In 2015 Justine Lassoff launched Love Goodly with her co-founder Katie Bogue Miller.
The guiding principles behind the business—which offers both a bi-monthly beauty box subscription service and an online store—can be summed up as: carefully curated beauty and skincare products, always cruelty-free, always non-toxic.
“Many people may not realize that the skin is the largest organ. Every day women use over 160 chemicals in their personal and beauty care. Several of these,” Justine explains, “have been linked to health problems.”
Women who want to make informed and health-conscious choices face a challenge in the US, where many substances that are banned in Europe for their effects on human health are still unregulated.
For Justine, promoting the use of safe beauty products isn’t just business, it’s personal.
“As a breast cancer survivor, you are aware of the toxins in everyday life that affect us. So, I want to help other women switch to healthier beauty and skincare products.”
A proven track-record
Using her background in marketing and a passion for healthy and green beauty products, Justine co-founded and served as the CEO of LovingEco in 2010. The flash-sales site for eco-friendly fashion and beauty products featured curated selections by fashion editors and environmental experts.
“We also started offering beauty samples in a bag, which became immensely popular and we soon sold out,” she says, adding that no one at the time realized just how explosive beauty samples would become.
LovingEco soon caught the attention of a company backed by entrepreneur and Paul Mitchell co-founder John Paul DeJoria. “We ended up selling and folding it into their brand.”
Starting and running your own company is challenging, especially when it comes to creating brand awareness and spreading the word. Justine’s solution is to tap into things that drive community, such as the power and solidarity of female networking.
Justine and Katie officially launched Love Goodly in 2015 during an event with a women’s networking group: TuesdayNights. “It was our coming out party when we first started taking orders. The incredible support from the women in this community was our first step.”
But, while Justine is not one to gloss over the challenges, (“there will be hard days!”) the rewards are well worth it.
“You are doing something you love, and the feedback we get from customers fuels us. Every day we get emails and reviews on social media from people who love the box. We are making an impact one woman at a time.”
Follow your passion
If you are truly passionate about your startup, chances are that investors will be too. Justine gives a shout-out to Allen DeBevoise—the angel investor who was the sole seed funder of Love Goodly. “His confidence and support of companies with female founders has been incredibly impactful.”
What kind of advice would Justine give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
“Follow your passion. It should be something that drives you. Start with your ideas and flesh them out. Talk to people, consumers, focus groups. Create a landing page and test. You want to grow your audience first to make sure that there is a good market fit for your ideas.”
Poised for success
Justine’s entrepreneurial experience, passion for healthy and eco-friendly products, and knack for capitalizing on emerging trends are paying off. Last year Love Goodly doubled its revenue and saw a 200 percent increase in its gross margins.
The business caught the eye of SeedInvest, which reached out to Love Goodly for an equity crowdfunding campaign that will be live until the end of April. “They only accept one percent of applicants, but in this case they actually reached out to us. They have obviously done their due diligence, which is also great for investors to know.”
If you’d like to invest or learn about Love Goodly, then click here.