As a mother myself, this is where my journey began.  I became concerned with every single thing I put into my body and onto it as well, knowing that for the first time, my actions were impacting a life other than my own.  My concern for product and ingredient safety became a part of my lifestyle, and it has led me to find incredible brands with these same motivations and goals in mind.

Today, I am so thrilled to introduce you to one such brand, Pleni Naturals.  I had the great pleasure of speaking with founder, and fellow Mom, Allyson Owens, and am excited to share with you the full interview below.  If you are not yet familiar with her products, they are filled with fruit and vegetable ingredients, pure organic essential oils and skin loving ingredients that will help to nourish and soothe your children’s sensitive skin. On top of amazing ingredient quality, Pleni Naturals has taken their commitment one step further to become certified by MADE SAFE. (Read more HERE).  Read on below for our interview with Allyson.

Allyson has very generously offered a wonderful giveaway for readers of The Greenly Guide, so make sure you don’t miss the information on how to enter at the bottom of this post.

The Greenly Guide: Can you talk a little about how you first become interested in natural and non-toxic products and how this lead to the start of Pleni Naturals?

Allyson: Like a lot of women, my journey into the natural and nontoxic world began while I was pregnant with my first child in 2009. It was a journey for me; I didn’t completely go “nontoxic” while pregnant because I was still somewhat unaware of toxic chemicals in the home, but my first detox was definitely my skincare routine! It was also important to me that my babies used safe, nontoxic skincare as well. Before I started Pleni Naturals I was an aesthetician and then I became a consultant and helped skin care brands develop their skin care products. I knew that eventually I would create my own skin care line and I wanted to do something different than what was currently being offered in the natural baby category. Don’t get me wrong; I love flowers but every baby skin care product at the time had flowers in it! I chose to focus on fruit and vegetable ingredients because they are wholesome, just like our babies. Plus, fruit and vegetable oils offer amazing nutritional benefits for the skin. For example; red raspberry seed oil and cranberry seed oil contain omega 3 and 6 essential fatty acids, which our bodies don’t produce and it is necessary to obtain through diet or topically on the skin. These two ingredients help to keep sensitive skin happy and is great for babies and kids suffering from eczema. You can find these two ingredients in our Cucumber + Grape Baby Oil and Berry + Olive Baby Balm. Two other stand out ingredients from the Pleni Naturals skincare line are broccoli seed oil and cucumber seed oil. Broccoli seed oil has a silky finish and works like a natural silicone alternative that leaves the skin smooth and the hair soft and shiny and cucumber seed oil is fantastic for soothing and replenishing the skin’s moisture balance. Both broccoli seed oil and cucumber seed oil can be found in our Apple + Broccoli Hair and Body Wash and the cucumber seed oil can be found in our Cucumber + Grape Baby Oil.

The Greenly Guide: You mention that you created your line of wholesome and organic skincare products for babies and kids to help them develop a lifelong love for veggies, and you also partner with the organization, Life Lab, to help change the way kids think about fruits and veggies. Can you share a little about your partnership and why it is important to your company’s mission?

Allyson: In addition to the answer in question #1 the idea for Pleni Naturals to focus on fruits and veggies was because of my own struggles as a parent inspiring my own kids to love their fruits and veggies! It can be a lot of work! I know other parents struggle with this as well. The fruit and veggie characters on the packaging are fun and silly and it is our mission to deepen that connection with kids and the healthy foods they eat. Plus, the skin is our largest organ and at Pleni Naturals, it makes sense to us to “feed” the skin with the same nutritious fruits and vegetables we put in our bodies. We decided to partner with Life Lab because their values are in alignment with ours — to deepen the connection with kids and the healthy foods they eat. Life Lab is a nonprofit that provides garden education curriculum for schools and I 100% believe that every school should have access to a school garden so they can experience an “edible education”.

The Greenly Guide: How do you keep your own children interested in healthy foods?

Allyson: In many ways! By being an example and making healthy foods choices every day for myself; always stocking plenty of fruits and veggies they have easy access to as a snack; I juice with my son and make smoothies for my daughter regularly (which is how they prefer to get those extra nutrients in, respectively); we go to farmer’s markets; we visit Life Lab on the weekends and enjoy running around the farm (it’s in Santa Cruz, CA which is fairly close to us); we provide a lot of color on the plate especially at dinner time so the food is visually appealing; I tell the kids why the healthy foods they are eating are good for them (i.e. good for your eyesight, makes your bones strong). I also get a lot of healthy recipe inspiration from food bloggers.

The Greenly Guide: As a mother and business owner, how do you find balance between your work and home life?

Allyson: It’s a juggle! But I am so grateful I am able to do this kind of work. I work very efficiently between school drop-off and pickup and I don’t look at my computer again until after the kids are in bed (unless it’s urgent–sometimes things come up!). I often stay up late to get any unfinished work completed and I’m a little more tired than I like, but I honestly wouldn’t change a thing about my current work/home life situation. I love it!

The Greenly Guide: Pleni Naturals has been certified as a brand with MADE SAFE – can you share why it was important to you to pursue this certification and what it means for your brand?

Allyson: I knew while developing the Pleni Naturals line I wanted it to be nontoxic and I spent a lot of time in R&D making sure every product was clean. People may not realize how much work this is; especially when your ingredient “NO” list is as long as ours! Plus, there is a lot of greenwashing in the skincare industry and no regulatory body that prevents companies from calling their products “nontoxic”. How is the consumer supposed to trust skincare brands with all of this greenwashing going on? What products are truly safe to purchase/use? I like MADE SAFE because they screen products for us – the consumer – and only certify products that do not contain harmful toxins that affect our bodies and our environment. And when I learned about MADE SAFE and their mission to eliminate toxins from all products we use in our home, I knew this was the certification I had to have for our brand. Currently, all three Pleni Naturals products are MADE SAFE certified and I plan on all future products we develop to be MADE SAFE certified as well.

The Greenly Guide: What has been your greatest challenge in developing your line of products?

Allyson: By far, the biggest challenge in developing the Pleni Naturals products is preservation! If a product has water in it, it needs to be preserved. Period. The challenge is that it is truly difficult to find preservatives that work and are also natural. There needs to be more options in this area and I am sure every single green skin care company feels the same way! We were lucky to find a 100% natural lactobacillus preservative that works great for our Apple + Broccoli Hair and Body Wash but it doesn’t work for our yet to be released lotion, which we won’t launch until we find a safe preservative blend that works and is in alignment with our values. Also, the problem with the few natural preservatives that are available is that some contain salicylates (think salicylic acid) and these are not appropriate for babies and kids or pregnant women, who also use our products.

The Greenly Guide: Can you share what brings you the most joy about Pleni Naturals?

Allyson: The product development process is a huge joy for me. I absolutely love it! It’s exciting every time. Also, the biggest thrill is when I hear from customers on how the baby oil treated their baby’s cradle cap or how the hair and body wash left their kiddo’s skin so soft and hydrated. This is what it is all about!

The Greenly Guide: What can we expect from your brand in 2017? Any exciting plans you can share?

Allyson: YES! I’m so excited! We are in development with some new products that will launch later this year. Hint: it will be a treat for moms and all ladies alike that care about effective, clean beauty!

Win a Pleni Naturals product bundle!

I am very excited to give you an opportunity to try some of these wonderful organic and non-toxic kids products! The Greenly Guide has partnered with Allyson and Pleni Naturals to offer one of you the opportunity to win all three of their current products: the Cucumber + Grape Baby Oil, the Apple + Broccoli Hair and Body Wash and the Berry + Olive Baby Balm!  Not only are these great for your kiddos, but for the adults in your family too!

Make sure to head over to our Instagram page HERE for all of the giveaway details!

[Giveaway is only open to residents of the United States who are 18 years or older]

*All photos in this post are courtesy of and belong to Pleni Naturals.

Connect with Pleni Naturals on their website, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.

The post Brand Profile and Interview with Allyson Owens of Pleni Naturals appeared first on The Greenly Guide.

Their mission began as consumers themselves as they tried to find a place to purchase natural and organic items for every day life with convenience and affordability.  With health food stores not always locally available, they decided to create their own place where individuals could shop over 800 brands and over 13,000 high quality products without every having to leave home.  In addition to stocking only the best in natural and safe products for the whole family, The Green Life is also constantly striving to reduce their environmental impact as well.  Their warehouses are designed and constructed according to the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED^® standards and all packages are shipped in recyclable boxes.

A Convenient Way to Shop

With products categories ranging from baby care, skincare, makeup, eco fashion and even safer products for your pets, The Green Life has all of your needs covered – and then some!  What we also love is that The Green Life offers an incredibly convenient ‘Subscribe & Save’ option so you never have to worry about running out of your must-have items.  This allows you to purchase any items in their store at an interval of your choosing so the products will be automatically delivered right to your door – how’s that for hassle-free shopping?

We are so excited to have The Green Life Co-Founder, Dina Dunkley on the blog today sharing more about what you can expect to find on their website, what plans they have for the future and a wonderful Giveaway to try out The Green Life shop for yourself!  Continue reading below for our interview with Dina as well as how you can enter to win a $50 shop credit to their website!

The Greenly Guide: When did you open your shop and what inspired you to create The Green Life?

Dina: The Green Life launched in August, 2016. We came up with the idea of opening The Green Life because we, as consumers were looking for a one-stop-shop where we could purchase natural and organic products for our everyday life with convenience and affordability. Stores like Whole Foods and Fresh Market were always a far distance and when we did make the trip, the prices were always extremely off-putting. We also had trouble finding an online natural and organic store that was trustworthy, made shopping simple, had good customer support and actually had all of the products that we needed. When we created The Green Life we not only created a store stocked with the highest-quality natural and organic brands and products, we wanted to create a community where people could come, explore, shop, learn and have access to a highly-knowledgeable team of customer support staff to answer any of your questions. We hope that The Green Life shop will allow families, just like ours, to be able to finally fill their home with safe, clean, non-toxic products all while contributing to the protection and longevity of our environment and all of the animals and people living in it.

The Greenly Guide: What can your customers expect to find on your website?

Dina: Everything! We offer eco-friendly products for baby, beauty, home, health, pet and more! When we first launched we had 13,000 natural and organic products, now, we are up to about 25,000 and we are still growing. We recently added an additional 8,000 grocery items. We also expanded out into the world of ethical fashion (vegan leather bags, bamboo sunglasses, organic cotton kids clothing, etc.) Because we wanted to offer more products for the home, we added organic mattresses and we will soon be adding home filters, and much more.

When we created The Green Life we not only created a store stocked with the highest-quality natural and organic brands and products, we wanted to create a community where people could come, explore, shop, learn and have access to a highly-knowledgeable team of customer support staff to answer any of your questions. – Dina, Co-Founder of The Green Life

The Greenly Guide: What makes your shop different from other similar online natural marketplaces?

Dina: I cannot speak on other eco stores but what I can say is that we take an approach with our customers that not many other stores take; we are extremely personal. A customer can literally call me at 11pm and I will personally answer any questions they may have. If I cannot speak at the time, they get a call that same day. We have been complimented many times on our customer service and it means so much to us. Also, we’ve noticed that many eco stores tend to stick to a niche and offer products in that area, for example: beauty products, kid’s toys, etc. We want people to be able to shop for ALL of their needs in one convenient location. We also have an awesome Subscribe and Save feature that allows you to have your order come automatically so that you never run out of your most-needed green goods.

The Greenly Guide: What are your guidelines to decide which products or brands you will include on your site?

Dina: The Green Life is very vigilant in ensuring that all of our brands and products that we carry hold at least three or more of the following eco-friendly traits:
• Non-GMO Project Verified
• Certified Vegan
• Fair Trade Certified
• Kosher
• USDA Certified Organic
• Cruelty-Free
• Certified Gluten-Free
• Certified B Corporation
• Recyclable
• BPA Free
• Non-Toxic
• Made in the USA
• Sustainable Materials

The Greenly Guide: Do you ship worldwide?

Dina: We are only shipping within the states at the moment, however, we are currently setting up international shipping and hopefully we will be all set to ship worldwide by the end of the year.

The Greenly Guide: Can you explain your ‘Subscribe and Save’ feature, what products this applies to and what benefits are provided?

Dina: Subscribe & Save is a convenient way for you to shop. It allows you to purchase any items as a recurring order. These items will be automatically delivered to your door at a set time of your choosing. Not only is it a hassle-free way to ensure that you never run out of your much needed goods, but it’s also a way to save money. The more you subscribe, the more you save because you will get 5% off of every order you subscribe to.

We’ve made it very easy for you to subscribe to any items in our store. All you have to do is go to the product page and choose the Subscribe & Save option on the right. You can choose to receive your product(s) every 1 – 9 week(s) or month(s)

Once you place your order, you will be sent an email confirming your subscription. You can cancel, add items or remove items from your subscription at any time.  The best part is that you can add recurring orders and one-time purchase orders all to one cart!
We want your shopping experience to be easy. Life can get really hectic at times. We all have those moments where we forget to stock up on the necessities, hey, we’re only human! We are doing everything we can to improve the quality of life for every single person, and that includes by making their life easier.

The Greenly Guide: What are some of the more unique items found in your shop or something a customer wouldn’t expect to find at your store?

Dina: We have some beautiful fair trade, handmade pieces like our Recycled Metal Menorah from India. We also have some of the most beautiful vegan leather bags and bamboo sunglasses. Something that is a bit more practical and maybe taboo is that we offer all natural, sexual health care products such as personal lubricants and condoms. We also have a wonderful section just for men (because REAL men go green).

The Greenly Guide: What have been your biggest struggles in curating The Green Life?

Dina: Some of the biggest struggles is researching brands that we want to offer on The Green Life. Because we have such strict standards, it is no easy task trying to find the right brands and products to offer. We were lucky enough to be able to work with the world’s largest distributor for natural and organic products and they provided us with hundreds of the brands we sell. However, many of the other brands were sourced by me, personally. For example, I LOVE Sophie la giraf’s cosmetic line so I took a chance and reached out to them and they approved The Green Life to sell their products immediately because they loved our store. Some brands will contact me after they find us through Instagram or some other source. One of the high-end brands we carry, Secret in-a-tube reached out to us and we were glad they did because they sell vegan, PETA-approved, high-end skin care products and we definitely wanted to start offering their lines because it is not common to come across a facial care or cosmetic brand that not only works incredibly well, but was started by a Doctor and is cruelty-free.

The Greenly Guide: Can you share with us any exciting plans for your shop or what you are most excited about for the future of your business?

Dina: Our greatest goal is to make every home and every family a little greener. It is so important to us that being eco-friendly and a conscious shopper starts to spread worldwide. We find that other countries like England, Australia and Israel seem to have very progressive laws when it comes to animal rights, labeling of products and being just overall more environmentally friendly. We hope the US can start to head in that direction. As far as our business, we are just growing more and more every single day. We started with 13,000 products and in 4 months have grown to about 20,000.

The Greenly Guide: Anything else to add?

Dina: One thing we would like to add is that The Green Life is a family-owned and operated business so when you shop with us, you are shopping small. The Green Life is also a veteran-owned, woman-owned and minority-owned business.

Bring a little green into YOUR home!

[[Giveaway is CLOSED]] Congratulations to the winner @shelivesgreen!

We have teamed up with The Green Life to offer you an exciting opportunity to explore this amazing natural online marketplace!  We will be giving away one $50 store credit to shop online at The Green Life website!

Head on over to our Instagram page HERE or see below to find out how to enter! Good luck!!

Giveaway is open to US residents only. Must be 18 years or older to enter. Giveaway will run from Tuesday, November 29, 2016 to Friday, December 2, 2016 at 11:00 PM EST. Winner will be chosen randomly and announced at the bottom of this post as well as over on our Instagram feed on Saturday, December 3, 2016. $50 store credit must be used in one order. No giveaway accounts please. This giveaway is in no way sponsored by Instagram.

HOW TO ENTER:

–Make sure you are following The Greenly Guide AND The Green Life over on Instagram

–Comment on the Instagram giveaway photo tagging three friends

–Leave a comment below telling us what you are most interested in buying if you are chosen as the winner! (make sure to include your Instagram username in your comment here so we know it’s you!)

***OPTIONAL–Receive 5 extra entries by reposting our giveaway photo on Instagram (make sure to tag us in your repost!)

Connect with The Green Life

-The Green Life website

–Facebook

–Instagram

–Twitter

The post Shop Spotlight: The Green Life – Bringing a little more green into every home appeared first on The Greenly Guide.