00:02 Amanda Welcome to the purpose power brand, a podcast for leaders and brands transforming business into a force for good. I’m Amanda Stassen business and brand strategist, social justice advocate and founder of BIZU Innovation Group. I'll be speaking with leaders who are proving not only does purpose drive profit, but the future of our world depends on it. If you want to grow your business, increase your brand loyalty and not get left behind in the everchanging marketplace. This podcast is for you.

Today we're talking with Sonya Denton, Founder and CEO of weDstll a community online platform where people connect with beauty and wellness brands with shared values to purchase values aligned products. Welcome Sonya to the purpose power brand podcast. Great to have you with us today.

00:49 Sonya Thank you so much, Amanda, for the opportunity. Happy to be here.

00:52 Amanda Awesome. Awesome. So let's start at the beginning. You started your career in media as a news anchor and journalist. I'd love to hear your story and specifically your journey to purpose that led you to weDstll?

01:07 Sonya Yes. Well, as a child, I used to stutter. And it was so bad that, well, I took three years of speech therapy in order for that to go away, actually. And I'm fortunate that, that I was able to cure it. Because a lot of people when they are born with this, they're not as fortunate actually as me to have conquered that. When you're trying to get your words out, and you are, you have so much to say but everything that comes out is not what you intend it to be, it can leave a scar on you. Even though it took three years to get that resolved, I believe that is something that I carried throughout my life, even into high school. That was the first time in my life that somebody said to me, Sonya, have you ever thought about going to university and this was a high school teacher. I loved this man, because he always was wondering, why are you always skipping my class because I was the kind of kid who could skip class, and then go in and then ace a test, not in terms of math, but in terms of the critical thinking classes, like, you know, the social studies, the philosophy. I didn't have to go to class for some reason he, he saw that I had a gift of critical thinking. So that's the reason why he asked and I said to him, you think I could go? He said, Absolutely. And it was that moment that I decided, hey, you know what, I'm going to go to university. And I actually stayed back an extra year in high school to do my advanced level courses. And then I went on to the university.

And it's kind of interesting, that's pretty much been, you know, my, my, the way I lived my life in one sense, where I always sought validation from other people, in order for me to believe that I could do something. And that's not the way anybody should have to live. I remember in journalism, not knowing that I had ADHD, struggling and trying to hold on to my words. ADHD affects people differently. At that time, even though I was struggling, I didn't share with people what was going on. Because I was afraid, you know, there I was going to be judged. In fact, had I shared with people what was happening, I probably would have known that I had ADHD and would have, you know, gone and sought help.

It wasn't until I got into my MBA program that I was having the same challenges as I did during my journalism career. And when I found out that I had ADHD, I actually cried, and I cried and I sobbed and I cried. And it was because I knew that it wasn't me. I thought that it was me. Why can't you get it? What is wrong with you? I would eat sleep and breathe journalism to the point I would be on vacation and taking a course. I needed to get good. You know what I mean? And I by any means necessary, because of that is reason why I ended up on stress leave. I believe that had I searched for people who supported my self expression, instead of looking for people to validate me. I probably would have not only learned that I had ADHD earlier, but I think a number of decisions maybe that I would have made in my life would have been slightly different.

You know, and that's the reason why what we're doing weDstll is super, super important. At the moment you see it's exactly the same thing playing out on social media that, you know, wanting to seek validation, you know, the fray to share things that are important crafting, I don't know an image that might not be really true to you. But it's kind of true, but not, these illusions that are really damaging not only to your mental health and your mental wellness, but also to other people the way they're seeing you as well. That's the reason for this purpose driven journey. And why we distill is very important to me and what we're doing here.

05:41 Amanda Wow, first of all, thank you so much for sharing, to set such a deep and intimate level. And, and being so vulnerable and open. You know, one of the things that comes across so clearly in what you just shared, to me, is the fact that purpose is personal, it's human. It's not a fabricated strategy that, you know, that's built to take advantage of a trend. It breathes a life. And it breathes meaning to everyone who comes near it. And brands built on that are the ones that I believe are the ones where you feel their authenticity, you feel their realness you feel that connectivity, you feel like they care. But authenticity business is not easy. Can you talk a little bit about what you believe to be barriers that exist to authenticity? And what brands what leaders can do about it?

06:34 Sonya It's kind of interesting, because I've read a number of studies where young people say that they believe that brands have more power than the actual government in actually making change. You know, and I believe, too, that young people want brands to empower them, and their values and what they're looking for in order to better their own lives. And brands do have the power to do that. They just need to get out of their own way. I think it's sometimes it's about, you know, we're in this, this horrible cycle right now, where everything is about how am I going to grab as much attention in terms of clicks and tricks, and all sorts of things that are so not true to the core of maybe what even a brand is trying to do. Because it's about, of course, you have to eat, you're not building you're building, of course, the company, I think, as a brand, you want to build something because you got to make money too. But you're trying to also, stay true to your purpose, whether that may be you know, community, right, or community driven, or it may be, you know, people or planet or whatever have you. And it's hard at the moment with this ecosystem, which is known as social media, where, you know, you're trying to be true to the brand, but at the same time, if you're too true, it might not get the clicks that you need to get the intention where you're going to land in front of your target consumer. So it's a really fine line. I spoke to a brand once, one of the founder of a brand. And he said to me, it's so difficult to build trust, when all people really care about is how much influence somebody has, or, you know, I need to create something that is so absurd, in order to get attention. And I'm there to sell, I can't really do things that are going to build relationships with people, because it's, everything is so superficial. And that's quite interesting that he said that. And that's the brand side.

But then there's the other side to where young people are afraid to say what matters to really matters to the most, you've got a person who may be for body positivity, and they're afraid to say that they like juicing, because they might leave an impression that may be, hey, wait a minute, why are you promoting dieting? You know, so that person is afraid that they're going to be canceled? Or maybe all the social credibility may go out the window, so they're gonna hide the fact that they like juicing? Even though that's a part of who they are, and they love it and makes them feel great. So there's a lot of that going on, that creates barriers to building trusted connections, because of judgment and the canceled culture and the, you know, the need for attention and the need for approval.

09:36 Amanda Yeah, you're bringing to mind the idea that authenticity requires courage. Somebody has to be the first and there's a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy happening in business where you have, Okay, so I need to do I have to look a certain way or I have to act a certain way I have to do a certain thing in order to get the followers or the influence or what I perceive to be influence. But that is just this vicious cycle that keeps going, somebody needs to step outside the cycle, and do something different to have the courage to speak to have the courage to say, Hey, I believe something different. So maybe talk a little bit about how does weDstll work, maybe on the community side on the community member side, and then on the brand side to do just that?

10:20 Sonya Well, first of all, I want to say that we're focused on solutions. So we say that because a product is a part of a solution. So it's not entirely that you know, where we're selling a product, it's more about where you know, young people, it's a, first of all, a mobile platform that provides a safe space for young people, where they can create their own personalized communities of people and wellness brands, they really love where they can, you know, share knowledge and solutions. The moment you know, someone needs something, and the best part is that over time, they can co-innovate personalized solutions together. So here, they go on, they create, you know, we call it a values based profile. And then they're able to create their communities. And after that, as time goes on, they can post what you know, and ask, or they might want to add more information to a conversation to help provide knowledge or get solutions. And then within literally seconds, that person who's seeking a solution, they are able to get it. And you're able to provide knowledge to somebody else within seconds, because you'll know that they need help. And all in that to the brands are there as well behaving like people, right. So we're really a human to human application. There's the brand, but the people behind the brand are extension of the brand.

11:50 Amanda So give me an example of how it would work. So let's say that I put out into the community that I'm really struggling with, you know, breakouts on my face. So I put that out there into the community, maybe walk us through what happens, then how does it work.

12:09 Sonya So you will create a post, you'll put your picture up, right? Whatever it is, you you say what you've done, let's say you hashtag it, you post it. And that's it within seconds, that post acts like a magnet actually, and brings in all of the people that are having similar concerns to you to come in and help you. So that happens within seconds, you can get help within 10, 12 responses within seconds. And different responses from different people all going through the same thing.

12:41 Amanda Yeah, people are helping people to navigate whatever it is that their issue is, or whatever it is that they're looking to achieve or in whatever their need is.

12:50 Sonya Exactly. Yeah.

12:53 Amanda So in the online community space, there are lots there's a number of data driven platforms that help people navigate beauty, health, wellness, etc. What need wasn't being met, or what specific problem did you feel wasn't being solved, that weDstll fills, like that makes we do so really stand out from these others?

13:15 Sonya Well, right now, everything is about grabbing attention, we're really focused on building relationships. So in this platform, it's about you are the one surrounding yourself with all of the support that you need, specifically to you. So you can have support based on you know, values, interests, concerns, and your goals geared toward you. So if you need support around, I don't know you said acne, that's what you will, that's what you'll form around yourself. As well as if you say you need support around, I don't know, under eye circles, you surround that support around yourself. So you're the one at the center of your own experience, creating all the support systems that you need for you working for you in the way you want it and the way you need it at any time. Anybody that comes in to help you even though they're coming in to help you, you're also helping them to in the process. So it's almost kind of like a written contract, right? Where you say, okay, so you're a part of my community, and I'm a part of yours when I need help, you know, you'll be there for me, and when you need help, I'll be there for you in these areas. So that's the big difference.

14:36 Amanda There is definitely a safety in that

14:39 Sonya 100% And then we're removing that barrier between the brand and the consumer. So you both have direct contact to each other.

14:50 Amanda Right. In the work that we do, we talk a lot about people consumers not no longer making decisions just based on functional need on their functional need. So, dive into a little bit what exactly is values based purchasing? You've talked about that before? And why is this so important for brands and businesses going forward?

15:11 Sonya Well, I think that people want to know where their money's going and what they're supporting. At the end of the day, you know, context to me, is everything. Really? It's what you can't see, that's the most important. And a lot of the times, you know, we are hearing those stories out there, where, wow, I used to really like that company, I didn't know behind the scenes that they did this, that and that, I don't support that. And your money is unknowingly going to supporting something that you don't believe in. So that's what I mean, like, if you want to, and I should just dial it back a little bit to and say that, I believe that when you're putting your money towards something, and you're not just putting your money toward purchasing a product that's going to help solve a concern, or bring joy to your life. You're also, you know, advocating, as well as helping that brand, fulfill their mission, whatever that is. Consumers want to know that when they're putting their money behind something, they're fulfilling a mission that they want, and they're also helping the brand, fulfill that mission that's in line with their own. When we say that, you know, values based, it's like, okay, I'm a consumer that cares about sustainability. I care that whatever it may be, let's say that this brands or recycling, or the brands are caring about water consumption, no matter what that is. And I know that I can't do everything on my own as one person, but if I put my money toward the brands that care about what I care about, I'm also filling my same mission and helping them fulfill the mission that I care about. That's what we meet about values based.

17:01 Amanda Yeah, so good. I do,like you, I do believe that is the future of brands and businesses going forward. And the importance is only going to increase. In your community, what are some examples of values that you are seeing growing in importance to your members?

17:22 Sonya Cruelty free for sure. That's, that's always top of mind social justice. There's no question about that. We've got a number of people that care a lot about a lot about that diversity and inclusion, those ones come to mind.

17:34 Amanda When brands start to bring those values that they carry that perhaps were you know, more behind the scenes, when they bring them front forward, they put themselves in a position where, you know, there's skepticism, are you really being sustainable? And then on top of that, there's this whole risk of, well, we're doing good in one area, we're really pushing it on the whole diversity front, but we're not so great from the, you know, gender balancing front, all of those kinds of things. It makes it tricky to start moving into this space of value-based value creation, in fact. Do you have any thoughts or anything that you would share, that would be an encouragement to brands or companies who want to move in the space, but are nervous, because they're not perfect? Nobody's perfect. But, you know, we're getting, as you mentioned, companies, brands, people are getting cancelled, because an aspect isn't, you know, isn't necessarily living up to what they're saying.

18:40 Sonya I think that when you cut the consumer out of the conversation, and just see them as a tool to purchase, you do yourself a disservice to be honest. And I think that brands need to start really looking to their consumers and asking them how they can move into this space. I think that leaving the consumer out of the conversation and not really bringing them in as a real partner, is a huge mistake. Put it this way, you're asking people to buy a product or to to believe in your company or to believe in your brand, but you're not asking them, you know, what matters to the most? You know what I mean? That's why the consumers are there. They're not only there to provide feedback on what already exists. They're also there to help guide you, and they want to be a part of the conversation. They want to be a part of that innovation.

19:39 Amanda So what I would say to that Sonya is your brain to mind this idea of businesses need to stop treating people as consumers. A consumer mentality is one where you are almost arm's length from the person that you're trying to help and start looking at people as citizens, we're here together, and I heard someone else use this language, no longer consumers, but we're citizens on this planet coming together to help one another. And I think that's what you're really espousing is this idea of, instead of trying to do it on your own, Mr. Business or Mr. Brand, or Miss brand, or CEO, bring in the people who you're trying to help, and have them be a part of your development, part of the conversation. And by virtue of doing that, there is what I'm going to call forgiveness, because we are human, and nobody is perfect. So what would make us think that a business or a brand is perfect or can possibly be perfect? They're just a culmination of people coming together to do some work, hopefully, some good work. So I agree with you, I agree with you.

So let me ask, you know, a question. We define purpose driven brands as those who know why they matter what they stand for, and they're living it out. Within the world of cosmetics, health and wellness, how are you selecting brands to be a part of the weDstll community? What would make these brands worth joining a community for?

21:14 Sonya That's exactly the same. The same as what ya, exactly. It's about not just saying that you are, this is what we're doing. But you got to show it to the platform, it's really required, and the ones who can't show it, it's glaringly obvious. You know, so it's about that level of granularity. So if you're saying, we are focused on, let's say, something like recycling, we're focused on recycling, it's not just oh, here's the symbol. It's about how many items do you recycle per year? What impact are you leaving on the environment? Like, that's the level of granularity that you're seeing from the brands within the platform? And the ones who are doing it? The ones you can see, literally see, it's so obvious the ones who are doing it and the ones who are not?

22:05 Amanda Yeah, yeah, that's so good. So whenever episode, we want to leave our listeners with some purpose power tips that they can apply today to level up their business and brand. Sonya, what are your top two practical power tips for how to activate and harness purpose to drive growth that a CEO that a business leader can use today?

22:26 Sonay I would say that when we're thinking about authenticity, I think it's important to be open. It is not just something that's carefully crafted image or persona, I think that is gone. You know, you're seeing a lot of the brands today that are becoming really successful, they are being they're being open sometimes open can be a little messy. And people respect that more, and they can identify with that more. Sometimes you got to get a little messy to feel good. And get yourself on the right track, which may be the purpose driven track. There’s that. And also, I would say, co creation, co creation with consumers.

23:11 Amanda And not to be afraid of bringing them in behind the veil, if you will.

23:15 Sonya Absolutely. Do you remember and you know, you remember when I go back to media where now you know, you're taking the veil off what would have looked so picture perfect on the sets. What's going on behind the scenes? Let's take you in the back. Yeah, that's a little more interesting. You know, to know what's happening behind the scenes and taking people back there and also inviting them to give their opinions and all of that. I think, if we can liken that as wellto the industry and brands and purpose driven brands. I see it in the same way.

23:59 Amanda That's so good. Sonya, it's been so good chatting with you. Thank you for all you're doing in and through we distill to make people's lives and the world better. Any final thoughts you want to share?

24:12 Sonya This was amazing. Thank you. Thank you. If anybody I should say if anyone likes what we're doing, and you know they see themselves wanting to you know, they see any synergies please reach out. We'd love to hear from you.

24:26 Amanda Yeah, no, that's great. So So what are your call outs? Why don't you share where people can find a follow you.

24:32 Sonya weDstll.com Is the so w e d S T L L so no “I”’s. So again, reach out don't we just feel.com We're on you know, Instagram as well. You can send us you can DM us there too.

24:52 Amanda And that's so great. So excited to see how the future becomes distilled through the work that you guys There are doing thank you so much Sonya for joining us today.

25:03 Sonya Thank you so much, Amanda for the opportunity.

25:06 Thanks for listening to the purpose power brain Podcast. I'm Amanda Stassen. If you liked what you heard, be sure to share and subscribe on your favorite podcast player. We'd also love to hear what resonated with you or if you have a guest suggestion, drop us a line at info@bizu.co Special thanks to Mark Salam for original music and lead podcasting for production. Lastly, if you're ready to purpose power, your brand to grow when and impact at scale. Let's talk visit www.bizu.co. Bye for now.