"If we had waited until everything was just so, we’d never have even launched" with Lindsey McCoy

Lindsey McCoy is the CEO of Plaine Products, a hair- and body care products company on a mission to rid the world of single-use plastics, one bathroom at a time. After earning a master’s degree from Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Lindsey spent ten years running environmental education nonprofits in The Bahamas, islands that are overwhelmingly full of single-use plastics. After her return to the United States, she and her sister co-founded Plaine Products in February of 2017, in order to help minimize single-use plastics and reduce waste in bathrooms across the country. Plaine Products offers premium personal care products in uniquely sustainable packaging, aluminum bottles that can be returned to the company for free, refilled and reused and is on track to have diverted over 200,000 plastic bottles from landfills (and oceans) to date.

Can you tell our readers about your background? 

While I once had aspirations of politics, I started my career in nonprofits with the goal of somehow making a difference, although I wasn’t sure exactly what I would do or how I would do it. I spent twenty years working for and leading various nonprofits. Ten of those years were in The Bahamas working with environmentally-focused nonprofits before founding Plaine Products.

What inspired you to start your business? 

Sometimes, once you’re immersed in a particular sector, you start to notice its implications within your own life. When my work focus was all about the environment, I started really noticing what a big footprint we humans leave on the earth, particularly as I became aware of all of the plastic waste washing up on our beaches. On an island, trash just doesn’t disappear, as it seems here in the United States, where we have a bigger infrastructure. I started to really worry that if someone didn’t do something, every beach in the world would be littered with plastics. I very soon realized that someone had to be me. Plaine Products is a company on a mission to rid the world of single-use plastics, one bathroom at a time. Plastic products in the bathroom have a lower likelihood of being recycled and more often than not, end up in landfills, or worse, in our oceans. Our products are packaged in reusable aluminum containers, which our customers send back to us once empty to be cleaned, refilled, and used again. While our concept would work with so many different household products, we decided to start with the bathroom, which is a relatively small room, with high plastic usage. We felt this was a place where natural, recyclable options were limited and where we had the opportunity to make the difference I have wanted to make since the beginning of my career.

Where is your business based?

Plaine Products is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, where my sister, our COO Alison Webster, manages our warehouse team and fulfillment operations. I live in North Carolina and the rest of our team is distributed all over North America. Aside from our warehouse, we do not have a brick and mortar location, which we think helps minimize the environmental impact of running our company.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

My sister and I joined forces to start Plaine Products together. Because we were the first that we knew of to start a business like ours, we really had to start from scratch: formulating our products, which had to be natural, organic and cruelty-free; selecting our containers, which had to be durable, easily cleanable and able to withstand a wet environment without rusting; and creating a process, which had to include an efficient manner to both fulfill orders and receive the empties. It was a lot to undertake. Our belief is that it’s going to take more than one company to make a difference. We need others to join us in our effort to stop the plastic crises. We are active within the packaging industry, sharing the information that we have learned with other entrepreneurs who want to start similar businesses. 

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business? 

We have made strong connections with other bloggers and businesses who have a similar commitment to the environment. We reached out early to smaller and medium-size blogs, asked them to review the products, and took their advice seriously. The message we received was that there was an audience out there who had been waiting for a business like ours to start. We cross-promote with other like-minded businesses and educate our followers, as opposed to just selling to them.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them? 

One of our biggest challenges happened early on. We were weeks away from our launch and had sourced stainless steel bottles, which started rusting in the shower. Our concept wouldn’t work if the bottles couldn’t withstand the wet environment.

At that point, it would have been easy to throw in the towel. It was such a major setback. Instead, we delayed our launch by a bit and found an aluminum replacement for our initial bottles. While this was a big challenge, it reminded me that nothing has to be perfect. It’s all a work in progress. If we waited until we had everything figured out perfectly, we might never even have a company. Since then, our motto is “progress, not perfection,” which is not only our mantra as we continue to develop Plaine Products but is one we share with our customers, too.

We’re flooded with information about the importance of eco-friendly living, but the process to adopt more sustainable lifestyle habits can be overwhelming. We tell our customers to adopt one new green habit at a time, with the focus on the good that a new habit can have on the environment versus all the other lifestyle adjustments that are possibly ahead of you. Don’t beat yourself up because you forgot your reusable bags. Instead, celebrate when you remember the next time. 

How do you stay focused?

I recently spent 10 days aboard a plastic research sailing vessel with Exxpedition, visiting ocean plastics hotspots around the world. According to research, 8 million metric tons of plastic makes its way into the oceans each year. From what I saw on this voyage, I got really nervous that maybe that estimated number of ocean plastics wasn’t high enough! Seeing first hand the damage that humans have done to our earth just with single-use plastic products keeps me focused on the Plaine Products’ mission. We are lucky to have a team of similarly motivated employees. We all realize that we are more than just a company selling shampoo. We have a real opportunity to make a difference to the world we leave behind to our children and that is a powerful motivator.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition? 

We try to differentiate ourselves through our customer communication. We don’t believe in green-shaming. We try to give our customers the tools and information they need to make good purchasing decisions. But again, our focus is on progress, not perfection. We maintain an upbeat and approachable tone. Consumers are flooded with all the different green products and it can be easy to feel overwhelmed and just shut down. We encourage them to keep moving forward, one step at a time. 

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business? 

We’ve made a commitment to our mission and our customers by partnering with like-minded businesses, influencers, and nonprofit organizations. Our Plaine Promoters, which include individuals, bloggers, and nonprofits sell our products through their own sales channels and earn 10% back for their own company or their cause.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs? 

Nothing is written in stone. Progress, not perfection! Just keep moving forward. We’ve made changes to our logo, our website, and our packaging. If we had waited until everything was just so, we’d never have even launched.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

Currently, my favorite app is Stand Up, my reminder to stand up and move around every hour. It’s too easy to sit at the computer and stay there for a few hours. When you own your own business, there’s always something you can do. But taking a break is not only good for my body, it’s great for problem-solving, too. Stepping away and taking a quick walk or focusing on something else helps me think outside of the box and come up with creative solutions and new ideas.

My favorite blog is Going Zero Waste by Kathryn Kellogg. It is super accessible and has great ideas for starting wherever you are in your journey towards creating less waste. I love anything that makes tips for living a more sustainable lifestyle seem doable since it is so easy to just become overwhelmed by the sheer mass of information that is out there.

I’m a huge reader, so the list of my favorites books is long. For business, it’s either Essentialism by Greg McKeown or The Lean Product Playbook by Dan Olsen. The Lean Product Playbook is a great start-up guide. He recommends launching a version of your idea quickly so you can learn and improve. That’s the path that we took in launching Plaine Products. Our bottles and our website have already been through several iterations. If we’d waited until they were perfect, we never would have launched.  For my free time reading, one of my favorite books has been The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

It sounds old-fashioned, but right now, it’s my phone. Working odd hours and as a mom, my phone allows me to stay in touch even when I’m on the soccer field. It’s important not to work all of the time, but I’m able to feel better about being out of the office if I know people can reach me if they need to. Plus, I’m a natural collaborator, and with a distributed team, having that personal connection is important. Sure, we use video chats, too, but there are times when nothing replaces a good old phone call.

Who is your business role model? Why? 

I’ve been so impressed by Lauren Singer, who started with a blog, Trash is for Tossers, then started a reusable laundry soap company, Simply Co, and then founded the Package Free shop, one of our wholesale partners. I love her ambition to change the world. She lives her beliefs and stands up for less waste ethos at every opportunity. 

How do you balance work and life? 

Balance and boundaries are always important to remote workers. When you live where you work, you sometimes have to make a conscious effort to not work 24/7. I read somewhere that if the boss doesn't take time off from work, no one else feels like they can either. Plus, a team that feels balanced and fulfilled outside of work is often more productive. I try to integrate breaks into my day and I’m vocal about it as a way to encourage our team to do the same. One way I’m sure to build breaks in my day is to remind myself that by doing so, I’m giving my team the permission to do the same. Downtime isn't a luxury, but a requirement, essential for healthy living.  Also, downtime isn't a treat that should be earned, but instead is as important as exercise and healthy eating, particularly now when we are all feeling a bit on edge. We all look at productivity as a metric for success, especially remote workers who often feel like they have to prove that they are working. 

What’s your favorite way to decompress? 

I try to incorporate yoga, walking the dog, and reading for pleasure into my daily routine. 

What do you have planned for the next six months? 

We’re expanding our product line to include sunscreen and hand sanitizer. We often get ideas from our customers with products they’d like to see next. We’re expanding very carefully, as the products inside our bottles are just as important as the packaging on the outside. We want our customers to know that our products all adhere to the same strict standards: natural, sulfate- and paraben- and cruelty-free, making them safe for every member of the family. 

How can our readers connect with you?

Follow us on our social media channels, to learn more about our company, but also to read about the latest tips and products that will help you as you work towards a more eco-friendly lifestyle. We have a monthly e-newsletter, too. But often, when you email our customer service department, it is my sister or me who responds. Even as a web-based business, we, as founders, have a deep connection to many of our customers. We’re all in this together to make this world a better place.