Q. What inspired Born all those years ago?
My inspiration for starting Born was having my having my daughter Maya 13 years ago. I was always aware of environmental issues and when she was born I knew there must be a greener way of bringing a child up than is portrayed in the mainstream. This led me to explore washable nappies, full term breastfeeding, chemicals in toiletries, alternatives to plastic toys and baby equipment and the ethics involved in the baby industry. It felt wrong to buy products for her that could possibly be made by children in sweat shops, so I then got into fairly traded goods.
Q. Was the organic, ethical thing always in mind or has that developed over the years?
We've always been aware of how the products we sell are made. We will only sell products where the manufacturers can assure us that they operate ethical working conditions. We wanted to show people that being green doesn't mean you have to compromise on style and quality which is why sometimes people don't even realise we have this background - they just love that we sell gorgeous products.
Q. Why is practicing in this environmentally friendly way important to you?
If we don't look after the planet now we will make the earth inhospitable for future generations. The earth will of course regenerate itself but animal and plant life won't be here in the same way it is now.
Q. Have you always been interested in being ‘green’?
I remember being in a geography lesson at school learning about how they mined bauxite for aluminum and realising that it just did not make sense to dig up the earth to continually make new metal when we could just recycle it. Likewise for paper, plastics and other recyclable materials.
Q. Is it hard or expensive to consider the environment in day to day living?
Neither because we've done all the research and hard work for you so you don't have to. For example organic toiletries may cost more by volume but they are far more concentrated and not bulked out with water and mineral oils so last longer - they're also better for your baby and the environment as you buy less and therefore produce less packaging waste. Also, once you set up structures, like routines for washing nappies it's easy, and for one child using washable nappies you will save at least £600 so it's actually cheaper to be green.
Q. How green are you as a business and a person?
We recycle everything we possibly can as a business and at home too. I was so happy when last year they started to take all plastic waste at supermarkets and look forward to the day when that and drinks cartons will be collected from our home. The shop has recently joined the 'Close the door' campaign to encourage shops to keep their doors shut and reduce carbon emissions.
Q. Do you think mums and dads have become more aware of natural and organic products over the past 11 years – as particularly with children’s toys/clothes, most people nowadays have quite a disposable attitude don’t they?
People are definitely more aware of green issues but at the same time in Bristol I think they take us for granted! We often get customers who don't live in Bristol who say how they love the shop and wish there was one where they lived because it just isn't possible to get many of the things we sell on the High Street. I'd agree that in the UK we don't recycle nearly as much as we should and wonder how if Germany can do it why can't we.
Q. Are real nappies as hard work as they appear?
New parents are incredibly busy, not to say exhausted people - if washable nappies were that much effort they simply won't do it, but that's not the case. Washable nappies are just as easy as disposables. It's probably 10 minutes per day extra work but then that is offset by the time you don't have to spend going to the shops to buy disposables. Also it's your washing machine that does all the hard work. Anyone who wants to find out more can come in and have a demo of the different styles and read our free nappy guide online
Q. Why did you choose Gloucester Road as a location for the shop?
I shopped there and could spend a whole day visiting the shops so felt that if it was somewhere I liked to shop then people like me would like to shop there too.
Q. What do you think of Bristol as a city – does it support ethically minded business like Born enough?
Bristol is the UK's first Fair Trade city but that tends to focus more on food, but hopefully that will expand into other areas. The council provides a £30 cash incentive to encourage parents to use washable nappies as this helps to reduce landfill waste so we do get some customer from that scheme.
Q. What made you choose to link to two charities as a business?
Human Breast milk is a life saving liquid and it is also the ultimate green food as it has a zero carbon footprint.
I wanted to support charities like The Precious Drops Campaign and Best Beginnings that would also educate people about just how amazing it is.
Q. Give us one tip for going green.
Buy quality not quantity. If you are buying as a parent-to-be you can be duped into buying lots of things you don't really need but if you come to see us we can actually save you money and lessen the environmental impact having a child can have.
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