A Note From Our Founder
I always knew exactly what I wanted to do.
While my friends searched for direction, I knew I was headed for art school. After four years studying under extraordinary mentors at Parsons School of Art and Design, my passion for design was solidified. From the beginning, I never wanted to be the face of anything—I wanted the work to speak. I wanted to help brands shine.
I’ve spent my career doing just that.
I had the privilege of launching baby and children’s lines for Ralph Lauren, working closely with him as a mentor whose hands touched every design and consumer-facing detail, always guided by strong values, compassion, and integrity. As CEO of a Tiffany & Co. subsidiary, I gained invaluable leadership experience—learning how to build exceptional teams, set a clear vision, and trust people to do their best work. At Pottery Barn Kids, where I headed design, I learned one of the most important lessons of my career: the greatest inspiration and innovation come from listening deeply to parents.
When I founded Burt’s Bees Baby, I was inspired by my mother’s watercolor drawings and a desire to build something truly from the ground up. My husband became our photographer. My children contributed to the design. We built with intention, creativity, and family at the center. That brand today is owned by The Clorox Company, but more importantly, it cemented my commitment to sustainability—at a time when many doubted it could scale in a meaningful way.
I later joined the team that spearheaded Amazon’s first private-label organic baby product, expanding my understanding of digital commerce, marketing, and the rapidly evolving role of technology and AI in how families discover and trust brands. When the CEO of The Honest Company asked me to build something similar, I launched Honest Baby Clothing in 2019. That period was marked by extraordinary challenges—from leadership transitions at Honest to a global pandemic that shut down retail overnight. Despite it all, we grew Honest Baby Clothing into the fastest-growing category within the Honest portfolio. When Honest’s new leadership team ultimately decided to exit the apparel space, it became clear that it was time to focus all my energy on my next chapter.
That chapter is Butterblu and the dream of Butterblu is rooted in my past.
I grew up surrounded by animals, immersed in the raw, natural beauty of Sweden—white birch forests, mirror-still lakes, giant ant hills, wild blueberries, the midnight sun. Nature wasn’t a backdrop; it was a teacher. It showed me that beauty without responsibility is empty. And that the world gives, generously, when we learn to protect it.
Along the way, I formed a personal ethos that guides everything I do: great teams matter, customers are the greatest source of innovation, and responsibility must sit at the heart of every decision. Butterblu is the culmination of everything I’ve learned over years as a designer, brand builder, and CEO—often behind the scenes, always accountable for how products are created, how teams are led, and how trust is earned.
At Butterblu, we believe every baby deserves the softest organic materials, sourced and made through the most ethical manufacturing practices. This time, we’re not working behind another brand—we’re standing fully behind our own. We innovate daily, not for meetings or moments, but out of genuine love for the craft and the people we serve.
We are a small, passionate team of designers, creators, and thinkers—spread across the country and united by a shared purpose: to make sustainability luxurious, to make luxury sustainable and to make both attainable.
Let’s be good to each other.
Let’s be good to our planet.
And let’s build a future worthy of all who call it home.
— Michelle
