VaLanDria Smith-Lash speaks at the ribbon cutting for her business, Coarse Culture (photo by Jeff Sabo).

VaLanDria Smith-Lash ’23 wiped away a tear before Friday’s ribbon cutting for Coarse Culture, her skin care company based at the Lee and Rosemary Fisher Innovation College@Elm in Oxford.

“She has been an inspiration,” said Chris Lawson, executive director of Miami University’s Office of Advancing Strategy, Partnerships, Institutional Relations, and Economy (ASPIRE).

When Lawson first learned about the Miami student with a skin care business last year, he thought he could be helpful by giving her advice. 

“She didn’t really need a whole lot of advice. She was well on her way. But what I found out about VaLanDria was she wasn’t just a student. She was an entrepreneur, she was a leader, she was a pioneer. She made a community impact,” Lawson said at the event attended by Oxford, Miami, and other community members as well as students, friends, and family.

Smith-Lash, who majored in Speech Pathology and Audiology at Miami, said she was thankful to celebrate this new milestone. “I’m at a loss for words,” she said.

Smith-Lash shows how her skin care products are made in the business' new space in the Lee and Rosemary Fisher Innovation College@Elm (photo by Scott Kissell).

"Inspiring them to fulfill their dreams"

At 14, Smith-Lash started selling Coarse Culture products. Today, she sells her products on Amazon. The Chicago native was in middle school when her mother was diagnosed with lupus, an autoimmune disease.

The disorder and medication wreaked havoc on her hair, skin, and confidence. She wanted to help her find relief, so she did research and consulted with doctors about things that would be beneficial without producing further side effects. “After much trial and error, a family recipe was born,” she said in an earlier interview.

A screen at the ribbon cutting highlighted some of her successes: More than 5,000 jars have been sold online or in six brick-and-mortar shops, and products have been shipped to 41 states or at 46 pop-ups tables.

Sixteen students are part of what Smith-Lash refers to as the Culture Cohort — a team of Miami students who work in production, marketing, sales, and operations.

Her mother, LaVese Smith — herself an entrepreneur who opened her first hair salon at 19 in the Chicago area and has guided VaLanDria on her entrepreneurial journey — attended the ribbon cutting.

She is impressed by the student team working with her daughter.

“She’s actually inspiring them to fulfill their dreams if they want to do something,” LaVese Smith said. “So, guess what? Everybody joins the culture.”

After last year’s graduation, Smith-Lash has taken a gap year to devote her undivided attention to her business.

Starting the business raised her “awareness of skin sensitivities of all kinds and the need for products without chemicals and fillers that can make skin issues worse although they make claims otherwise,” she said. “Our products have always been plant-based, vegan, and pure.”

Coarse Culture is one of the first tenants of Miami’s Lee and Rosemary Fisher Innovation College@Elm at 20 S. Elm St. It is a unique public-private investment focused on developing the talent and entrepreneurs necessary to advance Oxford, Butler County, and the region’s workforce.