Roxanne Quimby is a businesswoman and former co-founder of Burt’s Bees.
Roxanne Quimby is the daughter of an engineer and salesman. Although her family was business oriented, Quimby initially took a different path. She went to art school in San Francisco, where she was influenced by the “back to the land” ideas of Helen and Scott Nearing. In 1975, Roxanne and her boyfriend, George St. Clair, moved to Maine, bought a tract of land near Guilford, built a cabin and outhouse, and lived a rustic lifestyle.
Three years later, the couple had twins. St. Clair left the family later on after. Eventually, she met Burt Shavitz and in 1984 began selling candles made of his beeswax at local fairs. After achieving a $20,000 profit the first year, the business grew steadily. In 1991, it introduced its best received product, a lip balm. In 1993, Quimby bought Shavitz’s stake in the company. Quimby sold the company to Clorox in 2007.
After turning Burt’s Bees over to outside investors, Quimby used her new fortune to deepen her long running conservation advocacy. The most visible action was the purchase of over 120,000 acres of Maine forest, which Quimby then placed off-limits to hunters, loggers, and other users. She has since proposed a donation of 70,000 acres of her land towards a new Maine Woods National Park. An additional donation of 30,000 acres would be managed in the fashion of a state park and would allow activities such as hunting and snowmobiling. As of 2011, Quimby is a resident of Portland, ME, where she leads a number of philanthropic organizations in the area.
How Roxanne Quimby Made Her Money – Business
Estimated Net Worth: $350 million
Birthday: 1950
