To celebrate all the brains behind our Thrive Festival brands we wanted to delve deeper into the beginnings behind each one! Today we chat to Pat from reuzi

What is reuzi’s mission statement?

Our mission is twofold:

• We want to break the stigma around sustainability. Sustainability is not exclusive to scientists or the ‘all-or-nothing’ folk.
• We want to make sustainability an easy to digest subject with fun, pretty and colourful products.

Our planet is everybody’s business and we want everybody to get involved!

Where did you get the inspiration for your brand?

Not necessarily, “where” but “why”… My background is on Customer Experience and as a customer, my own experience searching for sustainable goods in Ireland had been quite fragmented. For that reason, I decided to create a true one-stop-shop for sustainable living.

What are some of your favourite brands in the health and wellness space?

We are so lucky to live in a country with so many fantastic brands! A few of my favourites would be Platinum Pilates, Floraison, Juspy, Homespun, Dr. Coys, Nunaia, health coaches Suzanne from TheWellNow Co and Brona Malone from Power In You and Aoife Kane Yoga. From our own brands, I’d say Janni Bars, Wild Rose Botanicals, Dalkey Handmade Soap and Bodhi Blends would be at the top of my list!

In your opinion, what has been the biggest innovation within your sector in the last few years?

Not necessarily a major innovation but the fact that we are all giving shampoo bars a chance is major to me! It feels like the formulas have been improved and I challenge you not to find one that suits your hair perfectly. Think of the number of plastic bottles you used to have in your shower! And now we can reduce that waste to zero by making a small yet significant change. 

What has running your own business taught you?

That you can do anything but not everything – at least if you are trying to do things properly! reuzi is more than a one-stop-shop for sustainable living; we offer a pool of services such as business and school lunch & learn sessions, strategy and consultancy support for businesses and 1-2-1 support for families and individuals. It sounds like a lot because it is a lot but if I could I would do even more… but then again, I’ve learned to pick my battles!

What do you think is the next big thing in the world of health and wellness?

I think people are becoming more conscious about what they buy, what they eat and how they look after themselves so stores like mine will hopefully become wellness stores in the future. We are all aware of the harms of overconsumption and we all want to be a part of a better world so making better choices should be just normal, not necessarily a ‘category’ / ‘speciality’.

What did your team enjoy the most about this year’s Thrive Festival?

Aisling Larkin’s panel on eating mindfully and Conor Spacey’s session on zero waste cooking were just fantastic! I also loved the Platinum Pilates room, such a treat! As we are talking about food I can’t leave the vegan notcho cheese by one of the food stalls – so yummy 🙂

You’ve been working from home during the COVID19 crisis. Tell us what your daily routine is like?

I was waking up early at around 6:45am and I tried to squeeze in some exercise – some days were all about P.E. with Joe Wicks (the joys of having little kids!) and on others I’d go for a run. Running keeps me sane and sets me up for the day, I love it!

Breakfast with the family was always a non-negotiable part of the day for me.

I’d schedule calls with partners during morning time and then headed into reuzi for the afternoon.

Some evenings I’d drive around to make sure all my local customers were served as quickly as possible – community is at the heart of everything we do and during tough times like this, I wanted to ensure they had what they needed!

At the end of the day, I’d go back home and chill for the evening with the boys and my husband. On sunny days we enjoyed walks to nearby parks or just a cheeky BBQ in the garden.