October 12, 2022 • 35 mins
On this episode I am joined by Gabriella Scaringe. She is the CEO of Cherri Underwear. Cherri is built with a wider gusset aiming to fit more vulva's than traditional underwear brands. They carry from XS to 4X. With every purchase they also donate hygiene products and underwear to homeless shelters in the United States.
Gabriella also has a popular Tik Tok account that talks about insecurities about vaginas, vulvas and women's health.
We talk about body insecurities and why it is so important to normalize talking about anatomy in a way that celebrates all shapes, sizes and colours. We also talk about how hard it can be to be a mid-sized business owner trying to create an affordable product that is also sustainable, has fair working conditions and wages while in the middle of a pandemic and rising inflation costs.
*LIMITED EDITION* Cherri x Asskfirst Mid-Rise Thong (shopcherri.com)
Gabriella Scaringe (@gabyscaringe) • Instagram photos and videos
Cherri (@shopcherri) • Instagram photos and videos
Gaby (@gabygabss) TikTok | Watch Gaby's Newest TikTok Videos
Ashley (@filledupcup_) • Instagram photos and videos
Filled Up Cup - Unconventional Self Care for Modern Women
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to the filled up cuppodcast.
We are a different kind ofself-care resource one that has
nothing to do with bubble bathsand face masks and everything to
do with rediscovering yourself.
We bring you real reviews,honest experiences and
unfiltered opinions that willmake you laugh, cry, and most
(00:21):
importantly, leave you with afilled up cup.
Ashley (00:32):
I am so excited today.
I have Gabriela Scaringe joiningme.
Gabriela is the CEO of cherryunderwear.
Thank you so much for joining metoday.
Gabriella (00:41):
Thank you so much for having me.
Ashley (00:43):
Can you tell me a little bit about yourself and your
brand?
Gabriella (00:48):
Yeah.
So I'm 25.
I live in New York city.
I started cherry around three orfour years ago and it wasn't
until these last two years whereit really started to pick up
cherry is a vulva friendlyunderwear company.
I make all of my underwear withexpanded gussets, where you need
(01:09):
it.
So.
You can say goodbye to lipslips.
I feel like so much underwear onthe market and brands out there
that just like don't cover us inplaces we need to, which is just
like, kind of crazy, because ifyou think about the primary
purpose of underwear, other thanlooking good and feeling good,
it's literally primary purposefor existing is to cover our
(01:31):
lady bits and a lot of underwearisn't doing that.
So that's why I created cherryto have comfy cozy, everyday
intimates that are actually goodand comfy for our bodies.
Ashley (01:42):
Which I really, really appreciate because so many of
them, I swear, they just coveryour clit and everything is out
and exposed and that's not agood look for anybody.
I feel like a lot of brands alsofeed into this.
There should be one body typeand if you don't fit into that,
it almost leads to more bodyinsecurity.
So I really appreciate the factthat yours can be sexy and cute,
(02:04):
but also functional
Gabriella (02:07):
thank you.
And, you know, I agree.
I think we've come so far sincethe beginning of the body
positivity conversation, butthere is still much more to go.
It's great that more brands arebecoming more size inclusive.
It's important that we're sizeinclusive, everywhere and
bodies.
(02:27):
So vastly different.
It is so hard to create aproduct that fits everyone as
much as I would like to say, youknow, like my product fits
everyone, but there is just likesuch a range in which bodies
exist.
And we need to recognize andidentify that there is such a
range for like every nook andcranny of our bodies.
Yeah.
Ashley (02:47):
No brand is gonna be a hundred percent perfect and be
able to fit essentially everysingle body type.
But I do like that we're atleast moving in the right
direction because it is reallyunfair to, sort of be shamed
when you're stuck with a onesize fits very few.
I don't know why.
There is such stigma or shamearound vagina size, but it's
(03:09):
like, we're meant to becompletely different.
It's okay if it's like smallervaginas, bigger vaginas, outside
lips, inside lips, everybodyshould feel comfortable and have
a product that at least istrying to fit their body type.
Gabriella (03:26):
Yeah, totally.
I mean, I think there is a lotof shame just given like the
nature of the area.
Like it is your sex organ.
So I think naturally people in away sexualized the sex organ
when it is just like a part ofour body that, everyone has.
I think specifically aroundunderwear It's become such a
(03:46):
thing for the male gaze a lot ofthe time.
I think about like, why isunderwear like so tiny and so
uncomfortable and like onlycover one lip?
And I'm like, oh, because men,like the way that looks, but
there's a, way, like we canstill be comfortable and
confident, in our bodies andwhat we're wearing.
Other than just like what looksgood to our boyfriends and
stuff.
Ashley (04:06):
I think when a product fits properly, I think that can
also be so sexy and it doesn'thave to be like, right.
You know lip slip away fromwhatever, just to be considered
sexy.
So I do like the fact that thatconversation is happening and
changing a little bit.
Did you have a fashionbackground before you decided to
go into the garment business?
Gabriella (04:28):
I went to the fashion Institute of technology.
I had dual degrees in businessmanagement and entrepreneurship.
So throughout myentrepreneurship studies, I
began building Cherri and kindof used school as like a little
mini focus group.
I launched it upon graduation.
And other than that, I had notreally done anything.
(04:50):
I had worked retail and I usedto work in nightlife and stuff
like that, but this was my firsttime doing something like I've
never worked in a corporatesetting or like built my way up
anywhere.
So yes and no, like, yes, I hadschool, but I really just
learned everything by doing,
Ashley (05:06):
which I think is more common.
The case like school can reallyonly take you so far.
And it really is that hands on.
Experience of this is what worksfor me or this doesn't work for
me to actually find if it'sgonna thrive.
Gabriella (05:19):
I feel like school was great for me in many ways.
It gave me the confidence, thenthe foundation to be able to get
out there and do this.
But there's just so many thingsthat you just can't replicate in
a school setting that I just hadto learn just by doing.
Ashley (05:32):
Especially running a business during a pandemic, I'm
sure nothing could reallyprepare anybody for that.
What has been some of thechallenges of trying to run a
small business during.
These unprecedented times.
Gabriella (05:46):
Yeah.
It's had its ups and downs forsure.
It's hard to really say like, isthis what it's normally like
having a business, just giventhe time and everything that's
going on.
But for me, I produce everythingdomestically in the United
States.
I produce everything in New Yorkand I, source locally as well.
So thankfully I wasn't dealingwith any supply chain issues
(06:08):
from China, but.
Result of the lockdown andpandemic and stuff is that a lot
of brands moved theirproductions domestically.
And the truth is the workforcefor operational sewing,
definitely skews older.
There's just not a lot of peopledoing this type of work.
So there's just not enoughworkers to keep up with the
(06:29):
demand and hardest thing hasbeen really securing a spot with
these factories to be able toactually make my product.
that's been one of my biggestchallenges is actually being
able to keep up with demand andutilize these domestic
factories.
As I began to expand and grow, Istarted, you know, sourcing some
elastics overseas.
And once I did that, I ran intoso many supply chain issues.
(06:51):
I ordered this certain elastic ayear ago and it literally just
got here.
Yes, it.
Yeah.
So I've been like trying torestock some of my more popular
styles, like my high cut, briefand high cut thong.
I just haven't been able to dothat.
Cause I've been waiting on thiselastic.
And so, especially withinflation being at an all time
(07:11):
high, it's been a balance ofevery time I take one step
forward, it's like two stepsback almost.
So I'm like, okay, I'm growing,I'm expanding, I'm producing
more volume, but now everythingis more expensive.
Cost of good is more expensive.
Labor is more expensive whenusually in that process, that
type of stuff would slowly likedecrease it.
It would cost less pre-unit whenyou're producing more.
(07:33):
But now it's all just.
Balancing out.
So that's also reallyfrustrating as a business owner,
because I don't wanna becharging too much for my
products.
I know my customers generallyunderstand and are aware of
what's going on in the world,but at the same time, I'm like,
I want to be able to have it bemore accessible and yes, like
it's costing more, but I'mhoping that it all kind of
(07:55):
balances.
Ashley (07:56):
I do think a lot of people do appreciate when things
are made locally, because I knowthat the conversation around
fast fashion is thankfullyhappening more and more.
So I think before we didn'treally realize like pre-pandemic
necessarily.
Like, yeah, we would look at ourtags and notice things were made
in China, but it didn't reallyoccur to us that yes they're
(08:19):
being made in China.
Yes.
Their workers aren't necessarilybeing paid a certain way.
We weren't really thinking aboutthe transportation costs from
wherever to our countries, thecarbon footprint impact on all
of that.
So I think the fact thatproducts are made locally and
the costs that comes involvedwith that when people are being
paid fair wages and are workingin proper.
(08:42):
Work conditions.
I do think more people dounderstand that the sort of
struggles and the balance andthat you are gonna be paying
more for products but I cancompletely appreciate how
frustrating it would be becausein essentially when you are
ordering more, the cost shouldgo down as a business owner and
it can be frustrating to kindakeep your customer base when
(09:02):
they're used to paying one cost.
And now it is another.
Gabriella (09:05):
Exactly a hundred percent.
It's funny, through this processof producing domestically I
found out that like, oh,producing domestically, doesn't
always mean better quality I'vehad So much trial and error with
different factories.
I'm so thankful.
I have such understandingcustomers who have been along
with the process from the verybeginning where just with like
(09:28):
so many quality control issues,I worked with two different
factories that just like.
Really made just not greatquality products for me.
And it's something that you justreally have a hard time
anticipating because of courseyou get samples made before you
go into production.
But of course the samples arealways gonna be much better
quality than what, peopleactually produce in high volume.
(09:49):
And so it's been such a trialand error between finding a
local factory.
That is also good quality andI've landed on a few thankfully
and I've, been learning as I'mgoing.
I think part of me was reallystruggling with the idea of
moving internationally because Iwas like fair wages.
(10:09):
Ethical labor is so, soimportant to me as a person, as
a business owner, it it's myduty to create these new
standards, but I was findingthat internationally doesn't
necessarily mean unethical.
That's true.
Yeah.
And while the primary, likeprimarily all of my intimates
are still made domestically andethically I will be moving to
(10:34):
Columbia to not me personally,but I will be moving.
Partial production to Columbiato produce my swimwear launch.
I was really nervous about thisat first, but it was a factory
that my production manager I hadalready worked with before and
really clean, really organizedwoman owned factory ethically
made ethically produced.
(10:55):
I'm really excited for this newstep of.
Learning about business anddiscovering like, okay, like
ethical, fair wages.
Isn't just specific to locallyand in New York or in the United
States.
It is important to me still tobe producing domestically.
But I'm excited to also exploreother places.
Ashley (11:14):
As the world is opening up more and we're moving outside
a pandemic, that is fantastic.
I do think as long as.
Businesses are super aware of,the sweatshop industry or things
like that.
How awesome to be able tosupport a different country and
to be able to support women ownbusiness.
Gabriella (11:32):
Yeah, totally.
I think a lot of people arereally discovering south America
in general, as like an optionfor production pricing isn't
really much cheaper than theUnited States.
Like if you're paying fairwages.
It wasn't really for like a costissue, but rather just like I
was saying, like, couldn't findpeople locally to make it for
(11:54):
me.
So I had to find other options.
A dream of mine would be to havemy own cherri factory of my own
workers and sewers who couldjust make all of my product for
me and kind of be more likevertically integrated.
I think that would be reallycool.
Ashley (12:08):
That would be a great goal to work towards.
Yeah, because it would be kindanice to be able to have it one
and done and not have to worryabout other companies or relying
on other people
Gabriella (12:19):
yeah, totally.
Like I'm in charge of it all.
I'll never have to worry abouthaving to find room at other
factories or anything like that,especially because, I'm still a
small business and granted I'mmuch further along than I was
when I started.
But for domestically I do like amedium sized amount
(12:39):
internationally.
I'm like teeny, teeny, teenytiny.
They want like a hundredthousand units.
I'm like, I'm not there yet.
So it is still nice to producedomestically because I'm just
kind of in that mid range in mybusiness where like, it's kind
of where I need to be.
Ashley (12:55):
It's nice to know.
Okay.
When I grow, this could be mynext step.
we all start somewhere and, youare where you are at this
moment, but you know, two moreyears from now who knows.
Gabriella (13:06):
Yeah, exactly.
Ashley (13:09):
What has been the most surprising thing for you about
building your online community?
Gabriella (13:13):
Yeah, great question.
I didn't realize until I came toTikTok and really started almost
like a career TikTok as well,that how much my product could
really impact people's lives.
Sometimes it brings tears to myeyes and it's almost like silly
to think like, oh, a pair ofunderwear can change someone's
(13:34):
lives, but the amount of directmessages I get from.
Women every single day tellingme about how they thought
something was wrong with theirvulva, cuz they couldn't fit
into any underwear and how likemy product opened their eyes and
they've canceled labiaplastyappointments.
I just feel like that sort ofimpact is something I never had
(13:55):
expected.
That was the most surprisingpart is that I could create a
product that could literallychange people's lives in such a
significant way.
Cause you don't you think like,oh it's silly, like underwear,
but Yeah, people have a lot ofdeep seeded insecurities about
you know, downstairs, becauselike we were saying earlier,
like it's not really talkedabout that much.
Ashley (14:15):
No.
And I feel like if you look atthe porn industry or a lot of
the other products, it really isgeared towards one specific
vulva.
They come in all differentshapes and sizes and colors that
I do think having a productunderstand that that can fit
them properly.
I think that confidence is huge.
I think that we are as women,not only society tells us to be
(14:39):
a certain way, but we aregenerally so hard on ourselves
and I think we create thisnarrative that certain things
are to mean other things, andthat really isn't the case.
So it can be as simple asfinding a product that fits to
be.
Oh, Hey, I can be sexy too.
I can be comfortable too.
And just have that I do think islike a huge, huge impact to
(15:00):
people.
Yeah.
I think it just your videos onTikTok in general, it allows
that conversation to happenwhere people can think about it
in a different perspective.
Why did I judge my body so hard?
Why did I judge other people'sbodies so hard?
Why do we think that this is.
You know, the narrative, that'sthe only acceptable one.
It kind of challenges people tosort of think about things in a
(15:22):
different perspective.
So I do think that sometimes thethings that we think are the
most simple do really cause thebiggest impact.
So thank you for having thoseconversations.
Gabriella (15:34):
Aw, thank you.
It's funny because I feel likemy, tik toks are so
lighthearted.
Like I use.
Humor and sort of likereclaiming microaggressions as a
way to show people Hey, they'rejust words.
Like, it's fine.
Like when I'm talking about likeroast beef or like meat
curtains, I'm like their words.
(15:54):
It's fine.
Especially when people are liketrying to use that negatively
towards someone, I find like thebest or at least the way I go
about things is I'm like, yeah,I have roast beef.
I have meat curtains.
And your point is,
Ashley (16:07):
yeah, takes the power away
Gabriella (16:09):
Yeah, it's normal and totally fine.
And beautiful.
So your point is dot dot dot..
I think that is what reallyresonated with people is just my
acceptance and confidence withwhat I have.
It kind of gives people nothingto really make fun of or work
with, cuz I'm like, yeah, thisis what I have.
(16:31):
Okay.
It's fine if you have it too.
And it's fine if we all have itbecause the majority of people
do so.
Here we are.
Ashley (16:38):
I think that sometimes we give too much power to other
people's words or sometimeswhether it's a microaggression
or whether it's something thatpeople don't even think of.
And it's something just, hasbeen told to us in a certain
way.
So we tend to repeat it, but ifsomebody doesn't like, you know,
meat curtains who cares like itreally, why are we putting so
(16:59):
much value and opinions asidefrom our own.
Gabriella (17:03):
So true.
I really love the way youphrased that.
When people ask me selfconfidence tips, I say exactly
what you said, like selfconfidence starts, by not basing
how your worth and how you feelabout yourself based off on how
other people feel about you.
It all starts from within, andthat's how you get confidence.
(17:25):
I love how you put that.
That was really beautiful.
Ashley (17:27):
Thank you.
One thing I noticed on yourwebsite about Cherri is that you
also have a program where ifsomebody purchases something,
you also donate to a homelessshelter or women's shelter, is
that right?
Gabriella (17:42):
Yeah.
Yeah.
So with each purchase, I donatehygiene products, feminine
hygiene products and underwearto shelters in the US this was
really important to me forhaving a small business that it
would be socially responsible.
Far more than just producingethically and trying to, you
(18:02):
know, be more eco conscious.
I think sustainable business isreally hard and I feel like it
can be a little bit greenwashingwhen people use the word
sustainable.
So I like to say like ecoconscious, I try to choose the
things that are better for theenvironment, but it's hard when
you're making an entirely newproduct to say that it is
Sustainable.
Because at the end of the day,like you're creating a new
(18:24):
product, but anyway, besides thepoint I wanted to go even
further because I was thinkingabout how much I struggled with
my own.
Vaginal health issues, which isone of the reasons I had started
cherri.
I was struggling cycling throughbacterial vaginosis and yeast
infections and discomfort on andoff.
(18:45):
I really needed to find organiccotton underwear that was more
breathable.
I wasn't really, you know, likefinding styles I liked or
finding styles that really fitme.
Because of course, when it's tootiny down there like that also
increases your of infections,cuz it's very irritating and it
made me think about what aprivileged place I'm in to be
able to buy a$28 pair ofunderwear.
(19:06):
So I can have like a healthierhoo-ha and I realized that.
Not everyone has that luxury andespecially houseless individuals
and people experiencinghomelessness say that their
number one requested item islike clean underwear, especially
women because our Menstrualproducts are not reusable for
(19:26):
the most part.
Granted we have, reusable padsand we have menstrual cups now,
but not everyone has access torunning water to be able to
clean those things.
So the majority of houselessindividuals use disposable
period products.
And so if you ask any shelter,the number one requested item is
period products and underwear.
So that's why with eachpurchase, I donate to shelters
(19:48):
just because I think it'simportant that this idea of
vaginal wellness is accessibleto everyone.
Ashley (19:55):
I love that that conversation is happening too,
because I think a lot of people,when we aren't in a situation
where we have to think aboutthat, it doesn't occur to us
that homeless people wouldstruggle with that.
I think that those products alsoare so expensive.
The idea of if you are in asituation where if you have a
hundred dollars to spend forthat month, And period products
(20:18):
can be sometimes upwards of$20 abox.
Yes, that's a huge impact.
So I do love the fact that youare also making people think
about, that situation and allowpeople to get products like that
just by making a purchase.
Gabriella (20:38):
Thank you.
Ashley (20:39):
Did you partner with an organization to choose which
shelters that you work with ordo you individually just pick,
Gabriella (20:46):
I individually just pick, I kind of switch off of
who I donate to.
One of my favorite places I liketo donate to is I support the
girls.
They do a lot of bra andunderwear donations.
A lot of times if I producesomething and.
Like for instance, the qualitycontrol issue.
It's not something I would feelcomfortable selling, but it's
(21:07):
something that's totallywearable.
Most people, what they would dois they would either sell it
consignment or they would justdispose of it.
So instead in those situations,if I have any, damages or
anything like that is I donatethem as part of my business
model to help, reduce the wasteand to like people need those
things.
So why would I just throw itaway?
Ashley (21:29):
Well, exactly.
A lot of the times it is reallyunfortunate when brands will
intentionally wreck theirproduct instead of donating it.
Mm-hmm because that is amassive.
Impact to the earth and is justsuch a Dick move.
I think when really we shouldjust be paying it forward.
The idea of a small brand, oreven a medium sized brand being
(21:50):
a hundred percent economicallyconscious of their impact is
unfair.
I think realistically it doescome down to our governments,
need to care about climatechange and care about shifting a
lot of this conversationforward.
So that brands actually haverebates or things so that they
can afford to be able to be aseco-conscious as we need them to
(22:11):
be.
So I do like the fact that atleast you are aware of it and
trying to do your part whenreally we do have, I think, a
hundred corporations that arecausing the majority of these
pollution issues and it reallyneeds to be focused on them.
The government chooses to havethe conversation about it being
on the consumer level.
So I do think consumers do needto shop smarter whenever they
(22:32):
have the ability.
If we have the privilege ofpurchasing a product, we should
look for brands that are alsosupporting other people and
other.
Charities, if they have theoption
Gabriella (22:46):
A hundred percent.
It's funny owning this businesshas completely changed my
mindset as a consumer as well,because I kind of have this
backend knowledge of how thingswork and how things are, and I'm
able to be a more educatedconsumer when making other
purchases myself and back towhat you were saying about the
(23:06):
consumer's responsibility forBeing more eco conscious.
Yes.
The majority of, you know, thepollution and stuff like that is
from these larger corporations.
But I feel like a lot ofconsumers place the
responsibility on like small andmedium sized businesses, which
can be a little frustratingbecause it's like, why aren't
you directing this anger andfrustration on my pricing and my
(23:29):
business when you should begoing after.
Amazon or like whatever, youknow, because it's like, I'm
trying my best.
And unfortunately, like I'm notat that capacity, but that is
one thing that I have opened myeyes to having a business and
now becoming a more educatedconsumer is just kind of like
the basic understanding.
I'm much more empathetic aroundbusinesses.
(23:50):
If things go wrong.
If I get a damaged product byaccident, it's like, I.
understand things happen, nobusiness can be perfect and I'm
like, never upset about it.
Ashley (23:58):
I think using Amazon as an example, I think has ruined
our perception in a lot of ways.
So our postal service in Canada,it can sometimes take like seven
to 10 days for a product to getto us.
Sometimes you'll be like, oh mygosh, why is it taking so long
as if seven to 10 days isunheard of mm-hmm and I feel
(24:19):
like Amazon and the fact that itcan get to you in 48 hours, I
think is almost ruined some ofthat for us.
We do need to remember when youare not a massive corporation
that maybe isn't fairly treatingtheir workers, even when they're
domestic and has millions ofdollars to create factories in
multiple different places withinthe world.
(24:39):
That's why they can get to us in48 hours that it's also
remembering like where you'reordering from and the fact that
they don't have the samecapacity.
So seven to 10 days is awesomeand it should be manageable and
it should be more like ourrealistic expectations and same
thing.
If you're ordering a pair ofunderwear and it's$5, you really
need to kind of think about.
(25:00):
Did the people making thatunderwear for$5?
Did they get paid fairly?
Where is this$5 pair ofunderwear shipping from is this
$5 underwear gonna last me, youknow, more than three or four
washes, like all of thosedifferent things.
When we're thinking about acheaper price point versus a
more expensive one.
I know that the quality isn'talways necessarily the more
(25:21):
expensives the better, but whenwe're ordering from different
brands, like we really do needto factor in.
Why is this one$28?
And why is this one$5.
Gabriella (25:30):
So true.
I think about that all the time,especially because the fabric I
use is$5 and 40 cents a yard,which by the way, when I first
started ordering this fabric,which was about three years ago,
it was$4.50 cent.
It's almost increased like awhole dollar in like three
years, which is kind of crazy,it made me recognize pricing a
(25:54):
little bit more.
When you think about companies,like you said, like underwear,
that's$5.
I'm like literally how, likesomeone in this process got
ripped off.
Someone's getting takenadvantage of somewhere because
that just like seems crazy to bepriced that much.
Cuz when you also think aboutmargins and profitability That's
another thing is that companiesneed to be profitable.
(26:15):
I think a lot of peoplesometimes are like, how dare you
charge this much for yourproduct?
And I'm like, well, the point isto make money.
Granted I don't have hugemarkups on my product.
So I feel like my margins arevery reasonable for the
industry, you know, 50 to 60%is, is very normal and average.
But it really made me think I'mlike, what is the markup on a$5
pair of underwear?
(26:37):
Because you really do have to beselling large quantities of that
too, to be able to make anymoney.
So did it cost you like a dollarto make 50 cents to make like
crazy?
Ashley (26:49):
It is really crazy.
I do think that people do needto be sympathetic that we are.
In a time in business where thecost of everything is rising and
that we can't expect businessesto necessarily give us a deal in
that thing, that you really dohave to do your research and
find a product that fits intoyour price point.
But you can't get mad at thebrands.
(27:10):
If you aren't in a position toafford that product in this
moment, it's not necessarilythat the brands are ripping you
off.
It's really all of these otherfactors that maybe you just
don't understand.
Gabriella (27:23):
Thank you for putting it that way.
Cuz I feel like I've struggledto create the words to basically
sum up that feeling in a waythat's like, not offensive
basically.
Like just because you can'tafford it right now.
Doesn't mean the product isoverpriced.
Because the truth is like Isaid, not everyone can afford a
28 pair of underwear and I'mcompletely aware of that.
I'm very understanding about it,but I can't just completely mark
(27:47):
down my pricing just because afew people don't wanna pay it.
Or can't pay it.
I actually hope to next yearexpand to maybe like a seamless
underwear type.
I've been getting lots ofrequests for that and hoping to
sell that at more like a budgetprice point, around like$15 or
so so that people can have.
An option if they want, like themore cotton, like eco-conscious
(28:10):
like healthy undie or if theywant a seamless, stretchy, like
gym thong, they can get that oneat a lower price, but I hope so.
We'll see where it goes.
Most of the seamless underwearfactories that I know of are in
China, so I gotta kind ofexplore some options.
Ashley (28:26):
Now you also mentioned that you just branched off into
swim and then seamless, is thereanything else that's on the
horizon with Cherri
Gabriella (28:35):
yes, I'm so excited to be launching bodysuits this
year as well.
I just made this really cute,like thong high cut bodysuit
made with like my signaturecotton fabric.
That's really soft and stretchy,and I'm really excited to be
launching that I would love.
To go into maybe shapewear orsomething like that.
As I expand into seamlessoptions, but that's also an idea
(28:58):
way in the future that I gottabe thinking about, even though,
you know, shapewear is sopopular right now, you think of
like Lizzo's new brand and skimsand stuff like that.
I think that could definitely bean option for the future too
Ashley (29:10):
We're also shifting our mindset into the fact that there
could be so many brands inshapewear where it doesn't have
to be Only a certain brand.
So I do like the fact that thereis a market for several
different companies to offerthat.
I do love the fact that if we'removing towards a small brand
(29:31):
with a quality product, peopledo prefer on a lot of cases to
shop local and not necessarilyjust celebrity endorsed and as
Khloe Kardashian propped up,skins also does have the small
vagina problem that a lot ofother corporations do.
Gabriella (29:48):
Oh, my God, you know, what's so funny is that I got
some to see like how much theysaid they increased the gusset
width.
So I got one to see like howmuch they increased it.
It is still so tiny.
I could barely fit into it.
I was like, this is theincreased width.
Like what is going on?
It was not enough.
Ashley (30:07):
No.
I think that, especially as likethe business owner, having
multiple kids, like your bodychanges after having kids too,
that it just, it doesn't getsmaller, that more is more.
Gabriella (30:19):
More is more well, that's also a valid point.
You brought up that I try toeducate people about as well.
I think one of the more commonmisconceptions about vulvas and
vaginas is that the more you useit, the looser it gets, which is
not true, not true at all.
It's like this very like slutshamey thing that if a woman is
(30:41):
in charge of her sexuality andshe has sexual partners, that
means she's loose.
Your vaginal canal is a muscle.
When you use your muscles more,they get stronger, they get
tighter.
And the only thing that canalter the elasticity of the
vaginal canal is like you said,childbirth or age, just because
(31:01):
naturally as we age, we loseelasticity.
That's why kegels help in bothscenarios and strengthening your
pelvic floor.
I mean, even then, like afterchildr, some people, you know
can snap back and stuff likethat, but that is one of those
things that can, you know, alterjust, I mean, think about it.
There is a baby coming out ofthere.
And that is something like sobeautiful and amazing that our
(31:24):
bodies can do.
It sucks that there's so manymicroaggressions.
Around that because our worth ashumans is not related to how
tight our pussies are.
Exactly not.
It's just not.
And it sucks that people doplace their worth on that
Ashley (31:40):
I think women in general, it's this idea that
we're not supposed to age we'resupposed to essentially be 16
forever and not get away fromthat shape size or like
mentality.
It's just that we're supposed tohold onto our youth so
desperately because that's abillion dollar industry.
So I think that it's just comingup with the mindset shift that
(32:00):
getting older and our body'schanging is beautiful.
You really have to question, isthis an internal belief that
society has sold to me so thatthey can profit off of it?
Gabriella (32:09):
Ugh.
That is such a valid point.
And it's funny you say thatbecause my brand is so much
about accepting your body andloving your body, how it is, and
finding underwear and productsmade to fit your body and not
needing to alter your body basedoff standards to fit into what's
being offered.
(32:29):
When I mentioned shape wear, Iwas a little nervous to even toy
with the idea of wanting to,hide a part of your body or like
suck in a part of your body tochange it and make it more
different.
So I'm hoping if I do expandthat realm, it's done in a way
that's not.
(32:50):
You need to wear this becausehaving a flatter tummy is better
or anything like that.
Right.
That's also why I'm excited tolaunch this bodysuit because
it's not shape wear.
It's literally just like a comfylittle bodysuit you can wear.
And it doesn't need to suck youin, in any places that you wanna
be sucked in or anything likethat, that you can just like
embrace and love your body, likehow it is in the natural curve
(33:11):
of how you are, and like fits inthe places you, you want it to
fit.
Ashley (33:14):
I do also think like, even if you look at Lizzo,
right, Lizzo is a big bodyneutrality and body positivity
supporter, and she still hasshape wear.
So I think that there is a wayof doing it where it isn't.
Trying to shame people for theirbodies.
Sometimes we either find thatlike, when everything sucked in
(33:34):
better, maybe your stomachweight hurts your back less when
it's all confined.
Maybe it really is that, youknow, I wanna wear these pair of
pants.
They're my favorite pair ofpants.
They're a little bit snug.
I wear shapewear, then they'renot so much.
I think it doesn't need to be.
That shape wear is shameful orthat it's bad.
If you wanna suck things in alittle bit, because there's
(33:56):
nothing wrong with that, as longas you're doing it, because
that's what you feel mostconfident being not because you
feel like the world will fatshame you.
If you don't
Gabriella (34:07):
Thank you.
You're you're this entirepodcast you've been like summing
up my thoughts in much better,more eloquent words.
Thank you.
Ashley (34:14):
Thank you.
If people are looking for Cherriproducts, where do they find
them?
Gabriella (34:20):
On my website @shopcherri.com.
That's S H O P C H E R R I dotcom.
You can also find me onInstagram at@shopcherri cherry
or on TikTok@GabyGabss.
Ashley (34:33):
thank you so much for having this conversation with me
today.
Gabriella (34:37):
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm honored to be here.
Thank you so much for joining ustoday for this episode of the
filled up cup podcast, don'tforget to hit subscribe and
leave a review.
If you like what you hear, youcan also connect with
us@filledupcup.com.
Thanks again for tuning in andwe'll catch you in the next
(35:00):
episode.
Welcome to the filled up cuppodcast.
We are a different kind ofself-care resource one that has
nothing to do with bubble bathsand face masks and everything to
do with rediscovering yourself.
We bring you real reviews,honest experiences and
unfiltered opinions that willmake you laugh, cry, and most
(00:21):
importantly, leave you with afilled up cup.
Ashley (00:32):
I am so excited today.
I have Gabriela Scaringe joiningme.
Gabriela is the CEO of cherryunderwear.
Thank you so much for joining metoday.
Gabriella (00:41):
Thank you so much for having me.
Ashley (00:43):
Can you tell me a little bit about yourself and your
brand?
Gabriella (00:48):
Yeah.
So I'm 25.
I live in New York city.
I started cherry around three orfour years ago and it wasn't
until these last two years whereit really started to pick up
cherry is a vulva friendlyunderwear company.
I make all of my underwear withexpanded gussets, where you need
(01:09):
it.
So.
You can say goodbye to lipslips.
I feel like so much underwear onthe market and brands out there
that just like don't cover us inplaces we need to, which is just
like, kind of crazy, because ifyou think about the primary
purpose of underwear, other thanlooking good and feeling good,
it's literally primary purposefor existing is to cover our
(01:31):
lady bits and a lot of underwearisn't doing that.
So that's why I created cherryto have comfy cozy, everyday
intimates that are actually goodand comfy for our bodies.
Ashley (01:42):
Which I really, really appreciate because so many of
them, I swear, they just coveryour clit and everything is out
and exposed and that's not agood look for anybody.
I feel like a lot of brands alsofeed into this.
There should be one body typeand if you don't fit into that,
it almost leads to more bodyinsecurity.
So I really appreciate the factthat yours can be sexy and cute,
(02:04):
but also functional
Gabriella (02:07):
thank you.
And, you know, I agree.
I think we've come so far sincethe beginning of the body
positivity conversation, butthere is still much more to go.
It's great that more brands arebecoming more size inclusive.
It's important that we're sizeinclusive, everywhere and
bodies.
(02:27):
So vastly different.
It is so hard to create aproduct that fits everyone as
much as I would like to say, youknow, like my product fits
everyone, but there is just likesuch a range in which bodies
exist.
And we need to recognize andidentify that there is such a
range for like every nook andcranny of our bodies.
Yeah.
Ashley (02:47):
No brand is gonna be a hundred percent perfect and be
able to fit essentially everysingle body type.
But I do like that we're atleast moving in the right
direction because it is reallyunfair to, sort of be shamed
when you're stuck with a onesize fits very few.
I don't know why.
There is such stigma or shamearound vagina size, but it's
(03:09):
like, we're meant to becompletely different.
It's okay if it's like smallervaginas, bigger vaginas, outside
lips, inside lips, everybodyshould feel comfortable and have
a product that at least istrying to fit their body type.
Gabriella (03:26):
Yeah, totally.
I mean, I think there is a lotof shame just given like the
nature of the area.
Like it is your sex organ.
So I think naturally people in away sexualized the sex organ
when it is just like a part ofour body that, everyone has.
I think specifically aroundunderwear It's become such a
(03:46):
thing for the male gaze a lot ofthe time.
I think about like, why isunderwear like so tiny and so
uncomfortable and like onlycover one lip?
And I'm like, oh, because men,like the way that looks, but
there's a, way, like we canstill be comfortable and
confident, in our bodies andwhat we're wearing.
Other than just like what looksgood to our boyfriends and
stuff.
Ashley (04:06):
I think when a product fits properly, I think that can
also be so sexy and it doesn'thave to be like, right.
You know lip slip away fromwhatever, just to be considered
sexy.
So I do like the fact that thatconversation is happening and
changing a little bit.
Did you have a fashionbackground before you decided to
go into the garment business?
Gabriella (04:28):
I went to the fashion Institute of technology.
I had dual degrees in businessmanagement and entrepreneurship.
So throughout myentrepreneurship studies, I
began building Cherri and kindof used school as like a little
mini focus group.
I launched it upon graduation.
And other than that, I had notreally done anything.
(04:50):
I had worked retail and I usedto work in nightlife and stuff
like that, but this was my firsttime doing something like I've
never worked in a corporatesetting or like built my way up
anywhere.
So yes and no, like, yes, I hadschool, but I really just
learned everything by doing,
Ashley (05:06):
which I think is more common.
The case like school can reallyonly take you so far.
And it really is that hands on.
Experience of this is what worksfor me or this doesn't work for
me to actually find if it'sgonna thrive.
Gabriella (05:19):
I feel like school was great for me in many ways.
It gave me the confidence, thenthe foundation to be able to get
out there and do this.
But there's just so many thingsthat you just can't replicate in
a school setting that I just hadto learn just by doing.
Ashley (05:32):
Especially running a business during a pandemic, I'm
sure nothing could reallyprepare anybody for that.
What has been some of thechallenges of trying to run a
small business during.
These unprecedented times.
Gabriella (05:46):
Yeah.
It's had its ups and downs forsure.
It's hard to really say like, isthis what it's normally like
having a business, just giventhe time and everything that's
going on.
But for me, I produce everythingdomestically in the United
States.
I produce everything in New Yorkand I, source locally as well.
So thankfully I wasn't dealingwith any supply chain issues
(06:08):
from China, but.
Result of the lockdown andpandemic and stuff is that a lot
of brands moved theirproductions domestically.
And the truth is the workforcefor operational sewing,
definitely skews older.
There's just not a lot of peopledoing this type of work.
So there's just not enoughworkers to keep up with the
(06:29):
demand and hardest thing hasbeen really securing a spot with
these factories to be able toactually make my product.
that's been one of my biggestchallenges is actually being
able to keep up with demand andutilize these domestic
factories.
As I began to expand and grow, Istarted, you know, sourcing some
elastics overseas.
And once I did that, I ran intoso many supply chain issues.
(06:51):
I ordered this certain elastic ayear ago and it literally just
got here.
Yes, it.
Yeah.
So I've been like trying torestock some of my more popular
styles, like my high cut, briefand high cut thong.
I just haven't been able to dothat.
Cause I've been waiting on thiselastic.
And so, especially withinflation being at an all time
(07:11):
high, it's been a balance ofevery time I take one step
forward, it's like two stepsback almost.
So I'm like, okay, I'm growing,I'm expanding, I'm producing
more volume, but now everythingis more expensive.
Cost of good is more expensive.
Labor is more expensive whenusually in that process, that
type of stuff would slowly likedecrease it.
It would cost less pre-unit whenyou're producing more.
(07:33):
But now it's all just.
Balancing out.
So that's also reallyfrustrating as a business owner,
because I don't wanna becharging too much for my
products.
I know my customers generallyunderstand and are aware of
what's going on in the world,but at the same time, I'm like,
I want to be able to have it bemore accessible and yes, like
it's costing more, but I'mhoping that it all kind of
(07:55):
balances.
Ashley (07:56):
I do think a lot of people do appreciate when things
are made locally, because I knowthat the conversation around
fast fashion is thankfullyhappening more and more.
So I think before we didn'treally realize like pre-pandemic
necessarily.
Like, yeah, we would look at ourtags and notice things were made
in China, but it didn't reallyoccur to us that yes they're
(08:19):
being made in China.
Yes.
Their workers aren't necessarilybeing paid a certain way.
We weren't really thinking aboutthe transportation costs from
wherever to our countries, thecarbon footprint impact on all
of that.
So I think the fact thatproducts are made locally and
the costs that comes involvedwith that when people are being
paid fair wages and are workingin proper.
(08:42):
Work conditions.
I do think more people dounderstand that the sort of
struggles and the balance andthat you are gonna be paying
more for products but I cancompletely appreciate how
frustrating it would be becausein essentially when you are
ordering more, the cost shouldgo down as a business owner and
it can be frustrating to kindakeep your customer base when
(09:02):
they're used to paying one cost.
And now it is another.
Gabriella (09:05):
Exactly a hundred percent.
It's funny, through this processof producing domestically I
found out that like, oh,producing domestically, doesn't
always mean better quality I'vehad So much trial and error with
different factories.
I'm so thankful.
I have such understandingcustomers who have been along
with the process from the verybeginning where just with like
(09:28):
so many quality control issues,I worked with two different
factories that just like.
Really made just not greatquality products for me.
And it's something that you justreally have a hard time
anticipating because of courseyou get samples made before you
go into production.
But of course the samples arealways gonna be much better
quality than what, peopleactually produce in high volume.
(09:49):
And so it's been such a trialand error between finding a
local factory.
That is also good quality andI've landed on a few thankfully
and I've, been learning as I'mgoing.
I think part of me was reallystruggling with the idea of
moving internationally because Iwas like fair wages.
(10:09):
Ethical labor is so, soimportant to me as a person, as
a business owner, it it's myduty to create these new
standards, but I was findingthat internationally doesn't
necessarily mean unethical.
That's true.
Yeah.
And while the primary, likeprimarily all of my intimates
are still made domestically andethically I will be moving to
(10:34):
Columbia to not me personally,but I will be moving.
Partial production to Columbiato produce my swimwear launch.
I was really nervous about thisat first, but it was a factory
that my production manager I hadalready worked with before and
really clean, really organizedwoman owned factory ethically
made ethically produced.
(10:55):
I'm really excited for this newstep of.
Learning about business anddiscovering like, okay, like
ethical, fair wages.
Isn't just specific to locallyand in New York or in the United
States.
It is important to me still tobe producing domestically.
But I'm excited to also exploreother places.
Ashley (11:14):
As the world is opening up more and we're moving outside
a pandemic, that is fantastic.
I do think as long as.
Businesses are super aware of,the sweatshop industry or things
like that.
How awesome to be able tosupport a different country and
to be able to support women ownbusiness.
Gabriella (11:32):
Yeah, totally.
I think a lot of people arereally discovering south America
in general, as like an optionfor production pricing isn't
really much cheaper than theUnited States.
Like if you're paying fairwages.
It wasn't really for like a costissue, but rather just like I
was saying, like, couldn't findpeople locally to make it for
(11:54):
me.
So I had to find other options.
A dream of mine would be to havemy own cherri factory of my own
workers and sewers who couldjust make all of my product for
me and kind of be more likevertically integrated.
I think that would be reallycool.
Ashley (12:08):
That would be a great goal to work towards.
Yeah, because it would be kindanice to be able to have it one
and done and not have to worryabout other companies or relying
on other people
Gabriella (12:19):
yeah, totally.
Like I'm in charge of it all.
I'll never have to worry abouthaving to find room at other
factories or anything like that,especially because, I'm still a
small business and granted I'mmuch further along than I was
when I started.
But for domestically I do like amedium sized amount
(12:39):
internationally.
I'm like teeny, teeny, teenytiny.
They want like a hundredthousand units.
I'm like, I'm not there yet.
So it is still nice to producedomestically because I'm just
kind of in that mid range in mybusiness where like, it's kind
of where I need to be.
Ashley (12:55):
It's nice to know.
Okay.
When I grow, this could be mynext step.
we all start somewhere and, youare where you are at this
moment, but you know, two moreyears from now who knows.
Gabriella (13:06):
Yeah, exactly.
Ashley (13:09):
What has been the most surprising thing for you about
building your online community?
Gabriella (13:13):
Yeah, great question.
I didn't realize until I came toTikTok and really started almost
like a career TikTok as well,that how much my product could
really impact people's lives.
Sometimes it brings tears to myeyes and it's almost like silly
to think like, oh, a pair ofunderwear can change someone's
(13:34):
lives, but the amount of directmessages I get from.
Women every single day tellingme about how they thought
something was wrong with theirvulva, cuz they couldn't fit
into any underwear and how likemy product opened their eyes and
they've canceled labiaplastyappointments.
I just feel like that sort ofimpact is something I never had
(13:55):
expected.
That was the most surprisingpart is that I could create a
product that could literallychange people's lives in such a
significant way.
Cause you don't you think like,oh it's silly, like underwear,
but Yeah, people have a lot ofdeep seeded insecurities about
you know, downstairs, becauselike we were saying earlier,
like it's not really talkedabout that much.
Ashley (14:15):
No.
And I feel like if you look atthe porn industry or a lot of
the other products, it really isgeared towards one specific
vulva.
They come in all differentshapes and sizes and colors that
I do think having a productunderstand that that can fit
them properly.
I think that confidence is huge.
I think that we are as women,not only society tells us to be
(14:39):
a certain way, but we aregenerally so hard on ourselves
and I think we create thisnarrative that certain things
are to mean other things, andthat really isn't the case.
So it can be as simple asfinding a product that fits to
be.
Oh, Hey, I can be sexy too.
I can be comfortable too.
And just have that I do think islike a huge, huge impact to
(15:00):
people.
Yeah.
I think it just your videos onTikTok in general, it allows
that conversation to happenwhere people can think about it
in a different perspective.
Why did I judge my body so hard?
Why did I judge other people'sbodies so hard?
Why do we think that this is.
You know, the narrative, that'sthe only acceptable one.
It kind of challenges people tosort of think about things in a
(15:22):
different perspective.
So I do think that sometimes thethings that we think are the
most simple do really cause thebiggest impact.
So thank you for having thoseconversations.
Gabriella (15:34):
Aw, thank you.
It's funny because I feel likemy, tik toks are so
lighthearted.
Like I use.
Humor and sort of likereclaiming microaggressions as a
way to show people Hey, they'rejust words.
Like, it's fine.
Like when I'm talking about likeroast beef or like meat
curtains, I'm like their words.
(15:54):
It's fine.
Especially when people are liketrying to use that negatively
towards someone, I find like thebest or at least the way I go
about things is I'm like, yeah,I have roast beef.
I have meat curtains.
And your point is,
Ashley (16:07):
yeah, takes the power away
Gabriella (16:09):
Yeah, it's normal and totally fine.
And beautiful.
So your point is dot dot dot..
I think that is what reallyresonated with people is just my
acceptance and confidence withwhat I have.
It kind of gives people nothingto really make fun of or work
with, cuz I'm like, yeah, thisis what I have.
(16:31):
Okay.
It's fine if you have it too.
And it's fine if we all have itbecause the majority of people
do so.
Here we are.
Ashley (16:38):
I think that sometimes we give too much power to other
people's words or sometimeswhether it's a microaggression
or whether it's something thatpeople don't even think of.
And it's something just, hasbeen told to us in a certain
way.
So we tend to repeat it, but ifsomebody doesn't like, you know,
meat curtains who cares like itreally, why are we putting so
(16:59):
much value and opinions asidefrom our own.
Gabriella (17:03):
So true.
I really love the way youphrased that.
When people ask me selfconfidence tips, I say exactly
what you said, like selfconfidence starts, by not basing
how your worth and how you feelabout yourself based off on how
other people feel about you.
It all starts from within, andthat's how you get confidence.
(17:25):
I love how you put that.
That was really beautiful.
Ashley (17:27):
Thank you.
One thing I noticed on yourwebsite about Cherri is that you
also have a program where ifsomebody purchases something,
you also donate to a homelessshelter or women's shelter, is
that right?
Gabriella (17:42):
Yeah.
Yeah.
So with each purchase, I donatehygiene products, feminine
hygiene products and underwearto shelters in the US this was
really important to me forhaving a small business that it
would be socially responsible.
Far more than just producingethically and trying to, you
(18:02):
know, be more eco conscious.
I think sustainable business isreally hard and I feel like it
can be a little bit greenwashingwhen people use the word
sustainable.
So I like to say like ecoconscious, I try to choose the
things that are better for theenvironment, but it's hard when
you're making an entirely newproduct to say that it is
Sustainable.
Because at the end of the day,like you're creating a new
(18:24):
product, but anyway, besides thepoint I wanted to go even
further because I was thinkingabout how much I struggled with
my own.
Vaginal health issues, which isone of the reasons I had started
cherri.
I was struggling cycling throughbacterial vaginosis and yeast
infections and discomfort on andoff.
(18:45):
I really needed to find organiccotton underwear that was more
breathable.
I wasn't really, you know, likefinding styles I liked or
finding styles that really fitme.
Because of course, when it's tootiny down there like that also
increases your of infections,cuz it's very irritating and it
made me think about what aprivileged place I'm in to be
able to buy a$28 pair ofunderwear.
(19:06):
So I can have like a healthierhoo-ha and I realized that.
Not everyone has that luxury andespecially houseless individuals
and people experiencinghomelessness say that their
number one requested item islike clean underwear, especially
women because our Menstrualproducts are not reusable for
(19:26):
the most part.
Granted we have, reusable padsand we have menstrual cups now,
but not everyone has access torunning water to be able to
clean those things.
So the majority of houselessindividuals use disposable
period products.
And so if you ask any shelter,the number one requested item is
period products and underwear.
So that's why with eachpurchase, I donate to shelters
(19:48):
just because I think it'simportant that this idea of
vaginal wellness is accessibleto everyone.
Ashley (19:55):
I love that that conversation is happening too,
because I think a lot of people,when we aren't in a situation
where we have to think aboutthat, it doesn't occur to us
that homeless people wouldstruggle with that.
I think that those products alsoare so expensive.
The idea of if you are in asituation where if you have a
hundred dollars to spend forthat month, And period products
(20:18):
can be sometimes upwards of$20 abox.
Yes, that's a huge impact.
So I do love the fact that youare also making people think
about, that situation and allowpeople to get products like that
just by making a purchase.
Gabriella (20:38):
Thank you.
Ashley (20:39):
Did you partner with an organization to choose which
shelters that you work with ordo you individually just pick,
Gabriella (20:46):
I individually just pick, I kind of switch off of
who I donate to.
One of my favorite places I liketo donate to is I support the
girls.
They do a lot of bra andunderwear donations.
A lot of times if I producesomething and.
Like for instance, the qualitycontrol issue.
It's not something I would feelcomfortable selling, but it's
(21:07):
something that's totallywearable.
Most people, what they would dois they would either sell it
consignment or they would justdispose of it.
So instead in those situations,if I have any, damages or
anything like that is I donatethem as part of my business
model to help, reduce the wasteand to like people need those
things.
So why would I just throw itaway?
Ashley (21:29):
Well, exactly.
A lot of the times it is reallyunfortunate when brands will
intentionally wreck theirproduct instead of donating it.
Mm-hmm because that is amassive.
Impact to the earth and is justsuch a Dick move.
I think when really we shouldjust be paying it forward.
The idea of a small brand, oreven a medium sized brand being
(21:50):
a hundred percent economicallyconscious of their impact is
unfair.
I think realistically it doescome down to our governments,
need to care about climatechange and care about shifting a
lot of this conversationforward.
So that brands actually haverebates or things so that they
can afford to be able to be aseco-conscious as we need them to
(22:11):
be.
So I do like the fact that atleast you are aware of it and
trying to do your part whenreally we do have, I think, a
hundred corporations that arecausing the majority of these
pollution issues and it reallyneeds to be focused on them.
The government chooses to havethe conversation about it being
on the consumer level.
So I do think consumers do needto shop smarter whenever they
(22:32):
have the ability.
If we have the privilege ofpurchasing a product, we should
look for brands that are alsosupporting other people and
other.
Charities, if they have theoption
Gabriella (22:46):
A hundred percent.
It's funny owning this businesshas completely changed my
mindset as a consumer as well,because I kind of have this
backend knowledge of how thingswork and how things are, and I'm
able to be a more educatedconsumer when making other
purchases myself and back towhat you were saying about the
(23:06):
consumer's responsibility forBeing more eco conscious.
Yes.
The majority of, you know, thepollution and stuff like that is
from these larger corporations.
But I feel like a lot ofconsumers place the
responsibility on like small andmedium sized businesses, which
can be a little frustratingbecause it's like, why aren't
you directing this anger andfrustration on my pricing and my
(23:29):
business when you should begoing after.
Amazon or like whatever, youknow, because it's like, I'm
trying my best.
And unfortunately, like I'm notat that capacity, but that is
one thing that I have opened myeyes to having a business and
now becoming a more educatedconsumer is just kind of like
the basic understanding.
I'm much more empathetic aroundbusinesses.
(23:50):
If things go wrong.
If I get a damaged product byaccident, it's like, I.
understand things happen, nobusiness can be perfect and I'm
like, never upset about it.
Ashley (23:58):
I think using Amazon as an example, I think has ruined
our perception in a lot of ways.
So our postal service in Canada,it can sometimes take like seven
to 10 days for a product to getto us.
Sometimes you'll be like, oh mygosh, why is it taking so long
as if seven to 10 days isunheard of mm-hmm and I feel
(24:19):
like Amazon and the fact that itcan get to you in 48 hours, I
think is almost ruined some ofthat for us.
We do need to remember when youare not a massive corporation
that maybe isn't fairly treatingtheir workers, even when they're
domestic and has millions ofdollars to create factories in
multiple different places withinthe world.
(24:39):
That's why they can get to us in48 hours that it's also
remembering like where you'reordering from and the fact that
they don't have the samecapacity.
So seven to 10 days is awesomeand it should be manageable and
it should be more like ourrealistic expectations and same
thing.
If you're ordering a pair ofunderwear and it's$5, you really
need to kind of think about.
(25:00):
Did the people making thatunderwear for$5?
Did they get paid fairly?
Where is this$5 pair ofunderwear shipping from is this
$5 underwear gonna last me, youknow, more than three or four
washes, like all of thosedifferent things.
When we're thinking about acheaper price point versus a
more expensive one.
I know that the quality isn'talways necessarily the more
(25:21):
expensives the better, but whenwe're ordering from different
brands, like we really do needto factor in.
Why is this one$28?
And why is this one$5.
Gabriella (25:30):
So true.
I think about that all the time,especially because the fabric I
use is$5 and 40 cents a yard,which by the way, when I first
started ordering this fabric,which was about three years ago,
it was$4.50 cent.
It's almost increased like awhole dollar in like three
years, which is kind of crazy,it made me recognize pricing a
(25:54):
little bit more.
When you think about companies,like you said, like underwear,
that's$5.
I'm like literally how, likesomeone in this process got
ripped off.
Someone's getting takenadvantage of somewhere because
that just like seems crazy to bepriced that much.
Cuz when you also think aboutmargins and profitability That's
another thing is that companiesneed to be profitable.
(26:15):
I think a lot of peoplesometimes are like, how dare you
charge this much for yourproduct?
And I'm like, well, the point isto make money.
Granted I don't have hugemarkups on my product.
So I feel like my margins arevery reasonable for the
industry, you know, 50 to 60%is, is very normal and average.
But it really made me think I'mlike, what is the markup on a$5
pair of underwear?
(26:37):
Because you really do have to beselling large quantities of that
too, to be able to make anymoney.
So did it cost you like a dollarto make 50 cents to make like
crazy?
Ashley (26:49):
It is really crazy.
I do think that people do needto be sympathetic that we are.
In a time in business where thecost of everything is rising and
that we can't expect businessesto necessarily give us a deal in
that thing, that you really dohave to do your research and
find a product that fits intoyour price point.
But you can't get mad at thebrands.
(27:10):
If you aren't in a position toafford that product in this
moment, it's not necessarilythat the brands are ripping you
off.
It's really all of these otherfactors that maybe you just
don't understand.
Gabriella (27:23):
Thank you for putting it that way.
Cuz I feel like I've struggledto create the words to basically
sum up that feeling in a waythat's like, not offensive
basically.
Like just because you can'tafford it right now.
Doesn't mean the product isoverpriced.
Because the truth is like Isaid, not everyone can afford a
28 pair of underwear and I'mcompletely aware of that.
I'm very understanding about it,but I can't just completely mark
(27:47):
down my pricing just because afew people don't wanna pay it.
Or can't pay it.
I actually hope to next yearexpand to maybe like a seamless
underwear type.
I've been getting lots ofrequests for that and hoping to
sell that at more like a budgetprice point, around like$15 or
so so that people can have.
An option if they want, like themore cotton, like eco-conscious
(28:10):
like healthy undie or if theywant a seamless, stretchy, like
gym thong, they can get that oneat a lower price, but I hope so.
We'll see where it goes.
Most of the seamless underwearfactories that I know of are in
China, so I gotta kind ofexplore some options.
Ashley (28:26):
Now you also mentioned that you just branched off into
swim and then seamless, is thereanything else that's on the
horizon with Cherri
Gabriella (28:35):
yes, I'm so excited to be launching bodysuits this
year as well.
I just made this really cute,like thong high cut bodysuit
made with like my signaturecotton fabric.
That's really soft and stretchy,and I'm really excited to be
launching that I would love.
To go into maybe shapewear orsomething like that.
As I expand into seamlessoptions, but that's also an idea
(28:58):
way in the future that I gottabe thinking about, even though,
you know, shapewear is sopopular right now, you think of
like Lizzo's new brand and skimsand stuff like that.
I think that could definitely bean option for the future too
Ashley (29:10):
We're also shifting our mindset into the fact that there
could be so many brands inshapewear where it doesn't have
to be Only a certain brand.
So I do like the fact that thereis a market for several
different companies to offerthat.
I do love the fact that if we'removing towards a small brand
(29:31):
with a quality product, peopledo prefer on a lot of cases to
shop local and not necessarilyjust celebrity endorsed and as
Khloe Kardashian propped up,skins also does have the small
vagina problem that a lot ofother corporations do.
Gabriella (29:48):
Oh, my God, you know, what's so funny is that I got
some to see like how much theysaid they increased the gusset
width.
So I got one to see like howmuch they increased it.
It is still so tiny.
I could barely fit into it.
I was like, this is theincreased width.
Like what is going on?
It was not enough.
Ashley (30:07):
No.
I think that, especially as likethe business owner, having
multiple kids, like your bodychanges after having kids too,
that it just, it doesn't getsmaller, that more is more.
Gabriella (30:19):
More is more well, that's also a valid point.
You brought up that I try toeducate people about as well.
I think one of the more commonmisconceptions about vulvas and
vaginas is that the more you useit, the looser it gets, which is
not true, not true at all.
It's like this very like slutshamey thing that if a woman is
(30:41):
in charge of her sexuality andshe has sexual partners, that
means she's loose.
Your vaginal canal is a muscle.
When you use your muscles more,they get stronger, they get
tighter.
And the only thing that canalter the elasticity of the
vaginal canal is like you said,childbirth or age, just because
(31:01):
naturally as we age, we loseelasticity.
That's why kegels help in bothscenarios and strengthening your
pelvic floor.
I mean, even then, like afterchildr, some people, you know
can snap back and stuff likethat, but that is one of those
things that can, you know, alterjust, I mean, think about it.
There is a baby coming out ofthere.
And that is something like sobeautiful and amazing that our
(31:24):
bodies can do.
It sucks that there's so manymicroaggressions.
Around that because our worth ashumans is not related to how
tight our pussies are.
Exactly not.
It's just not.
And it sucks that people doplace their worth on that
Ashley (31:40):
I think women in general, it's this idea that
we're not supposed to age we'resupposed to essentially be 16
forever and not get away fromthat shape size or like
mentality.
It's just that we're supposed tohold onto our youth so
desperately because that's abillion dollar industry.
So I think that it's just comingup with the mindset shift that
(32:00):
getting older and our body'schanging is beautiful.
You really have to question, isthis an internal belief that
society has sold to me so thatthey can profit off of it?
Gabriella (32:09):
Ugh.
That is such a valid point.
And it's funny you say thatbecause my brand is so much
about accepting your body andloving your body, how it is, and
finding underwear and productsmade to fit your body and not
needing to alter your body basedoff standards to fit into what's
being offered.
(32:29):
When I mentioned shape wear, Iwas a little nervous to even toy
with the idea of wanting to,hide a part of your body or like
suck in a part of your body tochange it and make it more
different.
So I'm hoping if I do expandthat realm, it's done in a way
that's not.
(32:50):
You need to wear this becausehaving a flatter tummy is better
or anything like that.
Right.
That's also why I'm excited tolaunch this bodysuit because
it's not shape wear.
It's literally just like a comfylittle bodysuit you can wear.
And it doesn't need to suck youin, in any places that you wanna
be sucked in or anything likethat, that you can just like
embrace and love your body, likehow it is in the natural curve
(33:11):
of how you are, and like fits inthe places you, you want it to
fit.
Ashley (33:14):
I do also think like, even if you look at Lizzo,
right, Lizzo is a big bodyneutrality and body positivity
supporter, and she still hasshape wear.
So I think that there is a wayof doing it where it isn't.
Trying to shame people for theirbodies.
Sometimes we either find thatlike, when everything sucked in
(33:34):
better, maybe your stomachweight hurts your back less when
it's all confined.
Maybe it really is that, youknow, I wanna wear these pair of
pants.
They're my favorite pair ofpants.
They're a little bit snug.
I wear shapewear, then they'renot so much.
I think it doesn't need to be.
That shape wear is shameful orthat it's bad.
If you wanna suck things in alittle bit, because there's
(33:56):
nothing wrong with that, as longas you're doing it, because
that's what you feel mostconfident being not because you
feel like the world will fatshame you.
If you don't
Gabriella (34:07):
Thank you.
You're you're this entirepodcast you've been like summing
up my thoughts in much better,more eloquent words.
Thank you.
Ashley (34:14):
Thank you.
If people are looking for Cherriproducts, where do they find
them?
Gabriella (34:20):
On my website @shopcherri.com.
That's S H O P C H E R R I dotcom.
You can also find me onInstagram at@shopcherri cherry
or on TikTok@GabyGabss.
Ashley (34:33):
thank you so much for having this conversation with me
today.
Gabriella (34:37):
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm honored to be here.
Thank you so much for joining ustoday for this episode of the
filled up cup podcast, don'tforget to hit subscribe and
leave a review.
If you like what you hear, youcan also connect with
us@filledupcup.com.
Thanks again for tuning in andwe'll catch you in the next
(35:00):
episode.
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