What’s the story behind Petal and how did you come up with the name?
The idea for Petal started with a simple frustration while attempting to wash my hands. The foaming soap container at my bathroom vanity was empty. I went to try my wife’s side and she was also out. While I was finally washing my hands in our guest bathroom I looked down at the two empty plastic bottles that I was about to carry to the kitchen to refill and thought that there must be an easier way. I mentioned this to a friend and they said jokingly - I wish there were laundry pods for hand soap. And Petal was born.
The origins of the name Petal: A flower gets its color and scent from its petals. Petals are also part of an ongoing, sustainable cycle of pollination and regrowth that happens organically without human intervention. We hoped to emulate that in our brand 🌎.
Tell us more about your commitment to sustainability and reusability.
At Petal, everything we ship is reusable, recyclable or consumable - we commit to zero-waste. This was a very difficult process as there were many shortcuts we could have taken to get to market faster or easily cut costs to drive higher profits, but in the end that wasn’t our goal. I am very proud of Petal and what it stands for - and I hope that pride shines through our products for our customers who use it everyday.
What do you find most challenging about being sustainable?
Misinformation. That is what I love so much about Hive. They do all of the hard work and fact checking for their customers making sure you can feel good about your purchase. The Hive Five score is genius and very difficult to obtain.
Has anything surprised you about your journey/success?
How helpful and supportive the sustainable products community has been to us along our journey. I have made so many new friends who have happily shared lessons learned and growth hacks - even competitors. Hive is no exception.
What excited you most about the opportunity to partner with Hive?
Joining an honest and caring ecosystem of like-minded brands, really smart business minds and planet loving customers. Being an independent brand is super exciting, but terribly difficult. Hive has offered us a new way to share our story with many more potential customers than we could have reached on our own. The ability to also bundle our product with so many wonderful brands making it easier to shop for everything you need in one place is a game changer for our business.
Tell us about one thing on your mind right now either environmentally or socially.
From the beginning, Petal’s goal was to inspire sustainable changes - one hand wash at a time. I still think this is an important approach as we all continue to look for more planet friendly options. A sustainable lifestyle can seem daunting (and even painful) when you are just getting started. But it doesn’t have to be. My family has started cooking more at home and have moved to more sustainable food preservation options such as reusable containers instead of single use, plastic bags. We also just purchased an electric car for my work commuting. And I love it!
My goal was to start with small changes that I repeat everyday and grow from there. And hopefully these changes will inspire others along the way.
Want to explore more from Petal? Check out their aluminum dispensers and soap refills here.