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Founder and CEO,
EcoStiletto  

Methyl, Ethyl, and Propyl. The three witches from Macbeth? Not quite, though bubbling cauldrons do come to mind. These words are actually prefixes indicating the presence of cancer-causing parabens in common beauty products. Surprised? You’re not alone. Information about chemicals, fillers, and synthetic compounds has, until recently, been hard to find. But thanks to Rachel Sarnoff’s EcoStiletto, the insider skinny on everything from petrochemical-packed unmentionables to formaldehyde-laced nail polish is easy to understand, making a more natural lifestyle a breeze to embrace.

Rachel launched her business – in a word – organically. After getting a Masters Degree in Journalism, she spent ten years as a writer and editor, later moving to PR and marketing and eventually starting Sugar PR in 2001. But while she was pregnant and working on a job for Healthy Child, Healthy World, she was shocked to learn about lead and VOC’s in paint, furniture and carpet, pesticides in the food chain, and parabens in make-up. She vowed to buy local produce, stop cleaning with chemicals, ramp up her recycling, and get eco-educated. As her knowledge increased, she decided to share it. In June 2008 she launched EcoStiletto.com, an online magazine dedicated to sustainable fashion, beauty, lifestyle, and parenting that wisely skips the soap box and lets women see for themselves that organic boots do exist and are made for walking. EcoStiletto doesn’t shill guilt, just information, showing you how to be a green goddess without sacrificing a smidge of style.

What we learned from Rachel: When it comes to your carbon footprint, a few new habits are all it takes to tread softly. In any business, if you care enough to make a difference, you can and you will.

Flower Power

I was always a little bit of a hippie. My nickname was “flower” in college. Nonetheless, once I got married and had kids, other than recycling, I didn’t understand how my habits, like using chemical cleaning products, affected the environment until I began working with Healthy Child Healthy World. I was amazed when I realized how many chemicals I was living with in everything from my carpet to my makeup. I had always thought of myself as pretty earth-friendly. I knew other people had to be just as in the dark as I was.

Eco-Launching

I launched EcoStiletto in July 2008. In just six months I grew my email marketing subscriber base to 20,000 – a 2,000 percent increase! Clearly I was on to something. Women want to make a difference but let’s be honest, we’re not going to mess with our “look.” I have found amazing organic, natural beauty products that work just as well as the ones I used to use. If I can show women that these alternatives produce the same results, they’ll buy them.

Learning the Back-End

I self-financed my site and am now looking for angel investors. This has made me realize how important business plans are. I wrote one with the help of a mentor from the Small Business Association and it has forced me to learn every aspect of my business. I learned html code, basic design, and accounting because I can’t possibly talk to investors if I don’t understand how my site works and how I arrived at my projected income. I do have a partner who balances the books but I still have to know what she’s doing. Just focusing on the fun stuff is not going to take me to the next level.

Learning From Mistakes

I’ve definitely made mistakes. Sometimes, despite careful research, I get emails from readers alerting me that information on my site is incorrect. I love that people care enough to tell me. We’re all on this journey together. My advice to other entrepreneurs is this-listen to your customers! Whether it’s praise or criticism, customer feedback is essential. I have also learned not to put the cart before the horse. I started a video section on the site then realized I don’t have time to maintain it. Growth is important but don’t let it get the better of you.

Safety in Numbers

There are 82 million mothers in the United States who make 85 percent of the family buying decisions and spend 2.1 trillion dollars a year. If even half of these consumers would go green, can you imagine the positive impact on the environment? Incredible. That’s what EcoStiletto is all about, showing people that they can scour the sink and save the environment at the same time.

Rachel’s Reality Show

I like blowing people’s minds. Once I chopped bushels of onions and cried my eyes out to prove that eco-friendly mascara doesn’t run. Another time I did shots of natural hair spray. Did you know it takes two-thirds of a pound of pesticide to spray enough cotton to make one pair of jeans? But Levi’s now makes green tab jeans and Clorox just launched a green line; with big names like these on board, this is an exciting time!

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