for me. Having help from the SBDC gave me the tools and assistance I needed to successfully grow my business to the level we wanted,” Cooper said. “It is so wonderful to have people believe in you locally to help be successful globally.”

‘Ohana Organics was featured in the Winter 2014 issue of Certified Organic magazine.