We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sheena Scruggs. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sheena below.
Alright, Sheena thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
Back in 2018, while working at the National Institutes of Health as a science writer, I had the opportunity to write a fact sheet for the general public about the various ways that certain ingredients in our cosmetics and personal care products might be harmful to our health. Needless to say, this concerned me and so I started looking for ways to detox my personal care routine. I started creating my own products, such as lotion, deodorant, and makeup. Around the same time, I was also getting really interested in becoming more eco-conscious by finding different alternatives to single-use plastics in my daily life. This led me to solid shampoo and conditioner bars (a concentrated form of shampoo and conditioner that’s formulated without the water – similar to a bar of soap for your hair – and plastic-bottle free!). And so I dove into the world of learning how to formulate them. For me, it was a win-win. I could control exactly what was going into the products I was using, while at the same time avoiding the plastic bottles that traditional shampoo and conditioner come in. I launched Solid Roots to not only provide premium products that are better for your hair, your health, and the planet, but also to be a force for positive change in our world. One percent of total sales goes directly to non-profits or organizations that focus on programs that give back, impact social change, or help heal the planet.
My main motivation for starting Solid Roots is to leave the world a better place for future generations. When I launched the company, my husband got me a sign with a Warren Buffet quote that reads, “Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.” I have this sign hanging in my formulation lab where I hand-make all our products as a reminder for why I do what I do. The work that I am doing now by helping others eliminate single-use plastics will contribute to making sure that our future generations have a planet to enjoy.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
In my former career, I was a lemur biologist! I’ve spent nearly six months in Madagascar during my doctorate chasing these adorable primates through the jungle to study their ecology and physiology. So, I’m very science-minded. But, I’m also an incredibly creative person, which led to some more creative outlets during my Ph.D. such as creative writing and graphic design. After I finished my degree, I entered into the science communication field, which was the perfect opportunity to blend my creative and scientific passions.
I’m also a busy-body and have a hard time sitting still! Which is why, while working my normal 9-5 job, I spent my free time on passion projects such as learning how to formulate personal care products and cosmetics. I became so passionate about this that my husband suggesting starting my own company focused on clean beauty and environmental sustainability. This side hustle quickly turned into a full-time job as demand was more than I could keep up with alongside my day job.
Solid Roots is a hair care company that is striving to provide the best products for your hair and the planet. Our products are made with premium plant-based ingredients. They are cruelty-free, suitable for vegetarians/vegans, and safe for color- and chemically-treated hair. They are never, ever tested on animals (only willing humans!) Our dedication to the earth means there are no plastics in our packaging. Ever. We design our products to avoid generating waste and conserve precious resources.
We pledge to encourage inclusivity as a core value in our brand by doing our best to create a product for every hair type, ethnicity, gender, allergy or sensitivity, and ethos. No hair? No problem! We bet you have a great beard. Let us help you keep it looking fab.
We believe that personal wellbeing and having awesome hair is nothing without a healthy planet to live on and show off your locks. This means we are fully committed to being an environmentally-sustainable business – from product formulation, to manufacturing, packaging, and shipping. Every decision we make is guided by our Root Values – a resolute guidebook for how we operate. Our values are things that we have been committed to from day one and guide all decisions as we grow. We are not willing to deviate from these.
We don’t just want to be a hair care company. We want to empower positive change.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
As much time and effort as they are, we’ve really gained a following in our local community by doing pop-up and farmers markets to really get the word out. The more of these we’ve done, the more we build our social media following and email list. Many times, customers we meet at markets turn into long-time loyal customers for the brand and have helped spread the word to their networks.
We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.
I hand make each and every product that goes out the door. I started making solid shampoo and conditioner bars about five years ago in my kitchen and loved them so much that I wanted to develop the perfect formula for my family’s use. After my husband suggested starting a company, I spent nearly two years on reserach and development for the seven products currently in our line. One of the formulations had nearly 100 iterations!
Over the years, I have become way more efficient in streamlining the process versus when I first started and it would take me three times as long to formulate. It’s just a lot of trial and error and thinking outside the box with how you do things.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://getsolidroots.com/
- Instagram: @getsolidroots
- Facebook: getsolidroots
Image Credits
Molly Johnson Photography