Local business Owner Blend Beauty with Conservation  

Across Belize, countless budding entrepreneurs are striving to become the country’s next big success story. Many of these innovators are venturing into fields like beauty, health, and conservation. Tonight, we hear from Hughette Saul, the owner of A.S.H. Limited, who is blending all three by offering skin and hair products that are not only good for your body but also kind to the environment. We visited Saul today to learn more about her mission to revolutionize health and wellness in Belize.

 

Britney Gordon, Reporting

Self-care doesn’t need to be complicated. Just ask Hughette Saul! With a few simple ingredients, she’s revolutionizing the way we think about wellness. Hughette is the mastermind behind Barrier, a unique agricultural health and wellness brand that’s making waves under her company, A.S.H. Limited.

 

Hughette Saul, Owner, A.S.H. Limited

“Barrier is an agricultural based  business and the products that we make, they are supposed to give  Belize a healthy alternative to these toxic imports that we  bring in.”

 

Britney Gordon

“So what’s this range of products look like?”

 

Hughette Saul

“The first product we created was coral-safe sunscreen because we found out how terrible these imported brands are for people, fish, coral reefs, and we branched off since then, and now we have  a sort, different sorts of scrubs. We also have a leave in hair growth formula. We have mouthwash, as well as pain relief.”

 

Barrier is all about offering healthier alternatives to the everyday items Belize usually imports. But there’s more to it—Hughette Saul is passionate about protecting Belize’s beautiful marine life from harmful chemicals. It’s this love for the ocean that sparked her inspiration to create the brand.

 

Hughette Saul

“Years ago, I went with my siblings to celebrate my father’s birthday in Mexico and it was very depressing to snorkel. All of the coral reefs were white and there was only one nurse shark kind of swimming around and that was upsetting compared to Belize’s. Beautiful corals and fish.  And fast forward to a documentary I came across that stated how sunscreen plays a role in coral bleaching. From there, I did more research, and when I decided to do my master’s in business administration, I also decided to study sunscreen in particular. So every marketing class, every logistics, and my thesis, it’s all built around this coral safe sunscreen.”

 

During her research, Hughette Saul found out that many imported brands like Banana Boat and Sun Bum have chemicals that cause coral bleaching and mess with fish hormones, even turning some fish into females and disrupting the natural balance. Since she registered her brand in 2021, Saul has been a strong advocate for protecting our reefs. But lately, she’s hit a few bumps in the road while trying to re-register her brand.

 

Hughette Saul

“Once I submitted the registration re-registration form, I received an email with a list of corrections and then a two thousand dollar fee. I attempted to go to the Keystone building  in Belize City on the fifth floor to speak to someone, but I was not able to speak to someone. And this is after phone calls and using their WhatsApp option.”

 

Hughette Saul shared that the initial registration for her business cost between eight hundred and one thousand dollars. She had to take a break from her business to earn some money through teaching, so she didn’t re-register during that time. Now that she’s ready to jump back into her company, the two-thousand-dollar re-registration fee is just too steep for her budget.

 

Hughette Saul

“I was hoping to hear something like, there’s a payment plan for two thousand dollars. It’s also a lot more than I paid to register the business in the first place, which does not make sense to me. I believe that or the reason that this is also so aggravating to me, I’m a trained economist. I’m aware that foreign businesses, they get tax breaks 5 years. So, we see these Saritas and we see the foreign companies that can afford two thousand  dollars but they get the tax breaks and but they have the money barrier A.S.H. Limited does not have the money in this moment.”

 

Hughette Saul runs a one-woman show, crafting her products right in her kitchen with ingredients she grows herself. But in November, disaster struck when her garden flooded, wiping out many of her plants. Now, she’s working hard to replant and expand her stock. Hughette hopes that by raising awareness of her brand, she can keep her business thriving and continue championing the cause she’s so passionate about.

 

Hughette Saul

“To be honest I will accept my fate. And but the point is to take this opportunity to raise awareness of the cost of doing business in Belize that we give more concessions to foreign companies than local companies, which is not right. It’s not right. And to also bring awareness of the fact that a lot of the products that we’re using are harming us. The things that we think would help, like Listerine, Crest, we use these products thinking, Oh, it’s going to freshen my breath. It’s killing bad breath germs, but without realizing that it’s a little coloring and alcohol and it’s really causing more harm than good. So I really would like to  get the brand out there so that I can earn that two thousand.”

 

Britney Gordon for News Five.