What is Forever Fresh Co. Who started it all?
My name is Maurice St. Rose & I founded Forever Fresh Co. With a dream, but most importantly a goal. “To transform the barbering community with products that change the way barbers do business.” The dream is to share a piece of my passion with everyone around the world- whether a barber or not. The Men’s grooming products I have designed, developed and sold for nearly 5 months now are just the beginning of my vision for the barber community. I invision a world where mens grooming is a fine art and not just something only explored in the daily lives of celebrity barbers. In 5 months my second company has expanded to offering over 12 products and growing fast.
Building a business, making the products yourself & time managment
When you start a business and sell your own hand-made products there is a special bond that forms with you and your customers. It is more than a business transaction, Its a personal way that I share my hard work and passion with everyone that wants to be apart of my vision. When I do share that piece of art with a new customer, I intend that everyone notices the precision and attention to detail that goes into every product. Since my failures in the early stages of Forever Fresh I have found ways to overcome certain things that come in the way of me reaching my dreams. Mondays I now take off work/barbering to solely focus on the expansion and development of Forever Fresh Co. On weekends I typically work Saturdays, but often take entire weekends off to travel competing and showcasing the Forever Fresh Co. product lineup.
The challenge to stay unique
Starting my second business was my first challenge of 2017, and the second came when I wanted to expand my product line. Beyond the our first product I started to notice a trend among barbers. People love custom products, and people love 1 of a kind. With so many barbers looking to be unique in the industry I wanted to solidify a way they could do this while still keeping their clients Forever Fresh. 41 days after I sold my first official razor I expanded my product line to our Custom series. 1 of a kind- hand made, custom handle shapes and exotic wood handles. Although these razors and products cost more, they are made with exceptional detail. 1 Razor takes nearly 6 hours of hard work to complete and needless to say it has been a labour of love for the industry.
From 0 to 12+ products in under 5 months
The first product I launched was the traditional Forever Fresh Razor that Is typically custom engraved for barbers looking to personalize their tools for every day work. Forever Fresh Co. Is aiming to expand to 40 products by the end of 2017. Reaching 10 sales was a milestone, and reaching 100 was a blessing from God. Forever Fresh Co. Has now sold more than 450 Custom engraved razors to barbers around the world in just under 5 months. Expansion and the second phase of business has now been focused on the custom shapes and exotic wood lineup to meet the industry demand.
Local, Canadian made, recycled, a Van Island Original
If you want to build a second business and for it to be sustainable you need to think original and unique. Even once you come up with an original idea you need to ensure you have a few key ingredients for your recipe. Hard fucking work, sweat, sleepless nights, and a passion for success are just a few. Forever Fresh Co. Needed to be original so I came up with a few key ingredients that would set it apart.
Locally sourced wood for the box sets
Wood that lives forever- Ever seen a construction worker or roofer throw materials in the garbage? Well some of those wood shakes get turned into our gift boxes. On a quest for locally sourced, recycled wood we found the most original, unique and ethically sourced material for the gift boxes from local builders and roofers scrap materials. In Victoria there is a plethora of old houses being renovated and their siding upgraded to new and modern materials. Many of these houses in Victoria undergoing renovations include Wooden cedar & Alder shakes. They are the perfect solution and once 1 prototype was made I secured a large amount of wooden shakes from a job site. This not only kept a large amount of wood from being burned or disposed of, but kept the Forever Fresh Co. Dream alive- products that last forever.
Hand glued and assembled
Each box is assembled and made by hand. Working with my hands has been something Ive been doing for nearly 5 years now. Putting together the hand made boxes isn’t exactly glamorous, but I am proud to assemble each and every box my customers receive. Assembly time was my biggest concern when I wanted to start selling box sets, so I designed the boxes in a way that they can be cut out with a jig and assembled fairly fast.
Locally sewn suede bags
It wouldn’t be hard for me to mass order gift bags off eBay, however I decide that on my 1 day a week dedicated to Forever Fresh Co. I, along with some key staff would sew each and every gift bag ourselves, 1 kitchen table and a lot of sewing happens every evening with the majority on Mondays. Quality was at the top of my agenda and there really is no way to ensure this If i mass ordered bags- and invested in another countries industry. I wanted to keep the sweat shop local and the passion at home.
Hand picked and carved wood razor handles.
The entire process of completing a Forever Fresh custom exotic wood razor takes about 6 hours from start to finish for the razor alone. First the wood is chosen by hand- not every piece of exotic wood is ideal. It needs to have the right character, grain, and feel to it. Optimal weight for your straight razor is important and if the piece of wood isn’t correctly balanced it can ruin the shave. Some of the natural grain in wood can vary so much that I found no other way to ensure quality than to personally inspect each razor before I choose it for a customers order.
Locally sourced Leather
Pat Bay leather Is owned by Vern Theroux. A pioneer in hand made leather products Vern has also headed up charity events that have donated more than a million dollars towards cancer. Vern has been in the Leather industry for over 35 years and is the master of all things leather. Even though leather plays a small part in the Forever Fresh Co. product lineup I wanted to ensure that I was developing our local communities business strength and not just my own. Pat Bay Leather has an assortment of over 500 leather types and colours and Vern hand picks every single one of them. Leather is used in the unique hinges for the box sets as well as the draw strings on our suede razor & comb bags
Sold in over 7 countries so far
Global reach is just the beginning of my vision for the industry. Forever Fresh is more than a second source of income, it is a passion to reach people around the globe with the culture, passion, talent, and vision I have for the industry. I truly look forward to the day when I can say my razors have been shipped to more than 10 countries… Next up 100 & beyond!
Forever Fresh Co.
To shop online and discover what Forever Fresh Co. has to offer go check out my other website