Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in skin care but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Vladimir Druts, Founder of FRWRD Skincare, located in Toronto, ON, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We're in the business of helping rebuild people's confidence through the magic of mushrooms. We create powerful, natural products for people with sensitive and aging skin. Our skincare products are hand foraged, USDA Organic certified, sustainable, and harness some of the Earth's most magical ingredients, "Mushrooms."
Tell us about yourself
Take an engineering-minded city kid, mix with a mushroom-foraging Country boy, and you get me - this weird amalgam of opposites. Looking back on my childhood, I had a difficult relationship with my skin. It was super sensitive and wildly swinging from insanely oily to incredibly dry. Years of embarrassment and avoiding mirrors were all too familiar. I started taking my self-care very seriously in my mid 30's. By the time I became a father, I had developed 'Rosacea' which causes flushing based on the most mundane triggers, i.e., Working out, Spicy food, and Coffee. During this time, I fell in deep love with self-care, especially skincare routines. I loved being empowered to take care of something I neglected before and thought was broken (my skin). I found a way to gain back confidence and connect with myself physically and emotionally each morning and evening. I tried every product you can imagine, many of which had severe adverse effects on my skin which was even more sensitive thanks to the Rosacea. I always hated heavy products that made you feel like you were carrying a pound of petroleum jelly on your face. Something finally clicked in my brain, and I decided to combine two of my passions into one. Mushrooms, which I had been foraging as a kid in Russia, and Skincare, my newly found obsession. I spent about a year and a half in R&D working towards making a product I would love to wear first and foremost. Something that could restore my skin's natural ability (boost collagen and Elastin synthesis) and also had powerful redness-reducing effects. After much trial and error and lots of tests, we landed on a formulation we fell in love with.
It's been a hard road being solo-boot strapped, but every time I get a nice e-mail from a customer or a review, it makes the entire journey worth it. I love knowing there are people that feel a sense of joy and relief when using my product. Our loyal customers come back time and time again, and that makes it worthwhile.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Just launching the business was an accomplishment. I'm a male in a non-male-dominated field. It's highly competitive. We launched during the height of the pandemic. However, landing in Martha Stewart Living print mag also felt amazing. Martha was the who's who of everything home and beauty when I was a kid. Not only that, but our product clearly resonated with their readers as it really boosted our sales.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
You put in thousands of hours and thousands of dollars. You spend 2 years thinking, okay, okay, just get to the finish line. Then, after all the hard work and grueling hours doing so much of it on your own, you launch ( and realize you are aren't at the finish line at all; you've barely just begun). The toughest and most exciting thing about entrepreneurship is that it never ends. There are always endless things to fix, finesse, do and dial in, but hey, one thing is for sure you'll never be bored.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Do your due diligence. Learn about the market. Talk to people who use products you'll be competing against. It's better to help people improve on a genuine pain point and need than to build something you think is 'cool.' Lastly, just have grace with yourself and patience. The overnight 'success' stories you see and that "Entrepreneur" and "Forbes" seem to write about are all a facade. Nothing happens overnight, and the only way out is through.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.frwrdskincare.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/frwrdskincare
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/frwrdskincare/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/vdruts
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vdruts/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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