The Story Behind KB SKIN

Hello! My name is Kayla Calloway, and I'm from Valdosta, Georgia. As the founder of KB Skin, I would love to tell you all about how I got started. 

Let's start with the logo, a sunflower inspired by my mother . My mother sadly passed away from lupus in May 2019. Sunflowers were my mom's favorite flower, and she used them to decorate every inch of our house. She had cups, steering wheel coverings, clothes with sunflowers on them, etc. As I grew older, I discovered that I shared her love of sunflowers. Because of my name, I decided to go with "KB SKIN SOAP." My mother's maiden name was Brown, and my name is Kayla. I merged the initials K and B. Many of my close friends call me by my nickname "KB."

What encouraged me to start this business also came from my mom, but myself as well. Lupus affected my mom’s skin and she would have bad skin flare-ups which affected her self-esteem. Nothing would work for her, even the medicated skincare from her doctor. I also struggled with my skin. I would have very dry skin due to having eczema. I would have discoloration, dry patches, and inflamed skin. I went through at least 50 products which became expensive trying to solve my skin problem. Dermatologists can often become expensive and not everyone can afford insurance. I wore face masks to cover my face because I was so insecure about how my face looked. One day I was online researching what could help me with my skin and I found a solution. This is when I started to make my soap. It started as just something for me to have then everyone noticed the improvement in my skin. Everyone kept asking me to make some for them, and they started paying me, and now, I have KB SKIN. It is important to me that my brand carries the essence of my connection with my mother.

My mission is to “build confidence one soap bar at a time.” I also strive to choose ingredients with a purpose in mind and to sell my product at a  price everyone can afford.  I base my business on self-esteem and confidence. For a long time, my skin caused me to have low self-esteem. I feel no one should feel the way I felt about myself. My main business goal is to inspire other young girls of color to use something they may have seen as bad and turn it into good.