My name is: Cynthia Sakai.
My stomping ground is: Southern California—we just moved from our original HQ in Soho, NY and are building an office in West Hollywood!
I’m known for being: A dog lover. Creative. A forever-entrepreneur. Founder of evolvetogether.
I’m talking about: Evolvetogether—we make better daily essentials that are better for people and the planet.
You can find it at: evolvetogether.com and with retailers like Nordstrom and Revolve.
Before I launched this, I was: A jewelry designer and founder of Vita Fede.
My interest was sparked when: I've always loved daily essentials, but felt the space was pretty crowded. Our first product (a high performing everyday medical mask) really sparked the idea that we could not only make good quality, universally-designed products, but also make them in a way that makes the most positive impact on people and the planet as possible.
What inspired me to create it was: We launched evolvetogether in NYC during the height of the pandemic and during a time of a lot of anxiety, protests and racially-motivated violence—and answering for that has always been a part of who we are.
It’s why, when we were busy designing our first daily essential, we were also thinking about how we could go beyond “just product” to build bridges and inspire connection.
It’s easy to get wrapped up in our own little bubbles. But, our world is a lot more interconnected than that. We wanted to remind everyone that we are all connected and that, when we evolve together, all our small, daily actions can add up to a better world for all of us.
The idea behind it is: We’re always looking for ways to make doing good every day an easy part of someone's daily routine.
What makes it different is: Our customers care about buying quality daily essentials that actually work—and are also universally-designed and good for people and the planet. We're different because we think even something as small as a daily essential should (and can!) be all those things. So we work really hard to stretch the boundaries of what's possible for each product and build in as much value as we can in quality, design and sustainability.
One thing you can’t miss is (some amazing benefit or element): One of my favorite can't-miss benefits is actually our packaging! We’ve said goodbye to boxes (they use a lot of unnecessary materials and all too often end up right in the trash) and only use biodegradable, plant-based pouches that are sized just right for each product, are food safe, waterproof and are resealable, so they can even be reused!
My favorite secret detail is: One of my favorite not-so-secret but subtle details is that we print global coordinates on each of our products as a reminder that we're all connected no matter our race, religion, gender or where we live. Nearly eight billion of us share this one beautiful world, and it's up to each of us to take care of each other and our planet.
What it means to find balance is: As a brand, we’re about trying and doing good every day—whether that's getting it right today or doing better tomorrow. Change is good. Evolution is good. We don’t have to be perfect. No one is. And when you embrace that, everything becomes very balanced.
What makes balance so important is: Sometimes people think of balance as an outcome. But, to me, it’s more of a feeling of accepting wherever you are at any given moment. There will always be chaos, so finding peace within chaos is incredibly important to me.