Whenever I visit Olivü 426, the smells are so enticing I rarely leave without taking something home. The rich fragrances change depending on the time of year you visit. My favorite season is fall, when it smells like fresh apple crumble or an apple orchard on a crisp, fall day. Like many small businesses, Olivü has an interesting story, and I wanted to sit down with owner Caitlin Brotz-McNitt to hear hers.

Caitlin graduated from Lakeland in 2005 with a degree in Business, but she wasn’t really sure what she wanted to do. After trying unsuccessfully to get a job in radio, she felt she didn’t want to have to struggle through the process of applying and interviewing for another job again. Around this same time, her then-boyfriend Adam suffered an unfortunate accident related to snowmobile racing and was badly burned. He was transferred to a burn unit in Milwaukee, where his nurse did not want him using the typical store-bought products on his skin due to various chemicals and ingredients. She gave Caitlin a recipe for homemade lip balm, which produced, as Caitlin says, “a lifetime supply of lip balm.” The internet back then was quite inadequate compared to what it is today, so it was a bit of a challenge to go online and find basic supplies like the tubes to hold the balm. After filling the tubes by hand with a spoon, she had such a substantial supply she would tuck a handful of lip balms in her purse everywhere she went and hand them out to friends and family. She soon found that she couldn’t go anywhere without people asking her for lip balm, and they wanted to buy more.

Olivu lip balm cropped

Soon Adam also needed lotions without alcohol, so Caitlin began researching different oils that would help him heal. As she began passing out these lotions to family and friends, people began asking for different fragrances. While she had enjoyed this little hobby, she thought it would be great if people could make it themselves and make it exactly how they wanted it. This was her “lightbulb” moment – wouldn’t it be great if there was a place that had all the ingredients, and people could come in and blend the ingredients to make their own products.

Meanwhile, she went to community college in TX and got an entrepreneurship certification. When she came home, she started doing house parties with the products, and in 2006 decided to open a store. The logical location in her mind was in the downtown area. She ended up at 511 N 8th Street. Olivü spent about 10 years in that location before moving to their current location almost right across the street, at 502 N 8th Street. Just a year after opening, Olivü won “Small Business of the Year”.

Olivu Small Business of the Year article

She had to find ways to creatively and economically market her new business, because there was no Instagram or Tik Tok, and Facebook was relatively new in its inception. At the time, the newspaper allowed you to place an ad for free if you offered classes, so she offered classes on making stepping stones outside on the sidewalk, in hopes that people would come in and explore her shop.

To this day, the majority of their customers still come organically via word of mouth, although online sales have certainly enhanced the reach of Olivü’s business. They’ve shipped their products as far as Hong Kong, Japan, and Costa Rica (did you know that people in Costa Rica don’t have addresses?!). They ship a large volume to the Armed Forces overseas.

Throughout the years, other exciting opportunities have presented themselves. One day there was a woman in the shop from the Golden Globes community and commented that the items would be really great for the swag bags. They submitted some products for selection, and the committee ended up accepting their products! Since then they have had their products featured in the swag bags for the Golden Globes, Academy Awards, MTV Music Awards, and ESPN Awards. They have also gifted to the Game of Thrones, Martha Stewart, and others. Caitlin even had the opportunity to attend the Golden Globes in 2020. I asked if this exposure has ever yielded orders from celebrities, and the truth is she is not sure, because it’s not likely Brad Pitt or Julia Roberts is placing orders under their real name. She says she did it more for the publicity and the opportunity to share her story with a larger audience.

The building that Olivü currently calls home at 502 N 8th Street has some interesting history. One of the first known business in that location was Citizens Bank in the late 1800s. The brick building featured some beautiful architectural details, including a set of large arches on the facade. Sadly, these were removed as the building evolved into other businesses over the years. The current Olivü building occupies space that was once 502 and 504 N 8th Street. It was once home to Coney Island Lunch and probably most notably remembered in recent years, Jumes Restaurant. Many locals have fond memories of sitting at the counter eating a coney dog and drinking a soda. Fun fact: the stainless steel sinks from the Jumes kitchen are still present and used by Olivü!

Olivu interior

Olivü’s current product line goes far beyond the lip balms and lotions they started with. Today their inventory includes a full line of natural face, body, and hair care products, a men’s line, and baby and kids items. For those with babies, their baby bum stick is one of the best products out there for diaper rash! They also have a large selection of home products such as candles, room spray, hand soap and sanitizer, surface cleaner, and so much more. They even have paw wax to protect your fur baby’s paws in the cold winter months.

Caitlin said one of the biggest challenges she has faced over the years is the changes with the times, everything from the economy and covid to the speed at which technology changes and the cost involved with that.

Looking around her office, where we met for our interview, it is easy to see why Caitlin has been so successful. Always the innovator, she is not afraid to try new things. Her office is filled with all kinds of ideas, some works in progress and others waiting in the wings to be turned into the next great product. Needless to say, that “lifetime supply of lip balm” has long ago run out, and Olivü has come quite a way since the day of filling those tubes with a spoon.

Olivu Caitlin's office