Her instincts, passion fuel Java

SUCCESS BREWING: Stephanie Additon, owner of Java Skincare, is seen in her store at 14 Main St. in North Kingstown. Additon's showroom has an eclectic assortment of items for sale. / PBN PHOTO/  MICHAEL SALERNO
SUCCESS BREWING: Stephanie Additon, owner of Java Skincare, is seen in her store at 14 Main St. in North Kingstown. Additon's showroom has an eclectic assortment of items for sale. / PBN PHOTO/ MICHAEL SALERNO

A psychology degree is not the typical credential associated with running a business, but then, Stephanie Additon is not a traditional entrepreneur.

Additon launched the primarily wholesale business Java Skincare in 2014 from the back of her and her husband’s artisan roasting company, Updike’s Newtowne Coffee Roasting Company and Café, in North Kingstown. She opened a retail storefront, as well as offices, in Wickford village this past December.

Focusing on skin-care products infused with organic, green coffee for that natural “lift,” the business has taken off, selling wholesale products to 45 boutiques in 12 states, plus three five-star spas in hot spots like LaJolla, Calif., Scottsdale, Ariz., and Palm Beach, Fla. A facial collection to supplement the body line is in the works.

Additon, 46, said the success comes from surrounding herself with business advisers who are “smarter” than her, and relying on the intuition and emotional intelligence that led her to that psychology degree to guide her in entrepreneurial endeavors.

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Part social-preneur, part educator and social worker, based on past consulting work, Additon works hard, plans and strategizes – but always from a place of enthusiasm and affinity.

“I come from a place of passion,” Additon said, “but in terms of my everyday work and being an entrepreneur, it’s about team building and helping companies achieve their goals and make people feel good.”

Sustainability and environmental awareness are values she incorporates into her brand and her business strategy, she said.

Born in Warwick, Additon earned her B.A. in psychology at Cambridge College in Boston in 1999, the same year she married her husband, Mark, and then worked a series of social work and philanthropy consulting jobs in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. She focused on urban education and helping communities and school administrations “understand the challenges of families and students and how to problem-solve around that,” she said.

The move from consultant to entrepreneur, running Updike’s in 2007 with her husband, was not a huge leap, she said. Funding for consulting work was drying up, so she decided to switch gears.

“It’s a very similar lifestyle,” she noted. “You have to be self-motivated. You have to be able to work with people [and] understand what their needs are. So, that just lent itself to becoming a full-time entrepreneur.”

The freedom and independence came with support. Her husband is a partner with whom she’s shared business growth primarily through persistence and hard work. (He runs the coffee company; she runs Java.)

“Every day, I have learned something new and I think that’s part of the fun: to try and solve the next problem and not give up,” she said. “I’m not so sure I would have learned this stuff in books; however, I’m sure there are easier ways to do things.”

One of the things she might have done differently was educate herself on the requirements for getting a patent for her skin-care products. She developed a secret recipe based on the “aha” moment when she realized that the caffeine in a favorite eye cream likely contributed to the lift and rested feeling she got from it.

Although her recipe remains secret, she failed to apply for a patent within the first 12 months of launching the business, and consequently cannot get one, she said.

But along the way, advisers have helped her learn the ins and outs of entrepreneurship, she said. She considers her professional network “my own personal ‘Shark Tank,’ ” she said.

Joe DelRegno, an investor and adviser who works in marketing as general manager for Welch’s International’s North American division in Concord, Mass., taught Additon how to research diligently and understand the market, as well as how to get the message out about a brand, she said.

“I have an amazing advisory team,” she said. “I don’t do this in a vacuum.”

In addition to her passion, Additon considers herself persuasive, an attribute that helped her connect with business professionals.

Ultimately, Additon aims to grow the wholesale side of her business as widely as possible. And what outcome does she envision? “To be a national brand,” she said. •

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