Black + Berry Living – Better Cleaning, Healthy Living!
Black and Berry Living is a brand that Bering’s is proud to carry and support. We interviewed the owners to help our customers further understand why we care so strongly about this brand.
Why was Black + Berry Living created?
Black and Berry was created with the goal of attaining a more natural way of being. It sounds a little silly and over the top even to us, but it is very true. We are two sisters on two very different paths in the business world, who came together on an idea for a sound product that we felt could better people’s lives. What could be better than being part of this growing movement and dialogue for returning to nature?
When Cindee was just five years old, she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. She learned the acute importance of everything she was putting into her body and even what was in her surrounding environment. In an effort to solve this problem, she visited numerous homeopaths to learn more about unorthodox methods of treating herself, and then proceeded to develop her own homemade remedies to ease the symptoms of her disorder. After having two amazing daughters fully loaded with her genetics, predisposing them to the similar health issues, she got even more scientific. She read everything from scientific studies to blogs, and learned by limiting her exposure to toxins in every way, she could live wholly without medicines and hopefully prevent her sweet girls from facing similar health problems.
The catalyst of Black and Berry happened with a small moment. Cindee’s daughter Violet was visiting her Aunt Jordan for a weekend. Jordan was cleaning up after a pancake breakfast with a common household spray and Violet stunned said, “You are killing us!” She initially shrugged it off as Cindee’s hippy child… but the comment still got her to thinking. She knew that if she had a better alternative available, she would use it. Jordan noodled on potential solutions. She was very familiar with Cindee’s cleaning practices and the constant cauldron of potions for everything: pest control, surface cleaning, and many more. Jordan knew there are a lot of people that would use these products. Jordan and Cindee worked together to tweak the formulas and came together on some mixtures that our friends and families love. They are too good not to share, so here we are!
What is your connection to Bering’s? Why was it so important that you sell your product in our stores?
Because Cindee and I grew up in Houston, we have been shopping at Bering’s for as long as we can remember. We used to visit Bering’s with our parents to pick up everything from stationary for thank you notes, gifts, regular household products, you name it! When we began thinking about expanding out of Southern California we knew that it had to be Bering’s! We are so excited to be on the shelves there and are proud that we are in a store that carries so much nostalgia in our family.
Why do you love your products?
We love our products for many reasons. Here are a few:
- Scientific studies have reported the following:
- “The antibacterial activity of vinegar against four out of five microorganisms was found to be superior to the chlorhexidine, which is actually considered as one of the most effective antimicrobial agents.”
- “ACV exhibits potent antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. ACV is also potent against fungal strains C.albicans and A.niger.”
- We use organic raw apple cider vinegar. Vinegar is a safe, effective and less expensive alternative to conventional cleaning products.
- Grab and go chemical free solution that is multi-purpose and guilt free to be used around your home. It always seems like a great idea at first to make your own cleaning solutions but moms, dads, college students, and busy working professionals do not have time to tinker with DIY solutions. We are able to fill that void.
- They all smell great!
- Reusable aluminum container. Aluminum can be infinitely recycled, when plastic is recycled only 20% of it can be reused. About 75% of all aluminum that has ever been used is still in circulation today. When we first launched, we had all of our products in plastic containers. After receiving feedback from our retail partners and customers at Farmer’s Markets that they did not like that our bottle was in plastic, we completely halted production and switched to our aluminum containers.
Why should Bering’s customers love and value your product?
Bering’s customers should love Black and Berry Living’s products because we use simple ingredients that work! You do not need to buy different cleaning products for everything you need to clean. On the shelves now, there is a different cleaning mixture for it all – Bathroom cleaner, kitchen cleaner, glass cleaner, floor cleaner, the list goes on and on. We have put together the power of vinegar, water and essential oils to create a line of products that can clean, treat and protect all in one. Simple is powerful.
Education about the products that are being used in your homes is also critical. Speaking from my own experience, I would also use products in my home that I thought were “not that bad.” Once Cindee and I began our business, that is when I really started educating myself and shifting the way that I think. For example:
- Over 86% of Green Household Cleaners were deemed unsafe by the EWG. The EPA reports air quality in homes to be 2x-5x more polluted indoors than right outside our homes-which cleaners being the largest culprit.
- The average household contains 62 toxic chemicals and less than 2% of synthetic chemicals in commonly used household products have been tested.
Please share a little about each product and all their different uses.
Organic Raw Apple Cider Vinegar and Rose Water Based Hand Cleanser
- Alcohol free, solution to cleansing your hands! Lavender & Citrus scent!
- Cleansing your hands – We are obsessed with having clean hands! The rose water in our product is soothing so you can use our product as frequently as necessary without getting dry and cracked hands.
- Wiping down shopping carts – no one likes using a dirty shopping cart!
- Airplane tray tables – Your new favorite travel buddy! This stuff is amazing for wiping down surfaces when you travel.
- Mouth spray – YES, you read that correctly. Apple cider vinegar is great for removing bad breath!
- Deodorant – No deodorant, no problem. This works great as an all natural deodorant.
Organic Raw Apple Cider Vinegar Based All Purpose Cleaner
- Two scents available: Eucalyptus Mint & Citrus
- Glass cleaner – if you are not using our product on glass, mirrors and windows you are seriously missing out! Vinegar gives the best streak free clean for all glass surfaces.
- Bathroom cleaner – My personal favorite use of this product! I use the Eucalyptus Mint in my shower as an everyday spray to keep away grime. The steam from the shower brings out the eucalyptus essential oil and gives a nice “spa like” experience.
- Floor cleaner – I like to add about 2oz of this product to my bucket of water for mopping my floors. Provides an amazing shine and great smell! I like to use the citrus scent for this!
- Cleaning your car – grab a microfiber towel and spray this all over your car! You will get the same shine as if you got a professional clean with armorall without the heavy odor and chemicals!
- Kitchen cleaner – this stuff really cuts through grease! Typically I like to use the citrus cleaner for this because citrus has natural grease fighting capabilities. If you have just made a big breakfast, pasta dinner, etc. Spray our citrus cleaner on your stove or range and let sit for 5 minutes, with a wet sponge you will clean any grease right up!
- Soaking toys – in a bin or your sink add 4oz of our mixture to water and soak your toys. Or spray directly on your children’s books, toys, etc to help clean off germs and bacteria.
- Clean out your washing machine – There is nothing worse than when your washing machine starts to get that weird mildew smell! You can add in a cup of our cleaner and do a rinse cycle in your washing machine to help prevent this from happening.
- Laundry booster – Workout clothes can be tough to get smells out! Adding a cup of our all purpose cleaner to your laundry helps to remove additional odors to make your laundry extra fresh!
- Freshen fabrics – once vinegar is dry it has no odor, and vinegar is great to use to kill odors! Spraying on furniture, rugs, old tennis shoes, etc to help keep all fabrics fresh.
- Pet mess – Accidents happen! Our product is amazing for cleaning up pet urine and eliminating odor on carpets and rugs.
- Basically anything you can think of! I carry a bottle in my purse at all times!
- Yeti cooler cleaner! We have gotten this feedback from many customers that Black and Berry Living cleaner is a staple for cleaning out your Yeti!
Organic Raw Apple Cider Vinegar Based Pest Repellent
- Packed with 10 different organic essential oils to help combat various critters!
- Safe to be used on your body
- Safe to be used on pets
- Safe to be used on your home
- Mosquitos – spray this on your body before a hike, bbq, jog, camping trip! It will help keep annoying mosquitoes off of your skin. Deet free!
- Ants – ants are the absolute worst! You can spray this anywhere there are ants and it will deter the ants from coming back.
- Ticks – for anyone with pets that are outdoors frequently this product will become your new best friend! All naturally keep ticks off of your pets.
- Deter spiders – no one likes a surprise spider! Spray or wipe our product in windowsills, corners, on outdoor furniture, and in the shed to keep pesky spiders away!
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