When Tammie Umbel was exposed to poverty as a child, she promised herself she would be the change she wished to see. “I always knew that, one day, I was going to create jobs for these people,” Umbel recalls. A few short decades later, the Leesburg resident created a multimillion dollar skincare company that benefits women in developing countries—all while raising and homeschooling her 14 children.
Shea Terra Organics sources ingredients from across Africa, and works with a collective of women to create an array of skincare products. Umbel originally recognized an opportunity when she saw women in African villages struggling to sell their abundance of shea butter—and losing their profits to American companies. Her goal was to resell shea butter without unfair markups and, in turn, offer African women economic opportunities and create a bridge for Americans to appreciate their time-tested beauty routines. The company now uses argan oil from Morocco, baobab oil from Africa’s “tree of life,” the honeybush herb native to South Africa, and countless other rare ingredients that help combat acne, oily skin and rosacea remedies.
Umbel’s fascination with beauty customs started when she was young; she converted to Islam at age 15 and launched a religious garment business just three years later. When she developed Shea Terra Organics from her basement in 2000, she was careful that the company, now based out of a warehouse in Sterling, would reflect her values. “At the core of Shea Terra is cultural awareness,” she says. “This is something true to my heart. Cultures are dying; they need to be preserved like wildlife habitats do.”
The mom of 14 children, ranging from preschool age to post-college, balances her business with homeschooling, caretaking the family’s farm and taking her kids on international travels. “I tell them, I may be your mom and you come first, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t pursue great things for myself,” Umbel says.
Shea Terra Organics is now a sought-after, all-natural brand sold in Vitamin Shoppes, grocery stores and spas around the nation, and even counts Sarah Jessica Parker—who gave some Instagram love to the line’s Rose Hips Black Soap facial wash—among its celebrity following. Yet at its heart the skincare line manifests one woman’s lasting ambition. “I guess I was a dreamer,” says Umbel. “Rather than just becoming mediocre human beings, I think it’s necessary for people to become extraordinary.” // sheaterraorganics.com