4 minute read
FROM BRIDAL TO PPE
Award winning design house Essense of Australia, has some pretty fabulous brands in its portfolio, and an enviable reputation for five-star service. Now the company, under the direction of founders Wayne and Martine Harris, has added another string to its bow and it is one that is helping deal with the impact of the pandemic. We talked to Martine about Verasano
At the end of the day, our mission is to create a safer and better world for our loved ones. It’s our global responsibility to leverage our expertise, our supply chain and resources in a new and innovative way to do just that,” explains Martine. “Our journey in the apparel and global sourcing business began more than 20 years ago when we started Essense of Australia, a wedding dress design and wholesale company. Since our inception, we have never missed a bride’s wedding due to our sophisticated and experienced supply chain and logistics experts. “With the onset of the COVID pandemic, we wanted to do our part to make an immediate impact within our communities. We recognised we were in a unique position with our proven expertise to help create Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and launched a new company. That company is Verasano, and we set it up to source and sell disposable face masks and other PPE to help keep our communities and brides safe. The name is inspired by the Latin words, vera meaning true and sano meaning health.
From dresses to masks
“What qualifies us to source PPE materials are the strong relationships we’ve built with our reputable factories across the world. This, coupled with our sophisticated supply chain and quality control measures, allows us to procure millions of medical grade masks and other PPE. “Just like our bridal business, Verasano offers quality, reliable and certified product that has undergone stringent testing by a third-party quality control company. Our products meet a range of international standards and regulations and, unlike many other suppliers, our face masks are available for purchase now and ready to ship from our US and UK warehouses.” What about colours? “We have both blue and white masks available for purchase,” says Martine. “Blue masks are traditionally used in medical settings, but since we are a bridal company at heart, we wanted to provide a white option as well.” Supporting our Stores The Harris’s founded Verasano separately to their bridal business, so it would not impact its customer base or bridal operations in any way. The dedicated sales and support teams at Essense continue to work around the clock to innovate, ideate, design and plan for the future of bridal with the success of the Essense network of stockists in mind. As stockists start to get back to business, each of the Essense retailers has been sent a gift of 100 Verasano disposable face masks to help keep staff and brides safe and comfortable during their bridal experience.
Store re-opening resources
“To further support our retailers in their reopening efforts, we have created an exclusive library of resources and checklists to help them prepare for, and adjust to, the ‘new’ bridal experience,” explains Martine. “These are designed to help staff feel supported and comfortable working in this new environment while also
giving brides the confidence that their experience will still be fun and safe.“ Sample topics include: Setting your store and staff up for success 1. Operational tasks to prepare for reopening 2. Store cleaning and sanitation guidelines 3. General team safety guidelines 4. Prioritising appointment types and scheduling considerations 5. Situational questions/team training
Modifying your in-store experience
1. Bride communication and sample scripting 2. Bride experience and safety guidelines 3. New procedures for measuring 4. Touchless payments
A global family
As Martine explains, the Essense passion goes beyond bridal. “We have nearly 350 employees across the globe and believe we must do our part as responsible global citizens to take care of the communities where we live and work. “To show our support for the changemakers in our communities, we have donated thousands of masks to those in need, including some of the following organisations: • 10,000 masks to Heart to Heart
International, a humanitarian organization dedicated to improving access to health care during times of crisis. • 50,000 masks to protesters across
the United States who volunteer their time and voice to make a difference in the fight against racial injustice. • 2,000 masks to support the Migrant
Education Programme in Southeast
Colorado who help rural areas disproportionately impacted by
COVID secure supplies to protect the children and families in their community.
What’s Next
“We are working directly with the medical community and public safety organisations to determine other potential PPE needs, beyond masks, that will be offered at a later date.”
Visit verasano.co.uk/ for more information and to order
