Latest / Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast) / The challenges that come with creating a 100% sustainable business and the argument for Amazon, with Helen Reavey, Founder of Act+Acre

Transcript

The challenges that come with creating a 100% sustainable business and the argument for Amazon, with Helen Reavey, Founder of Act+Acre · Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast)

• 0:00
  This is Helen Reavy for Female Startup Club.
• 0:11
  Hi guys, welcome back to another episode of Female Startup Club. I'm your host, Doona Roisin, and joining me on the show today is Helen Reavy. Helen's a woman that knows a thing or two about hair, and something that we don't often think about, our scalp. After spending her career working in hair and seeing the effects of the products and heat that happens to our heads, she set out to create a modern hair care business designed to keep your scalp and hair healthy. Hi.
• 0:39
  We're chatting about her journey and how she's gone about creating a product that didn't exist in the market, the power of a striking brand, and why you would stock your brand on Amazon versus somewhere like Net-A-Porter. And if you've been listening for a few of my episodes, you'll know how much I just love to talk about reviews. If you love this show, please rate and review it in the podcast app so other ears can find us. This is Helen for Female Startup Club.
• 1:05
  Do you want to tell me a little bit about what you were doing before you started Acton Acre? Yeah, so actually the journey really began and a lot of people don't really know this. I actually did a degree in business first before I became a hairstylist. So kind of like very different worlds altogether. But I really wanted to finish my education. And also I wasn't even sure if I was going to be a hairstylist. That didn't even come top of mind for me at the beginning.
• 1:36
  And it was just like a few different experiences that I had that made me realize, okay, I really love doing hair. Like I've done it like as a child growing up, just friends hair here and there. And so after college, I said to myself, you know what? I'm going to just go and train properly and see if this is something I really love. Because for me, there had to be like that end goal.
• 2:04
  There had to be something that I could aspire to. And, you know, you grew up thinking, OK, you just work in a hair salon, you do these blow dries and that's you. But once I started to, like, understand and research into it, I realized actually there's a whole other world to hair that I didn't understand. But they come from a very small town and have never been exposed to before.
• 2:28
  So for me, when I started to realize that and I went back to, like I came from college and actually went back to like junior school for hairdressing and trained to be a hairstylist. I went to London then and trained with the students and then I was art director for a salon in Ireland. And so I did that for many years and it was in 2013 when I was in the UK.
• 2:53
  I realized that I'd hit that kind of ceiling of creativity and I was like, okay, what's the next step for me? And started to understand the fashion world and, uh, you know, these careers that existed like for fashion week, doing editorial, like that more creative side of it. And, uh, so kind of like putting all those thoughts together and I love New York. I've been coming to New York for years. I was like, that's it. I want to move to New York. That's,
• 3:22
  I really want to make my dream come true. So literally just packed my bags and left everything in Ireland, went by myself. And I was like, OK, I'll go for fashion week, see if I can get any work, picked up a couple of shows. And then you realize once you're there, things just start to like roll along. And, you know, you really start to get your momentum, work really hard, put yourself out there.
• 3:47
  and I started just, things just started to really develop for me and within the first year I was on tour with Alisa Keyes doing her hair and I went to Paris Fashion Week and was working with Sam McKnight doing the likes of Chanel and Fendi shows and so I came from like the salon works and I was now living my dream in New York and so that's kind of like the background to my
• 4:16
  a acting acre is until now it was kind of like 50 50 where I was on set three to four days a week with my clients um I stopped doing fashion week once I started acting acre because obviously that takes up a lot of time I've done that for almost eight years uh traveling around the world doing every show you can imagine and so then now um with acting acre I still keep some clients for like you know I'll do that have that creative day of
• 4:46
  you know, working with my favorite photographers or favorite brands. And I feel like it's really complementary to it as well, because I'm able to bring that back to the brand. But also for me to get that headspace and to go away for a little while, be creative and come back. Because obviously I picked up a whole other role with running a brand and a company.
• 5:08
  And so when you were doing things like the Fashion Week circuit and you were working with all these people, is that when you started to think, hey, I need a product that doesn't really exist right now? There's something, you know, there's an idea that you had or you saw a gap in the market for Acton Acre and then you decided to pursue it? What happened there? Well, West Me South as well, I've always suffered with various scalp issues. I've had eczema as a child.
• 5:35
  I grew up with, you know, this kind of like issue through my scalp, always looking for, you know, cleansing my scalp properly, wanting volume because it always very fine hair and, you know, really in search for that. But also during fashion week, what I noticed was at the, especially at the end of it, like Paris is always like the last week of one month long. Everyone's tired. Everyone's exhausted. The girls come in for the last couple of shows and
• 6:04
  Their scalps are so tender, even just a touch, because they've been pulled and prodded. And can you imagine the amount of like products that are used, the hairsprays, the gels, whatever, and we're like forcing their hair to perform. And so it was really like, you know, I'd always really thought of scalp hair as, you know, you should really treat it the same way as you do your skin. It is an extension of your face.
• 6:32
  And, you know, I've always been so into, so like my research, I've constantly been researching it. Your scalp being just like faster than your face. Like trying to understand like why we treat the ends of it, but we're not even thinking about the scalp. And so putting all the, connecting all these dots together, like understanding, okay, these guys have used so much product on their hair, but now it's not performing. And we're trying to fix it by putting more product on it to make it perform.
• 7:02
  And so, yeah, that gets your thought process going. You're like, okay, what's happening here? And it really was a build-up of products. And I started to then really delve deeper into the hair care industry and examine the products we use. And I was disappointed with the substandard products that we were being served up. It either had to have a lot of chemicals in it to remove or help you perform, or it was so natural that,
• 7:31
  there wasn't that level of performance in it. And so we really came up with, you know, we did so much research into like, how can we innovate? How can we make this different? Because I didn't just want to create another product that existed. I really wanted to reinvent the space.
• 7:49
  And so that's where Actonacre came from. And the co-process method is something that we patented and it's never existed before. And that allowed us to create something that was extremely clean
• 8:02
  It was sustainable because we used 90% less energy, but also the ingredients that we put into it actually retained their efficacy. So that allowed us to use clean ingredients that perform extremely well. And so what are those kind of ingredients? Can you tell us what's in the product? Oh, yeah, of course. So our scalp detox has basil leaf extract in it. So basil leaf, there's been numerous studies on it to show that
• 8:32
  It stimulates the blood flow to the hair follicle. It allows the nutrients to deliver to the hair follicle and help that hair follicle grow stronger. And without getting too sciency about it, it's really like how you treat your plants. They need the nutrients in the soil for them to grow healthier. And so it all begins at the scalp, keeping the scalp healthy, keeping it rejuvenated. If you have that dull, lifeless hair,
• 8:58
  It really probably is because your scalp just needs that little bit of TLC. We moisturize our face every day, but we never moisturize our scalp. And so it's a mixture of, you know, removal and nourishing and moisturizing. And so these ingredients like basil, ylang-ylang, violet leaf, bilobab, moringa, amaranth, they're all nutrient-dense. They're all full of antioxidants, which really help, you know, remove the dead skin, deliver nutrients, stimulate that blood flow.
• 9:28
  So, and for us, it's not about a quick fix. So, you know, we're not going to say, oh, this is going to make your hair look silky and shiny and have your dream hair in one day. This is really a long-term approach to it. So this is what we consider like a whole new category of hair wellness. And similar to like your body, when you start on that journey of like health, you know, it doesn't happen overnight.
• 9:55
  But slowly, those little things that you start to implement in, like whether it's a green juice in the morning instead of like a fried sandwich or, you know, just something more healthy. Like you don't notice it straight away, but weeks, a couple of weeks, a couple of months, you start to really notice those small little differences. And so really the ends of our hair are dead proteins.
• 10:18
  So there's not a whole lot you can do to help that. You can help make it appear better, appear healthier. But really the focus is your scalp and it all begins there. And it's one of those things that I imagine that if you stop using it, then you really see the difference after that compounded effect. Absolutely. Yeah, exactly. It is that those little 1% or 2% every day that's changing.
• 10:44
  And as well, we're so used to like the silicones that make our hair appear different. We're trying to always be like someone else, you know, trying to get our hair to look like someone else. And when you stop using those and allow your hair to be its own way, because you've done it from your child. So you don't actually know what your hair is like as an adult. And now you're starting to like allow the natural texture.
• 11:07
  Like my hair, you can see it's dry naturally now. I never wore my hair natural. I always wanted it smooth and straight. And when I did leave it natural, it just looked like frizz or it didn't have a, you know, a beautiful kind of like wave to it. And now it's the first time ever. I've been able to just leave it to dry naturally. And.
• 11:28
  I'm actually really enjoying my own texture and the natural curls come back in. Yeah, I think I have a lot of damage to my hair because I bleach it. It's blonde. Mm-hmm. And I've done that for years now, so it's quite, you know, scruffy. I don't know what the word even is, but yeah. No, and I bleach my hair as well. Yeah.
• 11:52
  And so you have this idea, you don't have a blueprint to go off because it doesn't exist in the market. How do you go about developing a product and finding the person to help you create that product? I know that honestly was probably one of the most difficult parts for us because this didn't exist. And we really kind of like went outside the box and we like started
• 12:22
  like physicist friends and chemists and we're like okay I can actually talk to you like you're my brother or sister here tell me how is shampoo made like please just break it down like I'm a two-year-old child and so it was like just a lot of whiteboarding back and forth um about the process because that to me I was like no one has reinvented the process it's always been made the same way
• 12:46
  People are reinventing ingredients and packaging, but no one's actually gone back to the beginning and reinvented the process. And so from there, I was like, well, I know when you put lavender into that or you put your lang lang into that, that's evaporating off because of the heat. And so at the end of the process, that doesn't actually exist. And so they're like, yeah, okay, now we're talking. Okay, how do we get this to exist? And so...
• 13:13
  It took a lot of development and a lot of research of going back and forth and finding the right people. But co-processed methods was something that we came up with. And so it's similar to co-pressed juice where everything's done through pressure. You've heard of co-processed soap, but it's not the same as soap. But actually, you have to melt it to make it into that. So this was actually completely different. It's a hyperbaric chamber.
• 13:43
  1200 pounds of pressure to allow water to pass into oil and the ingredients together. And so there are limitations, but it really allows us to create a product that is just nutrient dense, like it's so potent. And then finding the person to come up with a formula that also is like extremely difficult because we have such high standards and I didn't want to sell for like just industry standards.
• 14:12
  And so I had to find someone and we ended up by finding Bethany, who is my life saviour. Like these bottomless, these games all together. And she really took it to the next level with me. Like she challenged me. She, you know, educated me on so much. She wasn't just like, oh, do it this way because that's how everyone else does it. She was willing to go that extra mile for us. To innovate. Yeah, exactly. To innovate and do something new.
• 14:42
  We took like two years of almost 12 different variations of our shampoo before we got there. Wow, that's amazing. And at what point did you think, oh, you know what, we should patent this? Or did someone tell you? Or what was the process there? Well, my husband is a lawyer and he's also my business partner. So he was like, okay, we need to own this. That helps.
• 15:11
  We need to own this. Yeah. Oh, my gosh. Wow. And was that a tricky process? For him, it was. I'm like, okay, I'm a creative. I come for the idea. And he's really good because he understands my creative process, how I work. And so when, you know, we work a lot together and, you know, we understand our strengths and weaknesses. So I'm like, okay. Okay.
• 15:39
  It's all we need to do. And then he figures it out. And for anyone listening who might be exploring doing a patent or now curious about it, is it an expensive process to do, to go through? Obviously, you have your husband who can help you as well, but if you want to have him? Yeah, well, for like trademarks and things like that, I do believe you can apply it yourself.
• 16:04
  And they're, I believe, around $250 to $300 for a trademark. So like your name, you know, protect yourself in that way in your IP. That kind of process is much easier for Patent. He was able to write it. And then obviously we do have lawyers that are able to just bring that to the next level for us. And it's expensive. But when you actually figure it out in the long run, it's totally worth it just to have that be your own.
• 16:34
  Yeah. Yes, I imagine. So cool. Yeah. And in the beginning, I want to talk about startup capital. You guys obviously did 12 different iterations. Sounds really expensive to work with chemists and botanists and all these very talented people. How much does it cost to go into this kind of process? Wow, that's, I don't even think you can put a number on it.
• 17:04
  We did raise capital, but we raised capital almost after formulating. So, you know, but I suppose like if you're just going to start out, I would suggest that you find, you know, your chemist or your lab or your manufacturers and
• 17:23
  you know, pitch to them the same way that you would pitch to an investor. Make them understand you, who you are as a brand, what you're bringing to them. And so for us, it was really like, okay, we might be your smallest brand now, but, and I know your numbers are super high, your minimum order quantities, maybe you want 100,000 units, but we're actually going to be your biggest customer five years from now. And, you know, you really just want to,
• 17:52
  make them believe in you as well. So that's a really good point actually, is like go into like these people and pitch to them the same way that you would pitch to your investor and say, you know, we might not be able to afford those minimum order quantities now, but give us a couple of years and we are going to be that biggest brand for you. And it works for us. And building that relationship, being so personal with them,
• 18:17
  And them understanding you and them liking you as people and trusting you and almost bringing you into their family. Yeah. And I also imagine the patent would help you in that regard to prove how dedicated you are and how much you essentially know that you're a unique product in the market. Exactly.
• 18:39
  Yeah. Wow. That's really cool. I want to talk a little bit about your marketing and how you launched in the beginning and finding your first customers. Yeah. So we were extremely lucky in that Vogue USA did an exclusive launch with us in the January issue. So that was just incredible.
• 19:04
  but it's almost like for finding your customers it's almost like a good book a good book will find you so for me it was spending those 10 years in a salon 8 years working in an industry becoming so passionate about something I feel if you go out to research and look for something and try to be a part of a movement it doesn't necessarily work I think you have to be the movement and so I
• 19:32
  everything, like we've started to notice everything in the last six months is about skinification of hair, a scalp, a, you know, treating your hair like you treat your scalp, the ritual. And, you know, the conversation has really shifted. And we created this new vernacular at the beginning. And for some, it might have seemed a little confusing, like calling it a hair cleanse or hair wellness or welcome to your new journey of scalp health and your new
• 20:03
  But for me, confusion, it creates a conversation. And so I feel like that's how we really started and launched this brand and got the first customers, you know, the tastemakers, the innovators,
• 20:18
  They're just people who really want to discover new brands and improve themselves. And is that also, do you mean sort of, you know, tastemakers, like influencers and beauty bloggers and that kind of thing? Were you also connecting with them and sending them the products before you launched? Actually, very more so. We had a couple of organic influencers that bought the product and,
• 20:46
  We weren't really in that influencer space at all because I'd worked with, obviously, supermodels, models, that kind of thing. And so I'd obviously been given to friends and I followed a few people who I really loved their aesthetic and things like that. But that came much later. We did less of that at the beginning and it was more organically.
• 21:10
  And moving on from the launch to where you are now, what do you think it is like in the marketing scene that's working for you at the moment? What helps you acquire new customers now? Definitely email has been super successful for us. That long form educational content, I feel, is what people are looking for. They really are in search of something to come out of this better, a better version of themselves.
• 21:39
  And they really are looking for that. And in the absence of the hairstylist, people are really searching for those things to help improve. And so we have developed this consultation platform so they can talk to us about anything. We launched Class Act during this to help hairstylists out of work so that we could connect them with the customers. And so that's
• 22:04
  You know, they can answer any questions or, you know, really just be their therapist even during this moment. It doesn't even have to be hair related. Have you found anything, any interesting insights that you didn't think would come up from these conversations? Like, have you seen any trends that maybe you hadn't expected to hear about women's hair or, you know, anything? Well, I didn't realize how much people really wanted to cut their own hair and dye their own hair during this.
• 22:34
  Because I just let my hair go natural for quite a long time. Really? You want to cut a fringe during this moment? So I think I really started to understand that psychological and physiological connection with your hair. That, you know, I didn't realize it was as strong in you. It was there or maybe it's just subconsciously in me. But really, when people go through a moment, it's the first thing they think about is their hair.
• 23:04
  Yeah, I think I'm part of that statistic because since we went into quarantine, I've dyed my hair bright pink. It's obviously back to blonde now because it's washed out. And I have also some bright blue that I'm planning on putting in. I love it.
• 23:22
  Yeah, I might even do it today. I might even do it this afternoon. But, yeah, I really find, like, you know, now's the time. Why not have some fun? We've been doing at-home haircuts this morning, actually, because the men in our household need haircuts once a month. I love that.
• 23:38
  Love it. It's quite funny, to be honest. I wanted to ask you, I was reading about an article that you mentioned in Vogue Business about you're stocked on Amazon and the shift of brands who maybe before hadn't thought about going on Amazon for, you know, the kind of the message that it was sending. But now brands are moving on to the platform and Amazon has created a space on the platform for sort of top tier premium brands.
• 24:07
  How do you kind of like manage the fact that you guys have Amazon, but then you also have brands like Net-A-Porter and Sephora and like, you know, huge amounts of retailers stocking your product. How do you kind of manage that difference in brand messaging moving onto a place like Amazon? Or I guess maybe the better question is how did you decide to move onto Amazon? Yeah. And,
• 24:33
  I suppose there's a little bit of snobbery involved with some brands in deciding where they're going to go. And for us, it's not about that. It's about who is our customer, where do they live and where do they shop. And that's the most important thing to us. And I think it's really important for a brand to be able to reach out to that 18-year-old and also that 50 to 60-year-old.
• 24:59
  that's going to make you so valuable. If you're able to connect to all age groups across all platforms, you need to be in those places as well. And for us, hair care is not about a single group of people. Everybody has hair. And down to the price, I know we are on the luxury end, but we're still affordable. And I wanted my friends and my mom to not feel uncomfortable going to purchase our product. And so,
• 25:28
  For me, it's like Amazon is a platform. People want to get the product faster than two weeks is what normal kind of like postage is right now during the COVID. So it really is about that access to the customer and to your product. Yeah, definitely, definitely. And you have the brand building side. So the net of quarters, those kind of like retail stores.
• 25:56
  And then you really just have to be able to, I suppose, support the customer and just be able to be there for them whenever they need you. Do you think that you were able to secure those kinds of brands like Net-A-Porter because of your previous work and the industry that you were in? Or was it completely separate? I think there's a mixture for sure. And also, we've been extremely lucky in that we've never gone to anybody. They've always come to us.
• 26:26
  That's amazing. Yeah. I do believe, like, obviously, it's being in a creative field where you're able to produce beautiful packaging, which is extremely attractive to people. And people now want a product that not only performs but looks beautiful in their shower. They want that moment, like, okay, when you go into that hotel room and all those accessories, it looks so beautiful. And when we were designing it, I was like, I want you to feel like you have that bit of that space
• 26:55
  a most amazing hotel you've been in in your own shower to feel like you have that yourself and so yeah I feel like there's the mixture of like the innovative technology and background and being an expert in the industry and I hope and I hope people see this as the beautiful branding and a product that performs
• 27:21
  And also probably your sustainability message as well, because I know your packaging and everything that you do is built from sustainable goods. Yeah. And that's a message that you show on your Instagram. Totally. For me, that's like sustainability used to be a nice to have. Now I think it's a have to have. And it was one of the big messages at the beginning. We were like, okay, this is something that you're starting a brand right now. You need to have this, you know?
• 27:50
  It's not just a nice to have anymore where it used to be. This is a necessity. So we don't push it as much because we're like, no, this is who you should be. You don't need to be pushing this message. This should be a given. Yeah. Do you think that starting the brand with that in mind, that it had to be sustainable, that there were more hurdles to cross to make it a sustainable product?
• 28:16
  Oh, absolutely. There's so many things that come up, especially with packaging and you lose a lot of sleep over it. Because at the beginning, there's no school that you go to if you're like, okay, you need these three ingredients for this packaging or you need to package your product a certain way. And so for me, I really wanted it to look
• 28:39
  you know, looks beautiful, but in the most sustainable way. So that was like no fancy things added to it. Even down to our box that it arrives in is just recycled cardboard with our logo on it. There's no like sprayed on paint to make it look glossy and shiny when it arrives. It has either we do the paper shavings or the potato starch nuggets.
• 29:07
  which are dissolvable in water. You need to protect the packaging. So, you know, little things like that at the beginning that you really do need to package up your products first and send it to yourself before you send it to any customer. You know, people are asking, why does it not come inside of us as well? And I was like, oh, it's really trying to like, minimalize the packaging as much as possible.
• 29:34
  And then, you know, you would see someone open the box and like, oh, it doesn't look as pretty as what some other people do. And so you start to innovate a little bit more. But you're like, but how do I stick to this sustainability? Because I don't want to be adding all these things that are unnecessary.
• 29:52
  Yeah, it's a tricky thing. It's definitely a tricky thing. But I find like everyone that I'm speaking to at the moment, literally every woman that I'm speaking to has this sustainability message. And I think it's just so important to be doing what we can. Absolutely. And also like we are carbon positive now. So there is a carbon mutual. So you offset
• 30:19
  the carbon that you use in your brand. So for like all the delivery, all the packaging making, and you get to a number. And so there are wind farms that you can donate to. And so we've donated, dug up, so that we're actually carbon positive at the moment. Oh my gosh, that's so cool. I love that. Yeah. How nice. Really, it is like offsetting all the energy that you use. And,
• 30:46
  Again, just trying to be innovative with every thought. I love that because it's also like...
• 30:52
  you can just be so proud that you're doing something that's good, you know, in addition to having the great product, you're actually just adding to the world. I love that. Exactly. So cool. I wanted to talk a bit about community because through your Instagram, I noticed you have a strong community. You received these amazing reviews and I was laughing about the avocado toast review. I know we all love that review. Yeah.
• 31:21
  I was like, who is this woman? I want to know her. Can she come be our copywriter, please? Because the way she told that story, I was like, wow, she just touched, she reached everyone because we can all relate to that avocado jokes experience. Do you want to, for the people who are listening, do you want to tell a little bit about what she said and I'm sure how much that brightened your day? Yeah.
• 31:46
  Actually, I need to get it up here. Yeah, get it up. It was so good. It was so funny. I know. And we have, we obviously use Slack. And we have like a daily review where we put in our favorite reviews from the week, you know. Just to really break, like, because obviously you have the opposite of like a nice review sometimes. And, you know, we do that.
• 32:13
  But it's also good for the team to really see those good reviews. It's so important to bring their spirit up, to let them know that, you know what, we're really doing something good here. And it makes it so worthwhile. Okay, so five-star review. It starts, the header is, like avocado toast for your hair. And so she starts with...
• 32:39
  You know when you go to your local cafe and order a $16 avocado toast with the pickled shallots, a perfectly poached egg and freshly chopped chives on homemade sourdough bread and maybe get some house kombucha to wash it down with. It is more pricey than you expected. Maybe does it make you feel like you did your body a favor and that you're ready to tackle the day? Yes.
• 33:07
  Actonacre is my $16 avocado toast and kombucha. Sure I could go and buy some Pert Plus 2-in-1 and relive my childhood for $5.99. But do I want to? Hell no. I want good ingredients in my body and on my body. Actonacre is a feel-good, smell-good luxury at its finest and it's helped me understand what healthy hair is supposed to feel like. That is...
• 33:35
  The most unbelievable review ever. I mean, you know you're on the right path when you receive a review like that. I know. That's incredible. It's actually giving me goosebumps again. It's such a feel-good thing to have someone write something beautiful about your brand like that. Yeah, I feel like that needs to go into your welcome email, automated sequence strategy to be like, this is what other people say about us. Totally. Totally.
• 34:04
  I want to ask you what your advice is for women who are starting a business. Okay. My advice would be figure out what you love about yourself first and understand your qualities, what you're really good at, you know, because some people aren't meant to do this. Some people, you know, I was a creative who liked to work alone, but what I did was I surrounded myself with people who are not like me.
• 34:33
  who are opposite. And that's who the team are. And I feel like it's understanding who you are, what you love about yourself. So if you love to work in teams or love to lead teams and be a part of that, that is really good quality for starting a business. If you're someone who just likes to work alone, maybe it's not for you. Or figure out a way to make yourself integrate into groups that will teach you
• 35:04
  you know, who will show you a different method. Amazing. I usually wrap up with six quick questions that I ask everyone that I interview. So number one is what's your why? For me, it's why not. Simple as that. I wouldn't be here if I didn't say why not. Amazing. Number two, what's the number one marketing moment that made your business pop?
• 35:33
  Definitely the Vogue article. And like for me, it was that moment opening the magazine and reading the title. And the title was Meeting the Culling Ed's Natural Hair Care Line that puts scalp health first. Wow, that's incredible. Yeah, it was a real moment for us. Number three is where do you hang out to get smarter? Oh, yeah. Okay.
• 36:03
  So I think it's not exactly a place. It's more of a mindset. Okay. So anytime there's an opportunity to learn something, I like to call it the 1%. So there's roughly that 1% of meaningful inspiration that I carry forward into my daily life. And that expands my perspective and it continues to help me grow. And it has that compounding effect, you know,
• 36:31
  For me, I don't read a book to get smarter. I read it to get a little bit more information and finally that information will come together. I love that. That's a nice answer. Number four is how do you win the day? And that's around your AM and PM rituals and things that you do to feel happy and productive and successful in the day. Yeah, absolutely. Well, I know things are very different now. For me, it was waking up and...
• 36:59
  going for some kind of a class and then going to the office and getting my coffee because I love my coffee and now it's like it's really nice for me it's it's about a routine it's gratitude and and keeping a to-do list it really is the simple things making your day as simple as possible not making too many decisions so like my wardrobe is
• 37:26
  basically nude or black or navy and white. And I don't have too many patterns. I'll have one or two outfits like to go to something. So that is about keeping my life simple by not having to make too many decisions because I have to make so many other decisions work related that a routine for me means I just get up and it's automatic. You know, I take my lemon water and do a little bit of gratitude, some yoga, start my work with a coffee.
• 37:56
  and end the day with just chilling but I know already what I'm going to eat for lunch and dinner and almost similar every day because I don't want to go into that part of my brain to actually have to think what am I going to eat today no so it's like having that routine makes life so much easier
• 38:16
  Yeah, I'm definitely a creature of habit, especially during the week. And I definitely have to have that coffee in the morning to get going. It's my favorite ritual. I know. It's honestly one of mine. And I love the taste of coffee. I don't even know if it gives me a caffeine rush. I just genuinely love the taste.
• 38:34
  I actually switched about 95% of my coffee to decaf recently and I can't tell the difference. So, and it allows you to drink more. Yeah. It's quite good. I should try that, definitely. Yeah, you should. You should give it a go. Question number five is if you only had $1,000 left in your business bank account, where would you spend it?
• 39:02
  So I'm thinking I probably don't have many team members left if I've got $1,000. So whoever is stuck by me, I'm going to take you out in the town for the night. Invested in the team. Invested in the team. The remaining team. Definitely. Definitely. People are important. That's a good one. And number six is how do you deal with failure? And it can be either a specific experience or just your general approach and mindset towards it.
• 39:32
  Yeah, I think for me, I don't fight failure. I fix it and move on. And I don't really consider it a failure either because I do believe that it will lead you to something else. Nice. Very nice. Thank you so much for being on the podcast. Where can people find you?
• 39:55
  So we are at actoneacre.com or actoneacre on Instagram. If you don't understand my accent, it is A-C-T plus sign or and A-N-D, acre, A-C-R-E. I don't know why I didn't choose an easier name for people to understand when I say it. My husband has an even stronger accent, so he has a terrible time. People are like, what?
• 40:26
  What is act an acre? No, act comes from that ritual, that moment of self-care, just having a moment to yourself. An acre is the consciousness of land and nature and the ingredients that we use. Oh, I love that. That's so beautiful. That's a really nice meaning. Thank you so much. You're welcome. Thank you for having me.
• 40:54
  Hey, it's June here. Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the Female Startup Club podcast. If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out femalestartupclub.com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter. We send it out weekly covering female founder business news, insights and learnings in D2C, and interesting business resources.
• 41:18
  And if you're a founder building an e-commerce brand, you can join our private network of entrepreneurs called Hype Club at femalestartupclub.com forward slash Hype Club. We have guests from the show joining us for intimate Ask Me Anythings, expert workshops, and a group of totally amazing, like-minded women building the future of D2C brands.
• 41:41
  As always, please do subscribe, rate and review the show and post your favorite episodes to Instagram stories. I am beyond grateful when you do that.
• 41:57
  Hey, it's June here. Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the Female Startup Club podcast. If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out femalestartupclub.com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter. We send it out weekly covering female founder business news, insights and learnings in D2C, and interesting business resources.
• 42:22
  And if you're a founder building an e-commerce brand, you can join our private network of entrepreneurs called Hype Club at femalestartupclub.com forward slash Hype Club. We have guests from the show joining us for intimate Ask Me Anythings, expert workshops, and a group of totally amazing, like-minded women building the future of D2C brands.
• 42:44
  As always, please do subscribe, rate and review the show, and post your favorite episodes to Instagram stories. I am beyond grateful when you do that.