In Creative Little Soul’s latest podcast episode, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Julie Mathers. Julie is the founder of Flora & Fauna, an online retailer filled with eco-friendly, vegan, cruelty-free and sustainable products. More than just a business, Julie describes Flora & Fauna as a platform for purpose. She has been leading by example when it comes to the creation of a kinder, healthier and more responsible approach to business and life.
Julie joined us to discuss her commitment to environmental sustainability, and shared some of her strategies for running a successful eco-friendly business in an increasingly competitive and saturated market.
How to maintain momentum when starting a business
Platforms such as Shopify have made it easier for people to sell and distribute goods online. Running a successful e- commerce business however, isn’t as easy as creating a website. We asked Julie how start up businesses can maintain growth after gaining initial momentum, to ensure they don’t burn out and die a premature death.
“Part of the excitement of developing a business is coming up with a name and logo, and posting on social media. But it’s all meaningless if you can’t make sales. That’s the challenge. We see it a lot with brands and retailers, who get excited at the start but they can’t keep going and the reality is, to start a business takes a lot of hard work. From my perspective, we haven’t had a day off in 6 years. We work every single day and we’ve made huge sacrifices. I was going into surgery to have my baby when our website went down. They were putting the epidural in, I was talking to Tom, my husband through the door saying, “talk to the developers!” When he was allowed into the ward, the first thing I said to him was “is the website up?” It takes a relentless dedication and that shouldn’t be underestimated.”
“We see many people launching websites because it’s an easy route to sell. But unless you can market your website, you can’t get traffic. We’ve had to invest a significant amount of money into our website. When we make a profit, it goes straight back into the business for growth. We do not have large salaries, but I do have other things and I love what I do.”
Saturation in the realm of eco-friendly products
According to Julie, overlooking market research is one of the fatal errors made by budding business owners. You may have a brilliant idea, but you must do your due diligence to ascertain what similar products or services are already on the market?
Julie argues that the realm of eco-friendly products has become saturated. “People are not doing their research. If I see one more natural deodorant I’m going to scream! I really wouldn’t advise anyone to start a skincare brand, unless you have a huge point of difference. If you want to be in this space, your products should be certified organic, certified vegan and they should be portable.”
Julie also argued that one of the reasons sustainable brands struggle to move their product is due to cost. “We are frequently contacted by skincare suppliers, but they want to charge $80 for a moisturiser. You have to ask why would anyone pay $80 if that product is not known in the market, and there’s no brand recognition? It’s such a hard industry to get into.”
Are sustainable products too expensive?
The costs associated with ethical consumerism often raise criticism. A $150 t-shirt may be responsibly made but it’s not necessarily affordable for everyone. The decision to purchase ethically made goods is not therefore always a question of convenience but of accessibility. We asked Julie whether these criticisms were reasonable.
She nodded enthusiastically, acknowledging that price is a huge issue. These costs concerns compelled her to launch her own brand Green and Kind. With this business, Julie has simplified the supply chain and by doing so, “means we can offer a toothbrush for $2.95 plus give money to charity.”
One of Julie’s goals from the start was to drive change by making eco-friendly products affordable for everybody. “Our purpose is to help everyone make better choices and not just part of the society that can afford it. We do have some expensive brands at Flora & Fauna but equally, we have plenty of affordable brands. It is a challenge. I think that’s where a lot of greenwashing comes in too because some people try to make eco into a lux brand.”
Culling our obsession with plastic fantastic
One of Julie’s passions and part of the overarching ethos of Flora & Fauna is to minimise waste wherever possible. It’s this commitment to the circular economy that has inspired Julie to partner with TerraCycle as part of Flora & Fauna’s recycling program. Customers can reuse their Flora & Fauna box and fill it with empty beauty tubes and containers. Once returned, customers receive a $10 credit into their account. This small incentive goes a long way.
“It’s something I’m really delighted we offer. While it costs us a fair bit of cash, I always call Flora & Fauna a platform for purpose because yes, we sell things, but now we’ve got reach and engagement, so we can do other great things. Our recycling program gives our brand a bit of gusto. It gets people to recycle beauty products, but also gets them to question whether there are better alternatives to plastics. It’s about getting people to think about beauty differently.”
How to grow an authentic social media following
In the seven years Julie has been in business, Flora & Fauna has grown a significant social media following. A necessary achievement in this digital age for any business to thrive. We asked Julie how she has been able to use social media in an authentic way to connect with like-minded individuals and build a supportive values-based community.
“I still sign off every single post to the annoyance of my team. I view myself as the brand’s custodian. Justine, who manages our social media, is incredibly resilient to my efforts. We have a billboard in our office reminding us of our values and purpose, which we talk about every single day. Not just myself and Tom, but the entire team. Everyone takes ownership and that comes through on our social media. We cannot be bought. We don’t work with influencers because that’s just not what we’re about. It must be authentic and from the heart. I think that’s key for anyone promoting their business on social media. Stay close to your purpose and if it feels wrong don’t do it.”
Ruling an eco-empire as a new mum
Julie recently became a new mum, having two little boys just over a year apart. We asked her how she manages to juggle running a successful business with the added responsibility of two tiny humans to look after.
“We’ve managed to make it work. Tom works in the business as well. We are a completely united team with everything. Today Tom is in the office and I’ve got the boys at home so I manage to do work and boy time. He can be in the office and completely focused without having to worry about home stuff. Yesterday it was the reverse, I was in the office and Tom was at home, so we manage it that way.
“When you’ve got two little ones, it’s easy for tempers to fray. You’ve got to remember you’re on the same team. One of the great things about what we do is that we can be completely flexible. The reality is, particularly for the person staying home, your working day starts around 6pm when both boys are fed and in bed. We have the benefit of being able to do that.”
Addressing concerns on the nature of ethical consumerism
The question of whether we can truly shop our way to progress is one of the foremost conundrums posed by the concept of ethical consumerism. Is it fundamentally misguided to place the responsibility of making sustainable choices on the individual consumer? Instead of carving out a place in the market to exchange sustainably made goods, would our efforts not be better spent lobbying politicians and states to reform the system that already exists? Should we not be encouraging big, well-established brands to pay tax in the countries in which they do business or to ensure transparency within their supply chain? Would campaigning for proper government regulation on the actions of transnational corporations allow for a more expedient path towards a sustainable future?
“One is a stick approach and one is a carrot approach, said Julie. “Lobbying and forcing brands, retailers and big businesses down this route takes time. We don’t have time and our planet doesn’t have time. Take plastic bags for example. How long have we been talking about banning plastic bags? I think we should be lobbying and there is a place for that. Everyone should have access to a fair living wage. There should be more traceability around where products are coming from. I agree if you are trading in a country, pay the tax in that county. You know who you are – you large digital companies!”
“But in the same vein, I think it’s important to have businesses like ours and other brands doing the right thing. We’re the carrot as opposed to the stick. When other brands and retailers see that we’re getting a bit of airtime, suddenly they want to move into that space. Whether they’re doing so authentically or attempting to increase sales, who knows? I’ve always said if Flora & Fauna becomes irrelevant because we delivered the change we want to see, then we’ve done our job because every other brand is doing what we’re doing and that’s a good thing.”
Delegating and relinquishing control
Many founders treat their businesses like their babies. Something they’ve grown, nurtured and breathed life into. But to grow, one needs to relinquish direct control over every facet of the business. We asked Julie whether delegating is something that she struggles with.
“I’m terrible at it! Particularly with social media and marketing, the areas where we are resonating closely with our customers. I let my team run with things, and I love the ideas they come up with. I think when you run a business, it’s important to employ people who are better than you at some things. You can’t be everything to everyone, but it’s important to have checks in place, too.”
How to Pitch to Flora & Fauna
For those who have, or are thinking about starting their own ethical, sustainable or vegan-friendly product range, we asked Julie to suggest the best and most professional way to pitch to Flora & Fauna.
“If you’re going to pitch your product to us, tell us your point of difference and do this in a concise email. We receive emails the size of War and Peace and simply don’t have time to read them. It’s important to explain a little bit about your brand, but only a little bit! A small paragraph. Talk to us about margins, those are the things I look for. Make sure you think about your branding and how your products are being presented. A lot of brands give this an afterthought.”
You can listen to our full interview with Julie here and be sure to check out the fabulous eco-friendly products on offer at Flora and Fauna