Love is in the Air: Roam & Ramble

H ope Alexander is the owner of Roam & Ramble, a clean home fragrance and body care business. She officially started her business in 2022, but had been experimenting with clean scents and products long before that due to her own allergy to artificial fragrances. Alexander, who just celebrated 30 years working at Publix as her day job, wanted to create products she and her five daughters could freely use at home without causing a reaction, so she got to work and created her first scent, Lemon Patchouli. Roam & Ramble features soap, lotion, candles and a variety of other home and personal products in scents that remind Alexander (and her customers) of the nostalgia of growing up in Florida.

THE LAKELANDER
How did you get started in the soap and candle making industry? Is this something you always thought you’d be doing?

HOPE ALEXANDER
No, I actually always shied away from fragrances because I have an artificial fragrance allergy. I just started mixing fragrances that didn’t cause a reaction, and those seem to be earthy citrus fragrances. I wanted something all natural that I could wear while incorporating things that I loved about Florida, because at the time I was [living] in Georgia, and I was really missing the sunshine in Florida, the salty air, the orange groves…all those things. So I started trying to find ways to kind of get that nostalgia of home.

TL
On your website, you describe Roam & Ramble as your passion project. Why do you think others seem to love your products as much as you do?

HOPE
I think that every fragrance seems to speak to somebody in a different way. They are natural products that actually smell good and that’s not always the case. There’s a lot of times where you get a natural product and it just doesn’t smell like anything. The quality is amazing. That was one of the main things that was important to me. If I was going to get involved in this business, it would be the highest quality product I can make, but also within reason, so people can still afford it.

“My Coconut and Redwood [scent] is a straight up beach day. It reminds me of me being 14 and chasing waves and not having a care in the world.“

– Hope Alexander, owner of Roam & Ramble

TL
On your website, you describe Roam & Ramble as your passion project. Why do you think others seem to love your products as much as you do?

HOPE
I think that every fragrance seems to speak to somebody in a different way. They are natural products that actually smell good and that’s not always the case. There’s a lot of times where you get a natural product and it just doesn’t smell like anything. The quality is amazing. That was one of the main things that was important to me. If I was going to get involved in this business, it would be the highest quality product I can make, but also within reason, so people can still afford it.

TL
As you mentioned, you really try to embody the feeling of Florida in your products. So what does Florida smell like to you?

HOPE
I would say the very first thing that comes to mind is the salty breeze when you’re at the ocean. And also driving through the orange groves in March, smelling the orange blossoms. Lemon Patchouli reminds me of friends and being at festivals, but it also brings in being at the beach in Florida and having that earthy, citrusy fragrance. My Coconut and Redwood is a straight up beach day. It reminds me of me being 14 and chasing waves and not having a care in the world.

TL
The name of your company is inspired by the memories made while roaming and rambling through life. What is your favorite memory you have associated with Roam & Ramble?

HOPE
Well, I’m gonna talk about a recent memory. We actually just took a trip to Alaska and we were developing the newest fragrance, Toasted Vanilla and Campfire. And that was the perfect place for inspiration because we were literally in the wild having a bonfire and toasting marshmallows—just that experience of actually being able to be out and draw inspiration from being outdoors and roaming and rambling and traveling. That’s probably my favorite memory.

TL
What makes Roam & Ramble products different from other products and fragrances that people can buy?

HOPE
They’re clean and I think that the combination of the fragrances we use makes us stand apart from others because we do things that are different that other people might not put together. It’s a surprising mix. Oftentimes people go “Oh, what is this?” You know? And it’s always fun to see somebody discover my fragrance and go “this smells really good!”