Meet Jules and Joanne from the Daily Grommet

November 22nd, 2011 by K Ikeda in Interviews
2 Comments

Lunette owes a big thank you to our vendors who help to spread the word about Lunette. In the days leading up to Thanksgiving, we wanted to thank our vendors by spotlighting some of them here on our blog. If you are looking for a place to shop this holiday season, look no further than these amazing business owners!

 Jules Pieri and Joanne Domeniconi are the founders of the Boston-based Daily Grommet. Together they run the Daily Grommet website and produce videos to tell the stories behind unique and innovative products. What is special about the Daily Grommet is their promotion of Citizen Commerce. That is, the belief that purchases are more than a transaction, they demonstrate our values.

We believe every purchase amplifies something in the world, good, bad or indifferent. At Daily Grommet we’re creating a place for people who want their purchases to have meaning — to support what matters most to them: whether it’s technical innovation, green or social enterprises, the creation of jobs, domestic manufacturing, or the preservation of craft.

We met Joanne and her crew in July of 2010 when they discovered Lunette and asked to feature our product on their website. We were flattered to become a Grommet! To find out how that happened, read their Q&A below.

Jules and Joanne, tell us about your business
Daily Grommet is an online marketplace where you can discover and buy inventive, new products, watch video reviews, and get to know the people behind these up-and-coming businesses. Many people are delighted to support independent or innovative companies with stylish, inventive, useful products. But who has the time to find them? That’s what we do. Every day at noon we launch one inventive consumer product or service and broadcast its story across the web.

How were you introduced to menstrual cups and other forms of reusable menstrual products?
Well, people all over the world give us suggestions for products. They tell us why they should be Grommets. That’s how we were introduced the the world of menstrual cups and specifically to Lunette. This product was submitted to us by a woman (Liz) who used Lunette first out of necessity while in the Peace Corp in Africa. She shared that she then found that (for her) it was a better solution for feminine care.

When customers approach you about menstrual cups, what aspect wins them over to trying this novel method of menstrual care?
When a product launches on Daily Grommet, we host a discussion board on our site where people can chat directly with the creator of the product and with us. The day that we featured Lunette, there was a very lively discussion going on. There were a few negative initial reactions but also a lot of questions and open dialogue between potential costumers and you (Lunette founders) which was really positive. In the end, we provided our readers with all the necessary information they needed to make a decision to purchase or not. For many, it was a good fit.

What do you think is the biggest hurdle to winning women over to using menstrual cups?
Any product that is innovative or out of the ordinary will get some initial push-back – that’s only natural. For many people embracing something new isn’t an immediate reaction. But for those that are interested, we provided the true story and complete information to help them make a decision – that’s key.

What do you want customers to know about you?
That it’s not about us — it’s about them. We strive to give people the information and tools to support products that align with their own values. But we can’t do it alone. We want to hear about products and organizations that our customers love. We are always eager to here about fresh finds and true stories from our community. In fact, we’ve set up an entire Citizens’ Gallery to make that sharing easy.

If you were stuck on a deserted island, what 2 items would you want to have with you?
It’s impossible to choose! We carry over 600 great products, and I bet we could make a case for bringing each and every one!

Visit the Daily Grommet website to learn more about what Jules and Joanne do.