Anna Brightman – UpCircle

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links to products or services that I recommend. I may receive a commission should you sign up through my link (but at no additional cost to you). I only suggest products and services that I wholeheartedly support and believe in and have either used myself or have used on behalf of a private client.

 
 

The Business of Universal Kindness Podcast

Episode 1

In this first ever episode of The Business of Universal Kindness Podcast, I interview Anna Brightman, who co-founded UpCircle with her brother William.

Starting with just an idea to reuse coffee grounds from local coffee shops they’ve gone from trialling their formulas at trade fairs to building a unique brand that is challenging beauty industry norms.

Anna shares their journey of rebranding, gaining momentum over the last few years (including a stop by the Dragons’ Den) as well as how they’re navigating the current pandemic crisis and how they’re giving back. We learn:

  • What Anna wanted to be as a child growing up and how that plays into what she and William have created today.

  • How important it is to do your research to find the gap in the market and what Anna realised was their unique angle that would catapult their brand and mission.

  • The creative paperclip test they undertook to find out what “flavours” would be a hit with their customers.

  • The sacrifices they made to get their business off the ground. Would you be able to do this even though it might feel like taking a step back?

  • How they manage the constraints of reusing wet ground coffee and the incredible turnaround time from first life in a coffee shop to second life as a tube of scrub.

  • Their fascinating experience in the Dragons Den and what eventually happened after they were offered the deal they went in to get.

  • The heartwarming generosity from UpCircle to “give back”, inspired by thousands of NHS staff putting their lives on the line for COVID-19.

  • How they embrace social media and micro-influencers to position their brand and even leverage their collaborations for content creation.

  • Their unusual Black Friday email that skyrocketed sales while still embracing their mission of less waste.

SHOWNOTES

About Anna Brightman

Anna is the co-founder of UpCircle, a brand pioneering the by-product beauty movement. UpCircle elevates leftover natural ingredients, bringing them back to life as beauty products your skin will love. The brand name encapsulates their core purpose: sustainability and promoting the power of the circular economy. UpCircle also hints at ‘upcycling’, the process of making something better from things that already exist. “Natural” is the new “normal” – but UpCircle goes a step further with their waste-fighting formulations. What other beauty brand can claim that their products have saved literally hundreds of tonnes of valuable ingredients from ending up in landfill?

Website: https://upcirclebeauty.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/upcirclebeauty/  

MENTIONS:

Bio Bean

London Coffee Festival

Beauty Bay 

Klaviyo

Shopify

Rubies In The Rubble

Dash Water

Toast Ale

 
 
Previous
Previous

Sarah Welsh – Hanx

Next
Next

Using market research & voice of customer to your advantage