Two Kiwi brands – Superette and Aotea – have joined forces to create an epic Superskin Wellness set, made from natural ingredients like mānuka and kawaka sourced directly from Great Barrier Island and using traditional Māori herbal remedies. We chatted to Rickie Dee, co-founder of Superette, about the exciting collab and much more.
How was the idea of the Aotea x Superette collaboration born?
We were in the market for a beautiful gift set to have on offer for our customers this Christmas so we reached out to the boys at Aotea to see if we could create something together! From there we went through their product range and pulled out some of our favourites to curate this little gift set.
What makes your brands such a perfect match for each other?
At Superette, we’re super passionate about providing our customers with high-quality products so it’s really nice to work with someone that also strives to make amazing products that are really beautiful to use!
People who choose to get their gift wrapped in custom Superette packaging, for a $2 donation, this month are helping Everybody Eats tackle New Zealand’s food poverty problem through its open invitation dining spaces. Why this charity?
When we started planning our Christmas campaign for this year we saw an opportunity to support a deserving cause through our gift-wrapping service. A few ideas were thrown around but Everybody Eats was the one that really struck a chord with both myself and our team. Their mission to reduce food waste whilst feeding hungry bellies is awesome and we are so proud to be doing our part to help out. Customers can make a donation with their purchase and in exchange, our team will wrap everything up ready to go under the tree. All the proceeds will then be donated directly to Everybody Eats.
After the year we’ve had, supporting local brands is more important than ever. Have you changed your own shopping habits somehow to support local brands?
100%! I think it’s super important to be supporting New Zealand owned businesses right now, whether that’s a retailer like us, a New Zealand brand or local hospitality. At Superette, we’ve taken on more New Zealand brands such as Aotea and Arowm alongside our existing brands. We’ve focused on collaborating with some New Zealand brands such as La Tribe and Zoe & Morgan to create amazing gifts for Christmas.
What are your Christmas plans?
We have lots going on in-store. Our gifting range this year is awesome, there is something for everyone. Our stores are also staying open late to help out our customers during this hectic time when there never seems to be enough hours in the day. Our coveted Summer totes have just launched too – you can grab yours with every purchase in-store and online until stock runs out so best get in quick! We were also really excited to partner with Land Rover for another year to do our Christmas delivery service each Friday, it’s been awesome so far and we love surprising our customers with their parcels delivered directly to their home or workplace! Personally, I’m looking forward to taking some time out to just chill with my family and catching up with friends over a glass of wine in the sun.
As a founder of a successful brand, what was the best career lesson you’ve learned so far?
I’ve learnt over the years how important it is to constantly adapt to the changing retail environment. 2020 has definitely been a prime example of this! At Superette, we really push ourselves to create spaces and bring in products that excite and delight our customers time and time again. We are big on keeping our product range fresh and exclusive with new arrivals landing in store almost every day. Superette also wouldn’t be possible without our team, everyone has strengths in different fields and areas and we couldn’t do it without everyone around us.