Our Lavendar Company
Our Lavender Company, Small-Town Floral Products Easing Life’s Challenges
Sandra Yerges
There is joy in not knowing where one choice can lead you, but there is something special about the joy from the journey that comes after. This unexplainable form of delight was life-changing for Stephanie Anderson of Our Lavender Company. Her multi-year path growing Nebraska lavender has included many steps into the unknown, the first of which bringing an essential light to her at a time most needed.
Prior to these decisions, Stephanie would never have guessed the farming industry was going to be part of her future. It was not a foreign idea to her as she grew up in a corn-producing family in Nebraska, but the hustle and bustle of Minneapolis, Minnesota, was calling her name in her early adult years. While attending college in this area, she met her husband Josh who reconnected her with her agricultural roots.
“Little did I know that my Minneapolis city boy would have a fascination for the wild,” she shared. “He actually was the motivator for us returning to Nebraska and the farm.”
Thus, the familiar rows of corn from Stephanie’s not-so-distant past became their next focus. Although the beginning of lavender farming was still lurking around the corner, the two had stuck to the crops in which one of them had experience for the time being. At least, not until Stephanie was faced with a challenging health development.
After being swept into a severe postpartum depression diagnosis, Stephanie needed something delicate to offset this obstacle. Thankfully, her mother-in-law familiarized herself with lavender farming through a promising Reader’s Digest feature story, which commenced the family’s journey of emulating what they had learned. 2019 may have been the year of Our Lavender Co.’s first planting, but it was also the year the seed of recovery was planted in Stephanie.
“It was growing a garden that brought me back to a place of health,” she explained. “This agriculture that I wanted so desperately to escape and wanted nothing to do with became the catalyst for health in my personal life.”
The healing effects of this new lavender venture did not just stop at Stephanie. With her choice to transform raw lavender into relaxing value-added products, she has been able to target many of her family members’ needs as well. Whether it was her daughter’s reliance on clean bath products or her father’s need for migraine relief, she has been able to spread the same healing she found through her various branded items.
As the “farm-to-table equivalent for self-care,” Our Lavender Co. products have joined the domestic market online and in retail outlets. The brand’s bath bombs and shower steamers help wash away the day’s worries while its lip balm, essential oil, body butter, and facial products allow for all-day benefits.
With other consumable products in the lineup, such as jams, honey, and tea, the floral sweetness of lavender can also be appreciated from within.
“Just growing lavender and selling it off wouldn’t do what we do. It’s taking what we grow and making it into something that makes it a successful business,” she expressed.
Our Lavender Co. has flourished with its value-added business model, which was enhanced early on through the guidance of Marla Marx, a Nebraska USDA representative. About one year into the business, she spoke with Stephanie about the possibility of applying for a Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG). The farm was at a standstill at this time when looking at the restrictive requirements of other grants, so this opportunity had the potential to bring some long-awaited change to the business.
Taking all the time she needed to listen to Marla’s advice to simplify while writing the 2021 grant application, Stephanie slowly made her way through this preliminary process. She recognized the importance of growing her customer base in the area and combating the year’s fluctuating prices, so each of these points was noted in the application. After a long journey of drafting, Stephanie finally became a first-time recipient of the VAPG.
This packaging-centered grant she meticulously created quickly made great strides for the start-up. Even though it was not in the plan to cut the program’s three-year length in half, it was inevitable given the business’ resulting prosperity from the funding.
With the establishment of a new farm store and progressing online shop, Our Lavender Co.’s name had sprung big outside of Big Springs, Nebraska. Through the digital grapevine, the team working with Ellen DeGeneres’ BE KIND subscription box became aware of this small farm. It was not long before the company's rollerball lavender essential oil was in the mix of nationally promoted products.
On top of this large-scale presence for the brand, the farm also had its name added to two lists for avid tourists to browse. The first was Nebraska Passport, a curated collection of what Stephanie described as the state’s “hidden gems.” Secondly, Our Lavender Co. began participating in Harvest Hosts, a program that allows cross-country travelers to spend the night at unique and local sites.
The grant-delivered influx of business and the connections visitors have made with Stephanie have kept this farm moving forward. Every new on-site encounter can also come with surprising possibilities, just as Stephanie discovered when being introduced to a grant writing professional from Stewards Unlimited.
Upon acquainting herself with this Harvest Host camper, she was encouraged to take the leap into a second VAPG application with the help of his organization’s knowledgeable staff. It was an easy decision for Stephanie to agree to as she knew how attainable the grant’s benefits could be. Additionally, the outside help would provide a timesaving quality she did not have during her first application.
Something unique about this recently submitted grant plan is that it has been centered around statistics about the farm’s expanding customer base. Stephanie indicated that her lavender products are highly sought after on the eastern side of the United States, making this region the perfect target audience for the grant. Although she must wait a few more months to know if her increased advertising and lowered shipping cost plans will be offset by the VAPG, she keeps a hopeful focus on the future.
“I’m excited to see what other unexpected catapulting events are going to happen when we really are focusing outside of our local market,” she said. “We reached a huge national market focusing locally, so what’s going to happen when we’re actually intentionally reaching outside of our local market?”
