Today we’d like to introduce you to Brienne Wasmer.
Hi Brienne, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Mache started in 2019 with a simple question: what are we actually surrounding ourselves with every day, and what is it doing to us?
My background is in design. I earned my Master’s in Interior Architecture from the University of Oregon, and I’ve always been interested in how spaces shape the way people feel, both physically and emotionally. But Mache became personal before it became a business. My father died of a brain tumor linked to environmental factors, and I live with an autoimmune disease that makes it difficult for my body to release toxins. Those two experiences changed how I looked at everything around me. I started paying close attention to the materials in my home and the products I used every day, and I kept finding that the “healthy” options weren’t very beautiful, and the beautiful options often weren’t very healthy.
Our first products came out of my own yoga practice. I wanted non-toxic, sustainable storage for my mat and gear, something made thoughtfully and made in the USA, and I couldn’t find what I was looking for. So I designed it. That first line became the foundation of Mache.
From there, the company grew in three directions. We still design and manufacture sustainable wellness storage and accessories, now sold in more than 30 countries. We offer wellness design and interior architecture services for homes and businesses, helping people create spaces that support their health. And we built The Wellness Onion, an educational wellness app, because so many people told us they wanted to make healthier choices but didn’t know where to begin. We also share free educational content through the blog on our site.
Mache is a family business at heart. My mom, Bette, is my business partner, and we run the company from Central Point, here in Southern Oregon. Working side by side has strengthened our bond in ways I never expected. We share the same goals, we push each other, and we genuinely love building this together. I’m so grateful to do this work with her.
Along the way, we were proud to be part of the IFW x Poker Power 2025 finalist program, which pushed us to think bigger about where Mache could go.
Everything we do comes back to our philosophy: Low Tox, High Vibe. We believe healthier spaces make for healthier people and a healthier planet, and that you shouldn’t have to choose between wellness and good design.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, it hasn’t always been smooth, and honestly, I think the bumps taught us more than the wins did.
One of our earliest challenges was growing too fast. When Mache first launched in 2019, the response was more than we anticipated, and we found ourselves scrambling to keep up. Demand was outpacing our systems, our production capacity and, frankly, our experience. It’s a good problem to have, but it’s still a problem. We learned quickly that growth without a solid foundation can be just as risky as no growth at all, and we had to slow down and build the structure that should have been there from the start.
Then, less than a year in, COVID hit. Our original customers were largely yoga studios, and almost overnight, studios were closing their doors. We had to rethink everything. But what we saw was that people weren’t giving up their practice, they were bringing it home. So we shifted our focus toward home studios and home gyms, helping people create dedicated wellness spaces in their own houses. It was a scary pivot at the time, but it ended up broadening who Mache serves and pushed us toward the wellness design side of the business we have today.
Another hard lesson was around hiring. Early on, we brought on people who were talented, but who weren’t cut out for the pace and uncertainty of a startup. In a small company, everyone wears many hats, and roles change constantly. Not everyone thrives in that environment, and that’s okay, but we learned to be much more intentional about looking for people with an entrepreneurial mindset, who are comfortable with ambiguity and genuinely excited about building something.
And on a personal level, running a company while managing an autoimmune disease has its own challenges. There are days my body sets the pace, not my to-do list. It’s taught me to build a business that’s sustainable for me, too, and to lean on my mom as a partner in a way I’m deeply grateful for.
Every one of those struggles shaped who we are now. They made us more resilient, more adaptable, and clearer about what Mache stands for.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Mache?
At its core, Mache is a wellness product and design company. We help people create healthier spaces, for themselves and for the planet, through sustainable, thoughtful design.
We do that in three ways. First, our products: sustainable wellness storage and accessories, designed with intention and manufactured here in the USA. What started as non-toxic yoga storage has grown into a collection that people use in home studios, gyms, wellness centers and everyday living spaces, and today Mache products are sold in more than 30 countries. We work with individual customers as well as businesses, and we take on custom and bulk projects for studios, gyms, hospitality and other wellness-focused spaces.
Second, our wellness design services. Drawing on my background in interior architecture, we help homeowners and businesses design spaces that actively support health, from the materials that go into a room to how it feels to spend time there. A space should do more than look good. It should help you feel good, breathe easier and live better.
Third, The Wellness Onion, our educational wellness app. We named it that because wellness has layers, and most people don’t know where to start peeling. The app breaks healthier living down into approachable steps, so people can make changes at their own pace without feeling overwhelmed. We also share free educational content on the blog at our website, because we believe knowledge about living with fewer toxins shouldn’t sit behind a paywall.
What sets us apart is that we don’t believe you should have to choose between wellness and beauty. So many non-toxic products feel like a compromise, and so many beautiful products come with hidden costs to your health or the environment. Mache exists in the space between, where good design and good health work together. That’s the heart of our philosophy: Low Tox, High Vibe.
We’re also rooted in lived experience. Mache wasn’t born from a market trend. It came from my family’s story, and that’s why we take what goes into our products and spaces so seriously.
Brand-wise, what I’m most proud of is that Mache has grown from a small Southern Oregon business into a brand people trust around the world, while staying true to how we started. We still manufacture in the USA, we’re still a mother-daughter team, and we still make decisions based on what’s right for people and the planet, not just what’s easiest.
What I most want your readers to know is that creating a healthier home doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing. Small changes add up. Whether that’s one thoughtfully made product, a room redesigned with wellness in mind, or a few simple swaps learned through The Wellness Onion, we’re here to help people take that next step.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I don’t think of myself as a reckless risk-taker, but I’ve come to believe that building anything meaningful requires risk. The question isn’t whether to take risks, it’s which ones are worth taking.
Starting Mache was the first big one. I had a design background and a deeply personal reason for caring about toxins in our everyday spaces, but launching a product company is a different thing entirely. There was no guarantee anyone else would care the way I did. Looking back, the bigger risk would have been not trying, because I would always have wondered.
The COVID pivot was probably our most stressful risk. Our main customers were yoga studios, and when they closed, we had to decide quickly whether to wait it out or change direction. Shifting toward home studios and gyms meant rethinking who we were talking to and how we reached them, with no clear sense of how long the disruption would last. It was uncomfortable, but it ended up opening doors we might never have walked through otherwise.
Choosing to manufacture in the USA has also been a risk in its own way. It would often be cheaper and easier to produce overseas, and in a competitive market, price matters. But making our products here aligns with our values around quality, transparency and sustainability, and it’s a choice we keep making even when it’s harder.
Expanding beyond products into wellness design services and The Wellness Onion app was another leap. Each one required new skills, new investment and a willingness to be a beginner again. Building an app in particular was well outside our comfort zone. But each arm came from listening to what people needed, and together they let us support people’s wellness in a much fuller way.
And going into business with my mom is its own kind of risk. Mixing family and business doesn’t always work. For us, it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve made, but it required trust, honesty and a willingness to work through hard conversations.
How I think about risk now comes down to a few things. I try to take risks that are rooted in our values, because if a decision aligns with what Mache stands for, even a failure teaches us something worth learning. I try to take calculated risks rather than blind ones, which is something we learned the hard way from growing too fast early on. And I’ve learned that playing it completely safe is a risk too. The world changes, customers change, and a business that never takes chances slowly becomes irrelevant.
Living with an autoimmune disease has also shaped how I see risk. It’s taught me that life is unpredictable no matter how carefully you plan, so you may as well spend your energy building something you believe in.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.heymache.com
- Instagram: @hey.mache
- Facebook: @hey.mache
- LinkedIn: briennemache
- Youtube: @heymache
