UNDERARM stains on white T-shirts are a common frustration, and for Tanya Powell Edwards it was the one that sparked a business. That everyday annoyance led to the creation of Tayna’s Body Care, a Jamaican skincare line born from a late-night search for solutions and a homemade deodorant recipe.

“Actually, the business started without me looking at business,” said founder Tanya Powell-Edwards in an interview with the Jamaica Observer. “At the time, I did not want to do a business.; [it] wasn’t a desire of mine. [I] had a lot of fear concerning the kind of responsibilities that come with doing business.”

Tayna’s Body Care is a Jamaican skincare line from natural Jamaican ingredients. (Naphtali Junior)

Powell Edwards shows the most popular soap product, the tumeric face soap (Naphtali Junior)

Tanya Powell Edwards is the founder of Tayna’s Body Care. (Naphtali Junior)

The “For Him” body care product (Naphtali Junior)

The idea emerged in 2015, while Powell Edwards was working as a trainer and frequently dealing with unsightly shirt stains during sessions. She recalled how the discomfort pushed her to search for answers, and she began to research how to get rid of unarm stains. While researching solutions a pop-up ad unexpectedly appeared with the suggestion to “make your own deodorant”. At first, Powell Edwards dismissed the idea. Growing up believing she had an underarm odour issue, she had always relied on the strongest deodorants and assumed making her own would be difficult.

“When I looked at the ingredients, it looked very basic — I had almost everything in the kitchen,” she said as she recalled her surprise. “So, I got up at 4 am, mixed it up, and I spent the rest of the day with my arm in the face of my family members saying, ‘Smell this, smell that. By the end of the day, I was pleasantly surprised.”

The product then became a staple product in her hygiene routine as well as her family’s. Wanting it to stand apart from typical options, she deliberately avoided calling it a deodorant, instead branding it as “Tayna’s Body Care Underarm Cream”. The creation also stemmed from a personal health scare. After undergoing surgery for what she described as a cancer concern, Powell Edwards became more conscious of the products she used on her skin. She noted that aluminium, a common ingredient in traditional deodorants, has been flagged in some controversial research done on women with breast cancer, and traces of aluminium were found in the tissue of those women.

“We know now that what we place on our skin, some of it gets absorbed into the skin, so we want to pay particular attention to the things that we’re putting on our bodies,” she shared.

As the product became part of her daily routine colleagues began noticing the fragrance and were drawn to it. Requests to purchase the cream soon followed. Concerned about her lack of formal training and wanting to ensure safety, she began searching for professional guidance. That search led her to the Scientific Research Council, where she enrolled in a soap-making course. It was her first step into formal product development.

“That just changed everything.” She told the Sunday Finance.

Tayna’s Body Care then expanded its product line beyond underarm creams to include a wide range of face and body products to tackle various skin issues with its soaps, oils, facial scrubs, serums, moisturisers, repellents, and room mists. Among the top sellers is the ginger lemongrass body oil. The brand has also made deliberate efforts to cater to men, noting a growing interest in skincare among male customers. Popular choices include the turmeric, activated charcoal, and bentonite clay soaps, as well as a “For Him” body wash and beard oil designed specifically for male grooming needs. Returning to Earth Elements, where she had long been a customer, Tayna’s Body Care landed a shelf space within the store.

“That’s how the business really started,” she shared.

What began as a small batch order quickly scaled. Weekly requests turned into monthly supply planning, with Tanya moving from producing 60 soaps a month to over 100 and, at times, more than 200 as the partnership deepened and demand surged. About a year and a half ago Tayna’s Body Care transitioned from home-based production to a dedicated manufacturing facility in Porus, Manchester, marking a major step in its long-term plan to eventually open a shopfront. The business model began shifting around late 2016 to 2017, moving beyond personal use to retail distribution. Today, the products are available islandwide in stores such as Proactive Lifestyle locations, Tate’s Pharmacy in May Pen, Three Angels Pharmacy in Manchester, Victoria Pharmacy in downtown Kingston, Leia’s Organics, and Winchester Pharmacy.

Tayna’s Body Care currently serves individual customers who order directly through its website at
taynasbodycare.org. Orders are shipped locally and internationally using DHL or Jamaica Post, with efforts underway to expand its export capabilities.

“I want Tayna’s Body Care to become the brand that Jamaicans depend on for their skincare,” Powell Edwards shared.

She noted that part of the expansion includes further development of the Manchester-based facility and plans for a dedicated shopfront.