Member Stories
K'Essential Blends
Kerensa Ward is the founder of K’Essential Blends, a holistic wellness brand rooted in healing, self-care, and the power of nature. She began blending essential oils, herbs, and natural ingredients in her kitchen as a way to manage stress, anxiety, and fatigue while juggling work and life responsibilities. Over time, friends and family started noticing the positive effects and asked for their own blends. “What started as a personal practice became a purpose-driven business focused on promoting wellness through intentional, plant-based products,” says Kerensa.
Today, K’Essential Blends offers soothing body butters, calming oils, affirmational candles, self-care kits, and more—all handcrafted with care, consciousness, and a commitment to wellness for the whole being. “At K’Essential Blends, we don’t just sell wellness products, we create intentional self-care experiences rooted in emotional healing, cultural connection, and holistic well-being,” Kerensa says.
Being a Black business owner has come with challenges: “Many Black entrepreneurs, myself included, often have to build from the ground up with limited capital, no generational wealth, and fewer connections to investors or business networks that others may take for granted. But these challenges have also made me more resourceful, resilient, and intentional. They’ve pushed me to be creative, to build community-centered solutions, and to lead with purpose. I’ve learned how to advocate for myself, collaborate with other Black-owned brands, and turn barriers into building blocks.”
Her vision for the future is to cultivate K’Essential Blends as a source of healing, empowerment, and connection within her community. “Through my work, I hope to normalize rest, self-love, and emotional care as essential, not luxury,” she says. Kerensa wants K’Essential Blends to leave a legacy of love that starts with community and ripples outward.
This Black Business Month, we celebrate Kerensa and K’Essential Blends for creating spaces of healing, empowerment, and connection across NYC.