We recently connected with Kat Scarlett and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Kat, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
The story behind my mission comes from my own awakening to the power we each hold as participants in not just our own lives, but the world at large. In our busy lives today where we’re always running from one thing to the next and glued to our phones we often aren’t pausing to look around and think about how we truly impact the world around us. The story behind my two brands – Glo Eco, an eco media company for women, and Glotanicals, a sustainable skincare brand, started when I was forced to stop and look at what was happening in the world. I’ve always been a massive nature & animal lover but it wasn’t until I was living in Australia 5 years ago that I came face to face with the impact climate change was having on our environment. I was living there during the worst bushfires the country had ever seen. Millions of acres burned. Hundreds of thousands of animals killed. Countless homes destroyed. For weeks I would smell the smoke and see the sky turn dark and hazy in the middle of the day and for the first time I couldn’t ignore the climate crisis any longer. A few months later I also travelled to the Great Barrier Reef and saw first hand both the beauty and peril of this great wonder of the world. Those experiences are something I’ll never forget and frankly…it all made me so angry that we (myself included) could let this happen and I decided I could no longer sit on the sidelines.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My journey started with activism and volunteering. After seeing the effects of climate change up close and personal, I knew I had to get involved and do whatever I could to help. I started with learning as much as I could, reading books like Drawdown and All We Can Save. I also started volunteering with Greenpeace and advocated at the parliament level for restrictions on plastic and funding for renewable energy. Throughout all of this I was also learning how to make more sustainable swaps in my own life, looking at one routine at a time to go ‘low waste’. Being a lifelong skincare junkie this was one of the first routines I looked at (anything to try new products, am I right?) and that’s when I began to research sustainable skincare brands only to find nothing but greenwashing in the “clean” and natural brands I loved. That’s the moment when I knew I could create something better and launched the first Glotanicals product in 2021. Since then we’ve launched a sustainable + minimalist (but no less effective) two step routine that give both beauty junkies and eco queens alike gorgeous glowing skin.
More recently, I’ve also launched Glo Eco, an eco media company for busy modern women who want to be more sustainable but don’t know where to start. On the Glo Eco blog and podcast I feature sustainable product guides, honest yet entertaining takes on climate topics, easy ways to get involved in activism, and eco activist and brand founder stories. We have a small but might community of empowered women making a difference in their everyday lives and I can’t wait to see how this community grows.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I’m still in the process of growing my audience on social media but I have learned a lot along the way. These days there are SO many people on social media trying to get you to buy courses, coaching, and even followers. The hard truth though is that none of these shortcuts will ever work. The ONLY way to grow on social media is to create authentic + valuable content consistently and connect with your audience. I’ll be the first to admit I’m not always consistent on IG and get social media burnout frequently. And I do take breaks when I need to. But what I won’t compromise on is quality and value. You won’t see me jumping on trends for the sake of trending or trying to go viral. Instead I take the slow and steady approach and am growing a real + authentic community.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
I’ve had to pivot so many times in business and I think learning how to pivot quickly and with grace is one of the best qualities entrepreneurs can have. I formulated my first product in Australia during COVID and got the first batch delivered the day before my flight to move back to the US. It was STRESSFUL. But I rolled up my sleeves and got it done. I shipped the inventory myself and got to work as soon as I landed on getting the business set up to launch in the US instead of Australia. In those moments I surprisingly find that I do my best work. Diamonds form best with pressure right?
Since then I’ve adopted a consistent strategy of testing and pivoting, testing and pivoting. In today’s world with so many different options for marketing and customer acquisition it’s the only way to see what’s really working and grow.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.katscarlett.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katiswhereitsat/
- Other: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/glo-eco-with-kat/id1683345719
Image Credits
Emily Kim Photography