User:Charles Hensley

Charles Hensley

Charles Hensley (born 12 October 1953) is an American industrialist best known for his Hensley brand of companies. Hensley's first venture into business came after he invented ZICAM, a nasal spray for the treatment of the common cold. Against the advice of his business associates, Hensley rejected the notion of taking a quick licensing deal for ZICAM and opted instead to maintain control of the product and brand by independently marketing the product. Hensley and his partners we able to convince a small nutritional chewing gum manufacturing company (Gumtech International) to take a major shift in their business model and form a joint venture company with them (Geltech, LLC). Within two years of the formation of Geltech, ZICAM was launch with and quickly went on to be one of the most successful over-the-counter nasal sprays in the United States.

In 2001, Hensley sold his stake in ZICAM and began to diversify his business ventures. He formed Hensley Group, Inc., a venture capital organization from which he controls a diverse group of corporations spanning biopharmaceuticals, cosmetics, entertainment, publishing, investing and real estate.

Hensley is particularly passionate about the Hensley Foundation, which is dedicated to the protection the earth's natural resources. Hensley has recently implemented project Sea Turtle by purchasing environmentally important islands in order to protect Sea Turtle egg laying sites as well as other critical habitats from destruction by developers.