RAW TALES GIVES READERS AN INSIGHT LOOK INTO VEGAN COMPANIES AND THE INDIVIDUALS BEHIND THE BRAND. WE ASKED OUR FEATURES TO BE RAW AND TRANSPARENT IN SHARING THEIR CHALLENGES, SUCCESS, AND THE PASSION THAT CONTINUES TO DRIVE THEIR BUSINESS.
We would gladly like to introduce Maddieloos, which was created out of love for her mom so she didn’t have to use chemicals on her body after breast cancer.
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO START YOUR COMPANY?
My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer – she is doing great, (she runs 5 miles a day) she is amazing & brave!! When she was healing from her surgery, she was applying some deodorant and I thought – Hey, I really don’t like that she is putting deodorant (with all the chemicals, and by the way, do they test on animals?) over an area that she just had surgery on – and that those chemicals could seep into her body – I’m not a doctor, but it seemed logical and I thought, “If I don’t eat meat, why would I want a non-vegan product, along with all the chemicals, absorbing into my body?”So I started researching like crazy. And I found a great homemade deodorant recipe.-SURPRISE!! It worked BETTER then what I was using ( sorry..”.name brand product” ) – and I knew exactly what was going into making it – & my mom loved it! So then I figured.- what about facial creams & body butter? So I researched herbs and all the wonderful things they can do for our skin. Then I researched all the ingredients that are vegan and organic, that I could use to make the lotion and facial cream, .and I came up with some recipes. At first I made, literally, GALLONS OF GOO! Then after days of trial and error, I made lotion! Now my FAVOURITE thing to make is body butter, facial creams and lotions! GO FIGURE!
WHAT PRODUCT DO YOU OFFER?
I make all natural, vegan, cruelty-free, organic body care products! Shampoos, conditioners, men & womens shaving items, colognes, perfumes, lotions, butters, facial creams, sunscreen facial creams and body butters, scrubs, masks, cleanser, lip balms -and so much more – MaddieLoos is always growing and changing -.but never compromising on making healthy vegan beauty products. We offer WELL OVER 100 unique fragrances (No Alcohol-No DPG-No Phthalates-No Nitro Musk & Cruelty-Free) that you can choose from, for lots of products… solid perfume, roll on perfume, body spritz & spray on perfumes and colognes for both men & women.I use certified organic ingredients, 99% of the time. And if it isn’t certified, it’s all natural, and ALWAYS VEGAN ! Who wants chemicals ON your body Or IN your body for that matter, right?
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE WITH HAVING A VEGAN COMPANY?
When I first started making vegan products, one of my biggest challenges was finding ingredients that were vegan. Which sounds silly, but a lot of emulsifiers and other ingredients have some sort of animal by-product in them. I do a lot of research on everything that goes into each ingredient/product, and now I know how to find only fruit and vegetable derived ingredients that can make my lotions creamier, thicker, healthier-Vegetables and Fruits can do amazing things for the skin. It is just so sad to me that big companies are so greedy that they use chemicals, test on animals and use non-vegan ingredients, because they are cheaper. So they can make more money. Instead of giving their customers the best, most humane ingredients that are better for them, their skin and help them feel good about using!
WHAT DOES SUCCESS LOOK LIKE FOR YOUR COMPANY?
For me, I feel really great about my shop when I can help someone. Once I had a mother of a toddler contact me with the saddest story about her daughter. She told me that her daughter had eczema so badly that it was almost disfiguring and that people didn’t see her, but only the red angry rash all over her body, so I made a special cream, with instructions and the mother contacted me 3 days later, and said that the cream had changed her life and that her daughters skin was already much better! After a couple weeks she was eczema free! And her baby was so much happier! I cried when I read her letter and it made all the hours of “cooking up a new recipe” worth it! I really feel that this shop is made to help those people with skin issues that are tired of doctors throwing chemicals at them, with little result. It just makes my day when someone tells me that one of my products has helped them in some way!
WHERE DO YOU FIND YOUR INSPIRATION?
My customers are my best inspiration! People contact me with skin issues or questions and I try to answer their questions, if I don’t know the answer, I will find out for them. I don’t do every custom order request, it takes a lot of time to make new products. But I will work with those customers who I truly think I can help and I will make a new product that can accommodate their needs.
IN ONE SENTENCE, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE AN ASPIRING VEGAN COMPANY OWNER?
Find your niche, be honest with your fellow man, treat your customers the way you want to be treated and do what you love
