Multimedia journalism by Courtney Campbell
Clean. Quirky. Desirable.
On Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the McCrary Theater, Adam Lowry, co-creator of Method cleaning products and author of The Method Method: Seven Obsessions that Helped Our Scrappy Start Up Turn an Industry Upside Down, spoke about business and sustainability.
Lowry and his partner, Eric Ryan, had an idea that would change the home cleaning product market 2001.
“Any business you start you have to revolutionize an idea,” Lowry said. “Our revolution was to take a sudden and dramatic way that people take care of their home.”
According to Lowry, all cleaning products look the same, smell the same and use the same chemicals. The two saw that culture was changing and they created that product that looked good, smelled good and was stainable. Although the partners have different backgrounds, they compliment each other well. Lowry brings the chemical engineering to the table while Ryan brought the marketing side.
They began small and and homemade. Making their products in the bathroom of their apartment, they tried presenting the product they only way they knew how: going to grocery stores around 6 in the morning and talk to the managers.
“We got kicked out of a lot of grocery stores,” Lowry joked.
After many rejections, they finally made their first sale in Feb. 28 2001 to specialty food store Mollie Stones. The popularity rose quickly and the thought that their brand would be perfect for Target and pitched their product to the company. However, their first meeting didn’t go too well.
“The didn’t like the name, they didn’t like the packaging, they didn’t like us,” Lowry said. “We were trying to take it to the big times and just got a slap in the face.”
Instead of giving up, they decided to double down on design and make it better.
They succeeded.
With a few design changes they almost perfected their brand, but are still working on making it better and making better,
unique products. To do so, there is a huge focus on company culture and is based on being transparent and collaborative.
“We’re a business with a social mission,” Lowry said. “It’s about getting the most out of the people we work with and branding from the inside”
The environment of the office is very quirky. They allow people to create their own title — his is Chief Greenskeeper —and each person takes a turn working the reception desk, building trust among one anther and consumers. Lowry said that this method allows people to foster more creative, innovative juices.
To get these employees. One of the questions he asks during interview is “How will you make Method weird?” This is their “fun” way of figuring out how well this person would contribute to keep Method moving forward. Many competitors have the ability to pick up what they are doing and this is their way to combat that, by innovating faster.
“The best are always the ones that tell you something about the individual is unique,” Lowry said.
With this brand they have made partnerships with Virgin America and Whole Foods, creating campaigns of cleanliness and sustainability. These projects range from fun to serious, making them diverse and appeal to all kinds of people. The company has been ranked #7 on the Inc. 500, and 16 on Fast Company’s list of the 50 Most Innovative Companies in the World.
Method also takes an unique view with sustainability branding. Consumers come to the product because of the design, but at the same time are making a more environmentally-friendly choice. They are completely free of “virgin” products and cleaning solutions so natural that a flower could survive in it.
“What we have to do as disigners is to create adoption in products,” Lowry said. “Sustainability is best when built into the quality of the experience.”
Most recently, the company revolutionized the laundry detergent market. After making three times more concentrated laundry detergent that used less product, but got more results, other cleaning product companies followed suit. To advance further, Method now has a eight times more concentrated version.
Method may have quirky methods, but Lowry believes that what sets them apart from his “boring” competitors.
“I don’t care if our competitors take us seriously,” Lowry said. “I care if our customers take us seriously.”
Courtney Campbell 