The Naked Botanical 2024: The Magic of Herbs

Anna Hackman, founder of The Naked Botanical, is a former real estate lawyer turned herbalist. Trading in her suits for overalls, Anna discovered her passion for growing plants when she nurtured her first tomato plant fifteen years ago. Her journey from that single tomato plant to a 1 1/2 acre farm filled with herbs, flowers, fruit trees, and vegetables has been driven by her desire to help others. Believing in the healing power of plants, Anna meticulously crafts each product in small batches, prioritizing quality and freshness. Her mission is to help people feel good so they can do good, a philosophy reflected in her certified organic farm and products. DeliveryRank finds out more.

Anna, your journey from a real estate lawyer to an herb farmer is intriguing. What inspired this significant career shift, and how has this transition influenced your approach to herbal products?

I began transitioning from being a lawyer in the mid 90s because I had young children and it made it harder and harder to practice real estate law.  It isn’t a 9 to 5 job.  It is more like when you are on a deal, you work endless hours. But in all honesty, I didn’t feel very fulfilled as a lawyer  Although I kept my hands in practicing in limited spurts, I turned to another project.  We built a green home in 2003 to 2005 before being eco-friendly was a trend.  After we built the home, I thought we should start growing our own food.

I started by growing five tomato plants.  I purchased those organic seedlings from California and they were shipped across the country.   At the time, organic also wasn’t a big deal so I couldn’t find local organic herbs.

I had no idea what I was doing and even planted them too late and prayed I would get some tomatoes so I could save the seeds.  Luckily, I was able to save a few seeds from two of the plants and froze them.  

I caught the “growing bug” that summer and the next summer, I created an 8-bed garden to grow more and more plants.  So, the little garden grew in 18 years to one full of medicinal plants, vegetables, fruit trees and bushes, and various medicinal trees.  

I came to love herbs because of their smell and what they could do for people.  So, I started to grow more and more.  My husband says I am the type of person who loves every plant she sees. 

One day he asked me what I was going to do with all these herbs and I told him in a confident voice, I will sell them.  

One year of selling bulk herbs on Etsy taught me selling herbs wasn’t so easy because there was too much foreign competition that was selling the herbs at lower prices. So I pivoted and starting making herbal tea blends and sold the first set at a farmer’s market seven years ago,  I took all the herbs I grew and divided them up into 5 different teas and simply experimented with their taste.  I was very lucky that these combinations worked!

From then on, I started making salves and hydrosols and then added herbal salt blends.  People loved them and I continued to expand my farm to accommodate more herbs to make new products.  People kept coming to me with different issues and to share their problems.  I became a joy junkie because their smiles and their comments when they felt better just made me glow.  I never felt this way as a lawyer even though I protected them in whatever venture they pursued.  

Some of my customers were able to sleep for the first time or didn’t have as much pain as they had before. I was making a difference and I was hooked.

The ethos of Naked Botanical revolves around organic, USA-grown herbs without any added flavors. Can you share more about the values and principles driving your commitment to using organic ingredients and maintaining product integrity?

When I began making products I had to source from other growers  since I didn’t have enough of a particular herb. I bought from the big organic wholesalers and was always disappointed in the quality of their herbs.  The herbs didn’t have much smell and were lackluster in color.  I knew from growing my own herbs that the herbs I purchased were inferior.  I never bought nonorganic herbs since I was a big believer in growing organic herbs and vegetables before I even started The Naked Botanical.  

I went to a tremendous effort to build a non-toxic house so it didn’t make sense to grow non-organic vegetables and fruits.

I started sourcing from other US herb growers and immediately saw the difference in quality.  All the herb farmers shared my same values on quality and passion for the Earth.

It didn’t occur to me to add natural or artificial ingredients to my products until people started asking for fruity teas.  I couldn’t understand how teas were made to taste like fruit.  If you pour hot water over dried fruit, it doesn’t really taste that good.  Then I learned that most companies were adding natural flavors to their teas.  I couldn’t understand why.  Was it because their herbs had no taste without the flavor or were they distorting the taste to make the teas taste differently?  

I met a flavorist at a trade show and he enlightened me on how hard it was to make a fruit flavor.  The creation of natural flavors seemed like a science experiment to me.  Why would I want to add them to my organically grown products?  That just seemed incongruent with my mission.  So if I couldn’t create a fruity flavor, so be it.  Then I created simple syrups and tonics which solved the fruit flavor issue.  Now they can just add those to the teas!

Your products have whimsical names, embracing humor while maintaining a serious dedication to quality. How do you balance this playful approach with your meticulous commitment to crafting high-quality herbal remedies?

I think my whimsical names attract people to try the teas.  They smile when they read their names and tag lines.  Who doesn’t love the tagline, “crappy to happy?” 

Then they sample the products and their whole bodies shift.  Since my products are grown from herbs in the US they taste layers or, as in the case of the skincare products, they feel nice on their skin.

I also spend a great deal of time explaining and teaching the use and benefits of the herbs on my social media and in person. I tell them unique stories that only a grower would know.  So people know my standards for quality. 

Your mission emphasizes helping people feel good to do good in the world. How do you believe the happiness and magic of your farm translate into your herbal products, and how does this ethos impact your customers' experiences?

Many times, I tell people I grow happiness.  I truly believe that.  I am the lucky one that gets to be the conduit to the herbs, the bees, and the weather in producing the products.  Imagine going outside every day and 1000 puppies are wagging their tails when you step foot on to the farm.  This is how it feels to me. 

I feel that the magic of the taste, freshness, and the power of the herbs makes people just take a moment to themselves to escape their stress, anxiety, and pain and come out the other side feeling renewed.  Sometimes you just need to just take a breath and this is what my products provide.  I see the smiles on their faces as they are sampling my products.

Happiness breeds more happiness.  So if you feel good, it’s catchy and others like being around you.  The world needs more happy people.

Your background as a lawyer taught you attention to detail and precision. How do these professional traits influence the meticulous process of creating your herbal products, especially concerning small-batch production and maintaining freshness and quality?

My legal training has made me very detailed.  I read all of the laws and never overstate what my products do.  I am very careful in complying with the FDA and the USDA.  My products are USDA certified organic so I have to follow a lot of rules and compliance results in tons of paperwork.  Being certified organic isn’t for everyone since it is very time consuming, but I felt as a company that it was important for my customers to trust in what I do and they all understand what the USDA symbol means.  In addition, I truly believe in my products being certified organic.

Furthermore, I am meticulous in my processes which I owe to my legal training.  I dot my “I's and cross my Ts.  I go the extra mile in keeping my herbs fresh.  Our herbs are hand stripped and dried within a one or two day time period.  Our elderberry is frozen the day it is harvested. 

Although I don’t love using plastic, all my herbs are vacuumed sealed in bags until used and stored in a cool place in containers.  This enable the herbs to taste the same as the day I picked them.  A dried herb’s enemy is heat, air and light.  So I am mindful of how I harvest, store and package the herbs. I want my customers to taste fresh herbs and not ones that have been sitting around in a bag for a year or two.

If you would like to find out more about Anna Hackman, please visit https://www.thenakedbotanical.com/