The Indie Beauty Shop
Sustainable beauty in
Luisanna's project
Ciao Luisanna, benvenuta ad Easy Travel Hosting! Creatrice di "The Indie Beauty Shop", ci potresti parlare di questo tuo progetto, di come nasce e di dove vorresti arrivasse?
Hello and thank you for your invitation!
The passion for the world of cosmetics has been with me since I was a child, even though I have been involved in something completely different in my life! I was born as a graphic designer, and then evolved into the marketing sector. I have worked for many companies in the most disparate sectors, from jewellery, to clothing, to nautical and even a very technical field such as industrial hydraulics!
At a certain point in my journey I had lost the passion for my work and I started thinking about what job I really wanted to do. It wasn't a decision taken on the spot, I studied, developed a feasibility plan and a business plan.
Everything was ready for the end of 2017. Unfortunately, in January 2018 my father became ill and passed away the following month. Here I had my first sudden setback. I decided to pause work because my priorities had changed: I needed time to put my life back in order and take care of myself and my loved ones.
Although it profoundly affected me, I continued to keep informed, read and study. It is precisely thanks to reading, especially the foreign press, that I realized that I was not on the right path for my job.
When I felt ready I got my hands back on my project and overturned everything I had thought of. The period of hiatus I took helped me see things from another perspective and gave me the opportunity to correct the conception I had of the beauty world.
On 21 February 2020 I opened my VAT number: it is a symbolic date for me, the following day would have been the second anniversary of my father's passing. And this is how I wanted to celebrate my rebirth!
After 9 months of intense work – made more challenging by the various lockdowns – The Indie Beauty Shop went online: my passion transformed into a business!
Cosmetics are not frivolity or pure vanity: they are a way of taking care of ourselves, just think of the simple gesture of applying a cream.
It's the most personal and relaxing thing you can do.
This is my goal: to help people discover – or rediscover – the pleasure of dedicating quality time to themselves and making sure they are happy doing it!
La parola "Indie", ossia indipendente, caratterizza i prodotti che vendi sul tuo shop. In questi ultimi anni, complice anche la pandemia, si è notato un fiorire di giovani brand indipendenti creati da piccoli imprenditori. Sta cambiando qualcosa nel panorama lavorativo?
Independence is my lifestyle, not only on a professional level. This is where the name The Indie Beauty Shop came from.
Many things have changed in the world of work in recent years, even before the pandemic.
I speak from personal experience, I have had many experiences which I have nevertheless treasured and which have led me to think on various fronts.
The difficulty in finding a job, partly because generational turnover seems to be one of the major obstacles, partly because in Italy many businesses are family-run and it is rather difficult to get into them, I believe has pushed many people to create an opportunity for themselves.
Because starting and managing a business - whether it goes well or not - is a learning experience, which also helps you see the world from another perspective.
It's not the classic job where you have to clock in at 9am and then at 6pm (if all goes well) but a continuous stimulus and greater flexibility of thought too.
Another aspect not to be underestimated is the classic phrase "we have always done it this way”.
I've heard it said so many times that I've lost count and I think it's one of the reasons that pushes people to distance themselves from these types of contexts.
The desire to get involved, being able to create something from scratch and try to be part of the change are all factors that, from my point of view, are decisive in this life choice.
One aspect that we really like about your business is the choice of sustainable products. We imagine there is a long research behind this choice, could you tell us about it?
I wanted products that were different from those usually found in perfumeries and other e-shops. We are all so used to using so many things that we don't notice how much environmental impact they can have.
I have chosen companies that work in an ethical and as ecological way as possible. Both as a method of processing raw materials and as packaging.
I often wondered how I could dispose of the cosmetic bottles I used and I was always quite in difficulty. This pushed me to look for materials such as glass or paper, so that I could simplify the life of those who decided to buy from my shop.
Some products are "zero waste" so as not to have problems with disposal. Others are "waterless" precisely with a view to raising awareness towards the countless waste of water we see every day. Still others are multi-use, still suitable for the needs of your skin.
Even the choice of packaging for my shipments is the result of careful research: I use recycled cardboard boxes, the adhesive tape is made of paper with a water-based glue and I chose corn starch balls, completely biodegradable, to protect the goods from possible impacts during transport.
I also created a thank you card for those who place an order from me, it is made of plantable paper, with wildflower seeds, so in a short time you get a beautiful flowering vase!
No less important, there is another aspect that is fundamental in my choices: people!
In recent months I have met each of the founders of the brands 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 the love for your work is one of the most beautiful feelings there can be.
Let me explain: if I am contacted by a person (owner of a brand or a sales person) who only tries to sell products, without a minimum level of involvement, he will never convince me to close the deal.
What does it mean? Each of my products seems to have a soul to be discovered and a story to tell: if it doesn't make me dream, how could I convey these sensations to my customers?
Opening a business in Italy, as we know, is not a simple thing. In addition to the bureaucratic difficulties, can you tell us about the path in realizing your project?
I faced bureaucratic difficulties – and I do it every day - with the help of my accountant, who patiently guided me in many situations, from choosing the tax regime to developing my business plan, just to name a few.
He taught me a lot, including how to navigate the Revenue Agency website to make all the payments during the year!
It is not only the "tax issues" that have given me many thoughts, but also the legislative aspects on the topic of cosmetics.
Cosmetic legislation is very complex, for this reason I hired a consultancy company expert in cosmetovigilance: it supported me in choosing and checking each of the suppliers I have in the shop.
Although I am not what is called a Responsible Person - to put it simply, it is someone who is legally responsible for everything that concerns the products placed on the market - for me it is about being able to have greater serenity in my choices, precisely because I am 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 border on unfair competition.
Such as "not tested on animals" - animal testing has been prohibited in Europe for a good decade - or "without toxic ingredients": any cosmetic regularly introduced on our market cannot for any reason have toxic components, otherwise it could not be marketed.
Last but not least, the process of designing my website.
At the end of spring 2020 I contacted a very good developer who managed to translate my thoughts and the philosophy of my shop into what is my ecommerce. We spent many hours on video calls, to be able to define every single detail: from the choice of color palette to the font, the type of photo and which contents were important to insert and how to do it.
I purposely chose a man who had never dealt with the beauty sector: I wanted an approach and a point of view different from mine, above all because he would have made me notice things that I probably could have taken for granted. I wanted every person who chose to visit my site to be able to perceive the attention to detail and at the same time find useful information to be able to choose the products.
As you know, Easy Travel Hosting uses renewable and eco-sustainable energy to power its servers. Furthermore, a tree is planted for each new hosting, actively helping reforestation and the absorption of CO2. What do you think of this project and in general, do you think it is important to seek a more sustainable lifestyle?
I think it is 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, capable of reducing the environmental impact and contributing to supporting the Guatemalan population.
Sustainability does not only mean having environmental issues at heart, but also all the processes connected to them: people, raw materials, the entire production chain, just to name a few.
In my own small way I learned to pay attention to the little things.
For example, I 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 I don't have to book collection for just a few orders.
I don't compulsively buy everything I like, even clothing, but I also pay more attention to the origin of what I wear. I rediscovered the pleasure of taking advantage of my mother and my aunts' wardrobe: I was lucky enough to wear the same size!
Easy Travel Hosting thanks Luisanna very much for taking part in our interview for the column dedicated to Small Business for Women.
If you want more information, you can follow her on her website by clicking here.
And on social media too!
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