Actress and business owner Jessica Alba has opened up about the challenges of running a business.
Speaking to Harpers Bazaar, Alba discussed the criticisms and setbacks her firm, The Honest Company has faced over the last year.
The eco-friendly consumer goods company has been forced to recall their baby wipes, “out of an abundance of caution”, due to mould being detected in some packaging.
In addition, Alba’s brand was forced to pay out $1.55 million in a nationwide class action lawsuit regarding the ingredients of its washing detergent and soap.
Honest Company denied all claims, but Alba told the publication that she hasn’t let recent criticisms deter her from business.
Since the lawsuit in May, Alba has replaced the majority of her team, including the CEO.
“Everyone in a senior leadership role is new,” she told Harpers Bazaar. “We went from being a scrappy start-up where everyone did everything to hiring people who all have 20 to 30 years experience in their respective fields.
We knew we had to upgrade the team.”
Offering advice on how to deal with difficult employees, Alba said it’s important to find a different way of communicating:
“If I’m hitting a wall with someone, I don’t look at them as the issue. I think, ‘How can I communicate it differently?”
She continued: “How can we both come to a solution together?’ There are always better ways to communicate. I repeat myself a lot.”
“When someone gives you feedback about your work or behaviour, it takes humility to deal with it,” she adds.
“You have to be conscious that you can always be better.
Times are changing in retail and you have to be curious about that and appreciate that you can’t know it all.”
Alba also discussed using meditation as a way of managing stress, and the importance of a good work-life balance.
“You can’t surround yourself with work 100 percent – anything extreme can become an obsession.
When I’m with my kids, I try to put my phone down and stay present – you have to be strict about things like that.”
