Founder@ Interview
Interview with Lucy Jeffrey
“If you go into this with an open mind, no matter the outcome, you will learn, grow & achieve something to be proud of..” – Lucy Jeffrey
Today we feature Lucy Jeffrey, the founder at Bare Kind. We hear their story in their own words, their successes, their challenges and their insights.
Let’s start by getting to know you. Can you please tell us a little bit about you and what you do?
I’m Lucy, I am 26 years old and I started my company Bare Kind because I think customers should get a warm fuzzy feeling inside when they purchase from a brand. They should feel great in the knowledge that they are buying high-quality ethically sourced products, they are supporting an independent, AND they are saving animals.
This is where my products come in – bamboo socks where 10% of the profits are donated to the animal on the sock! I support animal conservation and rescue charities, with a growing range of charities coming on board.
In December 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, I quit my job at a large bank to pursue this full time, and my mission is to have the largest range of socks in the world that all help save endangered animals or animals experiencing cruelty.
I currently have 10 sock designs live supporting 10 different charities, and by the end of the year will have as many as 30 different designs.
A great introduction and start to this interview. Can you please tell us, how did you start, from what age, and what made you decide to change direction and start?
I was 23 at the time, I was working full time in my first full time role at a large bank. I enjoyed my job but it didn’t light a fire inside me, I knew there must be a better way for me to help this planet. That is why I started Bare Kind, I wanted to leave more of a legacy to the planet.
It was started as a bit of a side hustle, allowing me to take a salary from my day job and experiment on the side with various different products. It wasn’t until a year and a half into the business that I brought out my first range of bamboo socks, and they were a hit so I continued to explore them.
We then all hit that speed bump (Covid) and the business was put on the back burner for a bit.
I picked it up again near the end of 2020 with a bit of a Hail Mary for Christmas. It went so well I ended up quitting my job to run the company full time! The thing I have found with being an entrepreneur is that it’s a real roller coaster of motivation.
I went from dropping all operations to picking it up and quitting my job within months. That’s what a pandemic can do to you – give you a kick to do what really matters!
Thank you for that insight. So can you tell us…What does your business do and where is your company based?
I design and sell bamboo socks where 10% of the profits are donated to help save the animal on the sock. Each design is linked to an animal conservation or rescue charity so you can wear your favourite animal on your socks and know that you are helping save that species.
I am currently living in London, and my mum runs the operations out of my parent’s house. We are expecting a very busy Christmas this year and if all goes to plan we will be moving into a fulfilment warehouse next year!
My aim is to have the largest range of animal socks in the world, all contributing to saving endangered species – every animal deserves a sock!
What’s the story behind your success? What led to your aha moment? how did you get to where you are now?
I think the aha moment is a bit of a myth. Sure there are products that do well and you decide to pursue those over others, but it’s a working progress. You need to experiment, bring out a product and then iterate, fail and learn from mistakes. It’s rare to have a lightbulb moment and then BAM you’re a millionaire, I think that glorifies being an entrepreneur.
I’ve got here from having a level of persistence, you have to just keep going. When I first went to start the company, I just did it. I didn’t think too hard about it, I didn’t discuss it with loads of people. I just started and learned as I went along.
I was pretty much a one woman band for most of the journey, until Mum took over my order fulfilment which really freed my up to grow the business. There comes a time where all growing businesses have to outsource bits and pieces, and my operations were the first to go for me!
I have also relied heavily on my partner for advice and general support, especially during lockdowns when he was the only person I would see face to face for months on end (not that I am complaining, he’s a dream). And I also have to rely on my friends to help me choose sock colours – I am useless at pulling colourways together!
Everyone around me is a cheerleader for me, although would also be honest with me if I was barking up the wrong tree completely. I don’t have time for really negative people, if someone is pulling you down whilst you’re trying to build a business then they aren’t worth having around.
Thank you for sharing that. What’s been your life’s biggest lesson so far?
When I quit my job, I jumped straight into the business – full steam ahead. And a few months later – boom, burn out. It was inevitable really, we are all feeling super burned out in the UK from being on zoom everyday and not taking much holiday, plus not being able to hug loved ones etc, it’s a weird time for us all.
At this point I thought I’d made a mistake quitting my job. Uh oh… I wasn’t enjoying the process anymore, I felt very stuck and kept procrastinating, and I usually pride myself on being able to focus and get work done.
I just needed a break. I had a mentor at the time and it really helped being able to chat through these feelings with her because she told me 1) it’s normal and 2) take a bloody day off!!
So that’s what I did, I took a proper day off, completely off the grid. I felt immediately better. Since then I have learned to go a bit easier on myself, listen to my body and learn when is time to stop. Inevitably burn out will strike again but I know how to look out for it this time.
I wish I religiously tracked everything from the start. Since the start of the year I have been doing a daily Profit and Loss, Cash Flow and Stock Management. This has helped me get to grips with all my figures which helps me pitch for investment. It also has helped me to reduce costs where I may not have noticed in the past. Now I wish I had this data for the whole 3 years because it helps me strategise and make decisions.
If you were to go back in time, what piece of advice would you give to your younger self?
You’re going to absolutely love working for yourself and growing a business, so the sooner you try it out the better. You will learn heaps, you will grow and you will not look back. Trust yourself and go for it.
PS – drink more water
We’re nearly halfway through our interview so it’s a great time to ask how does your business run. What three tools make your business run better?
Shopify – literally the bread and butter of my business. It’s y e-commerce platform and I couldn’t do business without it! I started my business this here and would never think of changing.
Procreate – this a fantastic app I use on Ipad to draw all of my sock designs. Once you have the hardware the app itself is ridiculously cheap for how good it is.
Royal Mail Click & Drop – this is an online postal platform in the UK, I can purchase all my postage and Mum is able to print it at home. Without this we wouldn’t have been able to keep run during lockdown. In the future I will be moving to a fulfilment warehouse but for now this is such a great tool for an e-commerce business like mine.
What do you know now that you wished you had known before?
I wish I religiously tracked everything from the start. Since the start of the year I have been doing a daily Profit and Loss, Cash Flow and Stock Management. This has helped me get to grips with all my figures which helps me pitch for investment.
It also has helped me to reduce costs where I may not have noticed in the past. Now I wish I had this data for the whole 3 years because it helps me strategise and make decisions.
What has been your greatest or proudest achievement or moment?
I received a grant from my university for £7.5k. I had submitted a business plan, pitched to a panel of judges, and they liked me and Bare Kind enough to give me free money?! It was a pretty surreal moment. Also during the whole process I had received feedback on my business plan from a heap of people – 98% super helpful and constructive.
There was one person who absolutely ripped my business plan, and me actually, to shreds. This knocked my confidence a bit, they told me I should have considered ‘a job on minimum wage as you might get more from that’.
Seeing as I had just quit my well paid banking job I was having NONE of that, so I just had to breeze past that one and win the money anyway! (Oh and PS I am earning double what I did at the bank now anyway!). Take that Nay-sayers!!
What future life goals do you want to achieve and why?
The largest collection of animal socks in the world, all contributing to saving the species on the socks. I want this to be my legacy. I think we can save the world with socks!
To finish our inspire questions…”We believe that sharing inspiring words can inspire others.” If there was one positive thing you would say to someone to inspire and empower them what would it be and why?
If you go into this with an open mind, no matter the outcome, you will learn, grow & achieve something to be proud of.
“Thank you it has been great learning more about your founder story and Bare Kind”
To learn more about Bare Kind Visit www.barekind.co.uk
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