Winter is just around the corner and here at Nourish Beauty Box, we’re fully prepared for all those chapped lips and dry, itch-prone skins. The entire team here is delighted to welcome Plants Matter’s 100% vegan and super hydrating Plant Butter. We also managed to dig a little deeper into the brand and all that goes on behind the scenes. Judith is a remarkable woman who does everything on her own and this has imprinted her love into every single aspect of her business. Here’s how she does it…
Tell me a little about yourself, your brand and how you got started
“My name is Judith Bannerman-Quist, and I have a healthy obsession for all things natural!”
For as long as I can remember, I’ve secretly harbored the dream of starting my own natural skincare brand. As someone who has suffered from extremely dry skin since childhood, the aspiration to having smooth, well-nourished and moisturized skin quickly turned into an obsession! One, which has stayed with me throughout the years, and has eventually led to the birth of Plants Matter.
While dreaming up the company, my goal was to create a premium, all-natural plant-based skincare line, which would bring together, simple and purely natural ingredients like herbs, spices, butters and mushrooms together, in order to create the ultimate beauty product.
“As a lover of plants and all things natural, I truly believe and have come to experience, that nature has the best recipe for our skincare!”
Prior to officially starting Plants Matter 2017, I was a graduate student at the Union Theological Seminary in NY, where I studied spirituality and Inter-religious engagement. Immediately after I graduated from seminary, I knew the time had finally come for me to breathe life into my dream. So I jumped right into it, since I already had years of experience of making my own skincare products underneath my belt.
“For now, Plants Matter is a small company and I am the founder, creator, financial officer, marketing officer, distributing officer etc…You get the point? I’m having to do it all by myself for now, as I still search for ways to continue to sustain and fund this dream.”
You mentioned ‘dreams’ before so I have to ask what are your aspirations with your brand?
Our mission is to create premium and high quality plant-based beauty products, which would help people achieve their ultimate skin beauty, without compromising their health. We do not use harmful toxins and ingredients which are largely found in major skincare and beauty brands. For me, I think the brand mission is fulfilled each time I hear about how my carefully handcrafted products are changing someone’s skin and life.
What’s the story behind the name of your brand?
The name Plants Matter came to me, because I wanted the name to be a statement, which reflected my belief, and the spirit of the product.
“My hope is that, once a person uses and experiences the power of our products, they’ll come to appreciate natural ingredients and see, especially plants, in a whole new light.”
So my products are really for people who are interested in the green and natural beauty movement.
“Basically, I want to reach people who are becoming conscious of what they’re putting in, and onto their bodies. People looking for simple and quality beauty products without all the extra toxins and overpricing.”
It is clearly important to you to create products as natural as possible. Where do you get the fresh ingredients from?
I source my herbs directly from a biodynamic farm upstate NY, whenever the farming and growing season is in session. Otherwise, I find reputable farmers around the country to source from.
For me, my creation process is somewhat of a spiritual one, so I’d like to say divine inspiration guides me in choosing ingredients and in my creative & production process.
What were the major challenges you faced while trying to bring your dreams to reality?
Coming up with the money to fund the production and marketing of Plants Matter has been the biggest of my obstacles, and one of my continuous struggles. Unfortunately, I can’t say I’ve fully overcome this phase, but I’m working hard at it.
“I guess if you start a new business the most important thing would be to always have funds. Raise money, find money, save money or, just have some money before you decide to start, because being cash strapped is not fun!”
I jumped straight into starting this business with only a $1000 in savings, and financially, it’s been tough. Having sufficient cash is always nice when you want to start whatever business you want to start, because as the saying goes… “You need money to make money”!
I strongly recommend your subscribers to visit my website at Plantsmatter.shop. It’s the best place to find all my products and to stay in touch and be updated on new and pending products and find cheeky discount codes!