Greg Voisen
Welcome back to Inside Personal Growth. This is Greg Voisen and host of Inside Personal Growth. And for all my listeners, they know that I am environmentally conscious and aware. And I think around our consumption habits. As human souls walking the face of this earth, it's one of the most important things we can do, actually to prevent pollution, but also for global warming. And joining us from Lithuania is viva. And I can't pronounce her last name, she's gonna pronounce it for me. She said don't even try. So Vaiva is the CEO of a company called SolidU that I was introduced to by Richard Arnold, who is our head of sales at the natural products West Expo. And we've been profiling a few companies here that I made my way around to see that I think we're making a difference. And Vaiva’s company is one of them. Good day to Vaiva How you doing?

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Hi, hi, happy to be here. I'm Vaiva Zvirblyte. So that's why I said..

Greg Voisen
That she said, she said don't even try to pronounce her name. So I didn't. But Lithuania is on the other side of the world from San Diego. But the reality is, we reach so many people worldwide. And I want to give this platform because as people go for personal growth, they're actually growing for everything spiritually, emotionally, the way they consume everything that they do. They're trying to change their lives and they're seeking for a new way and a different way to do that. Via you know, you have an interesting story about how you got here. And I think the listeners would love to hear that. In other words, how you built a woman owned company, how you actually got to solid shampoos, and I'm going to show my listeners, because I've been using these shampoos, this is one of them. Here's grandma said this is another one. Here's one called Pink. There it is, you can actually go to their website, which is just solid S O L I D u.com. To learn more about the products in Viva and the company. But just so my listeners know, not only is this solid shampoo, but it's also the packaging is 100% compostable. So I think that's really important. So tell your story by then tell the listeners a little bit more about you and how you stumbled on this.

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Yes, so my story I still is starts very far away from this whole concept, right? I'm really not a chemist. I'm not a cosmetics formulator before I found that this brand, and my background is actually in languages. So I studied Chinese I studied Chinese language and culture. And because of that, from the senior, I moved to China, where I spend

Greg Voisen
Shanghai writers. You're right,

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Yes, yes, I spent some time in other cities too, but mainly in Shanghai. So that's why I'm also happy to you know, to talk to you and to talk to people like you across the world, because I do believe that everything is connected. And we have these common things and common goals that we share in common problems, right? So yes, I basically grew up in China because I went as a student and stayed a long time. And I've just started working with different businesses because I was a Lithuanian who could also speak Chinese. So that's a really special skill that I believe is maybe like 20 people right now that have this skill in the world. So I just started helping people who needed help in China, you know, importing, exporting, going to trade shows, helping with branding, helping with selling their products to China, because at that time when I was there, we already started moving towards selling to China and not just buying cheap things from China to import to Europe or USA. So in this I just got into United interested in business, I got interested in products, especially physical products, things that you can see and touch. And, you know, you can help the product end up on the shelf and then you actually go and see a Lithuanian product being sold in China and I felt that's amazing. But I always felt that something is missing things are not right. You know, like us. Sell mineral water in plastic bottles that you ship across the world and these huge containers, then to be wasted and for that trash to be lying around, you know, so that felt like you spent so much of your energy and time doing something that you hope would lead to a better world. And I really wanted to do something like that for myself. But I didn't have any idea or anything that I could start. And the idea came to me when I actually decided to leave China and not to go back to Europe at first, but just take some time off and travel. And that is how I discovered solid shampoos. Up until where did

Greg Voisen
Where did you, where did you discover solid shampoos, you know, I've switched to solid shampoos, pretty recently, like within the last six months, because before going to natural products West Expo and meeting Richard, I was I was using a solid shampoo. There in many of the health food markets, solid shampoos are available now. And growing. Mine was really more and I think the people listening out there, you know, it's very easy to go get a pump bottle of shampoo. And then you are throwing another bottle into a recycling bin that you hope is being recycled, because you hope the plastic is below what's rated here as a five, which means that it's supposedly going to be ground up and used for something else. But we know we know that as much as that's collected in in our bends. The statistics are is only probably about 50% is actually being recycled, the rest of it is being thrown away. It's ending up in a landfill. And as you say at your website. And I won't take this away from you because there's a great video there. compostable products like that, like in this case, those plastics aren't compostable. Those plastics are going to sit there and have a half-life of a couple of 100 years before they would break down. Yours breaks down in 42 days, I watched the video. And I'm just amazed by the way, folks, here it's coming in a totally sanitary box. And this box breaks down including the back of it and 42 days. And you got to watch the video at the website just go to solid u.com to do that. So how did you what I'm interested in is how did you find solid shampoos? How did you formulate those solid shampoos, in other words, what's in them from a standpoint of the actual contents themselves? So that going down the drain even is not polluting our waterways as well.

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Your rights, plastic as much as we would love to see, you know recyclable, recyclable doesn't mean anything if there is no one to recycle, right? So it's recyclable is just a great, you know, vision and hope that we have that, yes, somebody will take care of it. But the reality is that actually 93% of all plastics have never been recycled, and you have no control over what's going to happen. Even you know, having the best intentions, you do sorted, you do put it in the right then. And you still cannot have an effect on the final step of somebody taking and actually recycling it and reusing it. That's why it was very important for me to give back that control to consumer because you can compose in your home, you do not need to look for any facility to go you can just put it in a garden, you can put it in the house plant in your house, so you have full control of the full cycle of the product. But to me, I didn't come to this. From that environmental perspective. I actually came from a different angle from traveling. So like I said, I decided to leave China and to just backpack through Asia. And I wanted to take everything I need with me in one backpack. And I really cannot carry that much. That's very strong. So I took a lot of time to research and I was researching. What do backpackers do? How do they travel? How do they make it I see these videos. I see this blogger is you know traveling with everything they need. And that's how I found out solid shampoo as a tip for travelers. I've never seen that before. It wasn't available in any of the stores around me, like cosmetic stores, supermarkets. I've never seen it and so I had had to specifically order get it shipped to me for this trip. And I was very skeptical. I said this cannot work, I really care about how my shampoo works. And this cannot be real. And I don't believe that this will be as good as normal shampoo.

Greg Voisen
It's interesting. It's interesting you say that because our first introduction to it. My wife in December was in New Zealand and brought it back from New Zealand. And New Zealand is very environmentally conscious. And they have a lot of solid soaps there and they're in they're quite good. Actually. Yours is better, in my estimation, but because it lathers so well. You know, I think people need to understand that you do not have to go get a shampoo bottle of soap in a plastic container to get your hair clean. And to have a lather that you would like to have. What actually makes it lather so well? There must be something in it.

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Yes. So basically, the other question that you asked before was how my journey of making it staggered, right, right. So once I got back, and I started looking more into this, I saw it's not widely available. And I figured, why not try and make it because I didn't have a full time job at that time and was I was a consultant on project based work. So I thought I could just try and make it because that would be very interesting. And when I started looking into it, I started with soap, because I didn't understand the chemistry behind it. And I thought oh look soap is made from all natural materials is made from oils, nice oils like coconut and you know, some almond oil or sunflower oil, I can mix them and get a great product. But then I tried washing my hair with it. And the results were horrible. Because I didn't understand what a pH is, what a balance pH product is, what does it mean for your scalp and how you need to have specific ingredients that are designed for conditioning that are designed for here and are like gentle and pH balance. So I had to go deeper, because I was very interested. And so I just learned what ingredients you can use to make solid shampoo. And basically what you do is you take surfactants that you would normally have in a shampoo, you just take them powdered or otherwise solid because you have liquid and powdered options. And you use the same ingredients. As an illiquid shampoo, it just do not add water. So the challenge with formulating a good product is balancing that foam ladder with enough conditioning with enough natural oils and moisturizing ingredients so that you do not get overly dried out there that you still have quality feeling on your hair, especially without using plastics such as silicones, for example, which are you cannot see it. It's not like a plastic bottle, but it still has a very horrible lasting effects. Once it goes down the drain. You called it

Greg Voisen
surfactant. What is the is that something that you get from you source someplace and put it into the solid. So I know that at the natural products West Expo, I met with a gentleman that's making solid soaps that instead of dish soap, you use a little brush and you put it in and you can wash your hands with it. So it's a solid bar that's in a little container by your sink. And I got one of those. And I think the interesting thing about this whole solid, so part and I want to I want to really emphasize this, you know, we as consumers buy basically what the media has been telling us to buy. And this is about changing a habit. And when you once you change it and you really see that the effects are actually even better. You realize you don't have to put this plastic into the environment. But more importantly, I want to emphasize this. When you ship something like this, it doesn't weigh five pounds, like you know a shampoo could or two and a half pounds. This is ounces. And we spend so many millions of dollars and pollute the environment so much just by shipping products that have water in them on like your laundry detergents. We're talking about soaps here, those laundry detergents that you buy and the big thing and whatever 80% of its water. Okay, the same as the shampoo that you're buying in a plastic container. Probably 80% of its water, right?

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Yes, yes, exactly. 80, 90% is water and you're just shipping water around when you have it in your shower. So, when you think about it, it's really crazy. But I agree it's difficult to change habits. And it's difficult for everyone because you give us the things you are. It's difficult, it is hard, I understand this. And I went through this process myself, and I will notice the change in generations as well. So when we have people that come up to me that are, you know, maybe, you know, older than me, they're like, what is this? Is this soap? And it's so hard to explain. No, this is a shampoo. No, it cannot be a shampoo, it looks like soap. So it's soap, you see, it's a shampoo. It's very confusing. But when I get like teenagers, not even Gen Z, I don't know, what's the them to me, and they're like, oh, what is it? And I just say it's a shampoo. And they're like, Oh, cool. It makes sense to them, you know, they accepted. And they already think that those options have to be there, they do not question it. And they're open to try. They're expecting things to be sustainable. So it's very interesting to see how different generations react to try new products.

Greg Voisen
Well, you know, you're a socially responsible company. Look, you're sourcing everything you're putting in and compostable products. And there is a gentleman who I've yet to meet the founder. But he had a great idea around soaps, it was called Clean the world, you probably know them. He takes old bar soaps that come out of all these major hotels, and he grinds them out and puts a new scent in them. And then he sends them around where all the bacteria in the world is so high that people are actually dying. And so what's happening, and he's giving them to the homeless, I know that many of my listeners already are aware that my Compassionate communications, my foundation, helps the homeless, that's what I do. And the Ukrainian refugees who are coming to apartments in Poland. So we buy bicycles for the kids. So the point is, is that is solid, you now on a track to do anything from a philanthropic standpoint, because these products are so good for that particular population, that you would think that this would be a perfect opportunity for Viva to, you know, jump into that into that area. Do you have anything that's going on that we should know about?

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Well, at this moment, we are not in a profitability position yet to be able to do that as a small startup company. However, whenever we have a chance to do something, even a small step, we always take that chance. So you mentioned Ukraine. And for listeners who don't know, Lithuania is basically next dorms. So there is Ukraine, Poland and Lithuania. So we do have a refugee crisis here, we have a lot of people coming here. And especially when the war started, we had an influx of refugees that we gave care packs, so we contributed to give them care packs with our products for people who arrived here and maybe they do not have things with them for that those first days. And then again, we leave we have some excess stock, like for example products that are a bit damaged so they don't look so beautiful for sale, but they're completely good products. Right normally donate them to organizations like Caritas that's helped the homeless or people in need, you know, people in shelters, and things like that. So we do small things.

Greg Voisen
Well, it's, it's as you grow, and that's why I'm doing this podcast, I want you to grow, I want you to be hugely successful. Because I think what you're doing here is so important for the world. I mean, you know, we're all making an impact in our own little way however we can and doing good and this really is comes from a backpack story with us speaking two languages to having an interest in now you got this product into your backpack to really formulate these products. And you have more than just shampoos. Now these shampoos are formulated for dry hair as well as oily hair. So when you go to the website, look at that. But you know you're a cosmetic you actually put it out as cosmetic. Talk about some of the other products that you've formulated with the same environmental intention in mind and also the being sourcing of the actual materials that go into it.

Vaiva Zvirblyte
So we started with shampoos, conditioners and soap so I mentioned that I also started to make soap and that was one of the products in the line. I And more recently, we added body butters and body washes. So body butter is also very interesting. When you think about it, when you buy a body lotion, again, you have so much water. But not only water, you have all of these things to make that texture to make it spreadable and nice. So you have all these like fillers, that just give you the color and give you the feel that you know it's a nice feeling lotion. However, in a solid product, you do not need all this. So what we do is we take just pure oils and pure butters. And we mount them into the shape of a solid product. So you take just the pure nourishment of these oils, again, without the water not as heavy, but just as good or maybe even better.

Greg Voisen
And so you've got all these other products that are at the website as well. And I see you've put it into a solid. So once somebody gets into the shower, and uses the body butter, or they put it out there sink with their hands, you could use it that way as well. So you know, you've got up a whole line of products, which are, as I've said, I'm not gonna beat this one too crazy. This is for my listeners go look at the video. The products actually compost in your backyard. I know I have a thing called the lomi l o m i and lomi has a composter that sits on my sink top. And literally these boxes can go into the lomi and break down as well. What's in the future? For solid? You? Where do you see yourself? Headed? Viva? Where is this company going? What would you like to see happen? I know there's a lot of people out there that listen to this that could help you with distribution. And I think distribution is one of the biggest things because you've got to get the products. The other thing is they have a facility for all of my US listeners. They've got a distribution point. I think Richard said it's in North Carolina or someplace. Is that where it's leaving from? Yes. Okay. So you've got it in Europe, and you've got it in North Carolina. So these products are being sourced as environmentally sensitive as they can to get them to the area. But we obviously need to get more distribution, we need to get them into more West column chain stores so that people can access them. Anything that's on the horizon anywhere where you see where you and Richard have made in ways to get the product into some of the major chains.

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Yes, actually. So as you said, we already have a lot of traction in Europe. And we've been working in Europe for over five years. So it's been some time, but only recently, we started looking towards the US. So Richard is actually from the US. But he lives in Lithuania now and we are all in Lithuania. But we see so much opportunity there. And we just started. So as you mentioned right now you can find the products online on solid cosmetics.com. But we are looking more into retail, and we are about to actually launch with one of the distributors in the US. So we hope that in a few months, we will be available at some selected retailers. And from there, you know, there are so many places that this product would be perfect. And I really see the product being on the shelves in a physical store online is great. But we have this packaging in a unique shape. We have nice natural scents. And I think when people see it, it's much easier for them to make that sustainable choice than to take all that action, you know, go on the internet, look for the website, look for the product, get it shipped, you know, so I want it to be very convenient and just accessible to everyone. So for growth, we are also looking for more investment into the company to ensure that we can actually do this and we can expand them in this way. So you know, all of this combined, I see so much work ahead and so much opportunity ahead and so many more things that we can do.

Greg Voisen
Well, one step at a time. Viva that's how the companies are grown. I know it seems you've been at this a long time you'd like to see it explode, but you know, you're working on getting people to actually change their habits. And you know, one of the larger things here is to get people to change habits to realize that this is a better choice. I mean everything around us you know I I'm vegan. Well, not I'm not expecting everybody listening to the show to be vegan. But the brand you don't, you know, from a standpoint of the product itself, I don't even know if these are vegan products or not. I think when you're making choices, so important, those choices are really the key it from what you eat, to how you travel, to the ways in which you choose to kind of put environmentally sensitive plants around your house that don't consume so much water. I mean, we in San Diego, all of Southern California is a desert. Why would you actually want to add plants and people think, well, it's such a lush environment, it's a lush environment, because we're using so much water from so many different regions, right? But the reality is, is this still is kind of a desert area. And I only encourage people who are listening right now to this podcast and could help Viva in any way. So if you are out there, and you own a retail store, or you're in distribution, or you're looking for a company that's doing good for the war world, we will put the connection up there on this podcast, to get the Viva and to get the solid you and to speak with Richard. Richard Arnold is literally the person that's in charge of distribution and sales and so on. And he's wonderful. He's a wonderful person to work with. So is there anything else that you would like to add because if people go to your website, they can learn about the various products that you've got, and the body butters and have different soaps and the conditioners. But all of these I mean, I sound like a big commercial right now. And I should, because I'm 100% sold on what Viva has done here. And she really has created an exceptional product. I use this every morning. Okay. And I can tell you, the one of the things is people look at this small little container, they go, Well, how long is that going to last? This last leg? Literally? I bet you could probably use it for a month or more every day and still have it leftover. Would you say that's about right, maybe a month?

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Yes, that is accurate. For sure that here you can make it last even longer. So for me, it's a month or so. But some people sometimes we get messages like oh, I've been using it for half a year. But I think they're pretty special. They really

Greg Voisen
I don't know what they're doing to get a happy half year. But, but it's there, but do for all of my listeners please the reason that natural products West Expo I go we just did a show around. Ted Dennard, who owns Savannah bee, and his company isn't about funny. Even though he sells honey. It's about the preservations of the bees worldwide. And in this case, Viva story isn't as it is as much about the shampoo, the solid shampoo, but it's about how she packages the shampoo. And she sources the materials into things to make it more environmentally conscious. And I think anything where you have a solid product. Again, I'm gonna repeat this where you're not shipping 80% water and you're having to ship this heavy, heavy, heavy content across the globe. Think about that, because it makes so much more sense to do it that way. And viva I want to thank you for being on inside personal growth and spending a little bit of time with us today, talking about the opportunities that my listeners have to change a habit around something as simple as washing their hair, and being environmentally sensitive by doing it. Or body butters instead of going and buying all those creams and all of those plastic containers, which Viva just said about 80% of them aren't getting recycled. You now have a choice to say well, I got a compostable packaging. I've got something that lasts a month. Right? I've got something that is good or better than what I would get if I got it out of those other products and I will say that I mean I'm a big commercial to me this is better than shampoo itself. So anything parting that you would like to say?

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Well, thank you so much for your kind words, and I'm so happy that you're actually using the product and not just, you know, oh, I know this brand and just you actually used it and your hair does look good. I'm happy to see this, that it works for you. And

Greg Voisen
I tell people, I tell people Viva for somebody, that's my age, I still have hair. I think so much of it. Well, it looks that way. It was just cut. But the point is, in July, I'm going to be 69. So that's the other thing people go, I don't believe you're 69. Maybe this shampoo is coming down on my face.

Vaiva Zvirblyte
I'm very happy to be here and to be able to share my story. And if anybody wants to get in touch with me, yes. Feel free to add in the description to add my contact to add the website as well, because I'm sure people do not remember solido. So yes, if anybody wants to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, tick tock, everywhere, please, please still, you can send us a message anytime. We are a small company. So we will read every email we do read every message and we really care about your opinion and your comments. So keep that in mind and very open to hear from anybody who was listening to this podcast

Greg Voisen
Well for all of you who are listening to for somebody to go on a backpacking trip and then try and figure out how they could carry soaps with them and then to build a company from that which is now 20 employees and is thriving. I give you big kudos for that because it takes a lot of initiative. She also is looking for more investment so she can reach this market. So for any of my investors out there who would be interested please reach out to either Richard or Viva and thank you so much. And Namaste, thank you for being who you are and what you guys are doing and to the rest of the staff and to Richard, at solid you for building a great company with a great product.

Vaiva Zvirblyte
Thank you. It was very nice talking to you.