It’s hard to put a price on the value, but when Oprah gives a business her stamp of approval, there is no doubt good things are in store.
For Oprah to give the thumbs up for two consecutive years is quite an achievement.
Musee Bath garnered that honor recently as Oprah’s Favorite Things 2022 holiday gift list has featured the Madison County company again.
“Steadman and I love a big bar of soap,” Oprah Winfrey said of Musee Bath. “These are generous sized and inspiring, with words like kindness and hope etched into them. Plus, you’ll be supporting a woman-owned company that hires women in recovery, people with disabilities, and those who have lived in chronic poverty.”
This year, 84% of the items selected by Oprah are from small businesses and available for purchase exclusively in Amazon’s store at amazon.com/oprah and via the Amazon shopping app, so customers can support small business while still enjoying fast delivery to their doorstep.
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For Musee Bath founder and CEO Leisha Pickering of Flora, she could not be more grateful. She could also not be busier at the moment.
It is market season, and after a week of Mistletoe Marketplace in Jackson, Pickering was off Austin, Texas for a holiday market there and is now in Houston, Texas through the weekend.
“This is really wonderful. It definitely gives you national exposure,” Pickering said. “I really love being involved with Oprah’s list because most of the things she picks are from small businesses across the country. I am so appreciative that she sees the value in small companies and gives attention to them.”
And, yes, this honor gives her company lots of extra sales and Musee Baths is featured in the latest edition of Oprah Magazine with a full-page spread.
“It’s always nice to receive accolades and it allows you say that we are doing something well,” Pickering said. “We are also just really happy to bring positive attention to Mississippi with a Mississippi business.”
Musee products are handmade in Canton at an expansive complex that was originally built to serve the film production industry, but that’s not where the business started.
Pickering started the business in her Flora kitchen in 2010.
On a mission to create jobs for Madison County residents, Pickering enlisted a friend, Adam Pierce, to help her come up with a product that could sustain a business and one that they could teach people to make.
They experimented with making bath balms, ball-shaped mixtures of oil and fragrance meant to make taking a bath a pleasure.
Pickering named the business Musee, a word she made up to communicate the idea of “things that bring joy to your life, something that makes your heart sing.”
A trip to the Atlanta International Gift Market was the next step after the market closed for winter months. The bath products and soaps are now sold in 3,500-4,000 gift stores and spas throughout the U.S. and in Canada.
Musee bath products can be purchased across Central Mississippi, including at Apple Annie’s and Impromptu as well as Walmart, Ulta Beauty, Anthropologie and Sephora.
Manufacturing attractive products meant to “Bath the World in Love” is just one part of the Musee story.
The business is also known for providing meaningful work for people who may have served time in jail, have disabilities or lack education. Musee supports several Madison County organizations and extends its reach outside of the U.S. by backing several projects to make life better for children such as a school in Haiti and an orphanage in South Africa.
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“This is the story about all of the folks I get to work with everyday,” Pickering said. “Musee is the work of many, many people, who offer their gifts and where everyone is valuable because everything they do is valuable.”
Pickering points to her office manager, Julie, who came to Musee several years ago after a time in jail as a specific instance of someone for whom the company has been a stepping stone.
“She is really a success story,” Pickering said. “She had lost her children and many people never believed she would beat addiction. She really just needed a chance. It was a tough road. But she has made it and I could not make it without her at Musee. She has made such a wonderful and amazing contribution. And she has her life back. She has her children back. We could not be more happy for the strides she has made.”
While on the list for two consecutive years, Musee is one of many Mississippi companies to have made the list over the years.
Just last year, The Mississippi family-owned company’s three-way assorted pecan gift tin was one of several candies and snacks Oprah picked this holiday season.