Welcome to Creator Chat. In this series, you will meet small business owners from various fields making strides to create a better world for everyone. First up, we are thrilled to introduce Ariele, founder of Rosemary’s, a line of organic and sustainable kitchen towels and napkins.
Hi Ariele, so thrilled to have you! Can you tell us a bit about your backstory?
Hi! My name is Ariele and I'm a mother, designer, and founder. Do you wake up and think about what you'll be eating for dinner? I do - every day. I live to eat, and because of that, spend a lot of time in the kitchen, making healthy and delicious food for my family. But being in the kitchen was becoming a bit of a problem, I couldn't escape the amount of waste that was being generated by my daily tasks. How could my family go through so many single-use items? And what was in them anyway? I wanted to replace our paper products with reusable solutions - but none of the available options were fun, robust or, frankly, within my price range. Additionally, most of them were not made from sustainable materials. That is how Rosemary's was born, when I couldn't find what my family needed, I started making it: creating organic cotton napkins, reusable paper towels, and later, biodegradable sponges.
Tell us all about Rosemary’s!
Rosemary’s consciously creates organic and earth-friendly kitchen products that are beautiful, funky, and delightful to use. That means cloth napkins, paper towel replacements, and biodegradable sponges. Soon we'll have organic kitchen towels and oven mitts.
Here is the deal - most people are interested in reducing their environmental footprint but absolutely no one is willing to iron a cloth napkin. The only way we have a fighting chance of making a difference is to make it EASY for people to make greener decisions - that is why Rosemary's products are built to be used and abused but are still beautiful and fun. Most of us have tried a better-for-the-earth product and were vaguely disappointed (eco-friendly deodorant, I'm looking at you) - I design things so that people have the opposite experience - I want you to love setting your table with our organic, cloth, wrinkle-free napkins a year after buying them.
You’re right – no time to iron napkins! What are three trends in your industry you are seeing right now?
Design Trend: Beige
We are experiencing a home-decor beige apocalypse. Be anti-this trend - it's terrible, especially in a kitchen. Have you ever eaten pasta? Of course you have. Now imagine using beige linen napkins for dinner that includes tomato sauce. Hard pass. When everyone is ready to recoil from this bland nightmare, Rosemary's bright and funky patterns are here.
Human trend: Environmental apathy
Most people are interested in the environment and want to do better - but figuring out how is a quagmire that leads to environmental apathy. What's that? It's something that happens when you read headlines that recycling isn't real or realize the better-for-the-earth laundry pods you researched are coated in plastic. The problems we face are so big and the solutions are so out of our control that it all seems impossible. Instead, choose your battles. Make small changes. Eventually, they add up to something.
What is a common misconception you hear about reusables?
Here is the secret, just because you replace your paper towels + napkins with reusables doesn't mean you are never going to use single-use items again. The all-or-nothing mentality can be a major stumbling block, but there are certain situations where single-use work better. Have a big dinner party planned? Paper napkins might be a good idea. Your cat barfed on the carpet? By all means, reach for a paper towel. These items will always have a place in your home, even if you switch to reusables - the goal is to reduce your reliance on them.
When you are ready to make the switch, my suggestion is always to make it EASIER to grab the reusables. For example, put the paper towels in a cabinet, but leave the reusable Good Towels on the counter. Hide the paper napkins in the back of the pantry and make the cloth napkins reachable. It is possible, it might take some time, but you can do it!
Those are great tips. And finally, what are some of the woman-owned small businesses you like to support? I love supporting women-owned brands. Here are some of my favorites:
Hyve: Cleaning Supplies
Sanara: Skincare
Spicewell: Spices
Birds n' Bees: Reproductive Wellness
Picnic Wear: Clothing/Fashion
Be sure to visit Rosemary's on Instagram and check out the full collection at rosemarys.com.
