Robin Barr, born in 1951 and raised in southern California, was plagued from childhood with painful cold sores 3-5 times a year.  Cold sores, also known as fever blisters, are unsightly and embarrassing.

Cold sore lesions typically occur on the lip or nose area, but can erupt elsewhere as well.  They are caused by the herpes simplex 1 virus, which lies dormant until sun, stress, fatigue or irritation in the mouth area, such as a dental procedure or a nick while shaving, triggers an outbreak.

At times, the viral infection may cause fever or flu symptoms, but for most people, the first symptom of a cold sore is a ‘tingling’ or numb sensation on or around the lips where a pimple size bump quickly develops into a larger, painful swelling within minutes to hours later.  Usually by day three, tiny clusters of blisters form which eventually burst, exposing the open lesions, which, days later, scab until the entire infection has run its course within 10-14 days.

It’s not unusual for sufferers to call in sick at work, cancel events, or re-arrange their schedule to ‘hide out’ as much as possible until it heals.  It’s not pretty, and can be devastating if it happens to occur on your wedding day, first date, job interview, public appearance, or other important event.

In the early 1990’s, Robin had been working in a non-clinical department of a major teaching medical center in Los Angeles.   At that time, medical centers and hospitals across the United States were going through difficult times due to major Medicare reimbursement changes for hospital services.  There were massive hospital layoffs, and while employees were concerned for their jobs, they acquired additional job responsibilities due to those who had been layed off.

For Robin, the stress was triggering cold sore infections.   On a couple of occasions, due to a fever, overwhelming fatigue, and feeling flu-ish, she called in sick only to find by the end of the day, all flu symptoms were gone, but a painful swollen bump had erupted on her lip. 

In a stressful work environment, she was concerned about its affect triggering these viral infections, and the perception of excessive sick days.

Robin researched what herbs and healing methods might diminish or shorten cold sore infections.   With no science background, yet resourceful and tenacious, she found clinical studies from Germany indicating certain herbs held promise in the early treatment of herpes simplex infections.  The herbs were easily obtainable, and Robin created a topical concoction in her kitchen to have ready for the next occurrence.  

When she next felt the early warning symptom, without much optimism, she applied the homemade remedy, and waited to assess the results.  No eruption occurred.    Robin thought she had mistakenly interpreted what she thought was a cold sore symptom,  however, each subsequent episode produced the same result. 

Over time, on a couple of occasions, she neglected to apply the remedy soon enough, and the cold sore started to develop.   She discovered applying the remedy a few times a day significantly reduced the severity and duration to 4-7 days instead of two weeks.

In 1994, she was 43, and after fourteen years working at the medical center from where she always assumed she would retire, Robin was laid off.   A very close and dear friend, Peter West, had died a few weeks prior, leaving her a moderate sum of money.   Unable to find a job close to the salary she had worked up to at the medical center, she made the decision to use the money from Peter and the severance pay from the medical center to market her herbal home remedy to the natural food industry . 

With no experience or knowledge about manufacturing or starting a business, certain events came together to start things rolling.    For one, shortly after she left the medical center, she was at home sitting at her desk. 

The phone rang, and a woman was on the line who had dialed the wrong number, and for some reason, they started to chat.  The caller was a member of a trade organization comprised of small business owners in the cosmetics industry.  They spoke for 45 minutes and then invited Robin to be a guest at that night's meeting which was being held only a short distance from Robin’s home.  At first reluctant, the invitation was accepted.

There she met the owner of a contract lab in southern California who accepted smaller minimum orders than most other labs, and with whom she still works with to this day.  The lab's product development staff took her "recipe", and keeping the core ingredients intact, improved the taste, and assured compliance with the FDA monograph for cold sores. The lab also provided her with a list of suppliers she might need for packaging, labels, product displays, and bottles.

A product name had not yet been chosen, and Robin wanted it in some way to memorialize Peter.  It seems anyone who passes away is described as “special”, however, in regard to Peter, it would be an understatement.  He was so very funny, and quite extraordinary.  He thought so, too, and at one time, printed business cards that simply read “Peter West, Extraordinaire.”

His advice was somehow always correct and reliable, loved summertime and baseball games. He held a deep belief in self-responsibility, was patriotic, ingenious, creative, magical, and giving.   On one of Robin’s birthdays, he handed her a book entitled “Attracting Wealth”.  Upon opening it, she found Peter had placed a $100 bill at the beginning of each chapter.   Cash aside, he had an endless creative, meaningful way of doing things.

Peter collected pewter wizards because of his uncanny way of making things happen.  And there it was, the solution how to memorialize Peter - choosing a wizard as the product icon, this decided upon even before a product name had been selected.  Shortly after that, at a small dinner party, a friend jokingly threw out the name 'Cold Sores Begone!'  It clicked.  Now the product had a name.

When the first commercially produced product was available, she took it to a few neighborhood health food stores, who agreed to try it on consignment.  Nervous that no one would buy, she drove to each of these stores daily for weeks, counting how many bottles remained, and after a moderate amount of time, all bottles had been sold.   It was a momentous day when the largest of those health food stores, Erewhon in Los Angeles, made a permanent shelf tag for the item and changed the terms from consignment to Net 30 days.

Eventually, Robin recognized the need to have her product available through a trade distributor that served the natural food industry.  Most health food stores prefer to purchase from distributors rather than from the manufacturer. Through a distributor, stores receive quantity discounts, the ability to place orders electronically, which is more efficient and cost saving to minimize the number of suppliers they must pay directly.

Robin made a presentation by mail to a major health food distributor on the east coast, and after subsequent follow up calls and letters over the following ten months, had not received a response. One day the buyer felt a cold sore coming on. There on her file cabinet collecting dust was a bottle of Cold Sores Begone®, a sample Robin had submitted almost one year earlier. The buyer applied it, and was so thrilled with the results, she approved Cold Sores Begone®, and placed their first order. With this particular distributor now a customer, it opened doors, and became easier to obtain product approval from other major distributors.

Store buyers were asking Robin about a remedy for canker sores because many customers were asking for it.  Robin was also a canker sore sufferer, and had noticed a pattern of when stress and fatigue, or having dental work occurred, a canker sore often developed.

She learned many canker sore sufferers, though not all, experienced the same triggers prior to an outbreak.   Robin did her research, and went to work hoping to develop an effective, yet non-toxic formulation.  In 2001, Canker Sores Begone® was launched.   The remedy contained herbs well known for their antibacterial and antiviral properties specifically for oral ulcerations.

Since then, Robin has received numerous emails, phone calls and letters thanking her for Canker Sores Begone®.   Surprisingly, this feedback also came from an unexpected population – those suffering from oral ulcerations due to chemotherapy and radiation treatments.

Like most people, Robin’s life has been touched more than once by cancer affecting a very close friend or family member, and is acutely sensitive to the pain of cancer sufferers.    That, in the process of finding a way to make a living for herself, she produced a product that helps provide relief of any kind has been a particular source of satisfaction.

One day, the alternative health editor at PREVENTION Magazine, a cold sore sufferer, had used Cold Sores Begone®, was happy with the result, and advised she would be writing an article about her experience in an upcoming issue. This website was initially created to provide their readers with store location information, and the ability to order online or by phone.

Today, still a small company, and without the advertising budget of larger companies, Cold Sores Begone® and Canker Sores Begone® has now sold in the hundreds of thousands of bottles due to word of mouth, website exposure, store placement, and magazine product articles and reviews.        

She finds it immensely fulfilling to hear from customers that Cold Sores Begone® and Canker Sores Begone® have improved the quality of their lives.  She uses the products herself and fully understands.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.