A Small Business Christmas: My Neighbor’s in Hudson Valley

Tell us about your business. Who are you, what are you, where are you?
My Neighbor’s is a Hudson Valley based skincare company rooted in regenerative agriculture and ancient, time tested ingredients. I started the brand after becoming a mother and creating a tallow balm to soothe my daughter’s eczema. We launched in may 2024 and are proud to say in 230 stores nationally. Today we (three women) create tallow based and some vegan based skincare made by hand in small batches in Hudson, New York. Every Tallow product is made with grass fed and finished suet from local farms and the highest quality botanicals. We exist to bring ancestral healing back into the modern home, one neighbor at a time.

Tell us about your Christmas season.
The holidays are our busiest and most meaningful time of year. This is also our first legit holiday season with staff and a lab space to make products. We create limited edition gift sets, host local markets, and hand pack every order from our Hudson studio. It’s a season where our community shows up in the strongest way, gifting items that are handmade, natural, and rooted in real craftsmanship. This year is especially exciting as we prepare to open our first flagship store in spring 2026 right in Hudson NY! 

Why are you making by hand or making in America?
Craft matters. Ingredient integrity matters. We make everything by hand because it allows us to stay deeply connected to the process from sourcing suet from local regenerative farms to slow rendering it to pouring each balm ourselves. Making in America and specifically in the Hudson Valley lets us support local agriculture, employ local mothers and makers, and maintain full transparency over every step. We also get to buy something that is often a waste product from local farms and make something beautiful with it. We also sell it back to them at wholesale so they can make money twince. Quality feels different when the hands behind it care.

What is your favorite thing about Christmas?
The feeling of slowness. The sense of togetherness. I love the ritual of giving something thoughtful and handmade, something that carries a story and feels like it came from someone’s home, not an amazon warehouse. It’s the one season where the world gives itself permission to pause and soften.

Why support small business, handmade, American made?
Because every purchase goes directly to a family, a farmer, a craftsperson, a dream. Small businesses are the heartbeat of local economies. Handmade products carry intention, traceability, and real soul. American made matters because it keeps skills, jobs, and craftsmanship alive in our communities rather than outsourcing them away.