As of Aug. 1, Chad Evans, left, becomes the president and chief operating officer of Aromatique of Heber Springs. Stephen Lawrence, right, has assumed the roles of vice-chairman and CEO.
Aromatique Inc. of Heber Springs announced Thursday that founder Patti Upton has stepped down from her roles as president and chief executive officer.
Chad Evans and Stephen Lawrence, two executives who have been with the decorative fragrance company for more than two decades, have been promoted to replace her.
Evans will be president and chief operating officer, and Lawrence will be vice chairman and chief executive officer.
In a news release, Upton expressed confidence in the company’s newly appointed leadership.
“These two officers share the same values that have built this company, and I feel confident they will do all in their power to see that Aromatique continues to be the leader in the decorative fragrance industry,” Upton said.
The Upton family will remain a stockholder in Aromatique.
The company said Evans joined Aromatique 30 years ago and has overseen manufacturing operations during most of his tenure. Lawrence has been with the company for 20 years, filling a number of positions in the materials management, quality control and human resources departments.
An Unusual Start
Upton started the multimillion-dollar enterprise in 1982, when she agreed to make something for a friend’s gift shop during a Christmas season open house. She had forgotten about the project until reminded two weeks before the event.
“I had no idea what I was going to do,” Upton told Arkansas Business in a 2010 interview.
She ended up snatching handfuls of pine cones, acorns, berries, sweet-gum balls and leaves and scenting the mixture with a home-brewed recipe of pharmacy oils.
Shoppers were so smitten with her effort, the first in a line of products was born, “Smell of Christmas,” and Upton found herself as the creative force behind a corporate venture. Her marketing approach: high quality at an affordable price.
“I’ve never looked at it as a business,” she said. “I’ve been told that’s why it’s so successful. It’s never been about the money.”
But profits did come, and the company’s cottage industry success story combined with Upton’s sparkling personality attracted a media buzz both domestic and international.
The success of the business landed Upton in some interesting places. In 1993, Upton was named to the board of directors at Southwestern Bell Corp., which later became AT&T Inc. She retired from the board in 2011.
It also allowed her to devote energies toward a variety of philanthropic efforts, supporting state and local charities that include Little Rock’s University of Arkansas for Medical Science and Heber Springs Relay for Life, which benefits the Arkansas Chapter of the American Cancer Society.
In 1993, Upton launched “The Natural State,” a fragrance line she created that has raised more than $1.7 million for the Nature Conservancy.
“We try to be as generous as we can, and we have a reputation for that,” she said. “We try to give something back. That’s very important to me.”
In 1997, Upton was inducted into The Society of Entrepreneurs in Memphis. Arkansas Business named her among its “25 Women Leaders” in 2009 and its “Women of Influence” in 2010.
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