Kathleen Hotmer’s e-commerce business, Pink Moon Goods, focuses on sustainable, ethically sourced products to encourage education and provide easy steps toward green living.
Pink Moon Goods was a long-time plan brought to life through the pandemic when a local small business sidewalk sales opportunity had Hotmer making the first jump into business.
The brand offers unique and sometimes handcrafted items such as paper goods, tea towels, kitchen linens and more which promote casual sustainability in the home.
A lifestyle change can be difficult, and Hotmer understands that as someone who has slowly worked toward sustainable living for 15 years. She aims to help locals make a few steps in the right direction by using linens rather than paper napkins, carrying metal utensils for lunch at work rather than bringing or using disposable ones, and using beeswax wrap in place of saran wrap.
More than that, Hotmer strives for her sustainable products to be both unique and beautiful. She believes people should feel good about how they spend their money and should be happy with the appearance of the product they purchase and welcome into their personal environment.
Hotmer said she takes a lot of care to understand the manufacturing, marketing and selling of products she sources before working with different artists. She said the process is challenging to do and requires intention in every step.
Face-to-face sales are more successful for the brand, which Hotmer has seen through pop-ups at her husband’s record store and outdoor events. She hopes to begin looking for a physical location in downtown Dayton sometime in the second half of 2022.
Hotmer said she has concerns about affordability for herself and other business owners in the revitalized downtown areas.
“It feels unattainable to a certain degree because I watched my husband grow his business (downtown) and much of the success of his business was due to the flexibility of the landlord in terms of recognizing that he had a new business that needed to grow and figure out how to make enough money to support itself and pay rent,” Hotmer said. “He says landlords are very flexible, but I just don’t see that same thing happening with the big corporate developers.”
The most affordable spaces for owners, Hotmer said, are the least desirable with a lower amount of foot traffic, an aspect which small business owners rely on.
“In my ideal world, the big developer would think about the small person and find ways to help them manage starting a business, moving into a space and finding a way to make that like equitable and lasting," she said.
Pink Moon Goods houses items from over 50 artists, a number which is constantly growing. Hotmer said the brand will continue to focus on maintaining ethically sourced products and sustainability as a driving force.
Pink Moon Goods has also received a lot of online engagement and attached sales from education posts about sustainable products which Hotmer wants to continue more frequently.
“I want to focus my attention on green, remembering that I do have something really great to offer the city and that's trusting that the community is going to get behind it,” Hotmer said.
Pink Moon Goods
Founded: 2020
Owner: Kathleen Hotmer
Employees: 1
Pink Moon Goods Website: https://www.pinkmoongoods.com/
Service: Sustainable home goods, art and beauty products
