Krysta Lewis: Aisling Organics

 

Krysta is the founder and CEO of Aisling Organics (ayz-ling). She started the line at 21 years old right after college. Like so many other fabulous female entrepreneurs we have featured, Krista started Aisling Organics not because she liked makeup but as a necessity for a consistent health problem.

She knew she needed to be the one that would create an organic line that was diverse, high-performance, sustainable, and affordable.

Her female-operated business has been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, Medium, In-Touch, and has sold over 500,000 units to clean beauty queens all over the world. #goals

We are so honored to bring Krysta to y'all today!  Without further adieu, let's give her a warm, a|dash welcome!

 

Some incredible women that inspire me are Amanda Goetz and Sara Blakely. 

Amanda is a badass entrepreneur who has been bold, truly herself and is building a rising CBD brand, House of Wise. 

Sara Blakely has always been a key role model as she solved a problem that existed for everyday women, filed the patent herself and never gave up equity in order to grow Spanx to be a billion dollar brand. Not to mention, she is authentic and shares about her love of cheez-its of all things… the relatability is refreshing.

My mother has been the most influential woman in my life. She is the one person who never doubted me for a second. Ever since I told her the idea of Aisling Organics, she has been in full support of me and my [sometimes] crazy ideas. Her advice and guidance as I’m navigating this time in my life is truly something I wouldn’t trade for the world. 

Paulo Coehlo and Oprah Winfrey. 

Paulo Coelho is the author of The Alchemist, my all-time favorite book. If you haven’t read it… you MUST! It’s a fictional story about a shepherd boy who discovers the purpose of life and manifestation in his travels. I’m not normally a fiction reader but this one hit home. Paulo spent years pitching this book with no success until it got in the hands of Oprah and became a bestseller. 

Oprah is a no-brainer as she has incredible wisdom, persistence and has interviewed fascinating people over the years. I would love to chat with her about what she has learned about the human race and how she applies those learnings to her everyday life.

I set notifications on my phone that go off at different times every single day as a reminder to instill these affirmations in my mind. 

I believe in the power of assuming things before they come as a manifestation practice! 

There are so many things that I hope will be different for girls growing up who want to pursue business. I hope girls feel inspired and not scrutinized when they talk about their ideas. I hope girls can walk into a boardroom and feel confident about their work and not be judged. I hope girls can break the unrealistic beauty standards set upon them and do what makes them happy. 

...I could go on forever.

One of my proudest moments was when we reached 1 million dollars in sales as a company. When I first started Aisling Organics, people told me “Krysta, you’re crazy. That’s never going to work. Go get a job in corporate America and then start your business”. But I never listened to them. I’ve grown Aisling Organics to be a brand that I am proud of, that offers clean beauty products to people in need, and stands out against competitors in terms of performance. 

What has been your most challenging moment personally or professional and how did you overcome that challenge? 

I had to turn down a very large investment opportunity when an inappropriate situation occurred. 

As a female business owner, getting in front of the right people is difficult enough, but convincing people to believe in your story and mission is even harder. I was thrilled when this firm initially had interest in investment. It came at the perfect time and I knew we were going to use this capital to take my business to the next level. But in the end, I did not end up moving forward with the partnership.

In life, you are going to be faced with many difficult decisions. The best advice I can give is to always follow your gut and know that everything happens for a reason, and you will figure things out one way or another.

Before starting Aisling Organics, I was sick for years with migraines and nausea before discovering the culprit was my conventional makeup. The artificial fragrance, harsh preservatives, and synthetic dyes were too much for my body to handle, hence its rejection. 

Wellness is everything to me. As someone who has been in and out of doctors’ offices all around Boston receiving the same answer “we don’t know what’s wrong with you” -- I’ve learned to turn inward and get to the root of things yourself. 

I’m a huge advocate for work/life balance as my all-female team works incredibly hard to keep Aisling Organics going. Whether its checking in on an employee or friend saying “hey, how are you doing today? Do you feel overwhelmed, and can I help in any way?” Goes farther than you think.

First, I love to fuel my body with good food in the morning like a smoothie or avocado toast. If I’m feeling ambitious, I’ll go to kickboxing, which is a huge stress reliever for me. At the end of the day, I take a relaxing bath with lavender and Epsom salts to soothe my sore muscles and replenish the magnesium I need. Other than that, things that bring me joy are playing with my dog Ella and spending time with my family. 

This is a fantastic question. What drove me to becoming an entrepreneur was my family’s background. They owned one of the largest beauty distributors in the East Coast that was acquired by L’Oreal. Family parties were full of highly ambitious people that we’re always discussing their new and innovative ideas. Growing up in that environment conditioned me to believe anything was possible. 

I do not see Aisling Organics being my only entrepreneurial endeavor as I think the desire and challenge to build businesses will always be with me. 

I would play myself. In a sense, you are the director of the movie (your life). There is nobody more perfect to play you, than you.