Karina Birch stands in Rocky’s production facility wearing a white lab coat and a hairnet, watching as a team member uses a large hydraulic press to shape vanilla-coconut bath bombs into spheres.
More than two decades ago, those bath bombs were pressed by hand. Back then, Rocky was Rocky Mountain Soap Company, and just a small Canmore storefront that Birch and her husband, Cam Baty, purchased in 2000. Now, they’re co-owners of what has become a major Canadian company with 300 employees.
“It blows my mind,” says Birch, reflecting on how far the company’s processes have come.
The bath bombs are just one of the many products created, tested and developed in the impressive facility, which is one of three buildings (two production facilities and one warehouse, totalling 36,000 square feet) nestled among the mountains in peaceful Canmore.
It’s an unassuming home base for Rocky, a natural skincare company that produces soap bars, moisturizers and face serums carried by more than 90 retailers and in 15 Rocky storefronts across Canada. In Calgary and the surrounding mountain areas, it’s not uncommon to find Rocky’s shampoos and conditioners in stylish hotel showers, or a bottle of its hand soap in a local business’s washroom. The company also has partnerships with Canadian brands like WestJet, which stocks Rocky’s Lemongrass Foaming Wash in its airplane washrooms, and bookstore chain Indigo.
Yet, Rocky’s small-town roots feel decidedly right for the brand, which has maintained its dedication to natural ingredients and giving back, even as it’s grown into a household name. All Rocky products are made with natural ingredients — a feat that wasn’t so easy when it first started. Birch says that “natural” was not something people were asking for.
“The first 10 years took a lot of relentlessness and some perseverance, because, on the formulation side, the tool kit was very, very small,” says Birch. “It’s much bigger now in terms of natural ingredients that we can use, but, in the early days, we were working through challenges that nobody had ever done before. Trying to figure out how to create an emulsification system using only natural ingredients, trying to figure out a preservative system using only natural ingredients. Now this is commonplace, but, in the early 2000s, this was pioneering the industry. And we were one of the few brands doing that.”
Using local ingredients like Alberta beeswax and flaxseed whenever possible, Rocky focuses on natural ingredients to create products that are connected to the earth, scientifically effective and safe to use.
Giving back is also a priority Rocky pursues through initiatives like its Community Bar, a series of limited-edition soap bars — $1 from each one sold goes to Canadian charities and non-profits.
Similarly, in 2009, Rocky launched The Women’s Soap Run, an annual Canmore walk/run in support of the Canadian charity Girls Forward Foundation (formerly Fast and Female). The race returns this year from May 22 to 24.
The COVID-19 pandemic was also a significant time in Rocky’s journey.
In March 2020, the team fast-forwarded a normally years-long development and production process to just a few weeks to produce a Health Canada-approved hand sanitizer using a recipe from its prototype library. It sold out within minutes of launching. Rocky also donated soap and hand sanitizer to local medical organizations and women’s shelters.
Now, Rocky is on the cusp of a new era. Last year marked the company’s 25th anniversary and ushered in a significant rebrand, including more-sustainable packaging and a new visual identity with earthy colours. It also cut down its name to just Rocky.
“We’re doing it the way we want,” Birch says, pointing to the company’s steady growth.
“We’re not motivated to grow faster than the business can support, and we’re happy with that. Maybe we won’t see Rocky’s peak in our lifetime. Maybe it will be the next generation. So we’re kind of settled into building an enduring, sustainable business, not necessarily about conquering the world by Tuesday.”
The pair’s roles at Rocky have also shifted in the past couple of years — Baty and Birch have both stepped away from day-to-day operations, but remain co-owners and are actively involved in the company.
Baty says continuing the company’s growth, maintaining Rocky’s relationship with its customers and their team’s continued happiness are important for Rocky’s future.
“If we can achieve those three things, then I think the company’s a success.”