Today we’d like to introduce you to Salwa Khan.
Hi Salwa, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
After I had my first child, like many new moms, I went through a lot of change. On top of my new identity and responsibilities, I was inundated with all of the choices and options when shopping for basic essentials. Figuring out all the things she “needed” was such time-consuming endeavor.
There were subscriptions for almost everything, but not everyday clothing. I would spend hours on my phone, swiping through site after site, mix and matching the perfect capsule collection she could wear for just those three months (and then doing it all over again). Between the highly-gendered and the “insta-ready” marketing geared exclusively toward moms (dads are shopping too!), I wondered why it was so hard to just have the basics delivered to me as she grew. Especially high-quality, ultra-soft ones that were accessibly priced but also being made thoughtfully, with the environment and an ethical supply chain in mind.
I felt so much anxiety every time she had a growth spurt and I had to find a place to donate her clothes too or a bin to drop it in (PS those bins typically just end up in landfills in developing nations).
That’s when Cubbiekit was born. I quit my job at a company I enjoyed working for in the height of the pandemic in August 2020 to build a zero-waste baby clothing company that catered to ALL parents (not just mom). I obsessively started looking for ethical factories with a traceable supply chain that could manufacture premium quality baby clothing at a fair price point. I found a partner who was willing to take a chance on me and went from there.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Absolutely not. I read somewhere that being an entrepreneur is one of the only careers that rewards you with more problems as you grow and get better. With my first small batch of a product I received from a potential supplier, I had faulty snap buttons that were falling off of a few styles of clothing. I had to write it off as unsellable and recycle the clothing because of this hazard. The supplier ended up ghosting me and I never heard from them again (PS they never returned our money either). I’ve learned to persevere, but when you’re in the thick of it, it feels like the end of the world. I feel imposter syndrome often when I explain to my friends, family and former colleagues that I started a zero-waste baby clothing company. When you’re a mother and a female entrepreneur solving a problem for parents, it’s incredibly easy to get type-casted as a “mompreneur” or “hobbyist,” which works against you in the realm of startups that are largely dominated by men. I once had a middle-aged gentleman tell me he “lets his wife deal with” shopping for the kids and she “complains, but does it anyway” in response to Cubbiekit alleviating invisible chores of motherhood.
We’ve been impressed with Cubbiekit, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Cubbiekit is the easiest and most sustainable baby clothing subscription service for zero-waste, gender-neutral baby essentials. We deliver a personalized kit of ultra-soft, 100% GOTS certified organic cotton basics that have been sustainably sourced and ethically made as baby grows. We check shopping off parents’ to-do lists so they can save time on errands and spend more time being present parents.
Our baby clothing is produced with 100% recyclable materials that won’t shrink after the first wash. We’re a circular baby clothing brand, so when babies outgrow their current size, parents can send it back and we will divert clothing from landfills by donating clothing to charities that support newborns in need or recycling the fabric.
Many “sustainable” baby brands will use synthetic blends such as polyester, spandex or elastane that make baby clothing fit snug. However, once a garment, even when produced with organic bamboo or cotton is blended, it will take hundreds of years to biodegrade in a landfill. We encourage parents to reduce consumption on a garments with such a short lifespan but still give them the ability to celebrate this important milestone in their lives by shopping for new, premium quality products that won’t outlive their kids.
We’re not a secondhand rental service! We’re very much a new-clothing subscription service delivering classic styles in playful colors that parents and babies use in life’s everyday adventures.
How do you think about happiness?
My definition of happiness has changed as I’ve grown. I used to care about success from a monetary or job title point of view and thought being well paid with “Director” in my title would make me happy. I’ve outgrown that definition and my happiness isn’t rooted in how others perceive me or by wealth, which is important in today’s world of social media. Instead, happiness is savoring life moments, learning skills that I enjoy, and spending my time on things that don’t necessarily have a tangible ROI (like a fancy car or a big house). Dancing to KPOP with my five years old and one-year-old makes me happy. Cooking with my family makes me happy. Learning how to play the piano makes me happy (even though I’m terrible at it). Doing the right thing makes me happy. Doing right by my family, the planet, my employees, and my business.
It’s not easy to create a clean, transparent supply chain that serves the people creating our products and ensures that what we produce has an end-of-life that won’t harm the environment. I see competitors market themselves as “sustainable” but send their polyester-blended garments wrapped in cheap poly-bags that are landfill ridden because they are not curbside recyclable. At Cubbiekit, we bulk recycle these products for our customers even if it’s not good for the bottom line because it’s not their responsibility, nor was it their choice to receive it in that packaging. Corporations have made the environment a consumer responsibility when their business practices have been directly and indirectly creating the climate crisis as they prioritize profits. It makes me happy when our customers recognize how we’re trying to make sustainable business practices a global standard.
Contact Info:
- Email: salwa@cubbiekit.com
- Website: www.cubbiekit.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/cubbiekit
- Facebook: facebook.com/cubbiekit
- Twitter: twitter.com/cubbiekit
Image Credits
Jessica Pages Photography, Clay Grier Photography
