The Business of Universal Kindness Podcast

Today I’m talking with Beth Coldrick, founder of BAO Skincare. Beth has been on quite a journey over the last 12 years which has culminated in a line of home made (yes she makes them in her own kitchen), organic, natural and vegan certified skincare range. She truly loves what she does and her passion for her products is evident in our chat together.

Today we have the penultimate episode of The Business of Universal Kindness. I talk with Fiona Smyth of TotsBots as she tells her story of building a cloth nappy empire. Fiona is a wonderful example of how to “just figure things out as you go along” when it comes to  building a business with longevity.

Welcome to Episode 11 where I get to talk with Marcus and Nick from the Bower Collective.  Like the Bower Bird famous for recycling brightly coloured plastic scraps to decorate its nest, they are a refill and replenishment ecommerce store providing the conscious consumer with all their non-food household needs.

For Episode 10 of the podcast I welcome Bex Walker who is a shining example of slow growth and tough resilience in the face of challenges.  Listen to her journey from selling a few of her healthy, Vegan breakfast pots at local fitness bootcamps and making the pots overnight in her home kitchen to leading a team of people and fulfilling hundreds of orders each week.

Today on the podcast we have Charlotte Henshaw and Callum Parsons, two of the co-founders of Fire and Flow Coffee. I was curious to find out about their mission for ethical coffee sourcing and how they support their customers in business. We also talk about their passion for coffee and tea, it’s evident that Callum knows a thing or two about coffee, and how they all came together to bring Fire and Flow to life (including Charlotte’s partner, Phil).

Welcome to episode 8 as we listen in to Caroline Sims journey to launching Botanycl, a supplement company whose signature product Skin Clear Elixr is revolutionising women's lives around problematic skin. From just solving her own skin issues, to launching a brand that has been wildly successful.

Today I welcome Rachel Speth and Jeff Delkin of Bambu to episode 7 of the podcast. 20 years ago, they found themselves in China with their corporate work, and found themselves marvelling at the awe and majesty of the native bamboo.  Fascinated by this indiginous plant they spent 2 years researching the material before they eventually took the leap of faith to start their own business manufacturing bamboo kitchen utensils. We hear the challenges of bringing a Western aesthetic to an Eastern material and how their business has evolved over the years from almost pre-internet time to what it is today (a B2B and B2C company).

Not only have they cut out the middle man to bring laundry and dishwasher tablets directly to consumers (through the letterbox) but smol have also embraced kindness to bring eco-friendly detergents that do their job well and are kind to the planet – this includes chemical content and packaging too. Listen in as we explore the journey of Paula, and her business partner Nick, to create a brand that has been wildly successful since its launch even though they started with just the two of them doing everything.

Ever since she went through puberty at an early age Valentina has wanted to help more women and girls understand their cycles and make information more accessible, without the hush-hush taboo around periods. Find out how Valentina has managed to go from just an idea,  to raising over $5.5M in funding, to bring her business to life and provide period care and information made to fit Daye’s customers.

Charity Nichols runs her flagship ecommerce store Green Tulip plus several stores and in-real-life business with her husband Will.  In this episode we learn about how she has managed to build a team of people who run the various aspects of her many business ventures and the journey it has taken to grow slowly. She also shares how the pandemic has affected business and what lessons can be learned from taking opportunities when they arise.