bemoreeco

The team at BeMoreEco spent 5 minutes with Nicola Alexander from Daisy Green Magazine. This is how it went.

Talk us through your business Day.

Well I work from home so I get up with my husband at 6.30 and potter on until he leaves the house at 8. I love to make him breakfast and lunch, it’s a cool way to start the morning.  At 8 I sit in the office and the first thing I do is check the statistics from the day before. I am pretty obsessive when it comes to how many people are reading and which articles they like. Emails next and this normally takes at least a couple of hours. I love chatting to people and feel that’s important to respond personally, although it can take over if you are not careful.

As the founder of the magazine, I manage everything from the sales and advertising, write articles and organise our events. It’s a jam packed day and I am quite reactive, its hard to stay on task! Generally, I can sit at the desk for 10 hours straight without noticing the time, so I have to force myself to have a break. I am lucky though, as I can go and check on our plants in the conservatory and have a cup of tea looking at the garden.

Sally Anne, our Editor, is normally online for the whole day throwing ideas back and forth. The other members of the daisygreenmagazine.co.uk team currently work full time for other companies.

On an evening I can generally be found promoting the business and the events on social networking sites. I try to get finished by 8pm so I can have some down time.

Tell us about daisygreenmagazine.co.uk?

Daisygreenmagazine.co.uk is unique in that the team who work on the magazine are normal women who want to lead by example. The magazine was conceived back in April 2008 and started life as a personal blog – a bit of a rant actually. Mainstream magazines just didn’t give me what I wanted and therefore my husband suggested I start one of my own! Now as a Senior Manager in a school this was really removed from my area of expertise but I thought, why not. I have always wanted to run my own business and now I do! We LOVE fashion, homeware and beauty products but realise that every single thing we buy has an impact somewhere along the line. Whether it be because people aren’t being paid a fair wage, or the land is getting drowned in pesticides or the landfill sites are just too full, it all adds up.

Daisygreenmagazine.co.uk is an example of the environmental and social changes you can make, easily and cost effectively, and still have fun, still shop, still be girlie. If we can, anyone can.

What makes the company a great place to work?

Well its fun, busy, no two days are the same. Its hard work, which we love and we meet and speak to lots of like minded people. Also, we are based in our homes which is fantastic. And we believe we are making a difference.

Who do you most admire in the green industry?

I admire all the people who have started their own small, independent, companies because they really believe in what they are doing.

What is the most rewarding part of your job?

Working for myself for a company that has lots of energy and sound ethics.

If you could change one thing in the green industry what would it be? 

People using scare tactics to try and encourage change in individuals. My personal belief is that leading by example, and being as positive as you can has a bigger impact. We are heading for serious problems if great change does not occur, but scaring people makes them hide away from the reality.

What advice would you give to someone starting out in the industry today?

Just go for it. If you really believe you can do something have a go. Research the idea thoroughly, check out the competition but harness your passion to make a difference.  

What is your vision for an eco  Britain ?

People buying local and using the local transport more. Businesses turning off their shop signs through the night. The majority of homes and businesses swapping energy suppliers to a green tariff. The government putting some REAL money and time into the environment. Carrier bags being banned.

Have you any  final eco pearls of wisdom you would like to share?
Make change today. No matter how small; start a compost bin, take your own bags to pick up the shopping or change a light bulb. It all adds up to positive change.