Episode Transcript
Nina Huchthausen (00:03.96)
All right, welcome everyone to the Make His Business Tribe podcast. In this week's episode, I have the honor to have a conversation with a really special tribe member who I'm just in deep awe with in how she has been managing, growing her business, juggling single mom life, being a musician.
and just really killing it, getting her product into Stockist. Whilst right now, she doesn't even have a car. So it's like just incredible the amount of work that Krisnaz brings to the table and the amount of success that she's been generating and creating for her business. I don't think I could do half of what she does and I don't know how she brings up the time. But to me,
This is just an example of someone who has endless dedication, grit, focus, consistency, and a person who just really wants to make a big difference for the people that she's serving. So thank you so much, for joining us. Krishna is the founder of Milk and Butter, an organic vegan skincare brand. And since she joined the tribe, I think it was in April,
You've been able to get your products from zero stockists and you didn't even have a plan as to how to get into it. From think you started mid -May? from around mid to late May. which is so fantastic. So, fantastic. So thank you, Krishna, for joining and for investing the time.
As I say, I'm so excited about this because you're just one of those exciting to be here. Thanks so much for having me here today. It's an honor to be here. It's been so amazing working with you, with the tribe. It has honestly transformed our business in so many ways. It's been an incredible journey so far and it's really allowed...
Nina Huchthausen (02:28.96)
me so much more clarity and focus to really grow, you know, this dream of mine to empower women to really help transform their beautiful rituals or have a transformative experience from having these beautiful products in their rituals so that they
can bring back their inner glow. And I'm so happy to be here. Thank you. Thank you, Krishna. Thank you. So can you delve a little bit deeper into who is Krishna? Because I mentioned that your mum, your pianist, an entrepreneur, a formulator. What else? Who are you? What do you do? I've been classically trained as a pianist for
Most of my life since I was about nine. So and I've been playing ever since I've been teaching for almost 20 years now and I have spent a good 10 years and more of my time in music where I was constantly performing and then but I really went through a big burnout phase from there and
And that was when I noticed that my skin, the impact it was having on my health, the way it has surfaced on my skin, it got to a point where I realized that I had to change the way things were in order to continue what I wanted to do, to continue my passion in performing and music. And that led me to...
my journey in self -healing and going into a low -tox lifestyle, whether it was from the skincare to the makeup to household products to organic food, I went into being fully vegan for a good length of time as well. And that started the whole idea of making my own herbal remedies and skincare products. So
Nina Huchthausen (04:54.83)
And then I had Hannah when I was 25 and she's nine now. She's vegan. By her own choice, not mine. And she also has been part of inspiring me to really be conscious of what I use and what she uses in the skin. And
The idea of starting something, or starting Milk and Butter came from after having her coming out of COVID time when I was chatting with my girlfriend, Emily, at that time, who was training to be a doler and we felt called to create something together, to something that would help support mamas like ourselves and
and the little ones. In my own journey, and I know that has as well, or she has had, and she's got three kids. So was your co -founder. Yes, she was the co -founder. So she's been with me from the start for the last few years. And we worked to create all of this together. From the early years when I went through
post -natal depression coming out from a year of recovering from having Hannah, I started to lose my sense of self. was, it's not, you I felt very blessed. I felt so grateful for everything that I had from having Hannah and the family, but I was exhausted. I was really tired. I was burnt out. I was always,
I never felt I had enough energy and I just felt depleted. didn't even feel like there was time to look after myself. I didn't feel like it was important to look after myself. thought, well, you know, it's, I'm not the priority, you know, my kid is and that's where it should be, right, with the family. And so it, the idea of self care was almost non -existent.
Nina Huchthausen (07:16.91)
It was gone. was, you know, I woke up and all my hair would look probably like a troll, know, kind of soft nest bun and it's, I haven't done my makeup, didn't even care about makeup. just walked and I just, I didn't feel good about myself. I felt like I lost my glow, my confidence. And I wish that someone at that time had told me how important it was to
be able to honor ourselves and to love ourselves, that we deserve to back to ourselves, give that time back to ourselves because we deserve to feel beautiful. We deserve to feel loved and to be able to have the capacity to love ourselves. And I could see it affects the connection I had with my family, my relationship, my partner, and
it's, I just felt I've lost myself in it all. So going through that journey and led me to want to bring something in milk and butter through the products that we have that would remind mamas that
We need to honor ourselves. We deserve to look after ourselves. And I love the Ayurveda philosophy of it because in their philosophy, their approach, self -care is an essential part of our well -being. really? Yeah. What is their philosophy?
How would you describe it? Ayurveda means the science of life. we are governed by our three doshas, the energetic forces of vata, kaffa and pitta that form our constitution. And we can be dominant in one over, you know, more than the other two, but that is ultimately what
Nina Huchthausen (09:43.038)
makes us, know, that forms forms our constitution. And it's all about aligning, learning to align ourselves with the circadian rhythms, with the seasonal changes, the cycles, and learning how to adjust our biological clock with
the Ayurvedic practices and bringing that into help balance our mind, our body, our spirit. really goes into much more, it goes deeper than the physical, it goes beyond that, it really goes into the spiritual level. And I love that approach so much because that brought me back to my roots being in India in the years that I've spent when I was really young.
Yeah, that's beautiful. Yeah. And these inspirations, how did you decide to move that into skincare? What does it, how does it translate today? I spent a lot of time in India because of my, initially because of my spiritual connection. And I would spend
a lot of, I've really spent the first 10 years there until I moved to Australia to study. And at that time I had watched women, every day they would, you they wouldn't even consider it as it's Ayurvedic. It was just their rituals. It's what they do every day, you know, from combing through their hair with coconut oil every morning, then plaiting it, to doing oil pulling and hair oiling, as well as
Massage Abhyanga, is known for massage where you would use black sesame oil or coconut oil depending on your doshas. And they would bring in lot of breath work, yoga, meditation. All of those things were part of what they did for themselves every day. And they would do that for, if they were going to have a bath, they would make up.
Nina Huchthausen (12:07.992)
concoctions of herbs and everything to help detox their body to really nourish it. And they would change that according to the seasons. And watching them do that was an everyday thing for them. would say, your hair is dry. here are some, these are some herbs, was ashwagandha or neem or it's umbrami oils that eat herbs. would infuse that into black sesame oil.
then they would give it to the kids or they would use it themselves and they would apply that whenever they needed it. you know, they had beautiful, beautiful fake hair. It's a practice that, you know, they've used for about 5 ,000 years. And it's something that's so deeply integrated in their culture, I think. And so when I started milking butter, it brought me back to
my roots there. I had never really worked with oils much before that and until I started going into it and it really opened a completely different world for me when I started incorporating that into my own rituals because I could see such a huge difference. It was you know my from my skin health to my hair it was drastically better.
It had healed so much and it was like, wow, you know, if this is something that they've done, you know, and I can benefit so much from it. I want to bring that to mamas. I want to bring that to people, know, even if it's one or two things that you can integrate into your own routines, it will help you feel so much better.
within yourself when you've taken that time to integrate that, to bring that in. yeah. Wow. I have probably a really, the most vivid ideas of what these women are like and what is happening. And I just pictured women outside having a bath, like in...
Nina Huchthausen (14:30.509)
in the middle of nowhere and doing putting these beautiful flowers in which is probably nothing like what you're seeing. But for me, I just had this like, you know, it's not that different. It's just been sort of, but yeah, they would, I remember they would just be these beautiful late friends or, you know, I was a kid then, there were, I called them friends, but they were all in their twenties and thirties. They would sit there in the morning under the sun and they would have
they're coconut oils and they're, you know, all black sesame oils and they would start combing through their hair, know, from the roots to the ends. and it was, and they just smelled of coconut every day. Yeah, they smelled beautiful. But it was, yeah, I remember that really, really well. And, but I never thought much of it, you know, as you do growing up, you just take it for granted. So, yeah, but that's
They're my memories of that time back there. I remember being at the, would stay in the foothills of the Himalayas in north part of India. And every day at the ashram, we would get up at 3 .30, four o 'clock in the morning. And this time is considered the Vata period from 2 a to 6 a where it's the atmosphere is infused with light, air, clarity. And it was so beautiful being there because we would
you know, get up, we'll go to the hall, we'll do chanting, we'll do the offerings to the gods, the arpi, and then we would take a 45 minute down to have a walk in the tracks of the Himalayas and it was beautiful. I remember the freshness of the air, it was the time where, in this period, they say it's the most auspicious time for spiritual
connection. It's the quietest time in the day where we can do our breath work and meditation and it's when we all would sit down and spend that time together with the stillness that morning and meditate. It was like being in a different space, different world, different time. It was just magical and every time I went back I didn't want to come back. I wanted to stay there.
Nina Huchthausen (16:51.531)
because it was such a completely different experience. and it would go back there two to three times every year and I would say that once at a time. Beautiful. So that that experience, right, of living a completely different life to what we're used to here and the rituals, the practices, the
the connection to spirit or to oneness or whatever you want to call it, to call it God, whatever that energy is that connects us all. How did you bring that into your brand? How did you string that bowl, so to speak, and encapsulate it into milk and butter and
its products. I know that you work with crystals as well. Yeah. did it move from Himalayan and meditation? I think it starts with the oils. It's so much of our products are based on oils. In fact, probably apart from our renewal face cleanser, they're all oils. Face mask.
From our body oils to our Fluolite Defense Lumiere Face Elixir to our Luminous Hair Oil, we use so much of Chinese herbs as well. That was passed on from my mother and for influence from her, from her own training in Chinese medicine. And then bringing in Ayurvedic oils, because I know how amazing they are. And I wanted to...
bring that in and the only way to do that was to use their oils and they are incredible. Whether it is the moringa oil that we use in our face oil which is called also the tree of life, like every part of that tree is used for medicinal purposes as well as for skincare like even the
Nina Huchthausen (19:14.663)
the seeds, the moringa seeds, you can remove them from their pods and you can grind them and you use them, you put them in the water and it can purify the water as well. That's how amazing it is. And when we use that in our skin care regime, it just really nourishes our and feeds our skin with this abundance of essential fatty acids and antioxidants. So
And the same with our hair oil. We use parami oil, we use holy cool seed, black sesame oil, black human seed oil, like all these beautiful herbs and all as we use that into these products so that women, know, mothers who use it can really bring these practices into their daily rituals. Beautiful. And what...
But what in my crude mind, can you explain to me what, how do you use the crystals with the product? the oils? Yeah. Well, my own journey has been my own spiritual journey. I've worked a lot. I've done a lot of energy work since I was a kid. Lots of different forms in also in Tegum as well. And
I had taken some time away from doing energy work, but in starting our products, it brought me back to wanting to work with crystals and wanting to then study Reiki. So I did my Reiki masters last year and now I'm just finished my course training as an energy medicine practitioner as well.
and the crystals are used to really help enhance the experience of our products. We charge all our crystals under the full moon and even when we create our products, we set the music to a certain sound frequency, a healing frequency.
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As we know that essential oils are one of the most powerful, carries the highest vibrations out of all plants and it responds to the crystals. It responds to our intentions and our energy that we give it. And so the crystals really, once they're charged and they're cleansed, they help to enhance the efficacy and the experience when you use the products. And that's why we put that in the range.
Wow. Sorry, did you talk about music as well? During your product making process? Yeah, I have been performing for a long time and I have taken a break from it. But for me personally, it's my meditative space. It's the time where
It's a personal nourishment for me as much as I also know that it brings, it connects people, it brings people into my sound world, it transports them into a different time and space. And it the, you know, it expresses the inexpressible, right? But, and I wanted to create that connection further.
not just through my music, not just through my teaching and working with the kids, I wanted to make more of an impact. so it's, it creates, it's given me, I suppose, in having music in my life, it breathes life into, know, it gives me that inspiration. It's, it
is my space to come back to when I need that time for myself and the rituals there, I consider them sacred rituals for my, you know, and it's, kind of all, they both tie in together, compliment each other beautifully for me. And it gives me a different way of, different ways of connecting with people.
Nina Huchthausen (23:59.361)
Have you ever thought of gifting some of the music that you make to your customers? No, to be honest. and skincare at all? I'd love to. It's something I'd love to think about. I haven't ventured into that as far yet at this stage, but it would be wonderful too if there's an opportunity to merge the two together more.
Yeah, because if I'm just thinking about if I do a little bit of self care for myself, I there is some music playing in the background. There is a candle that is being lit. There's a certain mood that is being created. Yeah, yeah, definitely. Yeah, yeah, that's true. It's so fantastic. it like and
For me, what fascinates me about your brand is, because when we first started working together, we were just talking about the mums and rituals, and they need more rituals and self -care in their lives. But what I'm hearing through your story is also how much
The creation of each of your products supports you to become full circle, to be and express your whole being of every piece of knowledge and experience that you were able to gather in your life so far and bring that back into your products, right? Yeah, definitely. Which I think is magical because they are, I have...
not met many people who have had such a beautiful journey that has been guiding them to where they are today based on their experiences and the energies that has been guiding the person.
Nina Huchthausen (26:17.825)
which I think is fantastic and it gives your products such deeper meaning or energy to consume. But what I'm wondering is you as an artist and playing music and as you said, music is meditation for you and it's a...
being able to express what cannot be expressed. How is that ideal philosophy or part of identity helping you build and create milk and butter?
That's a good question.
It is, as you were saying, you know, with kind of coming to a full circle, it's almost like it is an extension of what I do in music. It's the...
creativity, the connection, the spiritual space in which it can create. I wanted to bring that through in some way in our brand, in our products. And honestly, I think if you asked me,
Nina Huchthausen (28:02.963)
when I first started two years ago, I wouldn't have known how it would have evolved the way it has. I have changed so much and journeyed so much in these three years and I feel like I have grown with it. I have transformed with it. If anything, it's guided me.
in ways that I would never have imagined since starting it. It really came from this just humble, simple idea that we wanted to do something that would nourish, know, mamas, the little ones, the families. And we didn't know, I didn't know where it would take it. And it's only through
my own journey that it's slowly opened up all of these ways, these pathways to form it the way it has today. Yeah. And for me, would say Testament is just the recent awards that six of your products have won. Yeah, that's right. It was really exciting. Which award was it again?
It was the Vegan Beauty Awards in the UK and they had recently emailed us the news that we had won the award. it's been such a big milestone for us, a big achievement because it's been something that
I wanted to do with the last year, year and a half. And I knew we weren't ready at that time. So it's I'm really, really proud of what we've achieved with our products. And I'm really grateful as well to have this award because it means that it can give us a chance to reach out to more beautiful
Nina Huchthausen (30:25.609)
mamas that would be able to try our product and bring that in. And at the same time, it also shows that it's an external validation that your product is magical. You know, it's not just another skincare brand. Because there's a hand to hand, there's so much, so much out there. is. There is so much.
Being, receiving six awards, I just want you to, to, to honor yourself that this is a testament of your creation, that it's not just a creation, but that it is being acknowledged as being really good and really different. And it has an edge, it's magical, you know?
And I think that is also important to understand. It's like there is something really magical to the brand Milk and Butter. Krista, can you share a little bit more about what was the business journey like? Because ultimately, as you said, you started it with with Emily just after COVID. Yeah, which, what do you classify as after? What time frame are we talking? It was end of
2021. And we had, I think, lockdowns coming out of it, the restrictions had just lifted and we just slowly making our way back to work. And we both had been talking about wanting to do something beyond our comfort zone, doing something that would
that can create a bigger impact. Yeah. Did it push you out of your comfort zone? 100%. My goodness. my goodness, Nina. The hundreds upon hundreds of hours of pouring our heart and soul into researching, into building what we have. It's, yeah, definitely completely beyond my comfort zone. You know, I'm not a business, you know,
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train in business in any way before this. And so I had no idea what I was getting myself into. The manner in the skill sets needed to learn to run the business to the vision that we wanted to create the brand, everything down to the ingredient that we were going through.
to use. It's been such a huge learning curve, perhaps really, over the years. But it's been really incredible. I wouldn't change it for the world because it's really opened a whole community of people that I have never dreamed of being able to connect with. So I feel like I've found
my tribe, you know, with you, with the business builders tribe and also the community that we have around, that we've built through our events, connections on social media. It's, I wouldn't change it for the world. Yeah.
It's crazy, hey, like, because I think, apart from having a baby and raising a child, I would say building a business is, it can be one of... baby, isn't it? It's like your second baby, yes. And it's, there is so many ups and downs and backflips and potholes you didn't expect and you didn't even notice you fell into another frickin' one and...
And out you go and back you fall into the next one. it's, can be, if you enjoy, if you can allow yourself to enjoy it. know, despite the tears and frustrations and sleepless nights. think it's one of the most life -giving experiences. is, it is. It's, it's really,
Nina Huchthausen (35:07.021)
given me so much more, not just experience, knowledge. It's given me so much more that I can now proudly share. It's been such a journey from not having any budget to invest in the business.
And then using my other work to support this business and watch it grow. It's been, yeah, it's been a hell of a roller coaster ride. But there's been so many milestones over the time and the passion, the love for what we create, for the people that we created for.
that keeps bringing me back to want to do more. And I think one of the things is like from the start when when first time we spoke, you were really you were so clearly able to articulate who your brand and your product is for who they're serving. And I think that from the start, what I saw in you and Emily was so much focus and
fire and almost stubbornness because you have very high standards when it comes to not just your formulations but your products and how they're supposed to look to all the way to your flyers, your catalog, everything is just an extension and expression of you and how you carry yourself and
beauty and elegance and it's nothing is just thrown together at random. But I feel like everything has and you say that so much on your website, carefully crafted. Yeah, to serve, to serve mamas, to give them their glow back and their confidence and their sense of self and their sense of beauty and
Nina Huchthausen (37:34.605)
I have a hunch that that is probably one of the key success factors and drive is for you to keep on going because you know exactly who you're doing it for and it carries through. don't think that any, if we gave you products to any random person, I don't think they would talk about it in any other way because you can see it, feel it, smell it everywhere.
Yeah. And that's, I think that will, I can't wait to talk to you in three years time, Krishna, to see where, how far you've been able to carry this message, your rituals and your products. Yeah, me too. It's, I've never could have seen where this would have taken me.
in three years ago. So I have absolutely no idea where it will be. from end of 2021 and now it's end of September 2024. How many products have you launched, tested and now have in your range? What consists? Twenty. Twenty and that's skincare, haircare. Yeah, skincare.
hair care that SYNC includes face, body and also perfumes, natural perfume oils as well and we've got beautiful Reiki infused ring and linen sprays and I love that they're 100 % clean. We either use
premium organic essential oils or they're coconut based, the other ingredients that make up those products. So it's from our ethically sourced mica to our compostable labels, packaging, we take a lot of care every step of the way to really make sure that it's not just dental for us, but also for this beautiful mother earth that we're treading on. And now,
Nina Huchthausen (39:59.181)
We have partnered with Impact for Women as well as Greens Park. So 2 % of the profits goes towards supporting women who have suffered and children suffered domestic violence in Victoria. And we donate our skincare essentials to them monthly as well. And Greens Park, each order goes towards planting a tree, reducing carbon footprint as well as rescuing the plastics.
So it goes through various projects through Greens Park and we're excited to be able to help each purchase go that bit further to create more impact. Yeah. Which, I mean, excites me so much, right? Because for me, the reason why I founded the Makers Business Tribe was because I wanted to leave the planet better than I founded.
And for me, the biggest thing was always, gosh, even as a child, I remember this when we, like birthdays and Christmas, how much waste we would produce, right? The amount of fricking wrapping paper and bowls and wrapping and wrapping wrappings and the bags and boxes, yeah. gosh. And we would just like stuff them in bags and put them outside and like...
I was always really curious, like, where does it go? Yeah. What happens? But you couldn't see that. Yeah. And there was always this wall, the garbage man picks it up and takes it away. And I was like, and I was always like, are we cool with that? Where does it go? Yeah. It doesn't just evaporate. Disappear. Yeah. Exactly. And when I really got conscious about what waste.
like how like all this waste it's like we yes we are hiding it from each other but it's it comes back to us it comes back full circle through our drinking water it goes into our soils the soils is where we eat from whether it's it's it's vegetables or animals the animals eat the vegetables and and it comes from the earth it goes back into the animal into us into the carrots and back into us
Nina Huchthausen (42:21.247)
It doesn't matter. It's like we're poisoning ourselves. But by hiding the shit, we don't, might not see it for a long time. And when I realized it, I was like, I cannot, I have to, what, what can I do to get, to do my bit to get it right? To make at least one bit of a difference based on all these ways that I used to create when I wasn't conscious. And as a child, you know,
You just follow along. Yeah, you just go, this is great. yeah, well, we're done. You know, we've got the presence, they can throw it all out. whatever's done with it is, whatever happens, happens and it's got nothing to with us and we're not responsible for it. Exactly. I don't think my mind went that far because it was just what everybody did. As a child, you just follow along. Exactly. for me, now it's like, no, now is the time.
to be very conscious and to be very careful of what we are creating, it follows a circle. Not just dropping it somewhere. We don't need to drop waste. We can reuse it. We can reshare it. We can recycle it. We can do something with it. And to me, it's just another reason of your brand how much you care. Because if you...
It's a full circle care because if you are empowering me as a consumer to automatically do my bit because I can, when I choose your products, I know I'm not going to drop waste at the end of it. There is a full circle and I think that's also a very positive energy. It's an energy of giving back and looking after myself long term.
Yeah, because long term, know I at least do a little bit for my baby for our babies to have a cleaner, more beautiful planet. You know, and that's that's powerful. That's powerful. And that's all working together on that. I think that that's that's how we're going to that's how we're continuously creating the change. Right.
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that we're not seeing it as something crazy, but like, no, this is how it's supposed to be. This is the standard.
And it's such an incredible vision you have in the Makers' Business Tribe that you've created to bring so many amazing small businesses together and build that and support them to really make this place, leave this place a better place for not just us, but our future generations, for our kids. And we're showing them the things that are important as well.
things that do really matter. And so thank you. Thank you for being here. mean, for me, it's kind of funny, Because for the longest time, I like, I didn't have that creative mind of just continuously creating products, but I have the mind of supporting being that.
My partner, Adam, says this all the time, the second rower, the person who supports everybody. backbone. strong throw, exactly, to do their best. And that's why I'm so grateful because I can only, I mean, hand to heart, I can only bring my vision to life by supporting you and everybody else who does something amazing in the health and earth conscious space.
to do for you to be amazing because only if you make a difference, I can do that by giving you the towel, by high -fiving you, know, work through budget, like taking it, every single element in the flies, all of that stuff. It makes me proud because it's like, yes, I will work because I mean, let's face it,
Nina Huchthausen (46:49.781)
You and I have done a shitload of work together and it actually makes a difference. It actually makes a difference. Yeah, a positive difference. Well, you helped put all the pieces together in the right order, Nina. When things are chaos, know, it's just utter chaos and they go, you know, what do I do? You're there putting it all back together in line and it's
Really, it's so important. It's so, so important to have someone like yourself who just has that amazing ability to do that. Not just for me, but for every single member that is part of your tribe, you do that. And it's really just amazing. So it's funny, everybody has their different skills. And whereas like I, I, my parents,
wanted so badly for me to play an instrument. I tried the flute, hated it so much that when I was at my teacher's house, what I did was at my teacher's house, I would ask for a glass of water and then would jump onto the couch and turn the clock like seven minutes forward, like a little bit so she wouldn't notice so that the class would be over faster so I could go home.
That is so funny. We're like, it's done already. Bye. That's really funny. And then it was the guitar. I don't know if they wanted me to try the piano as well. I just caught in. was horrible. And I could only get my parents to let me stop when they signed me up for a Christmas concert.
And I just decided, okay, if I really embarrass them, they would just see. Never ask you again. Exactly. So I didn't practice. it really was so embarrassing for me. was like, as you said, you know, maybe the confidence that I had that I would let you go on stage and suck so bad. That takes guts.
Nina Huchthausen (49:14.251)
That really does, to publicly humiliate. mean, I think I can't tell you how many dreams I would wake up from a sweat, Nina, where I've, well, would dream that I would have done a concert and I've either completely lost my notes, hadn't practiced, don't have my music, and I would, my heart would be palpitating. I feel like I'm having a heart attack. And, yeah, so I don't know, you can do that on stage. I couldn't, that's, yeah.
You must have really hated it. That's all I can say. Yeah, I was like, because for me, I just want to play outside. Yeah, I want to do some sports. I want to play outside. I didn't want to sit inside and just like, do do do. Like, yeah, that the end. That daily grind. Yeah. But you know, my skill was I was like, okay, what's how can I get out of this? Let's find a solution. Because it didn't work.
try something different. You know, everybody has their skills. I'm very pragmatic. I can count. It worked. Yeah. So I still have to this day, I have this mindset, look, whatever does the job at the end of the day. You know, there are a thousand ways to reach Rome. And as long as you're my co, I know where I want to get to. Let's keep on trying in different ways. And to be honest, in business, that serves you very well.
You can, you know, one doesn't work, go into the next strategy, you you keep working and working until you find one that really works for you and you go with it. Exactly. So milk and butter, what now that we've gone to a fair bit of struggle and journey, we got into 20 products, 15 stock is, but of course you're just at the start.
Right. So your next, your next big dream, your next milestone. What is that? What are you dreaming about when you go to bed at night? Where do you want to see milk and butter next? products will be in store in Europe next year, which is really exciting. So I'm looking forward to collaborating, partnering with more.
Nina Huchthausen (51:43.827)
businesses around Australia next year and start traveling more. I always have my daughter with me almost every market whether she likes it or not. Luckily she does and I care as you know and it's certain amount which is to have her there to help me and then she loves helping and spending time with me. So it would be really fun and exciting to travel next year and have her with me.
I'm going to spend the next year continuing on my second level of training in energy medicine. And that's something I want to bring in more so that I can offer it this service and bring in our products as well for our customers or clients and really integrate that
over the next year, whether it takes form as a in a woman's women's retreat with our products and meditation work. I'm really looking forward to diving in more spiritually in the next year or two. that's my hope. my gosh, I just had an idea. I need to introduce you to my friend Amy.
That's outside of this podcast, I can chat. This never stops. Okay, I just write this down. Okay. That will be so cool. And I think for to see your product to really be deeply connected into the community of rituals, healing, personal and spiritual growth. Yeah. I think that
that alignment beyond the mum, but also the connection of mum and awakening, mum of recreation, mum of...
Nina Huchthausen (53:56.103)
I finding your
I feel like the identity before being a mum is different to that identity that gets rebirth once you become a mum. And I see your products, they are part of that second stage of life. Yeah. And I really want to use my healing practice to help
their own healing journeys, women that I have the opportunity of working with, of meeting in the youth become, I want to grow much deeper and be able to help them, not just finding their glow and honoring who they are, but also helping them
in their own spiritual journey. Because I think, you know, we're all energetic beings. are all in our, you know, whether you're religious or not, you you believe in God or the universe, know, universal energy, it doesn't matter. We all here for a reason. And I believe that
know, the more
Nina Huchthausen (55:30.697)
in the more you can support one another in different ways and different levels, the better, the happier a place will all be in. Yeah. It creates congruency, And that's why I have a feeling the more of your music will flow into it. The sound vibrations, think music is the first thing that we
that we all connect with upon birth, before birth. Yeah. Yeah. I think I deeply believe it speaks to our soul. Yeah. my gosh. I can't wait to see where this journey takes you. It's like really, really magical. Now, before I let you go, I'd love to hear from you. What is that one thing
that you would want to share with a product -based business owner that's just starting off, has never done this before and standing in front of her or his very first mountain to bring the idea to life?
Nina Huchthausen (56:49.649)
Learn from the best. Work with those who have walked your journey and have unwavering confidence, belief in what you can give. Because when you're on your own, you're starting, no one will have that level of commitment that you will have.
to invest into what you're creating, what you're doing. And it's so important and it makes such a huge difference when you just have that belief in yourself that you can because that gives you that strength to carry on, especially when there's no one to say, hey, you're on the right track, you're doing well, you know, there's so much.
behind the scenes that no one will ever see or appreciate or know. And there's no one there to tell you. So, no, when you have that belief in yourself and that drives you and when you really love what you do, that will push you to the next level and push you to really bring in the right people because when you have that energy, you carry that, you have that.
passion that loves what you do. I believe you bring the right people in. Awesome. like, amen. Amen. I remember when I had quit my job and I hadn't even, quit my job for my first company. I quit my job three months before I had to jump in full time. Incredibly short timeframe.
I thought, that's super long, three months, easy. I'll jump into a pool. It's going to be filled with water and easy swimming. Hell no. But one of my friends, really good friend at the time, at a party, she was a little bit drunk. She literally pulled me to site and said, OK, who the heck do you think you are that you can do this?
Nina Huchthausen (59:06.337)
my gosh, like that sentence for months, I couldn't I would wake up and I would sweat. would have all the heart populations and just like every night I would grab Adam's hand, my partner, and put it on my heart to help me to calm it down. To be like, you can do this. That's really casting such a big hole in your, you know, the...
belief in yourself, right, in your ability to do it. It's... When someone says that to you, don't forget it. It just stays with you. And whenever things go wrong, that voice comes in stronger than ever. And you have to fight it. It's not even your own demons you have to fight. You have to fight, you know, what they say. And that's hard. That's really, really hard. And...
I had that experience similar, not in the work context, but more in a performance context. And I never forgot that. I was, I think, 13, and I was doing a ballet comedy performance at one of the theatres here in Melbourne. And I was playing a harp support, like a two -manual old piano. And they said, and he said to me, what makes you think that you could
go out there and perform the way you do. You're using the music, you've never used this instrument before. And that stayed with me to this day, but it stuck with me that whole time in the lead up to the five performances we had. And I thought, no, I'm going to prove it to you. I'll prove it that I can. I'm going to memorize the music. I'm going to get up there, I'm going to perform, I'm going to nail every single one.
But those comments, stay and they can break you. It's worse sometimes, I think, than your own gut that you have with yourself. Yes, because again, someone external. Your voice might be this loud, but someone else's this loud.
Nina Huchthausen (01:01:32.533)
It turns everything. that's why, like, man, because probably every single entrepreneur you ask, they will have, they struggle with that. Internal critic and external critics. But the only way through is to have that belief, to hold yourself onto the belief of what you are here to create, to hold yourself onto the belief that you can do it.
And to be OK with that voice, because it can drive us so much more. Because it's not nice to be driven by fear, but it can serve the purpose of leveling up even more. As long as we allow ourselves to keep letting go of that critic voice, because from operating,
or creating ultimately from a critic voice and fear is not going to create magic. No, it will drive you to a certain point, but it can only go so fast to serve you before it will change. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for your time, Krishna. This was such a magical conversation. Thank you. It was so fun.
Yeah, thank you. And I can only encourage everybody to check out Milk and Butter. It's milkandbutter .com. Co. Yeah. Milkandbutter .co. .co. I put it into the show notes. which product, what's your banger product if someone just wants to start trying your range, which one should they start with? Hands down, Lumiere. Blue Light Defense Face Oil. That's awesome. Awesome. My, yeah, that was a game changer for my skin.
I can't live without it. know customers have used it, loved it, addicted to it, and keep coming back and feel the same as I do. that, our Lissenswell body oil, probably my two favorite ones. Awesome. Please send me the link so I can put that into the show notes so nobody gets lost on your side, can try it out. And thank you so much again for your time,
Nina Huchthausen (01:03:56.568)
Thank you so much, I appreciate you so much and I hope everybody got a lot out of it. Thank you.
