There's a line I use a lot — "we started in a stable" — and I sometimes wonder if people think it's just a cute bit of branding.
It isn't.
Janni Bars genuinely began in a stable. With horses. With the very real, very unglamorous problem of trying to find products that were effective, natural, and didn't leave a trail of plastic waste in their wake. If you've ever cared for animals, you know how quickly you start questioning what's in everything — what's going on their skin, what's washing off into the environment, what you're actually buying when you buy something "natural."
That questioning didn't stay in the stable.
What running a small brand actually looks like
I want to be honest with you, because I think honesty is what's missing from a lot of brand stories.
Running Janni Bars is a lot. On any given week, I'm developing new formulas, navigating compliance deadlines, writing emails like this one, planning content, packing orders, chasing suppliers, and — yes — still spending time with horses, which is where my brain resets.
It is relentless, and it is completely worth it, and I say "after this week things will slow down a bit" approximately every week.
But here's what keeps me going: the products are real. Every bar we make started from a genuine question — can we do this better? Can we make something that actually works, that doesn't cost the planet, that doesn't come in a plastic bottle that'll outlive all of us?
The answer, consistently, is yes.
What's new (and what's coming)
We just launched our lip balm — plant-based, plastic-free, and quietly brilliant for something so small. And there are more releases coming very soon. Every new product goes through the same process: proper testing, proper ingredients, no shortcuts.
If you've been on the fence about trying a shampoo bar, or you're ready to expand your Janni Bars collection — the full range is in the shop now, and this bank holiday weekend feels like a good moment.
One last thing
This weekend, I'll be doing what I always do when I get a chance to breathe — spending time with horses. The actual stable. The actual animals that started this whole thing.
If you'd like to see more of that on stories — the behind-the-scenes, the original inspiration, the slightly muddy reality of where Janni Bars came from — let me know. I'd genuinely love to share it.
Have a brilliant bank holiday. 🐴