A Buttery Soft Impact Story
I first wrote about Boll & Branch early in its existence, circa 2016, publishing an interview with Scott Tannen who, along with his wife Missy, founded the maker of luxury organic bedding, sheets, and towels.
I was fascinated by their desire to understand and trace the product origin, their desire to build a sustainable supply chain, and by their DTC model that allowed them to deliver premium, organic cotton sheets at a reasonable and accessible price point.
Oh, and also their commitment to measurable social and environmental impact.
A key part of that supply chain story was getting Fair Trade certified, to ensure that economic, social, and environmental standards are followed – and that farmers and factory workers in India, where the cotton is grown and manufactured into bedding, would receive better prices, living wages, and work in decent conditions.
The goal was to benefit the lives of everyone who touches their products.
That was eight years ago – a long time in human years, but not all that long measured by corporate longevity. So, I was surprised when I looked at my “How I Built This” podcast feed and saw that Scott and Missy were featured for the story of how they created and grew Boll & Branch. Most entrepreneurs showcased on Guy Raz’s podcast take considerably longer to scale similar heights.
But then most entrepreneurs don’t have Scott and Missy’s story. You should give their episode a listen. I think you’ll be impressed by their utter honesty and humility, which is refreshing in world of self-important success stories. “Oh, geez, we thought we knew a lot; we don’t know anything,” says Scott at one point, as if he was your neighbor at a backyard barbeque. It is totally refreshing.
They talk throughout the episode about not really being entrepreneurs, but they fit my definition when they put their house on the line as collateral for a bank loan. For me, when you step across that line you’ve earned your entrepreneurship card.
While eight years isn’t all that long, Boll & Branch recently crested $200 million in annual sales according to Modern Retail, and is solidly profitable. In addition to its ecommerce platform, it's also opened several brick and mortar retail stores and has established partnerships to sell through a number of Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom stores – so it’s definitely a business success story by any measure, including Guy Raz’s.
You can check out the positive work Boll & Branch has accomplished over the last ten years in its impact report, which gives you a holistic view into the entire company and its different approach to making bedding.
As for the “buttery, soft” of the headline – which is how the company describes its sheets – I can tell you as a customer, having purchased sheets after the 2016 interview – that’s exactly how they sleep: buttery and soft!
I was also going to let you know that we were still sleeping on those same sheets – we use them as our winter set – except that just yesterday I took them out of the drier and the fitted sheet had finally torn in a couple of spots.
I immediately bought another set.
Folks, it’s a great story, so again – give it a listen. I think it’ll inspire you and perhaps induce you to buy their certified Fair Trade, 100% organic sheets. Worth it!
(And no, I’m not getting paid anything for this enthusiastic post. I just dig the company, its products, and impact.)
Godspeed, friends.
Russ
Need help in some way? Or have a story idea, question, or request? We're here to help! Just reply to this email with whatever you've got, and we'll see you again next Tuesday.