About Lila — Founder of Central Coast Lavender
My story with lavender didn’t begin in a field.
It began in a hospital room.
Before lavender became my life’s work—before the copper still, before the farm, before the festival, before the formulations—I lived many different lives. I spent the early part of my youth in Tokyo, celebrating my eighteenth birthday overseas while working in modeling and acting. When I returned home, I built a fifteen-year career as a licensed cosmetologist, working hands-on with skin, scent, beauty, and the emotional side of personal care.
When I became pregnant later in life—something I never expected would be possible—I knew I needed a different path. I returned to school and shifted into the medical field as a certified medical assistant, studying nursing and working in fertility care. Supporting women through infertility, pregnancy, and hope became one of the most meaningful experiences of my life.
I didn’t know it then, but everything in my background—beauty, wellness, medicine, and women’s health—was preparing me for the moment everything changed.
In 2005, I became gravely ill.
What was first diagnosed as Multiple Sclerosis left me bedridden, unable to function, and searching desperately for relief from severe neurological pain, nausea, and inflammation. Steroids and traditional treatments left me sicker, not better. So I reached back into the only thing that had ever made sense to my body: plant medicine.
Lavender found me again.
But when I began searching for pure Lavandula angustifolia essential oil, I discovered a harsh truth—much of what was being sold as lavender wasn’t lavender at all. That realization sparked something fierce in me. Even while bedridden, I studied distillation, aromatherapy, herbal medicine, and the chemistry of essential oils. That research turned into determination. And that determination became purpose.
When I was finally able to stand again, I planted my first small patch of lavender in Paso Robles. By the next year, in 2007, I planted nearly two acres. My father, Don Avery—my greatest supporter—bought me my first copper still. With that still, the farm, and my recovery, the next chapter of my life began.
🌿 HERITAGE — WHERE MY ROOTS RUN
My ancestors—the Averys, Tullocks, Cooks, Browns, and Exlines—homesteaded San Luis Obispo County in the mid-1800s. Their names still rest on local roads, reservoirs, and ranchlands, including the very soil where Central Coast Lavender now grows.
One of my ancestors, William A. Cook, became proprietor of the original Pizmo Hotel around 1893—a landmark of early California hospitality and entrepreneurship. My grandfather served as the blacksmith of Templeton for more than seventy years, shaping iron and community with his hands. My family played a vital role in the wartime construction of Camp Roberts in the 1940s, where my father’s family lived on base while my grandfather worked as Post Engineer.
Service. Craft. Resilience. Entrepreneurship.
These are not just traits I inherited—they are the bones of my story.
I was raised to believe you can build something from nothing, that you honor your roots by creating something meaningful, and that you bring your work to the people.
Today, that legacy lives on through the lavender industry itself. I founded the Central Coast Lavender Growers Association, helped launch the Lavender Festival—which continues today in its 18th year—and have mentored more than three dozen lavender farms across the United States. The heart of this industry lives on through every farm I’ve guided, every product I formulate, and every student I teach.
🌿 THE SETBACK THAT BECAME MY PURPOSE
In 2011, I fell ill again—this time with seizures, paralysis, and myoclonic dystonia. I was bedridden for nearly eight months. Eventually, UCLA specialists discovered it wasn’t MS at all, but a rare genetic neurological disorder.
And still, lavender remained one of the only things that eased my symptoms, calmed my nervous system, and helped me reclaim mobility and hope.
As my health slowly returned, I deepened my formal education in aromatherapy and botanical formulation. My final project—what would become my Healing Butter and Instant Relief duo—was designed to support my own nerve pain, inflammation, and muscle tension. The formulation earned me an A+, but more importantly, it worked. It worked so well that for nearly two decades, it has remained one of my most beloved creations.
In the years that followed, I helped pioneer the modern lavender industry in California and throughout the United States, serving as a Founding Vice President of the US Lavender Growers Association (USLGA) and supporting farmers far beyond my own fields.
Lavender didn’t just save my life.
It shaped my life.
It gave me a calling.
🌿 MY PURPOSE TODAY
Today, I continue the work that began in a hospital bed so many years ago.
I craft small-batch artisan remedies—steam-distilled essential oils, therapeutic butters, balms, and aromatherapy blends—each rooted in botanical science and created with the same integrity that guided my ancestors.
Today, I share nearly two decades of lavender growing, distillation, formulation, and business experience through Lavender Academy™, consulting, and mentorship. I work with growers, makers, and entrepreneurs across the country, helping them build knowledge, confidence, and opportunity through lavender.
Central Coast Lavender is not just a business.
It is heritage.
It is healing.
It is my life’s purpose—and my offering to you.
Thank you for being part of this story.
From my hands and my heart,
Lila Avery-Fuson