Earlier this year, Gopuff announced the launch of “Put Me On,” a small business accelerator program designed to help underrepresented entrepreneurs grow their businesses. The first group of participants include entrepreneurs in the beauty, home essentials, and food and beverage categories, including Donata Joseph, Founder & Owner of Donata Skinfood.

Donata Skinfood is a South Florida-based company focused on nourishing your skin and mind with all-natural, plant-based, skin-loving ingredients. Owned by a proud Black Haitian woman, Donata Skinfood uses key ingredients sourced from Haiti to either rejuvenate the mind or give you complete relaxation.

Read on to learn more about Donata and her skinfood.

Tell us about the story of your brand. How did the company come to be? 

Ten months after losing my job in 2013, a friend sent me a picture of a candle. I decided that, while waiting on God’s direction, I would make candles on the side. I began researching recipes to make an aromatherapy candle, but I got distracted and stumbled upon a recipe for a lotion bar. I found this to be very unique – I had never heard of a lotion bar before. 

After making the lotion bar and testing it on my friends and family, I realized that I stumbled upon what I was called to do. My business started in my dad’s kitchen, where I made small-batch soaps with my son who was nine at the time (he’s 17 now). I sold products at the farmer’s market or local pop-up events. Shortly after, I achieved my estheticians license and learned about all-natural and holistic care.

What is your company mission and where do you want to see the company in five years? 

In 5 years, Donata Skinfood will be a family-recognized brand for vegan and all-natural hair and skincare products that help promote healthy and glowing skin. My business will also be known for the self-help work and education we do to help people match their internal wellness with their external glow. I will help my Tribe of customers shift their mindset from intervention to prevention holistically through the mind, body, skin, and hair.

Tell us about your company’s presence in  your community. Do you have strong ties to the place in which you’re headquartered? If so, what does that look like?

Through “Donata’s Events,” I am able to connect with fellow small business owners throughout Miami. I help support these brands through advice, feedback, and education that helps small business owners get out of their own way and step into what they were destined to do (similar to my journey to Donata Skinfood). My goal is to educate small business owners in Miami (and eventually nationwide) on their mind, their body, and their business. I am hoping to grow Donata’s Events and help create networks for small businesses to collaborate and support each other. 

Why is “Put Me On” important to you and your business? What are you hoping to get out of the program?

“Put Me On” gives minority-owned brands an opening to have a larger voice and opportunity. Being on Gopuff’s platform and seizing its opportunities gets us one step closer to even the playing field. Gopuff is creating a ‘seat at the table’ for up and coming brands to have access to mentorship, networking, PR opportunities, celebrity shout-outs, marketing expertise, and more. 

Through the program, I’m hoping to navigate retail partnerships and achieve multi-vendor platform growth. Since raising attention to my social media platforms and website, where a lot of the education can be controlled and directed, I am next hoping to develop a new marketing approach to have the products speak for themselves on a multi-vendor platform. I’m excited by the opportunity!

What is one piece of advice you would give to other entrepreneurs and why? 

To work on your mental health and physical health while building your business. So many entrepreneurs focus so much on the business that they neglect themselves and end up having health issues because of it. In turn, that can really hurt your bottom line. I am blessed in that when I started having health issues, I had built my business to a point that I was able to step away and take my time to heal completely. But if I had taken care of myself from the beginning and listened to the small signs the body was warning me of, I would have been better off and may have never needed surgery. It’s because of this new passion of mine that I am building out my Mind, Body & Business Mentorship Program. 

What was the last item you purchased on Gopuff? Or what is your favorite snack? 

My kids ordered the Smartfood White Cheddar Popcorn and Dinamita Doritos. I am still working on them to eat healthier!