- 4 weeks ago
Play Pits is a 100% all-natural deodorant, free of aluminum, parabens, synthetic fragrances, and other harsh chemicals. Play Pits is a mother's solution to providing a kid-friendly, all-natural hygiene option for youth with active lifestyles. Our brand has found success in transforming a boring product into a fun and exciting experience that kids enjoy and parents greatly appreciate!
Our mission is to educate parents and children about the dangerous ingredients found in popular deodorants and other household products. Play Pits strives to be a beacon of healthier solutions for all demographics and communities at an affordable price point. Play Pits is a trusted hygiene solution for the entire family - toddlers, kids, teens, parents, and of course athletes everywhere!
Our mission is to educate parents and children about the dangerous ingredients found in popular deodorants and other household products. Play Pits strives to be a beacon of healthier solutions for all demographics and communities at an affordable price point. Play Pits is a trusted hygiene solution for the entire family - toddlers, kids, teens, parents, and of course athletes everywhere!
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Hello, hello, and we are back with another episode of Shop Essence Live.
00:05I am your host, Noni, and this is Shop Essence Live, a live shopping show in partnership with
00:11the New Voices family, where we bring you two new Black-owned brands to shop live with us,
00:16bring these incredible entrepreneurs face-to-face with its consumers.
00:20You could shop with us and ask questions.
00:23Now, if you got some pre-pubescent teenagers in your home and they're starting to get a
00:29little funky, but you don't necessarily want to buy things right off the shelf, well, this
00:34mom created this incredible natural deodorant brand that is just, first of all, everything
00:41smells amazing, and she has it for children and for the whole family.
00:45See, king, queen, and then you got the little play pits.
00:48So, I'm going to bring them in.
00:49They are called Play Pits, and we are going to be shopping live with them.
00:53They're even hooking us up here at Shop Essence Live with a little discount.
00:57So, let's get into the shopping.
01:00I'm bringing her in.
01:01I'm going to get quiet for a little bit, because when I bring people in, my audio cuts off.
01:04So, don't be alarmed.
01:16Hey!
01:18Shantelle!
01:19How are you?
01:20I'm doing well.
01:24I'm doing well.
01:24I'm so excited to be here.
01:26I told the Under Armie to come on over.
01:28So, Under Armie, if you're here.
01:31So, you guys have the cutest names for your communities.
01:34So good.
01:35So, I want you to get into this incredible story behind Play Pits, how you came up with
01:40it.
01:41Where were you before when you came up with it to now?
01:43Yeah, so, shout out to all the mamas right here.
01:47If you're a mama, drop a heart in the comments, because nothing but a mother's determination
01:54to figure it out created this brand.
01:57So, my son, at six years old, got in my car after football practice and smelt like a whole
02:02man, and it changed my life forever.
02:06I tell people, you know, it was one of those things that I was not prepared.
02:11You know, you hear about kids having body odor, and I was a little kid that had body odor,
02:16but I wasn't six.
02:18And so, what's in, you know, our environment now, the toxins and all the pollution and the
02:24food and the hormones and everything has just really created a thing where our kids are
02:30experiencing early body odor very soon.
02:33And so, I got in the kitchen, whipped up something for my six-year-old son.
02:38He loved it so much, he asked me to make more for his friends.
02:42I initially told him no, because I worked in the entertainment industry.
02:46I was fine doing what I was doing, but that cute little face, this little boy right here,
02:52I don't know if y'all can see him, but at six, he was like, but mom, you can make it for
02:56everyone.
02:57And then I thought about all the other parents that deserve to have kids that smell amazing,
03:01and I thought about all the kids who deserve to be able to play unapologetically.
03:06And so, that's how Play Fist was born.
03:11Oh, my goodness.
03:12And your son should be very proud.
03:14Trust me.
03:15He is.
03:16He is my CIO, the Chief Inspiration Officer, and he is very proud.
03:23I love that.
03:24I absolutely love that.
03:26So, I want you to break down.
03:28Now, you guys can shop live here.
03:30Go to, follow Play Pits.
03:31They have their whole line there.
03:32They have their IG store.
03:34Go to them and shop.
03:35But why don't you tell us about these?
03:37Yeah.
03:37So, okay, I think you have Sunshine there.
03:40So, Sunshine was our very first scent.
03:43So, when I created this concoction for my son in the kitchen, it was baking soda, cornstarch,
03:50coconut oil, and an orange essential oil.
03:54And that was the start of Sunshine.
03:56Sunshine is now orange and peppermint.
03:59And when you smell it, it's the burst of energy.
04:01So, each of my kids' scents are inspired by one of my three kids.
04:05So, Sunshine is inspired by Cameron.
04:07So, that zingy, citrusy smell, it, like, wakes you up and starts your day super energetic.
04:14And Cameron is a kid with a whole lot of energy.
04:17So, I wanted a scent that people would, you know, really get energized from smelling the morning.
04:24Then we have Sugar.
04:25Sugar is our top-selling scent.
04:27That is lemon, grapefruit, and lemongrass.
04:30That is, it's actually inspired by my youngest son, who loves anything sweet.
04:36So, think Fruity Pebbles.
04:38It smells very, yeah, very much like a Fruity Pebble.
04:42Love that.
04:42And then Happy.
04:43Happy is our calmest scent.
04:45It is a lavender scent.
04:47Sensing after my oldest child, who is a teenager.
04:51She's now in college.
04:52So, it's very calm.
04:53It's lavender.
04:54And then, what happened, I initially launched with those three scents.
04:59The parents were buying it, using it for themselves, and doubling back for the kids.
05:08So, I see everybody in college, like, I use sugar, I'm grown.
05:12So, my adults fell in love with play fits.
05:15And initially, this was supposed to only be for the kids.
05:18But, one Christmas, I did a collaboration with a business, Zinna Jar, and we came up with an adult line.
05:27And literally, I did, it sold out in, I think, seven days.
05:31And once it sold out, I was like, that's all y'all getting.
05:35And so, people ask for this, for an adult product for a year until I launched it.
05:44A DM, a text message, an email.
05:47And so, that's how we have King and Queen.
05:48So, King is bourbon and sandalwood.
05:51And Queen is lemon and amber.
05:53And Queen is King over at Play Pits, okay?
05:56It is our top selling product because every mama comes and gets something for her.
06:03And she's getting something for the whole family.
06:08It's sexy.
06:09It's sexy.
06:09Listen.
06:10You know, what I pride myself on is what we've done with natural deodorant is we've taken a traditionally born category and we've made it an experience.
06:30We made it fun.
06:31We made it sexy.
06:32We made it exciting and fun for the kids and something they want to put on.
06:36And for the adults, it's something that is a part of your self-care routine.
06:40You smelling fresh and having healthy hygiene.
06:43And you, you know, being fresh all day long with a natural product that doesn't give you any toxins or harsh chemicals.
06:50So.
06:51I love that.
06:53And why don't you just talk a little bit about that.
06:56For parents that their teenagers or their tweens are getting to that age where they need to start using deodorant,
07:02what are the, some of the benefits of using a natural deodorant, like clay pits versus what's on the shelf.
07:07Yes.
07:08That, you know, the husband's might using.
07:09So one of the things that is really important when you have young children, you don't want to put an antiprespirant on them.
07:15Because, I mean, you don't want to put an antiprespirant on anybody, right?
07:18But really for, for young kids, a lot of times kids experience body odor when they have like a really crazy day.
07:27So when you think about like a birthday party or recess or practice, every day, like a kid just in the house on a Saturday may not experience odor.
07:37But what happens if you put an antiprespirant on them, it, that, that aluminum salt clogs up their pores and it, their body then over tries to get that out of there.
07:48And then that caused more odor.
07:51So I tell people do not do that.
07:54Don't, you know, use an antiprespirant on your child because it will almost like put that odor into overdrive.
08:02Um, and then also parabens, it is linked to change in hormones and aluminum salt is linked to cancerous things.
08:11And I mean, there are studies and people say it's linked and not linked.
08:15At the end of the day, if you're a mom, you don't want to do anything that will possibly put your child in jeopardy of using anything that is a possibility.
08:22And so when I tell people about play pits, it's really about education and knowing that you can, you supposed to sweat to antiprespirants.
08:32A lot of times people tell you, you know, Oh, I don't, I don't use deodorant because I'm a smell and I'm a sweat with play pits.
08:39You're not going to smell, but if you run around, if you go work out, you should sweat.
08:44That's your body ridding itself of toxins and things that it needs to get out.
08:48Sweating is natural, but you shouldn't sweat while you're in a meeting, just sitting down, you know?
08:53So we have ingredients that absorb moisture and just kind of really keep you fresh all day.
09:00Oh, see, we put you onto the, all the things that you need to know here for your health care and your body.
09:08I am, where do I order?
09:10Where do I go order?
09:11Okay.
09:11You guys need to go and follow play pits.
09:13They have a whole store.
09:14You can get the whole entire collection.
09:16There is something there for everybody in your family.
09:18I want to remind you, if you're watching live, you can ask your questions right here.
09:23I'm looking, I am looking.
09:24Now, Chantel, you are a member of a new voices family.
09:29I first interviewed you way back in 2019, pre-panty at a marketplace that we were having at Essence.
09:37Talk a little bit about the benefits.
09:39You know, when I think about what new voice, new voices has done for play pits is given us access.
09:47Um, and, and, you know, I started, I started play pits before black businesses were popular.
09:53Right.
09:54And, you know, before everybody was shopping black.
09:56And so I, everybody wasn't interested in the black girls selling deodorant, natural deodorant at that.
10:03But new voices gave me access to education.
10:08Um, you know, I'm a first generation entrepreneur.
10:10A lot of this stuff that I've had to do, I didn't have nobody in my family or within my network that I've ever done it.
10:17But being able to access, uh, organization like new voices, they have learning labs and workshops and things.
10:24Right.
10:25And also resources, um, partnering with different partners, my target broker came from new voices, you know?
10:32And so they were able to make suggestions and, uh, what else?
10:36Like, I mean, so when I think of what new voices has done for play pits is given us access and resources.
10:43And that in business is key because you can, you can get the money, right?
10:48But if you don't have, if you don't know how to spend the money and you don't have the, the network of people to advise you what to do with the money, none of that matters.
10:56And so we've also been able to win money, you know?
10:59So, so between money, access and resources, uh, new voices has been super instrumental in, um, making sure play pits is able to be one of the top in our category.
11:10Come on.
11:14And I want to double back and circle back.
11:15I don't know if people caught that.
11:17You said that your target broker came from a connection that you made at new voices.
11:22Yes, we in target.
11:23We in target.
11:25Let's flip it.
11:26That little, that little flex right there.
11:29They are in target.
11:30So you guys, anybody that is out there sitting on some brilliant idea, or you've started a business and you don't know where to go to next from somebody that's just starting all the way up until you, you know, you have brick and mortar stores.
11:44You want to be a part of this incredible organization.
11:48They have so many great businesses that you probably have right there in your bathroom.
11:52I have on lip bar right now.
11:55Um, my, there's so many businesses and this is a community that you have access to.
12:03So I encourage you guys, everybody asking how they can be featured.
12:06Join a new voices family.
12:09You are just so incredible.
12:11You have something.
12:13You have a special gift.
12:14It is 10% off.
12:15Go to the website, playpits.com and shop.
12:18Shop Essence is the code for 10% off.
12:22And I also want to say, I started this business.
12:26You know, I really want people to put in perspective, like how far this company has came.
12:31We started in my home kitchen with a dream of one day I would love to be at Target.
12:37To now, less than five years later, I am one of the top natural deodorant brands at Target.
12:46Like that is not something that I take lightly.
12:50And so to anyone who has a vision, anyone who has a dream that is living within them,
12:56write it down and find a network of people like a new voices family to help support you with resources and access and money to like access to capital and people that will help elevate your business to be where you dream it to be.
13:13And I just wanted to say that because, you know, I don't take it lightly that I've been able to do so much in such a little bit of time.
13:20And it's really because I've always made sure I learn.
13:24I'm a sponge.
13:25I'm learning at all times.
13:26And so organizations like New Voices has been instrumental in me being able to learn for free.
13:32For free.
13:35For free.
13:36Can you just emphasize that?
13:37Listen, learn for free.
13:39It is for free.
13:41Take all of that knowledge, all of the connections, everything.
13:45And, you know, you never know.
13:47I could be talking to you in a month from now if you just take a chance on yourself.
13:51Chantel, thank you.
13:53Thank you so much for creating this incredible line.
13:56And it's just one less thing to worry about when we're bringing up these children and making sure that they are healthy.
14:03And this whole entire, like, queen?
14:05I'm glad you said that.
14:06I was like, this is doing something.
14:07I know, queen and king and sexy.
14:09Look, we got something fun and exciting for the kids.
14:12But when you go from that kid line to the adult line, it's a whole nother vibe.
14:17It's grown and sexy over there.
14:18So beware.
14:21Yeah, I've heard some very interesting things about what the king and queen make the people do.
14:26So let me tell you, just be cautious.
14:31Keep it PG.
14:33We're going to keep it PG.
14:34But y'all, take my word for it.
14:37You want to order the king and queen.
14:39If you don't have children, order that king and queen and play pit these.
14:46I got to get sugar.
14:47This sunshine is amazing.
14:48But sugar was all up in the comments.
14:50So I'm going to go run to Target, run into Target.com and get me some sugar.
14:54But Chantel, you are so incredible.
14:57Thank you so much for joining us today.
14:59Remember, guys, go to Play Pits.
15:01You can go on their Instagram or go on their website.
15:04And the discount code that they're giving just to Shop Essence Live.
15:07Viewers, whether you're watching live or on the replay, Shop Essence is the code for 10% off.
15:13Chantel, thank you so much for joining us.
15:15We'll be back next week through New Black Old Businesses.
15:17Bye.
15:18Later, y'all.
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