How Aunyx Burrell Got Started in Natural Skincare

Tell me a little bit about yourself and your family

I’m an artisan and mompreneur originally from Massachusetts. I now live in Georgia with my husband, Lee and our beautiful babies, Kalila and August.

How did you get started with Amenta’s Key?

Amenta’s Key was more of a hobby for us when we got started. It was a stress relief tool we had implemented. There was a lot of things happening around that time, my husband’s mother started radiation therapy, we had just moved and I was a new mom without a nearby support system. I started making body scrubs for myself and for Lee’s mom.

My mother-in-law is a big part of my “Why.” She was my first product tester. She was also one of the only successful mompreneurs I knew at the time. She insisted I start a subscription box service for personal care products and I ignored her. Every time she tried something new that I made, she would say “YOU SHOULD SELL THESE!” Again, I ignored her.

I started making more and more every day. Of course, when you make something every day you start to run out of space to store it. I would gift a lot of soaps and such to family and friends. They too were telling us to bring our products to market.

I spoke to a brand strategist and he asked me a simple question. “How many finished soaps do you have on your shelf right now?” I told him to hang on, went to my curing racks and started counting. I must have taken too long to answer because he interrupted me. “Something tells me you have more than enough to get started,” he said.

Every time she tried something new that I made, she would say “YOU SHOULD SELL THESE!”

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Where does the name come from?

It seems like forever ago my husband and I was sitting on our living room floor sketching out ideas for the business. When we got to the point where we needed a name for the brand, we had quite a few things to consider. At the time, our offerings were more than just skincare and we needed something that would encompass all of our products. We were looking for something unique, expressed how we wanted our products to make our customers feel, and also a name that could withstand changes we might need to make in the future.

The Amenta is an Egyptian symbol for the underworld. Our interpretation is this is a place of transformation and metamorphosis. We hope for our products to inspire others to take more time to nurture and pamper themselves, eliminate stress and allow their best selves to emerge.

Do you make all the products yourself?

Yes, every batch from scratch. I truly love every minute of it. Today my studio was filled with lavender body butter and body scrubs, simply heaven. I have a dreamy work environment. It is definitely a lot of work, but it’s also very therapeutic. I enjoy working with my hands. There’s something very soothing and meditative about it

How do you balance running a business and raising a family?

This is an ongoing song and dance. I take things day by day. It gets very tricky when I need to have meetings with clients or attend an event or want to take bigger risks. I delegate now, which was very hard for me at first. It can feel like you’re giving up a part of yourself when you let someone else run a part of your business but it’s the only way to stay sane. You can’t do everything, you can’t be everywhere. My ultimate goal is to spend more time with my family and I feel like being my own boss and setting my own hours allows me the freedom and flexibility to achieve that.

Do you focus on online sale or events? Both?

Currently, we’re primarily online. Occasionally, we set up a booth at vendor events. I’m looking to get us into more live events and expos towards the end of the year, however coordinating childcare can sometimes limit where and when we can pop up. Sometimes we can get away with bringing the kids along for the day, but it’s not always appropriate. Plus when they’re with us, the focus becomes about keeping them entertained and that can conflict with caring for customers.

What is your favorite business tool?

Group coaching and networking would be my favorite business tools. I’ve learned a lot in a short amount of time just by listening to others and learning about their experiences. Through networking, I’ve secured clients and have made a few business besties who help me stay focused and motivated. I’m a huge fan of getting to know people and building relationships. Social media has made it a lot easier to connect with people who you may not have ever had the chance of talking to otherwise.

How do you fit self-care into your life?

Self-care is an absolute must for me. When I’m overwhelmed it’s almost always due to me not having reset in awhile. When my husband was working a 9-5 I would disappear for an hour as soon as he got in. Sometimes I would get in the car and drive somewhere, other times it was a bubble bath or a meditation but regardless of what I chose to do that day, it was my break. Now that he’s working from home, I have a lot more me-time.

Where do you see your business in five years?

We like to keep things fresh at Amenta’s Key, so I don’t want to give too much away but I can tell you a more hands-on approach for our customers is in the works. Everybody has unique skin care needs. We plan to offer our customers a more personalized and interactive experience. We also expect to be in a brick & mortar boutique setting within the next few years.

We plan to offer our customers a more personalized and interactive experience.

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Final thoughts?

I just want to say thank you, Emma for giving myself and other moms a chance to share our stories with everyone. I would also like to tell any moms who may be feeling underappreciated and overwhelmed that it’s ok to take time for yourself every now and then. There will always be errands to run and tasks to be done. Take a moment or two for YOU.