Everist founders Jayme Jenkins and Jessica Stevenson have perfected a brand-new way to keep tons of plastic out of the hair-care industry, and it starts with a squeezy aluminum tube. The resulting Waterless Shampoo Concentrate and Waterless Conditioner Concentrate provide just as much product as a regular bottle of shampoo or conditioner condensed into a 100-mL container. It’s a significant first step towards revolutionizing the beauty industry from the inside-out.
Jenkins and Stevenson tasked themselves with creating a business that removed the plastic and unnecessary waste products from the equation, added environmental accountability to the manufacturing process, and ultimately delivered a great beauty product to consumers.
To learn more, Mandy Gardner sat them both down for an interview!
Did you know from the start that you wanted to change shampoo, or did it take a few trials and conversations to get there?
Nope, not at all. We wanted to change the beauty industry and move it away from single-use plastic, but we didn’t know exactly where to start. We were inspired by a trend seen in other sectors (specifically, home cleaning) – concentrated, waterless products. Within beauty, hair-care made the most sense as a starting point since traditional shampoos contain over 70% water and are packed in large single-use plastic bottles, but even from there, it took hundreds of formulas to get it right.
How difficult was it to find suppliers within North America that could produce what you envisioned?
It was difficult to find any suppliers that were up for the challenge! When you are making something that’s never been done before, it’s a very iterative process (there are no benchmarks), and there is no guarantee of success at the end. We were fortunate to find an excellent local partner who believed in our vision and was willing to take a chance on us.
How is your Cap Back Upcycle Program going?
We’ve just started shipping the product so obviously, no cap returns yet, but there has been great engagement from our customers and media around it. We’re keen to see what percentage of customers return their caps and are excited to work on the upcycling plans to ensure these caps have a second life.
Has anything changed for your business during the pandemic? Are there any permanent takeaways you have from the odd market conditions of the past year?
Although our journey began before, Everist was really born during COVID, so for us, this is business as usual. We had always planned a remote-first work environment, so that hasn’t changed. We experienced some COVID-19-related supply chain delays even with our local model, as so many have, but happy that our small waterless concentrates are perfect for e-commerce before brick-and-mortars reopen. We are also encouraged to see how having some time to reflect has given people a renewed interest in conscious shopping and sustainable solutions. It would be nice for us to grab a glass of wine together though – that we miss!
Are you getting ready to add more products to the Everist line, or would you prefer to focus on the shampoo and conditioner that you’ve already created?
Yes, many new products are already in the works. Our innovation strategy is really to be ‘cross-category in beauty and personal care. What are the essential products that you really need in your routine where we can make eco easier? Watch this space!
Author: Mandy Gardner, Content Writer, Toronto, Canada. If you have any stories or comments, kindly email: –smandylouise@gmail.com
