Growing a Garden
Susie Perrine has been giving back to the Las Vegas community for years. If a charity organization needs it, she’ll give it — and happily. Child Haven, Shade Tree, Safe Nest, Girls & Boys Town, Chefs for Kids, Nevada Ballet Theatre and others all have enjoyed the affluent real estate broker’s benevolence.
This time around she’s still giving but in a much different form. Perrine created Las Vegas Garden Collections, and if you consider your own personal pampering a good cause, then this could very well be Perrine’s most charitable donation to date.
The bath and body collection — which consists of lotions, soaps, shampoos and conditioners, bubbles and candles in fragrances such as lemon verbena, garden bouquet and wild flowers — took three years to come to fruition. High standards, not procrastination, lead to the long development period. “I am a perfectionist,” Perrine said with pride.
If the self-proclamation doesn’t prove it, perhaps this will: When Las Vegas Garden Collections made its debut in gift shops around town three months ago, Perrine was delighted with everything except “the pumps on the bottles made them look funny on the shelves,” she said. The production company replaced the pumps with push caps. Perrine knew that pumps were more convenient than lids, so she decided to provide them free with purchase.
Her products also come with customized wrapping and shopping bags, which are provided by vendors such as The Drugstore at Wynn Las Vegas, The Shop at Red Rock Resort, Paradise Gift Shop at Las Vegas Hilton and The Spa at the Las Vegas Hilton.
Obtaining distribution in major hotels and resorts such as these has a lot to do with “who you know” — Perrine has some of the wealthiest people in town on speed dial — but connections only get you so far. Perrine likes to think it has more to do with product quality than personal favors.
“Once you use my products you’ll see why they’re so yummy,” she said. And they had better be. Perrine has invested $3 million of her own money into the product line. When the first manufacturing company she signed on didn’t execute a superior product, Perrine was out a “big chunk of money.” (She and the company are currently in litigation.) She took her business, and more of her money, to another manufacturer. For 11 months Perrine tested and sent back the products until they came out exactly as she wanted them.
Perrine’s own personal preference didn’t suffice, either. The meticulous businesswoman formed a focus group of eight people to test the products and provide feedback. Some were industry experts, others just “random people.” As Perrine and her team evaluated the top bath and body products out there and worked on outperforming them, the focus group decided whether or not Perrine’s products could hold their own against the crème de la crème. Las Vegas Garden Collections didn’t go into full production until everyone agreed the products smelled and felt the very best.
Finding the right fragrances, with the help of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc., came easy. The product texture required more creativity. The extra ingredients that ultimately made the difference, according to Perrine include castor oil, noni (a Pacific fruit), aloe vera and various vitamins.
“I wouldn’t put anything on the market I wouldn’t buy myself,” she said. “That doesn’t mean the name of the product, it’s the quality.”
