Cliché as it is, a new year is all about new beginnings. I hope by the time you are reading this editorial, you have not fallen off track on whatever it is that you committed to during the last few days of 2025—spending more time at home or traveling the world, less time on social media, or deciding this is your year to run a marathon or start a business of your own.

Say what you will about running 26.2 miles all at once. Being an entrepreneur is a more daring choice.

Happi has been covering entrepreneurs in the household and personal care space for years. Founder stories are always inspiring. The most successful of the bunch garner loyal fans, media accolades and attention from  investors. 

The woman on our cover, Lisa Price, knows the journey well. Her founder story is the indie beauty story. Price started making products in her kitchen, grew her brand by blood, sweat and tears (before social media) and sold it to one of the biggest companies in the business. 

Now, she’s back.

It is a road that has been traveled by others, of course.

Entrepreneurs like Bobbi Brown and the late Horst Rechelbacher, for example, stepped back into the beauty business once their hands were untied by non-competes, creating Jones Road and Intelligent Nutrients, respectively. Some instead shift into new territory. The guy behind Hello oral care (sold to Colgate) is in the coffee business these days.

But with Price, there’s a twist. She is back in the business, but not with a sequel or to build a new mousetrap. She’s leading Carol’s Daughter, having reacquired her brand with a business partner.

It will make Carol’s Daughter an interesting company to watch in 2026, along with the others profiled by Associate Editor Lianna Albrizio starting on p. 32 in this issue. 

Eyes will also be on the economy, too. High prices are putting the squeeze on US consumers, and how they opt to spend their money will impact the entire household and personal products industry—from brands to their supplier partners to contract manufacturers, and so on and so on…

Our wish for you, Happi reader, is that 2026 is a year of success for your organization.

Have a comment or a question about something you read or saw on our socials? Don’t be shy. Send me an email or find me on LinkedIn. Let’s talk.

Christine Esposito | Editor-in-Chief
cesposito@rodmanmedia.com