WHEN fire destroyed almost everything she had built, Christal-Ann Thompson Jones, founder and chief executive officer of Honey Vera — a company that makes natural, chemical-free hair and skin-care products — was forced to start again.

Thompson Jones lost her factory and equipment in a blaze on New Year’s Day 2023, leading to a two-year rebuilding journey and a rethink of how she wanted the business to grow.

Speaking with the Jamaica Observer on the trade room floor at the Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX) 2026 at Moon Palace Jamaica in Ocho Rios, St Ann, on Tuesday, Thompson Jones reflected on the setback and the lessons it taught her as she showcased Honey Vera’s growing range of Jamaican hair and skin care products.

The fire came after years of work on a business she had started while studying at Northern Caribbean University. At the time, Thompson Jones was also pursuing other interests, including painting and baking, while working as a student assistant in the university’s alumni department.

She said it was her supervisor who encouraged her to focus on one venture, and Honey Vera eventually became that business.

Eight years into the journey, the business she had painstakingly built faced its greatest test with one devastating phone call.

“The first thing you hear, 4:30 in the morning, January 1 [is] a phone call, ‘The business is on fire,’ and it was devastating, as you can imagine,” she expressed.

Thompson Jones said the fire left the business without a factory and destroyed its equipment, forcing her to start over.

The road back was difficult. The space she eventually had to use was unfinished, with a mud floor and no windows or doors, but she said the company had little choice but to move in and try to resume operations.

Production was delayed, stores were left waiting for supplies and the disruption affected her livelihood.

“We didn’t even have a building, because everything was gone. Our equipment was gone. When I looked inside, I saw the containers melted, and I saw all the things that we had worked so hard to build just in flames, in smoke, in ashes melting away [and] to build back from that, we basically started from scratch,” she explained.

And while she was trying to rebuild the company, Thompson Jones was also dealing with the death of her father, whom she described as a major source of encouragement. She said she had been caring for him and that his belief in her and her various ventures had meant a great deal to her.

Thompson Jones said it took about two years for Honey Vera to return to where it had been.

She said the business eventually emerged in a stronger position, turning what had been a devastating period into an opportunity to rebuild differently.

“It’s like the story of Job. When Job lost everything, and then God blessed him three times, four times more. That’s what we’re experiencing and I’m so happy for it. Because the tears turned to joy. And to know how we got back, it was God who brought us back,” she said.

The fire was not the first time Thompson Jones had been forced to change direction.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, she said Honey Vera initially faced uncertainty as consumers changed their spending habits. Rather than wait for conditions to improve, she looked for another product the company could produce.

Honey Vera approached the Bureau of Standards and became certified to make hand sanitiser, using its experience producing hair gels to help with the transition.

Thompson Jones said the move brought orders from businesses across Jamaica, including some large companies.

“I remember…we were at the factory, and we were there doing sanitisers. From the day, right back to the morning. We didn’t even go home at all. We were there just producing. The machines went hot, producing sanitisers, and that’s how we pivoted through that part of it,” she said.

The experience reinforced for her the importance of being able to change when circumstances demand it.

“The one big lesson I have learned is to add value to what you have… Be able to pivot into something else, because you never know what can happen,” she said.

Thompson Jones said that lesson now informs her plans for Honey Vera, including exploring opportunities outside the existing business and creating different avenues for income.

She also said digital sales became an important lifeline during COVID-19 and the period surrounding the fire, with the company selling products online and to customers overseas.

Today, Honey Vera is approaching its 10th year, with the company focused on hair and skin-care products made using Jamaican botanicals, butters and oils.

At JAPEX, Thompson Jones displayed products including hair treatments, moisturisers, hair gels, and soaps, with ingredients such as Jamaican turmeric, bamboo charcoal, castor oil, aloe vera, cerasee, rosemary, and various butters forming part of the range.

The company has also developed products for particular hair and skin concerns, including eczema, dry scalp, dry hair, and brittle hair. Its range includes shampoos, conditioners, body wash, face wash, eczema oils and creams, as well as products designed to moisturise and define curls.

Among the products Thompson Jones highlighted was the VeraGrow Scalp Tonic, which she said has been a top product for more than 10 years, as well as the newer Chebe, Argan Oil & Hibiscus Hair Moisturizer.

For Thompson Jones, the Jamaican identity of the brand is deliberate.

“What we have done is basically to honour our Jamaican-ness by infusing our products with Jamaican ingredients.”

She said JAPEX provided an opportunity not only to showcase the products but also to hear directly from people about the brand and where it could improve.

“We are grateful to be here today at JAPEX. And grateful for all the different persons that have come and shown their interest in our products. And tell us what we are doing right or if we need to fix something. But we are happy that most things are right. We are doing something good,” declared Thompson Jones.