The Indie Beauty Shop
Sustainable beauty in
Luisanna project
Hi Luisanna, Welcome to Easy Travel hosting! Creator of "The Indie Beauty Shop", You could talk about your project, how it was born and where you would like to arrive?
Hello and thanks for your invitation!
The passion for the world of cosmetics has accompanied me since I was a child, even if in my life I dealt with anything else! Nasco come graphic designer, To then evolve in the marketing sector. I worked for many companies of the most disparate sectors, from jewelry, to clothing, nautical and even a very technical area such as that of industrial hydraulics!
At a certain point in my journey I had lost my passion for my job and I started thinking about which job I really wanted to do. It was not a decision made on two feet, I studied, Elaborated a feasibility plan and a business plan.
Everything was ready for the end of the 2017. In January of 2018 Unfortunately my father fell ill and in the following month he passed away. Here I had the first brusque setback. I decided to pause the work because my priorities had changed: I needed time to be able to redo order in my life and take care of me and my affections.
Despite having deeply marked me, I continued to keep me informed, to read and study. It is thanks to reading, especially of the foreign press, that I realized I am not on the right path for my work.
When I felt ready I put my hands back on my project and I distorted everything I had thought. The stop period that I took helped me to see things from another perspective and gave me the opportunity to correct the conception I had of the beauty world.
Il 21 February of 2020 I opened my VAT number: It is a symbolic date for me, The next day would have been the second anniversary of my father's disappearance. And that's how I wanted to celebrate my rebirth!
After 9 months of intense work - made more demanding by the various Lockdown - The Indie Beauty Shop went online: My passion transformed into a company!
Cosmetics are not frivolities or pure vanity: They are a way of taking care of us, Just think of the simple gesture of spreading a cream.
This is the most personal and relaxing one can do.
This is my goal: help people discover - or rediscover - the pleasure of dedicating themselves of quality time and making sure that they are happy to do it!
The word "Indie", that is independent, characterizes the products you sell on your shop. In recent years, Also thanks to the pandemic, A flourishing of young independent brands created by small entrepreneurs has been noticed. Something is changing in the work landscape?
Independence is my lifestyle, not only on a professional level. It is from here that the name The indie beauty shop is born.
In recent years many things have changed in the world of work, already before the pandemic.
I speak from personal experience, I had many experiences that I still treasured and led me to think about various fronts.
The difficulty in finding employment, in part because the generational change seems to be one of the greatest obstacles, in part because in Italy many realities are familiar and it is rather difficult to be able to enter it, I think he pushed many people to create an opportunity alone.
Because starting and managing a company - that is fine or not - is a training experience, which also helps to see the world from another perspective.
It is not the classic use in which a tag you have to stamp at 9 in the morning and then at 18 (If all goes well) but a continuous stimulus and greater flexibility also of thought.
Another aspect not to be underestimated is the classic sentence "We have always done like this”.
I heard it say so many times that I have lost account and I think it is one of the reasons that pushes people to move away from this kind of contexts.
The desire to get involved, being able to make something from scratch and try to be part of the change are all factors that, from my point of view, They are decisive in this choice of life.
One aspect that we really like about your business is the choice of sustainable products. Imagine there is a long search behind this choice, You could talk about it?
I wanted products other than those who are usually found in perfumeries and other e-shops. We are all so used to using many things, that we do not pay attention to how much environmental impact they can have.
I chose reality that work ethically and as ecological as possible. Both as a method of processing raw materials, che come packaging.
I often wondered how I could dispose of the bottles of the cosmetics that I used and I was always rather in difficulty. This prompted me to look for materials such as glass or paper, so you can simplify life to those who decide to buy from my shop.
Some products are "zero waste" so as not to have problems in disposal. Others are "waterless" precisely with a view to raising awareness of the innumerable waste of water that we see every day. Still others are multi use, however suitable for the needs of one's skin.
The choice of packaging for my shipments is also the result of careful research: Use recycled cardboard boxes, The adhesive tape is of paper with a water -based glue and I chose the corn starch balls, completely biodegradable, To protect the goods from possible impacts, last transport.
I also made a thank you ticket for those who place an order from me, it is in maps, with field flowers seeds, So in a short time you get a nice flowery vase!
No less important, There is another aspect that is fundamental in my choices: people!
In recent months I have known each of the founders of the brands that I have selected and I can perceive how much commitment and passion there is in the development of their products.
I have worked for many years and being able to feel love for your job is one of the most beautiful sensations that can be there.
Let me explain: If I am contacted by a person (Owner of a brand or a commercial clerk) who only tries to sell the products, without a minimum of involvement, He will never convince me to conclude the deal.
What does it mean? Each of my products is as if it had a soul to be discovered and a story to tell: if it doesn't make me dream, How I could transmit these sensations to my customers?
Open a business in Italy you know, It is not a simple thing. In addition to the bureaucratic difficulties, You can talk about the path in the realization of your project?
I faced the bureaucratic difficulties – And I do it every day - with the help of my accountant, that patiently guided me in many situations, From the choice of the tax regime to the development of my business plan just to name a few.
He taught me a lot, Including to extricate myself on the Revenue Agency website to make all payments in the course of the year!
They are not only the "tax issues" that have given me many thoughts, But also the legislative aspects on the cosmetic theme.
Cosmetic legislation is very complex, For this reason I have taken on an expert consultancy firm in cosmetovigilance: supported me in choosing and controlling each of the suppliers I have in the shop.
Although I am not the one who is called a responsible person - to put it in a few words, it is those who take charge of everything related to the products placed on the market - for me it is a question of having greater serenity in my choices, precisely because they are in direct contact with the suppliers and there are no distributors who take on certain responsibilities.
The way of communicating is also important: There are some expressions that could be misleading and that are shaking unfair competition.
As for example "not tested on animals" - for a abundant decade that experimentation on animals has been prohibited in Europe - or "without toxic ingredients": Each cosmetic regularly introduced into our market cannot for any reason to have toxic components, otherwise it could not be marketed.
Sweet to the bottom, The process of creating my website.
At the end of the spring of 2020 I contacted a very good developer who managed to translate my thoughts and the philosophy of my shop in what is my ecommerce. We spent many hours in video call, In order to define every single detail: from the choice of the color palette to the character, to the type of photos and what content were important to insert and how to do it.
I chose a man who had never dealt with the beauty sector: I wanted an approach and a different point of view from mine, above all because it would have made me note things that I probably could take for granted. I wanted every person who chose to visit my site could perceive the attention to detail and that at the same time he found useful information to be able to choose the products.
As Easy Travel Hosting will know, use renewable and eco-sustainable energy to power your servers. A tree is also planted for each new hosting, actively helping the reforestation and absorption of CO2. What do you think of this project and in general, Do you think it is important to search for a more sustainable lifestyle?
I think it's an ambitious and important project. Not everyone is aware of the fact that the Internet can also be polluting, but that there are solutions, Like those you propose, able to reduce the environmental impact and contribute to the support of the Guatemalan population.
Sustainability does not only mean having environmental issues at heart, but also all the processes connected to them: people, The Matterie Prime, The entire production chain, Just to name a few.
In my little one I learned to pay attention to the little things.
For example work from home, In the splendid setting of the Lucca hills, So as not to have to use the car every day, But only if I really need it.
I ship a couple of times a week, so as not to have to book the withdrawal only for a few orders.
I don't compulsively buy everything I like, also of clothing, But soon more attention also to the origin of what I wear. I rediscovered the pleasure of taking advantage of my mom and aunts' closet: the luck of bringing the same size!
Easy Travel Hosting thanks a lot Luisanna for participating in our interview for the address book dedicated to Small female entrepreneurship.
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