Sisters Bunny (left) and Taran Ghatrora, photographed here in Vancouver, plan more expansion for their company Blume in 2022.Darryl Dyck
In the last 18 months, when just about every consumer-facing company in Canada was scrambling to go digital and maintain an online presence, Surrey, B.C.-based online skincare and wellness company Blume made its first foray into in-store retail.
“It’s counterintuitive to what you’d think a business would do at this time,” says Taran Ghatrora, CEO of the period products and puberty-focused skincare enterprise. Taran co-founded Blume with her sister Bunny, the company’s COO. “We were predominantly online before the pandemic, but during the pandemic we forged relationships with key brick-and-mortar retailers.”
Several big name physical retailers took notice of the company, its growing “sisterhood” of online customers and popular product lines. Blume’s purpose-driven philosophy is to empower teenage girls and young women by de-stigmatizing puberty and raising awareness about social attitudes that can affect self-esteem.
Blume’s expansion involved putting its product line – including natural blemish treatments, face wash, organic tampons and pads and period “cramp oil” – on the shelves of leading beauty and skincare retailers in both Canada and the U.S.
With a new in-store presence, the company’s retail business grew an astounding 400 per cent between 2019 and 2020, and doubled from 2020 to 2021. Between their expansion into stores and their thriving e-commerce business, the coming year is looking just as promising. Taran and Bunny, who founded the company in 2018 with the now-timely tagline, “self-care is the new going out,” plan to expand their lean staff of 10 in 2022.
The optimism of the Ghatrora sisters is something they share with a growing number of women-led companies in Canada. The recent 2021 KPMG Business Outlook Poll revealed an interesting trend: Women business owners tended towards positive thinking in comparison to male business owners, at a time when many companies have struggled due to the pandemic.
It’s a trend that comes as no surprise to Stephanie Terrill, business unit leader for management consulting at KMPG Canada. “I think women are able to quickly accept change and forge the best path forward,” says Ms. Terrill. “We’ve had to adapt all along to be successful in business.”
Greater flexibility in the new normal
According to KPMG’s survey, 39 per cent of women describe their team as tech savvy, compared to 30 per cent of men. Women surveyed were also more likely to feel confident in the face of a cyber-attack.
While such gender differences could have something to do with the fact that more women-helmed businesses are still relatively young, it’s also about mindset for women entrepreneurs, says Ms. Terrill.
“Women have resilience and an adaptability mindset.”
Stephanie Terrill of KPMG, photographed in her home office in Canmore, AB, says that women business owners benefit from an adaptability mindset.David Chidley
While remote work has driven many women with young children out of the workforce — women accounted for 53.7 per cent of employment losses in Canada between March 2020 and February 2021, according to Statistics Canada — Ms. Terrill says the new “hybrid” normal may help some women better juggle their responsibilities if employers embrace a future of work centered around flexibility.
“The unspoken secret is that women have had to integrate our home life and our business life for decades, which can be an advantage,” Ms. Terrill says. “For many, it has helped them with multi-tasking.” Many women wanted the flexibility of remote work and found the previous model challenging “because of the time spent commuting and travelling,” she adds.
Ms. Terrill notes that she frequently leads her professional conversations by mentioning her personal life, including what’s new with her daughter. She made sure her team was thriving during the worst of the pandemic by focusing on having a growth mindset and closed all her meetings with the statement: “Kindness is contagious too.” She sees her successful clients doing the same.
“I think that COVID really brought to the forefront the more humanistic side of living on the planet together and doing business,” she says. “I do my best to lead with empathy and optimism. People have really needed that over the last year and a half.”
Leading with empathy
Another area where women were more optimistic in the KPMG poll was around labour. More women than men — 72 per cent versus 67 per cent — expect to hire soon. And while survey respondents overall were worried about the skills shortage, 53 per cent of women said they were confident they’d find the skilled help they need compared to 46 per cent of men.
“I think women are stronger at creating and keeping communities together,” Ms. Terrill says. The ability of women to build cohesive teams and have empathy for their staff’s personal and professional struggles has been critical in their ability to hire and retain people. These qualities are essential for all leaders in business today.”
Taran Ghatrora notes that their staff received a home office allowance during the pandemic, as well as regular “half-day Fridays.” The company also has an ongoing policy that staff are free to head out for any medical or other personal appointment when needed.
It all leads to a positive outlook that prioritizes innovation and collaboration, says Ms. Ghatrora.
“What I think is really amazing is that we have the opportunity to find new ways of overcoming barriers and doing great things together.”
Advertising feature produced by Globe Content Studio with KPMG. The Globe’s editorial department was not involved.