Profile: TITLE Barlean’s Organic Oils
CEO John Puckett (left) and the owner/ founder of Barlean’s Organic Oils, Bruce Barlean, take a break from a company training workshop at Barlean’s home in rural Ferndale.
Turning Dreams into Reality How Family Values resulted in a $65 million business that brings health to the world By Tara Nelson
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t the end of a long, bucolic road outside of Ferndale to the southwest, on the corner of Slater Road and Lake Terrell Road, lies one of Whatcom County’s sleepy-appearing giants. It deals in oils. No, we’re not talking crude oil refineries. This is Barlean’s Organic Oils, and from the outside it can be easily mistaken for a series of brightly-colored storage warehouses with little activity, easily missed in otherwise drive-through land. Walking through their doors, it becomes clear quickly that this is a family-owned business. You’ll first be greeted by a woman affectionately nicknamed “Sug” (pronounced shug, as in sugar). She is owner Bruce Barlean’s aunt. The next thing you’ll notice is a hand-made bottling machine. It was crafted by Bruce’s dad, Dave Barlean, a skilled machinist and former fisherman who helped his son fund the company’s start-up 25 years ago. The machine, 58 | BUSINESSPULSE.COM