Burt's Bees

Burt's Bees started north of Bangor, Maine, when Burt Shavitz, a beekeeper who made his living selling jars of honey out of his pickup, hooked up with Roxanne Quimby, a hard-working waitress and single mom, to make beeswax candles. After pulling in $200 dollars at a local junior high crafts fair and bake sale, they knew they were on to something. As their little venture grew, the 8 x 8 turkey coop where Burt lived was getting rather cramped, so they rented a one-room schoolhouse for $150 a year. There, despite the lack of heat, running water, and electricity, Burt's Bees kept buzzing.

Today, Burt's Bees has moved to bigger digs in North Carolina, but their company is still one big happy family producing a full line of earth-friendly, natural personal care products (and yes, they still make candles).