GL: Tell us a little bit more about developing the brand?
CT: It took me two years to do the branding, working with a creative director to really hone it. I love what Glossier has done with the beauty world and I feel like there’s no one like that in wellness. There are culty brands but I felt this was missing. In fashion, a lot of people don’t know what CBD is, or they don’t want to talk about it, because they think it’s taboo like drugs, so I’m trying to educate that world, show them how it works and the health benefits.
GL: What kind of products have you created?
CT: We’re just doing CBD because that’s legal nationwide; we have CBD pre-rolls, body salve for muscle pain and period cramps, and a candle. I’m creating a world I want everyone to be part of, with the candle that’s not strictly CBD but we’ve been working with a candlemaker. It’s going to be called Venus and will be presented in a glass tumbler with the green goddess on it – the glass can be reused afterwards too. It won’t be branded with our name, it’s designed to be collectable. We’re also making CBD vegan gummies too.
GL: Has it been daunting to launch a brand right now?
CT: We were slated to launch in fall but we had some delays and so we launched March 7th. I had some really good advice from a friend to not launch too fast or too much and that’s really helped. We run it from home so there’s low overheads and I’m taking it slow. We’ve done some giveaways of totes and free body salve. I write handwritten notes in the packages too. My goal is to get people talking about CBD and its health benefits. People say it helps with sleep or chronic pain which is great.
GL: Back to your style- it’s not always conventionally pretty or overstyled- can you talk a bit more about your aesthetic?
CT: My life isn’t perfect, so I don’t dress perfect all the time. I want it to feel really personal. In the beginning, I was into the blogger ID with a perfect background but that was eight years ago and it burned out. Instagram is more casual now, but even if it wasn’t it would be too much for me.