Sisters Jaza Shaikh and Sana Shaikh Shake up a Unique Spin on a Family Business
Sweet and salty.
For South Bay natives Jaza Shaikh and Sana Shaikh, starting a business centered around salt was a natural progression. Born and raised in Palos Verdes, the sisters feel a deep connection to Southern California’s outdoor lifestyle. “We’ve always been drawn to the natural world, especially the ocean,” Jaza explains.
At a young age, the pair began working summers in their family’s Carson-based business, which now sells over 1 million pounds of salt monthly for use in well-known household and commercial products. Jaza and Sana learned the science of selecting the best raw ingredients to make an effective product. Soon, they started selling wholesale specialty salts in bulk under the brand Los Angeles Salt Company.
Two years later they rebranded the business to LA SALT CO, including direct-to-consumer and private-label product lines in the beauty and wellness space. They sell bath salts, bath bombs and salt pouches. As their customers’ interest in their mineral-rich products grew, so did the vision and scope of their business.
“Creating LA SALT CO was a way to combine our love for wellness with our knowledge of the salt industry,” Sana says. “It was our way of bringing the consumer a sense of luxury and a spa-like experience at home.”
Salt’s unique properties in skin care remain somewhat underappreciated. With their products, Jaza and Sana capitalized on an opportunity to highlight the benefits of salt’s mineral content, which is exceptional for detoxifying and rejuvenating the skin.
“Salt baths are known for soothing sore muscles and joints and have even been found to alleviate chronic skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis,” shares Jaza.
The ocean inspires their brand inside and out, from the frosted glass bottles to salt soaks resembling sea glass. With names such as Joy, Balance and Breeze, their offerings reflect a desire to create harmony with nature and the body.
“We’ve always been drawn to the natural world, especially the ocean.”
Working together as sisters has its advantages. Growing up in the family business alongside their parents and younger brother, Sana and Jaza learned to balance different roles and leverage each other’s strengths early on.
One sister focuses on creativity—including branding, product development and the company’s overall vision—while the other excels at operations, ensuring product quality and smooth business functions. Together they handle everything in-house—from formulation to packaging—and maintain complete control over ingredient sourcing, creative details and product quality.
The pair visit each manufacturer to ensure the raw ingredients are pure, sustainably harvested and ethically sourced. This direct relationship ensures that their products are made with the best possible ingredients and crafted to the highest standards—benefitting their customers, the environment and local communities. They are proud to be Leaping Bunny-certified, an international cruelty-free designation.
The global reach of their business venture has tangible ripple effects of goodwill, including business partners who invest locally and the workers involved in the production process. On a visit to their supplier of Himalayan salt in Pakistan, they were pleased to see that the local business had built a hospital, health care center and school and served meals to the workers during the workday.
A milestone for the brand and business occurred with a collaboration alongside the prestigious Ron Herman in Japan. The partnership created a custom line, LA SALT CO x Ron Herman, focusing on their Zen salt soaks.
The celebrity exposure from the partnership product launch in Japan expanded their reach internationally and solidified their reputation for quality and innovation. They also have unique private label collaborations with major box brands like TJ Maxx and Marshalls, and their own line is sold at luxury hotels.
Balancing creativity with business is a juggling act the sisters have come to enjoy. Having clear roles helps keep the company running smoothly while allowing space for new ideas. Jaza and Sana stay innovative by exploring new trends, performing extensive research, listening to customer feedback, spending time in the lab and rigorously testing new products.
“Being hands-on in the lab keeps us connected to our products, ensuring every formula is something we’re proud of,” says Sana.
