Business Owner Profile: Naki Nagi

Rachel Rekhter from Naki Nagi makes unique sugar and sea salt body scrubs.

How did you come up with this idea?
In December 2010 I was walking around New York’s Bryant Park Holiday Market, looking for a gift for someone who loved soaps and soap-related products. I came across a store that had delicious-smelling pastel-colored body scrubs – for $30 a jar! Exfoliating your body with natural ingredients should be a daily, not an exclusive and expensive, ritual – and I instantly knew I could create something better, more affordable, and more approachable for women and men.
I began experimenting at home, trying different recipes and ingredients in an effort to create a scrub that could be used on all skin types, that provides just the right amount of moisture without excess oil (something that bothered me about other body scrubs).
Six months later I had finally created a unique recipe and four delicious flavors, and then I began to tackle the business itself – coming up with the branding and advertising (including a name and logo, packaging, the website, social media strategy), establishing an e-commerce hub, and of course, scrub production itself.
I named the company Naki Nagi, a combination of the Hebrew word “Naki”, meaning clean, and “Nagi”, the Russian word for legs. The name blends the cultures that define me, Jewish and Russian, with my love for my two Siberian cats – Mishka and Gorbie (short for Gorbachev), who happen to have the fluffiest, ”Naki Nagi” (clean legs). Naki Nagi represents a unique combination that results in a one-of-a-kind product, made with love and appreciation for its ingredients and formulation.

What makes your company special?
Every product that I make is handmade. Literally – with my own two hands. Each product is also something I love – if its not absolutely amazing, it does not get sold. I produce in small batches to ensure the freshest products for you.

What made you start your own small business? 
When I graduated from Stern’s MBA program in May 2010 I had the world at my fingertips. I had been working in marketing and creative design, but I was truly jaded of corporate America. The job market was pretty tough, and when a friend suggested that I sell my body scrubs, it all clicked into place – my undergraduate education at NYU in Nutrition and Culinary Arts, my work experience and my MBA – and so I decided to take the plunge!

How are the products made to get these results?
I use a minimal amount of ingredients in each scrub – I think less is more and the scrubs reflect that. Simplicity in design, in flavors and in packaging.

What makes small companies different?  What do they do small businesses do better than larger ones?
Smaller companies have the ability to really connect with their customers. For example, when I attend markets and shows, I interact with customers directly, and am able to instantly produce options and ideas that work for them – and then see them thru to completion. Whether thats a highly customized baby shower gift or a unique scent for a boutique, I have the ability to make on the spot decisions and help customers.

Do you think small businesses have an effect on the community?
In these tough times, small businesses have a really critical role – this is where big ideas come from, where future employment originates, and what will ultimately help stimulate economies on a very micro level. If one family can take their product to market and earn a living, that’s one less family who has to worry about their future.

How important is it to your customers that you manufacture in the US?
I think that this is a trend that we are seeing more and more, and seems to really resonate with people. As a society it is becoming more and more apparent that we need to support each other, and not simply cheap goods produced overseas. We need to bring business back to the States, and manufacturing in the US in a key step in that equation.

What kind of people are best suited to running their own small business?
You have to have thick skin, and have to be able to shake off the bad days in hope of a brighter tomorrow.