CEW x Co-Founder Natasha Whiting
Natasha is CEO and Co-Founder of Kollo Health, the UK's #1 rated 10g collagen supplement for men & women.
Why is CEW membership important to you?
The brand that I am building uses its voice, time and energy to make a difference for people. We know that beauty comes from within and we want to help our customers shine. By being part of the CEW, we can connect with like minded people from organisations that are making the world a bit brighter and we can give back to the industry that serves us so well.
What’s the most important piece of advice you have been given during your career?
I think it would be that you don't need a degree or credentials to succeed! You need self-belief, hard work, and people to believe in you and support you.
What is the most exciting aspect of your current role?
Starting from a simple premise of wanting our products to really make a difference to our customers, we combine science, a bit of joy and great customer service to create a rounded experience. Therefore there’s 2 most exciting elements to my role - one setting the vision for our company and products which permeates into everything that we do and secondly, being able to look after and respect my employees in a way that is nurturing, progressive, and exciting. We’ve all worked in jobs we didn’t love and I’m proud to have created an environment where my team are full of ideas, live and breathe what we’re about and are always pushing forward.
How can we better support women in the workplace?
I’m from a generation where we’ve been told we can “have it all”. “Having it all” means that there’s a pressure in my opinion to do it all. Work, family, health, be a superstar at everything you touch while looking perfect and giving back to the community, as well as being a chef at home, care for family, but all while making it look effortless. It just sounds really tiring to me - and those women who are doing all of the above are unicorns - magical creatures! So what does this mean in the workplace? The days of the workplace being a boy’s club or embracing casual misogyny are over. The membership has been opened up. It should be a space for respective professional relationships, where we can all flourish and be considered for who we are. So, listen to women and take a stand against behaviour that doesn’t support an inclusive working environment. My view is that nowadays women can’t be boxed into a gendered box. Especially the same with most things in life - listening and communication is key. In my team, I continue to listen to them. I listen to their everyday experiences of work and what it is like working. And we’ve adapted some of our policies to make sure there’s balance.
What learnings have you taken from the ongoing health crisis?
It’s never been more true to say that our health is our wealth. Without our health, we really have nothing. That aside, I’ve learnt the importance of human connection, the astonishing ability of those I work with to be able to deliver through such adverse and trying times. We launched during the pandemic which was a scary time for lots of reasons and it meant we’ve really had to nail what we’re doing. I truly believe that successful people are the ones that just keep trying.
https://cewuk.co.uk/member_profiles/natasha-whiting/
