Today we’d like to introduce you to Jay Brooks.
Hi Jay, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Like all great stories, Bumboo started with a heartbreak. At the end of 2018, I had my heart broken by a gal who I had come to love deeply. Fast forward through a roller coaster of personal development, therapy, internal soul searching, getting the most fit I had ever been, starting a men’s group to help other men with emotional vulnerability, you name it – nothing had worked for me. From there, I had no idea where to go until an old thought had crept back into my head. The thought of starting a toilet paper company – turning a negative into something positive and actively building through the pain that I had felt.
The wheels started turning, and by April 2019, Bumboo was born! Having spent my previous years at Red Bull on the brand marketing team, building an organic brand that authentically echoed who I was, was a paramount goal that allowed me to channel what I needed into something of positivity. I wanted to build a project that not only provided environmentally friendly products to the masses but allowed me to make fun of myself while doing it. So, after launching our brand, building our website, and building out our supply chain from seed-to-sale, we brought Bumboo to market… Sales started coming in and then the next thing you knew, the pandemic hit.
I remember sitting on a beach in Australia in February 2020 and questioning why my phone was blowing up the way it was. Ding, ding ding. Nonstop. These were our website order notifications. It was then that I knew looking into that magic eight ball of TP sales that somehow, someway, Bumboo was going to bring our mission of bringing sustainable bamboo paper alternatives to market and provide people with bamboo toilet paper in a new way. Who could have guessed that there would have been a global toilet paper shortage?
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Bumboo has been a myriad of challenges. Nothing worth doing comes easy, wise people once said! I like to reference building Bumboo as my Harvard Institute of Toilet Paper MBA. Lots of lessons learned along the way!
To call out something specific, I’d say our first challenges were about creating a brand that I believed in, something that was a representation of who I was and weaving ways to bring sustainability to the masses in an everyday way.
As you know, we’re big fans of Bumboo. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
I started Bumboo in April 2019.
Bumboo is 100% plastic-free, tree-free and contains no bleach, dies, or harmful chemicals. Made with 100% love!
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success is about achieving something you’ve set out to do. In the case of Bumboo, my goal was to turn a negative into a positive and promote sustainability. I’d say we knocked it out of the park on both fronts. Building Bumboo allowed me to turn that pain into creativity and push past the limiting self-beliefs I was left with.
We also were able to bring more sustainable bamboo toilet paper options to the masses. Having a Direct-To-Consumer channel that is thriving, subscription services, and over 50 retailers across the US carry our products, I’d say in my eyes, that is something I’m proud to hang my hat on.
Pricing:
- $33.94 for a case of 24 rolls
Contact Info:
- Email: jay@gobumboo.com
- Website: www.GoBumboo.com
- Instagram: _Bumboo
