Today we’d like to introduce you to Nate And Alli Huff.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
When our first son was born, our desire to live naturally began to prompt changes in our household. We began phasing out harmful chemicals and incorporating more natural alternatives in household, food, and medicine. I spent many hours studying herbs and nutrition. Nate began keeping bees for honey as a source of natural and healthy sugar as well as beeswax and other hive products.
The natural way of life really took hold when our second son was born prematurely. He was born with a compromised immune system, so we explored ways to boost his immunities naturally with herbs and other natural methods. Two years later, our twin daughters were born at 25 weeks gestation. After a long stay in the NICU, lots of prayer and many tough decisions, the girls both came home alive and healthy. Keeping them healthy was of utmost importance so removing toxins as much as we possibly could became necessary. Their hospital stay also put a strain on our finances, so I began making our personal care products because it saved us money and I could eliminate the toxins from what we were using on our bodies. Over time, friends and family members began to ask us to sell them what we were making. By 2012, I could hardly keep up with the demand for natural personal care products while keeping the family, home, and garden. Nate decided to take some time off of his job to invest in launching Honey Dew Naturals. His employer made it very clear he would always have a job when he was ready to return, but he never did. We designed labels, created an ecommerce website, started tracking every purchase and pricing ingredients in bulk. Our only advertisement in the early years was by word of mouth. Not long after, we started traveling to vendor events across the Eastern United States to get our name out and business just steadily increased.
In 2020, our family began our journey as a foster family. It has been one of the most challenging yet beautiful aspects of life to date. All of our children are an absolutely integral part of our day-to-day life including Honey Dew Naturals. Each one, from the teens to the toddlers, has responsibilities that help the function of our home, homestead, business, etc. Our family, faith, homestead, business, and community involvement are all inseparable and make up our life that we love.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road has definitely not been smooth, but it has been a wonderful source of growth in our family. One challenge we have faced more than once is that, at times, as a small business there is a growth opportunity; but that growth requires some level of investment, usually financially. We decided early on that we didn’t want to go into debt for our business, but instead would grow organically. We compromised on that at one point and regretted it, but with determination and intentionality paid off the debt. We’ve learned to overcome this challenge by having clear goals, not allowing business “growth” to be defined for us, and thinking ahead and saving up for those times where an opportunity might present itself.
Another challenge at the very beginning, was learning how to manage both of us working together all day every day and with four children under four or five years of age! When we started traveling for work, the challenges only increased. We made it work by choosing to be content on the hard days and determining to make it work no matter what, always keeping in mind our dream and long-term goals for our family to live simply and work together in all that we do. It’s wonderful and so absolutely fulfilling to know that my husband’s strengths fill in the places where I am weak and vice versa. Now, as our children are coming into young adulthood, the strengths seem to far outweigh the weaknesses.
We’ve learned to look at the value of all we do as more than just financial. Other costs are just as great or greater than the financial aspect, but when you look at the value of what we gain, it far outweighs what we’ve had to sacrifice.
As you know, we’re big fans of Honey Dew Naturals. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
We make and sell personal care products that are crafted with herbs, beeswax, and other food-grade organic ingredients. We only sell the things we use in our own home and for our family. Our products are 100% free of all petroleum by-products, preservatives, and other toxins including those that are commonly found in products marketed as healthy, natural, and/or organic. We don’t compromise… ever. And the best thing is that they are effective!
Another thing we love to do and consider to be of utmost importance is teach classes on a wide range of topics covering living simply and naturally, producing vs. consuming, incorporating family into business. beekeeping, herbalism, meat processing, and many other homesteading topics.
We have defied the age old saying, “Don’t take your work home” and we are better for it.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
Our family is a testament to the fact that small business ownership doesn’t have to mean you sacrifice your family, that making a living doesn’t mean missing out on years of memories, and that failures are simply opportunities to learn, This perspective requires that you take an honest look at what you desire your family to be, what lifestyle will actually bring that to fulfillment, and be willing to make sacrifices for that. If your greatest value is measured only in money, you are certain to miss out on opportunities to gain what matters most in life- relationships and faith in Jesus. “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” Mark 8:36
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.honeydewnaturals.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/honeydewnaturals/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/honeydewnaturals/
