In 1993, ‘Crystal Spring Natural Body Deodorant’ appeared on the UK market – at a time when suggesting natural deodorant to someone would likely get you a raised eyebrow and a polite step backward. Twelve years later, Sally Laird spotted this plucky little two-product company and thought, “I fancy a challenge,” and bought it in 2005.
Operations began from Sally’s home, which meant business meetings sometimes had to compete with everyday household happenings. Glamorous it was not, but it gave us the flexibility to grow at our own pace.
Sally has always had a passion for complementary health and natural therapies. Thomas and his sister were brought up on home-grown kitchen kombucha and kefir long before they became trendy café offerings. Having been using crystal deodorants herself, Sally was keen to increase their appeal and make natural deodorants more accessible to everyone. This love for all things natural was passed down to Thomas, who's also a big fan of natural solutions.
Creating effective natural alternatives to everyday deodorants isn't just our business – it's why we're in business. Being 100% natural is not the easiest or cheapest route, but it's always been important to us – it's simply who we are. We believe everyone deserves freedom of choice in how they care for their bodies, which is why we've developed the widest range of natural deodorant formats and fragrances in the world. Whether you like sprays, roll-ons, balms, sticks or crystals, we've got you covered, naturally.
By 2007 things were getting interesting – Thomas was keen to refresh the brand and expand, while Sally was thinking about stepping back from day-to-day operations. We worked out a natural split: Thomas took on the day-to-day running as MD, while Sally handled the finances and stock control. The simplest ideas are usually the best, especially when they let everyone play to their strengths.
In 2008, with the business growing, we decided it was time for a rebrand that reflected our new and expanding range – and so Crystal Spring became Salt of the Earth. Yes, we managed to time this perfectly with the global financial crisis – because nothing says "business genius" like launching your shiny new identity just as the economy decides to have a lie down!
Despite our spectacular timing, the world loved it! The opportunity for growth was clearly there and the rebrand was extremely successful. We soon had to expand into a bigger warehouse and invest in some professional equipment (goodbye spare bedroom, hello actual shelves!).
The good old deodorant shower days
We started making our spray deodorants in the kitchen, carefully timing production around meal preparations. By 2015, we’d somehow convinced ourselves (and a bank) that we needed proper equipment. Our first production vessel arrived without plugs, instructions, or any hint of how to operate it.
There followed several weeks of what we affectionately call “The Good Old Deodorant Shower Days,” where we learned that buttons should be pressed cautiously and standing positions chosen strategically. Many perfectly good outfits were sacrificed in the name of progress.
We’re a little obsessed with making natural deodorants that actually work – even during life’s sweatiest moments! Our formulations are a force of nature that work with your body’s natural process to stop BO in its tracks. It’s taken years of development (and countless willing testers) to perfect, but the result is natural protection you can trust.
So how does it work?
We use the power of natural minerals like potassium alum and magnesium hydroxide to block odour-causing bacteria rather than blocking your pores with aluminium chlorohydrate like conventional antiperspirants.
Our soothing plant extracts and oils provide gentle care for your skin and a fab range of fragrances to choose from – keep an eye out for our limited edition scents too!
Today, we’re still a family-owned, independent company. No venture capitalists, no corporate overlords – just a family with a little obsession for making natural deodorants that work. Sally has fully stepped back now, and her knowledge and guidance has been replaced (as technology has improved) by a chat bot we affectionately call ‘Chat Mum GPT’*. Stuart (Thomas’s dad) continues to offer guidance, while Thomas leads our team day-to-day.
Speaking of our team – we’re really happy to have grown our business with a fantastic group of people who share our values. We’ve worked hard to create a positive culture and we do our best to be a great place to work. After all, happy people make better deodorant (we haven’t scientifically proven this, but we’re pretty confident it’s true).
(*this is just a joke, Sally is irreplaceable!).
We now operate from a 16,000 sq ft warehouse in Chandlers Ford, Hampshire. It’s where we manufacture nearly all our deodorants (except the crystals), develop new products, and have enough storage space that no one has to keep boxes in their spare bedroom anymore – which we consider tremendous progress.
All the machines in our factory run on electricity from renewable sources, and our COSMOS Natural certification means we’re held to strict standards for environmental impact throughout our supply chain.
Our certification requires us to use biodegradable cleaning products in our manufacturing facilities, minimise waste, and constantly review our packaging to reduce environmental impact. It’s not always the easiest way to operate, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.
Along the way, we’ve managed to accumulated over 58 awards including the Kings Award for Enterprise, International Trade 2025, sold over 9 million deodorants and gained certifications – COSMOS Natural certified by the Soil Association, Leaping Bunny approved, Vegan Society registered, and Vegetarian Society approved, B Corp. Not bad for a business that started in someone’s spare bedroom.
