Kate Northrup recently asked a great question on her podcast "The Kate & Mike show". She wanted to know - what makes you SO unique that you don't have to compete on price? I've written before about how I don't compete with other people or businesses. Even if we appear to offer the same thing, because our life experiences are unique, we each bring something unique to the table. Our businesses are birthed and grown because of our own unique soul fuel. Many people feel defensive, threatened, insecure, or like there isn't "enough" to go around so they engage in deceptive marketing practices to make themselves look bigger or better than they are. Or they get hung up on pointing out that their competition isn't as good as they are.  Listen, if your 'competition' is making money and making a difference then they're good enough for SOMEBODY. lol. The people they're making a difference for simply aren't your people. Don't worry about it. Be YOUR best self. Grow YOUR best business. Figure out who YOU want to serve, what YOUR PEOPLE need, and then dive headlong into meeting YOUR PEOPLE'S needs in YOUR best way. I believe that's where business magic lies. As W.Chan Kim & Renee Mauborgne of Blue Ocean Shift & Blue Ocean Strategy say - - create your own space and make 'competition' irrelevant. 
But I digress....lol 

Kate Northrup asked - - what makes you so unique that you don't have to compete on price? Although I've thought about that concept before (thanks B-School!) her phrasing of the question hit the mark and I KNEW instantly what it was that makes Hedgecraft Herbals unique. Which is what I want to share with you today. 

1. I am at heart a birthkeeper - a term that the late Jeannine Parvati Baker created in reference to Birth Workers who are also Earth Keepers (those who value the wisdom of the Earth).  I am committed to remembering the sacred nature of birth and earth and I believe, as Jeannine did, that we can "heal the earth one birth at a time". I believe that in order to dismantle the systems of oppression which plague our world and cause untold harms, we must go back to the beginning - to birth and to earth. I believe we must find ways to LEAN OUT of systems that are causing harm* so that they collapse, and new just and loving systems can be built in their place. This is the foundation my work is built on. (*leaning out of systems that cause harm is a concept from Kate Northrup's book "do less").

2. I make products for Canadians and encourage people to 'shop small, shop local' when possible, because I believe its better for the earth. I purchase my supplies from Canadian companies and only ship within Canada. 

3. Some makers & businesses engage in what's known as "greenwashing" They call their products fresh/herbal/natural, but if you take a closer look you'll discover they contain things like synthetic colours &/or fragrances, highly processed stabilizers &/or preservatives, or harsh ingredients that can disrupt your skin's natural equilibrium. That's all fine as long as you understand as the consumer what you're choosing and are comfortable with it.  It's not how I roll though.
I don't add colours or fragrances of any variety to my products. I've created formulas that don't require stabilization or artificial preserving. And of COURSE, none of my ingredients or products are tested on animals (unless you count the loving humans who are my family and friends).
Most importantly, I create products full of love and plant magic, which wake up the magic of your own innate healing abilities. 

4. Finally, a *lot* of natural or herbal products contain essential oils. I believe that herbal medicine is people's medicine and essential oils are not something the average person can create themselves. They require massive quantities of plant material and specialized equipment to produce. They are also extraordinarily potent and just a single drop in a formula can be the difference between safe and unsafe use. I believe that essential oils have become part of a system that too frequently causes harm, so at Hedgecraft Herbals I have chosen to lean out of that system and embrace whole plant medicine instead.

For that same reason I don't use plants which are endangered, threatened, or at risk (like sandalwood or frankincense for example). Exotic or rare ingredients are promoted as being more powerful and therefore more desirable than what grows in our own yards but I believe that Mother Nature is an equal opportunity giver and that beneficial healing plants can be found all over the world. Why plunder a rare species for the sake of our appearance when the humble weeds we encounter daily already contain the plant magic we need? I believe our cultural obsession with rare, exotic, or difficult to obtain ingredients is actually rooted in white colonialism. I do my best to lean out of that too. 

Hedgecraft Herbals products are made with love, for Canadians, by a birthkeeper. They are genuinely herbal and contain nothing harsh, nothing synthetic, and no essential oils.

If that's your thing too, then I've got what you need.

You're my people and I can't wait to meet you. <3