Refill, Reuse, Rewear: Inside The Kind Matter Company’s Approach to Conscious Living

An Interview with the founder of The Kind Matter Company, Laura Newton.

Can you tell me a bit about the origins of your company? What inspired you to start it?

I founded The Kind Matter Company in 2018, but the inspiration for it really was when my daughter Maya was born. She had really severe allergies, and that was the catalyst for me starting on my journey into a more sustainable, wholesome, natural lifestyle. Once the kids were older and I was quite deep into living more low waste and buying products that were healthy and safe, and clean, I realised you couldn’t get them anywhere in one place. It felt counterproductive. I thought if I’m looking for these things, then there must be other people looking for them too. So I decided to start a business where everything was under one roof and it was truly clean, safe and sustainable, with a very strict process of what we would allow into the store.

What does “sustainability” mean to you personally – and how does that translate into your business decisions?

Sustainability for me is low waste, carbon footprint and the social piece of it as well. Most of what we carry is Canadian-owned and Canadian-made, so everything is travelling the least amount of time and distance. We purchase products with little to no packaging, and the business has a huge refill section for anything you use in your home. That negates the garbage going into the landfill. Our vendors reuse packaging and use paper packaging, not plastic peanuts. We make sure ingredients are safe to go into the waterways and do not damage our hormone systems. Finally, the social aspect is making sure that the people who are making the products are treated fairly. For me, it’s doing our best to ensure we are hitting each of those checkpoints with everything we bring in. 

What are the biggest sustainability challenges your company faces day-to-day?

The most challenging thing is that the more you scale the business, the harder it is to keep the waste down. As we’ve been growing and doing a buildout of a new store and running the head office, there is more space for waste to happen. Even printing off paper or sending stuff out to get it printed adds extra cost and extra carbon footprint. 

What trends in sustainable living or fashion are you most excited about right now?

The refill portion is the thing that has been really exciting. When we first opened, the refill area was untouched, and people were very hesitant. Now people are more open to it, and some have bottles they’ve been refilling for years. Even refilling one product creates instant savings on trash. It’s becoming more mainstream and is going to continue to grow.

In sustainable fashion, I’m excited about sourcing Canadian-owned clothing businesses and independent Canadian-made designers where everything is produced here. A lot of vendors mill their own fabric, and we really focus on natural wool, organic cotton, hemp and silk. Clothing made of natural fibres is more durable, lasts longer and doesn’t create microplastics. Slow fashion pieces are more classic and can stand the test of time, so you’re not turning things over as often. It’s really about being aware and becoming a more conscious consumer instead of grabbing something from fast fashion just because it’s cheap or on sale.

What’s one sustainable habit you personally swear by?

I really try to make everything at home from scratch as much as possible. We do a lot of refilling of our ingredients and not buying pre-packaged food, and the amount of waste we have reduced in our household is quite a lot. I’ve also become really knowledgeable about ingredients in products, which is healthy for my family and sustainable for the environment.

In terms of sustainable fashion, I focus on having a very small wardrobe, but I have pieces that I feel like I can mix and match, and also buy better quality stuff so that it lasts longer.