Kelly is the owner of Small Kindness, a handcrafted soap business based in Bournville. She’s always been passionate about sustainability, reducing waste and being kind to the planet, but also knows that those ideals are not always easy to uphold in our busy world, so wanted to do something that could help people start on a journey to reduce their impact on the environment. Making and selling soap seemed like a perfect place to start, as it’s one of the easiest plastic free swaps to make – small changes really can make a big difference!
We asked Kelly some questions:
What sorts of things do you need to consider to ensure your business is sustainable?
- Our packaging is plastic free and minimal. It is made in the UK from recycled, recyclable, biodegradable and compostable materials. The boxes I ship in are letter box friendly meaning they limit journeys my customers need to make to pick up missed parcels
- I use natural, organic and fair-trade ingredients everywhere possible, absolutely no palm oil, and I always consider where the ingredient comes from and the impact it has on people and the planet
- I use renewable energy to make my soaps and walk to the Post Office to post orders
- My soaps come wrapped in plantable labels that are embedded with UK native wildflower seeds, so there is no waste and you get the gift of flowers too, which help sustain our bees!
- My shaving products offer a genuinely plastic free shave: the soap tins don’t contain an EPE liner (which is plastic) and my shave brushes are plastic free and biodegradable (most shave brushes contain “vegan”/synthetic bristles which means they are made of plastic!)
- Where possible I will buy pre-loved items whether that be equipment for manufacture or items I use to display my soaps and gift sets at markets and fairs
What is your favourite thing about running your business?
“Waking up every day and loving what I do and knowing that with every bar of soap I am spreading a little kindness, and helping people to take a small step towards reducing their plastic waste”
What do you love about Birmingham?
“Birmingham is just ace! It’s not what people who have never been here expect. It’s full of green spaces, has a real sense of community and no matter what you love to do you can find it in Birmingham. It’s packed full of incredible independent businesses and the people are just wonderful!”
You can find Small Kindness on Instagram (@smallkindnessuk), or via her website (https://smallkindnessuk.com).