New Fairface products and big dreams
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Fairface Podcast transcript / show notes
INTRODUCTION
Hi! Welcome back! It's been a while since I've recorded a new podcast so it's good to be back. I hope you and your families are doing well.
Today is a beautiful fall day in Seattle. The sky is blue with some white clouds and we have gold, red and brown leaves that have fallen all over the grass from the trees in our yard and around our neighborhoods. Some leaves are actually still hanging on the trees. Every year it seems like just when the trees are looking so beautiful with their leaves changing, we get a huge wind storm and the next morning they're all on the ground. So enjoy them while you can.
New Fairface Products keeping me up at night
I wanted to talk to you today about something that's been keeping me up at night. For real, but in a good way.
Do you ever have times like that when you have so many ideas swirling around in your head that you can't sleep? Or wake up at odd hours thinking of the things you've got to do and can't shut it off even when you desperately just want to go back to sleep?
Well, that's been happening to me lately.
It happens from time to time, especially when I have rushes of creativity and new ideas or new ambitions. And right now, I am planning out adding a bunch of new products to our Fairface line which I'm so excited about - and it's all the details of all the things that are keeping me up at night.
3 Types washcloths for your face
As you know, our main product has been washcloths for sensitive skin - we still have the 3 washcloth types:
- The Original Fairface Washcloths, which we have recently re-named Fairface Duals , and rightly so, because they are our Dual-sided washcloths with one side with our soft white flannel and the other side with a scrubby absorbent white terrycloth.
- We have our Fairface Delicates that are made with 2 layers of our double-sided, soft white flannel and
- We have others in that same style (the 2 layers of double-sided flannel) that also comes in black flannel - called Fairface Darks.
And most recently we just launched a new product called Fairface Mini's, which I'll talk about in just a minute...
And the exciting news, is that I have several more new products that I want to introduce and I wanted to give you a sneak peek into those products today. I haven't shared most of them until right now, so you're the first the know.
Fairface Mini's: reusable soft flannel facial pads for sensitive skin
Okay, but first I want to tell you a little more about the product we just launched, Fairface Mini's.
They are cute little 3"x3" flannel facial pads, and in essence, they are kind of mini versions of our Delicate washcloths - 2 layers of soft white flannel (and we may also make them in black flannel) but I haven't decided yet, but these are the perfect little face pads for putting on toner (applying toner to your face) or other skin care products, or using them to take your make-up off.
They are to be used in place of disposable cotton rounds, so you are able to use - wash and reuse them time and time again instead of using something that will just be thrown away and purchased again and thrown away again. So it's the zero waste idea of investing in products that are better for the environment and good for your skin.
We decided to make these small flannel facial pads because several customers had actually reached out to me and asked us to make them. I love getting feedback from our customers because they are the best people to tell us what they need, and once we know what they need, we can try to provide that.
So I decided that I would do a test run of this product, so what that means is, to do a smaller production run and have a more limited quantity available initially, and we'll see how it goes. We went with a square design and tight outside stitch all around the outside to keep the integrity of the product - the quality - so it would last a long time with a lot of washes.
So we've launched that and if our customers respond well and it's a helpful product and one that will compliment what we already offer and will be doable to continue making as a company, then we'll go from there.
So for now, if you're interested in trying the Fairface Mini's you can grab a set while they're available, right now, as of today, Oct 26, 2020, we launched them just thru our Etsy shop Fairface Washcloths, and they come in sets of 8 or 12. Let us know what you think! I would love your feedback.
Up-and-coming Fairface Products
Ok on to our upcoming products...
Soft and stretchy bamboo Spa Headband
The first in the line-up of up-and-coming products that I've been wanting to make and share for a long time is a lusciously soft, stretchy bamboo fabric headband. Oh yes, it's as good as it sounds.
I made myself one of these headbands about a year or so ago that I use every night when I wash my face, to hold my hair back. The fabric is like butter - I love it so much - and it washes well and feels good against my face and head, doesn't slip back on my head, it has just the right amount of stretch - all the things that make a great nighttime headband to use when washing your face. I have loved it for a long time and have wanted to make them to share with you and am finally making it happen and can't wait to launch this product.
I'm still in the design phase which means I'm currently making prototypes to see how to size it, sew it, basically the creation and construction of the product itself, to make the very best version of it (they call it the gold standard, in manufacturing) before making a bunch of these. Before making a bunch of these I want to perfect the design and the way that it is made.
I just got my fabric yesterday, so I am really excited to get the design and construction perfected so I can get to making a bunch and launch them. So stay tuned for these. They are fabulous.
Gentle for your hair scrunchies
In line with that, I'm also going to create a line of hair scrunchies, that will be gentle to your hair, that can help hold the rest of your hair back, while using your soft, stretchy headband at night. I'm still deciding on different fabrics. I want to try a couple out, but have the basic design figured out.
Once I get the fabrics, I can make a few prototypes and test those out before moving forward. I am literally chomping at the bit to get these fabrics that I have ordered, so I can make these scrunchies for you.
Good for your skin Pillow cases
Another new product that I'm really excited about are Fairface pillow cases
Yes, I know. Seriously.
All our products are designed with sensitive skin in mind.
And since our faces spend at least 8 hours (on a good night) on a pillow, I want it to be good for your skin.
I'm looking at a few different unique face-loving fabrics and am still in the design phase. Once I get the fabrics to test out (which are also on their way), I will move to the beginning of the construction phase where I start making prototypes.
I have one of the fabrics coming today that I've been waiting for and checking the door every 20 minutes to see if it's here yet?? And no, it is not. So I will stop checking the door like a fanatic. Fanatic? Frantic? Fanatically frantic?
So I have to check out fabrics, sew prototypes, wash them, use them, see how they hold up, if there are any changes that need to be made, and keep perfecting it until I do a big production run and sew a whole bunch of these and get them ready to launch. So I'm very excited about these pillow cases and can't wait til I can get them to a place where I can launch them.
I have a few other products that I'm considering and have to decide whether they make the cut, are they something that meets the needs of our customers or enough of our customers and is it something we can make that will be of worth to our customers and to our business so we can continue to operate and grow? So those are things I always have to consider.
Other good for your soul products
I'm also considering a few other types of products that aren't made of fabric, surprise, like bath salts, which I love, and candles that can be a nice way to retreat and give yourself some relaxation time. I'm still in the waking-up-at-night-with-ideas phase swirling in my head for those, among some others, but that's where I am at this point with those.
Fairface Big Picture Goals
And if I'm looking at the Big picture, which I guess I would call the Huge picture, I would love to come up with a Fairface gentle facial cleanser and moisturizer...that to me, would be my full circle moment - to have my own line of skin care products to go with our soft washcloths...but that feels like a much larger learning curve, but the truth is, I've always seen that further down the line and I hope one day to make it a reality. So you heard it here first!
I would love to know, are there any products that you would love to see us add to our Fairface brand? I'd love to hear what you wish was on the market for sensitive skin but can't find, or something you love and would love for us to make it and add it to our product line up. So please contact me, you can email me directly shannon @ fairface washcloths (dot) com. I would seriously love to hear from you.
So you can probably see why I have a lot on my mind lately. I am the type of person who wants it all right now. So it swirls around in a frenzy in my head. I'm so exited about what I have planned that I just want it to go at mock speed so I can get all the products ready and launch them all at the same time, but that just isn't how it works.
What it takes to launch a new product
There really are a lot of steps to launching a new product so you do it well. And that's really important to me. I am a perfectionist, which can keep me holding something back until it's perfect, which isn't the greatest sometimes, but I need to feel like it's the very best version of what can give you, so it just takes time and focus and review and consideration before I push go.
I thought it might be helpful in the next podcast episode, I want to share with you what it takes to take a product from an idea to selling in the online marketplace, so you can see behind the scenes what that looks like. And if you have your own idea for a product, it can be a place to start and help you see what that process might look like for you.
Hooray for new Fairface products!
So I hope you join me in my excitement for these products! For the launch of our newest product, Fairface Mini's - soft flannel face pads - and the upcoming very exciting products ahead, our soft and stretchy bamboo headbands, hair loving scrunchies, good for your face pillow cases and some additional self-care feel-good products.
I'm really excited to bring these products to you. It means a lot to me to be able to dream them up with you in mind, and then share them with you. It's a way to extend the sensitive skin care support that our Fairface brand is all about and already offers but bring even more products that can help you take care of your sensitive skin the best that you can.
You are why we do what we do every day. And I'm so grateful for you and your support of our Fairface brand. When I get happy reviews and customers who email me thanking me for our products - telling me we make their favorite skincare washcloths, it means a lot to me because it shows me we're doing it right! All our effort is producing exactly what we set out to do by offering the kind of support and products that you need and that help you. I'm so grateful for that.
And thank you for being here - and for listening and supporting our podcast. It's really nice to know you're out there and I'm not just talking to myself. I really appreciate you being here.
If you love our Fairface brand, it would really mean a lot to me if you would share it with your friends and tag us on social media. Having a personal recommendation of our products is really how they are best shared and if you know someone with sensitive skin, will you share our brand with them, so they can try our washcloths and other products and see if they can help them too? I would sure appreciate it.
Everyone take good care of yourselves, thank you for being here, and I will see you next time.
Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook @FairfaceWashcloths so you don't miss our product launches!
Thanks again for being here! xo
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