Monica: Lindsay, I love the passion and creativity behind your brand to save the world, one tube at a time. How did it all come about for you?
Lindsay: I’ve been passionate about sustainability and conservation since I was a kid. Instead of asking for toys or clothes for my birthday, I would ask my parents to “adopt” animals in my name through organizations like World Wildlife Fund and the Oceanic Society, then I’d thumbtack the photos and donation certificates all over the walls of my bedroom.
As I got older, things only became more serious for me. My college senior thesis paper was about tropical rainforest deforestation because I wanted to work on nature and travel documentaries and help educate people on the importance of conservation – which led me to my career as a television producer.
It was in that role, as traveling all over the US and the world, that I realized how unsustainable one of my most routine and daily habits was. I was tossing out those tiny, travel toothpaste tubes and it just seemed so wasteful. It made me question the full-size tube I was using at home and why toothpaste even needed to be a paste to begin with.
When I couldn’t find any plastic-free or sustainable alternatives, I decided to make my own, which is still the formula we use in Bite’s toothpaste bits today. Creating the toothpaste bits solved a personal problem for me and was a way to live in better alignment with my values.
Monica: That’s one of the best parts of entrepreneurship – if something you need doesn’t exist, why not make it yourself! How have you seen others align with the values that your brand stands for?
Lindsay: When I first started the company, only my friends and family bought it and that was okay. Now at Bite, I’m constantly inspired by our customers. We get messages all the time about people who are using the toothpaste bits as their first zero-waste swap or their first step into a more sustainable routine and it makes my day every time.
The fact that people are willing to take the chance on a new company and change a habit that has been ingrained in them their whole lives (twice a day!) is beyond exciting to me – it makes me feel like anything is possible. It’s exciting to see so brands are focused on sustainability going into 2020, and that as a company we made it our priority from day one.
Monica: I love that you’ve made our planet’s health such a high priority from the start. How does your own perspective of health and happiness align with that?
Lindsay: Health and happiness to me is about making the small, everyday choices in alignment with my values. It’s not about going to the gym or even maintaining a daily gratitude journal (although both are great ideas!), it’s about living intentionally and running every decision I make through the filter of “is this part of the life I want to create for myself or the impact I want to have on the world” and trying to live in accordance to that answer.
Building Bite has really helped me make the connection between the small things that we do every day and how they add up to make a huge impact on the world. We are obsessed with using not only the most sustainable but also the highest quality and healthiest ingredients possible.
And we are constantly challenging ourselves to find new and innovative solutions and to continue to push both ourselves and the industry further and further in a more sustainable direction. Because so much of my focus is on new and healthy alternatives to the status quo, I can’t help but get excited and apply the same to my everyday life as well.
Monica: You’ve definitely found your own beautiful way of making a meaningful impact in this world! Any advice to others out there who are still trying to find a way to make a difference?
Lindsay: I used to think that life was about being kind and finding happiness and I still think that definitely plays a part, but I think what may be even more important is finding your individual contribution to the world and building your life around that.
For me, it is about doing as much good as I can for our planet, wildlife, and ecosystems. For you, it may be being the best teacher you can be, the most patient parent, whatever good you feel that you can do or contribute.
Every person on the planet has something they would move mountains for, and my advice is to lean into that and create from that place – that is where your superpower is. Being able to solve a problem in a space you care deeply about is the magic sauce that will keep you going through the never-ending obstacles.
Keep an arsenal of motivational tools whether that’s a documentary, music playlist, even a friend to call and vent to, anything that you can pull from when you feel overwhelmed or like giving up. Find the good you can do for the world and do it.
Learn more and connect with Lindsay at BiteToothpasteBits.com and @heylindsaymc.