Coast to Coast Sustainables: Pioneering New Eco-friendly Solutions

Hello and welcome to this episode of Conscious Design. I'm your host, Ian Peterman, and author of the Conscious Design book. And today I'm excited to be talking to Stephanie and Stephanie, the co-founders of Coast to Coast Sustainables, and talking about their journey. Welcome to the show.

Hi, thank you.

Yeah, so everybody loves a good origin story. Let's rewind a little bit to when you guys got started. What got you into this How did this come about?

We could go back 24, 23 years. We were best friends before business partners. That's the actual origin. We met early 2000s when our husbands— well, our husbands grew up together here in Bellingham, Washington. They traveled different parts of the country, met Stephanie's within like the same month of each other in 1999.

9.

9?

Yeah.

Nice.

A century. Yeah, last century. And, uh, yeah, they brought us back within a few years. They brought us both back to Bellingham and we, uh, started hanging out. And within the first year we were actually creating things. In 2001 or 2002, we were making soap and body care products and eye pillows and sewing, all kinds of stuff. For fun. We worked other jobs and, and then life took us in several different directions for the next 20 years between family and school and jobs and everything in between.

Yes.

Yeah. And then 2020 hit. And Stephanie, do you want to talk about that?

Sure. So in 2019, we decided 2020 was our year. We were going to do something, you know, open a business. We had no idea what. And life was still crazy right at the beginning of the year. We had what we thought was COVID after we found out what COVID was in December of 2019.

Hmm.

And then just going through all the motions, it was really crazy, obviously, because we had a pandemic hit and what to do. So Stephanie and I started making masks and we probably made between, I don't even know, 500 and 1,000 masks. That we donated between several of us. And then we did so well at the design that we decided to start selling them. And some of the local places, because of their— our design, it was really great because of anyone with glasses or hearing impaired or just getting headaches from pulling on their ears. You know, our design was really different. So that really helped out. And then just from that reusable product, I have always, I mean, since 9th grade, I've been passionate about our carbon footprint and all that kind of thing. So Stephanie and I have tried so many different products that we wanted to make a difference in the universe and, you know, try and help our planet. But there were so many products that weren't quality or long-lasting, or, you know, some of the things seem a little bit gimmicky. And so we got frustrated because putting out these investments to try to be better in our daily life, it just became really cumbersome and challenging and made more work for us. And we just didn't have time for that. So we decided to move towards our own sustainable products and coming up with our own designs. And it's just been a huge, exciting journey because we have so many products that we want to bring on to our whole entire business line, but we just don't have time until we're moving into a space. So that is going to create a whole nother opportunity for things.

So.

Amazing. Well, yeah, I know we talked a little bit about that. You guys are transitioning from a little more garage style to really opening up a space and being able to expand your production, build more, have, have a space for you guys to really grow into. Which is exciting. That's a whole journey, right? Of—

Yes.

Which is exciting and scary and all the above.

Oh yeah.

Our houses are packed right now with products and it's just materials, everything that we create, all of our sewing machines and just equipment and everything. And yeah, it'll be fun to move it into a dedicated space. We can bring in some of the employees we've hired and really expand our line and keep up with all the demand that we are struggling to keep up with at this point with the two of us in our offices at home.

Well, it's good. I think it's a lot of people, they like to rush in sometimes, right? And they go, oh, I need the— need a space. But then that's a monthly rent. And they, you know, you expand too quickly and I've worked with a few brands that have done this more. What you guys are doing is— I worked with a speaker company, actually. He built speakers out of his garage, like studio monitors for like recording engineers and things like that that were being used by award-winning artists. But he was doing it in his garage until it got to the point where, okay, I can't keep up by myself. I have a couple of employees in a garage, like we're— we've maxed out our space. Then let's expand. And I think that idea of waiting to make sure that you have that demand there, that you're ready, I think it's good to wait. I always love talking to people that actually wait and they figure out, oh, we have the demand, right? And make sure it's there before you, you know, you don't just jump in. You got to make sure it's there to sustain you guys, which is great because you guys, you have employees, you're pretty big, I feel like, for— it's time. It's probably time for this space.

We're big for being small.

Exactly.

Exactly.

Well, one of the things I wanted to kind of talk with you guys about is I noticed, and you started with the reusable, right? There's a lot of ways to think about sustainability, right? You can be biodegradable, recyclable, reusable, or there's so many things. As you're looking, thinking through products, and you guys have a lot of reusable ones, what kind of drew you guys to reusable as an option rather than you could make it biodegradable or something else? What kind of attracted you guys to that particular concept?

Seeing so much waste. And I think we live in an area too where people are very aware of the impact that we have on the planet. So that's been just a blessing to live in this beautiful area. We are surrounded by so much nature with trees and mountains and ocean. And I think people here are just really conscious of that. It's almost like a domino effect. You start reusing one thing, reusing masks, and you see all the piles of masks in the couple of years of the pandemic everywhere that are going in the trash. And then paper towels are kind of our first big product that came out after that. We call them retowels, or reusable paper towels on paper. And we— you start paying attention. And when you start reusing those over and over, and you're not buying paper towels and throwing them in the trash every day, I mean, Americans alone waste 3,000 tons of paper towels a day. And so when you start thinking about those numbers, and you start seeing it in your own house, You make that switch and suddenly you're looking at everything else and you're seeing, what about these plastic bags that, you know, you take to work or cotton balls that you use to clean your face or all— I mean, there's just so many things that we don't really need to throw away, but we're programmed to buy, buy, buy, to consume and throw away and buy, buy, buy again. And so it's just, it's been such a journey for us even over the years before we made things to try different products and how can we improve upon that. So it's—

Absolutely. And then the component of being compostable, not a lot of areas have the easy compostable, you know, some people have a backyard compost, but there's a lot of things that actually can be composted through like a city compost that we have here, which we're super lucky in Whatcom County to have, where you can compost cheese and meat and all different kinds of things because they have the facility to make sure that that gets totally broke down. Whereas in a backyard compost, you don't have that churning and heat and that same ability to do that. So in most areas, what we want to do is we want to, from coast to coast, we want to have the ability to be able to reuse because not everyone can compost in the same way. So if you give somebody one thing and they can't do that, that actually creates more methane gas in a garbage can going to the landfill with a compostable bag, because it's not actually being put in the proper way to decompose and become nothing and part of the earth again. It's going into a landfill with all the other plastics and things that can't be broken down, and it actually creates more problems. So it's It's all these things that we notice and we are passionate about. We look into, we do the research, and we find that doing the reusable line is actually quite better because then you're not having to reinvest over and over again. You have this one product. We've been using some of the same things for 3 and a half years, some 2 and a half years, and they're still holding up.

And even compared with recycling, I think recycling is fantastic. We should all do as much as we can to do it. But there's so much research coming out now, you know, how much plastic is actually being recycled? Is it— what is it, 80-something percent they're finding ends up in the garbage or in the ocean at some point? And so finding ways, we just have to get creative. And I think moving forward in our society, everybody all around the world needs to get creative in how we can just lessen our waste day to day with just the simple things that we use.

I love that you get— you mentioned that the biodegradable and even recycling is different. People have different access to it, right? Where the US is a very— we're a rainbow of access to all of these things.

100%.

I've lived in different cities and it's varied. Some are— I grew up around Portland, Recycling, super accessible, always there, like weekly acts, right? Just keep it there. And then I've also lived in other places where it's less or not at all. There is no— there's not even a recycling system, right?

Right.

So I think it's super important and it's great that you guys are doing that, is looking at, well, what if we're going to sell across the US? What actually works across— how do we make a product that you can actually sell and people get the same benefit from it rather than trash in one place, biodegraded in another. It kind of undoes what you're trying to do.

Exactly. Yeah.

With your, your materials, so you, you're picking a lot of materials that are longer lasting. How were you guys going through that? Is that more, I guess, are you seeing more organic, more natural fibers, things like that? Are you How are you balancing that out in terms of long life with your products?

So we do source cotton flannel, quilted cotton, and this cotton laminate. And the cotton laminate and a lot of our other materials are OEKO-TEX certified, which, you know, is a higher certification that comes out of Europe. And all of our products on some level can be composted when the life is done. You may have to cut off some strings or elastic or whatever, but the actual product is all natural, and that's the component that we really enjoy as well, because the longevity of it— I mean, quilts can last years and years and years if they're taken care of. The same kind of concept with what we make can last years and years and years if you take care of it, right? So in our minds, want to still have it be able to biodegrade to nothing when it is at the end of its life. But we want it to be durable and long-lasting while it does have life. And sourcing— there's a lot of different products out there. There's some synthetic products that are food grade and reusable, which is great. We source a higher quality product, which is this laminated cotton that is food grade. Non-toxic and can actually be put in your compost bin at the end of its life, which is a huge component that we found to be a huge, you know, because we do live in a composting area, it makes sense. But even with people, you know, as these products grow and people realize that they're easy to use and long-lasting and the investment is because there's quality, then I think that that's going to change the ability of what people are using. And then hopefully by that time, composting will also be moving to other areas through like city composting where they can actually take those fibers and break them down to nothing. Like we have Ridwell is another great way to work on, you know, taking our fibers and then they recycle them. So even like our strings and things that we can't use because we try and use every single component, we do have this towards zero waste thing that we do where Ridwell is a company that picks up our strings and little pieces and then they recycle them into new fibers. So that's another component that's super exciting about what we do is because our fibers can be made into something else at some point as well.

Right. So you're able to— what would basically the manufacturing waste, right, the leftover pieces that you can't use, you're able, you're able to recycle those. And give them, give them new life.

You can see I have this bin here and they have, if you're watching the video versus the Audible, all these little scraps that are left over, they're, you know, like an inch or less. They go into this box that Ridwell provides. You put it on, it's like recycling. You put it out on your porch, they pick it up and they turn that into other products. And so it's just kind of like a A closed-loop system where we are using, giving back, and then it's being used to something else. So not only are our products reusable, but a lot of our leftover pieces and any materials that would be at the end of each bolt of fabric or strings or— it's a huge benefit to where we live and being able to have our production in Bellingham in this area is that we can run a business that way. It makes us feel really good and a sustainable business. Because sourcing the kind of materials we use in our products, it really depends on the product. And our whole idea is making products that will last. We don't want to make a product that in 6 months falls apart, and then that is in turn waste, and people are having to buy more things again. And products that can be put in the washer and dryer. So just having that functionality that makes it really simple for people to use and not think about too much. You know, you pull a paper towel off your paper towel roll. That's how our retails work. You just pull it right off, the rest cling together. You don't have to reach in drawers or, you know, it's out there in the open and uses the same function and the same habit. We are just very habitual. And it's really hard to change something. And so having something that is similar to what we're already doing, I think really helps people to use these products. They come back All the time and buy more and say, oh my gosh, I've tried so many things and finally there's something that is easy.

Yes, we have so many repeat customers that come back either to buy more because they want to be able to have some in the laundry and some, you know, some using, or they're buying on behalf of family and friends, which is super exciting because that means that they feel that it was easy for them to use and that they believe in it enough to give it to family and friends as a gift. Because they can use these products easily. And they're made with quality and love and integrity. So I think that speaks volumes. And we have one of our new hires. And she is so sweet. She looks at us and she goes, I just can't believe how many repeat customers we have and what people tell you. You know, they tell you all the reasons and ways that they use things, you know, like all these It's almost like huge hugs of like what you're doing and your purpose is so real and true. And it just, it makes it so exciting to see it through someone else's eyes that is not Stephanie and I, you know, like seeing that joy of like, oh my gosh, you guys are really doing this really well. This is amazing. So that's exciting.

Yeah, that's— I actually wanted to circle back to that on that because you mentioned your own journeys, right? You started and you As you replace one thing, you're like, oh, well, I could use someone else. I could use something else. I could swap something else out. And you kind of answered, but I'd love to dive in a little bit about that customer journey. Like, so you're seeing that, you're seeing that in your customers that this is a slow habit-forming process, basically. Is that like a lot of your customers where they come in for one product? And then that actually works and it does what it's supposed to. And then they get— is that pretty common or do you—

Oh yeah.

How are you—

They'll try one product and then say, well, that was simple, you know, now maybe I can try the tea bags or the coffee filters or a snack bag or something that I'm noticing now that I'm using at home and throwing away, you know, the single-use products. And we do a lot of markets. Most of our business at this point We're at markets, pop-up markets, at makers markets all over the place from here up north close to the Canadian border down to Seattle and surrounding areas. And we split up sometimes 3 or 4 a weekend. And so we're just trying to get our products out to everyone. And we get people that either email us afterwards or they come back and they look for us at all the markets and they'll come back and bring friends and family and Hey, it's Ian here.

So glad you're enjoying this episode of Conscious Design. If you want the full scoop on Conscious Design, what it is, how we do it, how you can do it, then check out our book. We wrote it so creative entrepreneurs like you can code social and environmental responsibility right into your brand's DNA. You can download the first chapter for free. Link is in the description. Enjoy the rest of the episode. Don't forget to like, subscribe, and share. Are you guys seeing a lot of traction? Because you're building, you're building this on like the more local markets. How much is this growing internationally for you guys? Is that—

Yeah, we have products in some other states across the country, um, and different retail shops. So that is, it's as much as we can keep up with at this point. We haven't pushed it to try to get in As many as we could, just there's only the space.

Yeah. And the space. Yeah.

2024 is the year.

That can escalate in a good way very quickly if you get into a chain, even a small chain. And now it's, oh, we need thousands of your products at different stores. It's a whole different level than selling one at a time to customers. So that's great though. That's So you're in stores, you have this growing kind of organically, basically, is what I'm hearing. It's not that you guys haven't pushed, you haven't been like trying to pitch to a whole bunch of stores. It's just been organically growing. And now you're with this new space, you'll be able to expand that.

And I think some— we got really good advice towards the beginning of our journey with this business. We were dropping off products to a new shop. And we had talked about potentially going into a space then that we had looked at and considered. And she really encouraged us. She's a store owner herself. She's actually— they did a lot of markets, and she said, I would really encourage you to get out and work with people face to face, go to a lot of markets, get feedback from your customers so that you know that this can be successful. And so, you know what customers want. We listen to people when they say, is this— could you try making, you know, coffee filters was one, and certain things that they come back to us and ask for. And getting all that feedback helps us to know what the demand is and what people are truly needing in their lives. It's not just us using and thinking about it. It's everyone we're talking to and giving us ideas as well. I just— There's so many things that can be changed in our habits and the things that we use and throw away. It's kind of endless. So it is, but I mean, that feedback has been very helpful.

Yes.

It's so exciting because people are like, well, you'll custom make something. And we're like, at this point we can, I don't know if there's going to be some point where we may not be able to, or it might take a little bit longer, but yeah, I mean, We have listened to so many different customers and repeat customers and re— you know, and they're like, oh my gosh, what about this? And what, you know, and I have this bowl, can you make it this size? And like all kinds of things. And it's just triggered us to try something else and like spread more product types of different things. Our bread pan covers, for instance, there are so many people making breads right now, sourdough starters and everything that happened over the 2020— Mm-hmm.

Pandemic sourdough.

Pandemic. Yeah, exactly.

I feel like it never slowed down though.

I didn't know.

So many people—

There's sourdough everywhere.

Everywhere. And so many people love our bowl covers and our bread pan covers and all these things. And so they're like, oh my gosh. I mean, we haven't even marketed that as these specific niche things only because there's 2 of us trying to make it all. But there's so many people finding us organically and going, oh my gosh, that actually worked for my sourdough so well. I really need more. Or, you know, we just started with a company that's opening a storefront in 2024 on Vancouver Island, and she bought a bunch because she—

Bakes bread.

Bakes bread. And she's going to be selling them at her store because she just recognizes the quality and the longevity of these items that she wants to use. So it's so exciting because she's like, normally I would just use plastic wrap and throw it away, and it always sticks and all these different things. And So it's thrilling to hear the feedback and working on different products because somebody brings it to our attention.

Right. Well, I love that. It's always good to listen to your customers because once you build that relationship, they'll tell you all of their problems. They'll tell you everything that needs to be solved. And it's great. So it sounds like quite a few then of your products are really not necessarily generated by you guys, but really from all this face-to-face time You guys are expanding due to demand, really, instead of just hoping that the product is going to be there. That's awesome. You mentioned something I wanted to dive in a little bit more too, because you— and it was a really good point you brought up of the behavior side, right? And your paper towel example is fantastic because people think, oh, I don't want to open up— like, I don't want to open a sheet. I don't want to have some other experience that I have to learn how to use the product. Because I've been using paper towels since I was born and could grab them, right? Does that— it's a long, lifelong process we've used. Have you come across things as you're going through that where you haven't been able to have a customer have, hey, oh, I want to solve this, but you haven't been able to create a good thing? Is it— have you run across anything where like, I can't recreate the behavior real well? And if How have you addressed that kind of thinking process of achieving that?

That's a good question. There's a couple of products that we've been challenged with, but knowing, you know, in the coming months that we have more space and time to work on them, it's not— some products we get requests for and within a week we have a solution. We do the research on the material and how can we You know, the design. Like Stephanie, I'm not sure if you have anything in mind. I can think of the bread bag. I would say liners, like pads and liners for women. Those are a couple ones that we want to perfect on before we put anything out. You want to make sure you don't want bread to go stale, right? For one.

And after you spend all that time on the sourdough, you can't have it ruined.

No, exactly. Or if you're spending $10 on a loaf of bread, you know, as Like artisan bread or something like that. So it's, yeah, it's finding the right materials and the right design. And we're not going to put something out until we've tested it and made sure that, you know, we'll even give, if there are customers that are requesting something, we'll let them try it out for a while and get the feedback before we were to put it out for sale or add it to our line.

That's great. honest, want to perfect it before we launch it. Because if we don't believe in it, and we can't use it on a day-to-day, that is a problem. That's not how my brain functions. Like, we need to stand behind every single thing that we make. And we need to know that when somebody's using it, it's easy to use, it actually does the job that it's supposed to do. And then even in fun little things, we actually found some other purposes for, you know, for instance, Our snack and sandwich bags are actually really great for cilantro and parsley. And so it's actually, they, it will last 7 to 10 days in your refrigerator and these little bags up to 14 days if it's fresh to the store. And it's really hard to know if it's fresh to the store, but it has happened where we just are blown away by using our products for something else because you just keep thinking outside the box. And when people come to the tent. Where we're selling, they ask, what do you think is a more versatile product in your sandwich and snack line? And, you know, like, I'll explain to them, like, our sandwich wrap, you can actually take it home and use it as a wrap, you could use it for burritos or sandwiches, you could use it for cheese and snacks. But you can also use it as a bowl cover, like flip it over, get a rubber band and put it on whatever lid you need to, you know, instead of the Saran Wrap. So it And people are like, well, you're, you have bowl covers. Why would you tell me that? You're not selling as much. I said, yes, I am actually, because you're gonna use this. You're gonna see how well it works, and then you're gonna come back and get some bowl covers cuz you're like, oh my gosh, that really worked. So trying to have people recognize we want things to work. We want things to be made with consumer confidence, and we do try and perfect our line because we want people to come back and be really happy with the quality. And the investment that they're making.

It's an investment in saving them money if they're reusing it.

Exactly.

In the long run, people are really saving hundreds of dollars. $700, over $700 in 3 years just on the retails alone because of how much money people spend on single-use products, whether it be Costco or all the monthly, weekly basis. So yeah, and back to your question about The challenges with some of the products or coming out with something new or not being able to answer or solve somebody's problem. There may be things that we can never reuse. I would say there is a funny one, there's reusable toilet paper. And so even the things that you think you wouldn't ever want to reuse, people want it. There is a demand for certain things, especially like with toilet paper. If you have a bidet, that became something that we're getting repeat requests for. And in my head I'm like, oh, that's something I couldn't do. That's— I won't cross that line. But then, you know, you have a bidet and it's really like drying, and it's just these things that start to become more normal in your head the more you're exposed to it and the more you're around it. You know, if you're going to go to a different country, you might be exposed to things that are different than— or even state to state— than what you're used to in your own surroundings. And then once you get used to the idea, it becomes— doable. So our goal is to solve customer problems. Sometimes there might be times when we can't, but we will really try our best. Even if it takes us a year or 2 to perfect it and find the right materials, it will last for years and work. And that's our mission.

Well, I love that. I think it's great that you haven't come across anything yet. I feel like most of it's solvable. Maybe there'll be something. But I just love that you're willing to tackle it. You're willing to go, oh, well, Sure, we got a request for this odd thing. Let's try it. Because I think there's a lot of times those ideas get dismissed, right? It's, oh, it's too out there. And so nobody explores it and really figures out, wait, could we actually do that? Is that doable? And that's, you know, there's so many examples of products that people will go, it would never sell. Like, there's no way. And then it explodes. It just grows more because then you realize, oh no, there are actually a lot of people that want that.

If we can't make it, maybe we know somebody who could. And being in this business, you're really networking and reaching or meeting a lot of other people who are passionate about making sustainable products. I mean, your podcast alone has interviewed so many incredible businesses, just, it blows my mind. And so I even want to make a list of everybody you've interviewed and what they do, just in case like something were to come up and maybe we send people to talk to somebody else in this world, in this business that uses materials or a kind of production that we aren't capable of.

Yeah, I think that's part of— and it's part of why I made the podcast is there's so many really good ideas out there, like what you guys are doing, right? There's— but sometimes it's easy to feel like, oh, we're the only, or this is small, or it's— this has been such a grassroots type of change and shift, right? It's not that Procter Gamble didn't walk in and go, we've fixed it. Here's all the sustainable product line done. They like, no, you know, nobody dumped a few billion dollars in R&D all at once and just solved it. It's been this very slow, from '60s, '70s time, right? It's been decades of building here. And so I think sometimes it's easy I even talked to other startups that are just like, oh, there's not very— it seems really small, like it's popular but small, and not really realizing just how many innovative companies there are doing this. And so I think there's part of the podcast is to help people realize that there's— now we've hit— we've kind of started to hit this critical mass level where you can— there are— there is actually a network. You got to go find them. But there is a network of people that are solving all kinds of problems, new materials, new— and there's— I feel like I read about some new material at least every week, and I'm not actively doing it, I'm just like perusing because I enjoy it. So it's— there's a lot happening. So it's great that they're out there in this mentality that you have of, oh well, if I can't do it, we'll find somebody else. Somebody else is probably solving it. And that's It's great to see that as it grows because that's how the whole industry is starting to shift. The attention is now grabbed of those billion-dollar R&D budgets as this has grown. So—

Absolutely. And I think that it's so exciting that it's actually happening because so many people say, well, I'm only one. But you know what? Everyone is one. And if we band together to make these changes, We are a force of one. Each individual person making small changes in their home, it can be a huge impact as we move forward. We really can make a difference. It's not— we are not just one, we are a force of one. That's what it is. And you just have to keep believing that you can make a difference. And however small it is, you're trying your hardest. And I think that that's a huge feat in and of itself. You know, I grew up in a town where I was kind of like, you're so eco-friendly, that doesn't make any sense. You know, like the world's gonna die anyway. Like, what's the point? Or like, that doesn't make sense. It's just all hogwash. You're just making it up. And I'm like, okay. And then I came out here and I'm like, everybody, like, this is my—

It's like another planet.

Space for me to feel normal. And now this movement is becoming bigger and bigger. So it's just like so exciting. And I really feel like even if you live in a community that doesn't think that it's going to happen or it's going to make a difference, but you know that it will, just know your passion is real and that there are people that are really pushing hard to help support those ideas and coming up with new products and coming up with new materials and working together to solve problems. I think that it's amazing.

Yeah, be that person that is going to start the change in your area.

Right? It's okay to be first.

It is. It's great to be first.

Well, amazing. Now, kind of looking next year, I know we touched on a little bit. You guys are getting your space. You guys are expanding. You have a lot of products already. I know you. I'm sure you have a backlog of product ideas you're working on in the back. What's in the next few years for you guys? Where are you trying to go and build this out?

We definitely want to see our products go coast to coast and continue to expand coast to coast. To get more people in this mindset of reusing would be great. And yeah, we'll have our space, we'll have more people to help us make products and do more markets. We definitely want to stick with markets because we just— they're fun. First of all, and they're just such a blast to talk to people and meet new people and customers. So continue doing that.

I think it's great that you guys want to continue that because that is one of the things you start to lose that customer touchpoint. It gets harder, right? Because some of your— a lot of your products, right, they come from those, probably those conversations and people being able to come up and actually talk to you. You can't do that with most big brands, right? You can't walk up to Johnson Johnson and talk to them about their product or give them feedback. It's, it's really— they do get feedback, but it's really hard to get that. It's not as spur of the moment as somebody just going, oh, I saw you, I'm going to tell you now about how I want reusable toilet paper. Like, that's not, not going to happen in other, other scenarios. So I love that you guys are wanting to keep that as part of your business. Are you guys— and you mentioned you haven't really been pushing towards box stores and those kinds of things. Is that something that you guys are wanting to go as well? Or are you going to stay— some people like direct-to-consumer, that works really well, kind of. Which— you guys wanting to do both? Like really grow both?

We really want to grow both. I think the in-person sales or even having People that are working with us, they see the product, they understand it, they have a really great ability to touch it and feel it. And it's not just selling to other places. So that component, I think, is really valuable. And then the big box stores or even the small co-ops and things, our goals are to get into bigger stores and just even small little boutiques. I just feel like people are recognizing more of the locally made or local meaning US-made ideas and product lines that can be built here and then share them with the entire country. I mean, we are even in places in Europe right now just because of our customer base. They love our products so much. They know that these people in other countries are already using similar type things but love the quality that we have. So they're even sending them overseas. So I feel like it's That's awesome. It's not even like coast to coast on the US borders. It's coast to coast all around the world. I mean, because if you find a— and I'm not saying that our company is going to be that, but I'm just saying like the growth aspect of what a quality product looks like and how people can use a reusable product is so important that I want these kinds of things to be All over, because then it will break down that single-use throwaway waste. So next few years, it'll be really interesting. You know, we're going to be getting on some different online resources. We'll be definitely opening up our brand to bigger stores and more boutiques, and just really, after being able to have a space, just we'll be able to push our products with more. Confidence because we will have help instead of just the two of us sewing and serging everything ourselves and being—

And running the business.

And running the business.

Half of the work is actually managing the business itself. So wearing a lot of hats right now.

Yeah, it's a big shift and one, a really important one when you want to be a business and not just maybe a successful hobby is transitioning to be able to work on the business, right? It's. If you're busy sewing everything yourself, there's not much time to think about expanding the business, running the business, growing that. So it's great that you guys are— you've gotten there. You've gotten to where you're able to start moving some of that off and go, all right, let's, let's focus on the business. Let's really grow that side of things. I wouldn't sell yourself short. Maybe you guys will be that big company that ends up taking over the world with reusable products. There's all kinds of other big companies have come out of the Seattle area, right?

Yeah, right.

Serious. Why not?

Why not be another one? Let's do it. So that's amazing. Well, just to— as we're wrapping up, I want to make sure give you one opportunity to add anything else that you want to make sure you mention for anyone listening, and then also for People that are wanting to find you guys, buy your products, what's the best way to find you guys and reach out?

Our websites, you can find all the information, you can find all of our products and find out if you are local where we will be at markets, retail shops, and how to reach out to us. It is C, the letter C, the number 2, C. So C2C Sustainables. And we're on Instagram at C2C Sustainables and Facebook. So we do a lot of posting about, you know, what we're coming out with, where we'll be, how to use our products.

We have little QRs and tutorials on our products to help, you know, if you can't be at a market and hear the whole spiel of how to use something, we do have a wonderful QR code tutorial on each of our products to be able to have that easy video to show show you how to do it, which makes it really— makes things stand out because people are— they ask us questions. Well, I couldn't figure out how to do this, or somebody started to cut some of our threads on one of our sandwich bags. And we're like, wait, no, no, no, that was actually made correctly. This is how you do it. So that customer feedback created this whole other purpose of QR codes as to, wow, we could do this to help alleviate some of that. How do I do this? How am I going to make this a change out in my life?

Mm-hmm.

We just try and make it as easy as possible for everyone because we recognize the other side of it, how it actually is user-friendly and easy to use. And then the component that we really enjoy is the long-lasting lifecycle of what we make. So that is something that I think is a huge thing just with the QR and being able to see a little tutorial video is Great.

I love that. I think it's so important, especially when you're— even if you're changing a habit in small ways, to just have that video. Video is great. Just show that, hey, here's all you need to do. It's easy. This is— but it's just seeing, seeing a normal person do it and go, okay, I can, I can do that. I can copy the video. That's doable. I think that's great. I love, love that you include that for everyone that needs a little guidance in using something. It was a great idea. So, well, thank you so much for taking some time to chat. Love what you guys are doing. This has been great. Hopefully people will be finding you, you'll expand your reach. I love that you're already in Europe, you know, not just the US. So congratulations on all that. I'm excited to see what 2024 brings you guys with having space to actually expand. It's very exciting. And yeah, I really just appreciate you taking the time to share what you're doing and your journey.

Thank you, Ian, for having us. Thank you.

Hey there. Thanks for joining us for this episode. I hope that you're enjoying the content we're putting out. If you're looking for more ways to learn about this, to get involved, create your own consciously designed products, there's a couple of ways that you can do that. First is our book, Conscious Design, which you'll find a link to in the description of this episode. Please check that out. Go over quite a bit of information, what the process is, how I've applied it to product design, and some really great examples of companies out there that are doing really great work, some of whom you have seen on this podcast. The other way is our course, 4 Weeks to Launch, where I peel back the curtain on how to develop a products start to finish in a way that can create positive impact rather than any negative ones. So please check that out. That is a great resource that will also be linked in the description as well. And see you in the next one.