Interview Series: Jessica Schlueter of The Tree Kisser

Jessica Schlueter is a blogger, passionate animal activist, & budding entrepreneur. She runs the popular cruelty-free lifestyle blog, The Tree Kisser, along with her recently launched Tree Kisser “compassionate fashion” collection & online shop. She is also the director of the Love Infinitely Project Animal Fund, which allocates resources to deserving animal rescue or advocacy groups, & 10% of all Tree Kisser sales are donated directly to the fund. 

Jessica strives to inspire and educate people who are curious about living a compassionate lifestyle, and loves sharing information and inspiration with newbie vegans, curious animal lovers,  passionate environmentalists, and others looking to make a difference in this world. 

We live in the same city, so I was lucky enough to meet Jessica in person a few months ago when she hand delivered an “Animals Are Not Fabric” tank to my office. She is every bit as warm, compassionate & fashionable as she appears on her blog. I recently had the opportunity to ask her about the inspiration behind her new clothing line, personal road to veganism, favorite foods, & plans for the future. Jessica truly embodies what it is to be a “chic vegan,” and I am honored to introduce her to you today!

 

Chic Vegan – You recently opened The Tree Kisser Shop, congratulations! What inspired you to create a line of merchandise?

Jessica Schlueter – When I look at the vast array of “activist apparel”, for lack of a more specific term, I always feel like something is missing. There are notable exceptions, of course, but I’ve always had a tough time finding tops with messages I like that also feel contemporary and fashionable. Over the past year or so, I started writing down phrases or design concepts that were sneaking into my head, and eventually I decided to give those ideas a chance! It’s been an amazing adventure so far; I have so much fun working on designs, collaborating with my screen printer, and seeing my tops on actual customers! I’m humbled by the fantastic response I’ve received.

 

CV – How do you think wearing clothes with vegan messages might encourage others to show compassion?

JS – I wouldn’t actually say my designs have vegan messages, per se, but most do contain an element of compassion towards animals and/or plant-based eating. I like to make people think twice about their daily choices, especially with designs like “Animals Are Not Fabric,” and “Are You Making The World Better Today?”. I also want to help make it “cool” and fashionable to be part of a compassionate movement; I suppose that’s my primary goal. 

 

CV – Walk me through a day in your life.

JS – That’s a tough question! When working for myself from home, every day is different. I usually wake up around 7:30 (okay, I try to wake up at 7:30), surrounded by four cuddly pups. I grab some Califia Farms iced coffee with almond milk (I’m addicted), and crawl back into bed with my laptop. I spend about an hour answering emails and checking up on all my social media sites. This is followed by a very complex dog feeding routine (one has an injury and is thus on herbal healing supplements, and another has dental issues that require his food to be blended into soup!). If I’m not feeling overly rushed, I’ll remember to feed myself. I’m far from a health icon in the mornings; I usually opt for peanut butter on toast or (if Whole Foods has them in stock) a Sweet Earth Big Sur Breakfast Burrito. Seriously, check those out. They’re amazing. I spend the next three to four hours packing shipments for The Tree Kisser shop. Twice a week I have to take our chihuahua to a holistic vet for laser therapy that we hope is fixing his torn cruciate ligament, so if it’s a Tuesday or Thursday, I’m doing that for about an hour in the afternoon. Once I’m back home, I try to make sure I’ve taken at least one photo suitable for Instagram, as the majority of my sales and followers come through there. Late afternoon is spent catching up on more emails, working on new designs, researching non-profits to help, or placing orders to restock the shop. My boyfriend and I love to cook, so usually one of us makes an elaborate dinner while the other wastes time on Facebook. After we and the dogs are fed, it’s usually time for some wine and a movie!

 

CV – What motivated you to become vegan? Was it an overnight switch or more of a gradual shift?

JS – I went vegetarian when I was about eight years old, after discovering that pigs, my favorite animals, were being slaughtered for my bacon. My family was very resistant, but eventually got used to it. Six years ago, when I was 21, I saw an episode of the show “30 Days”, in which a hunter from the South lives with a vegan family in Los Angeles for 30 days. He asked all the same questions I had always wondered about vegans, and through the answers he was given and the knowledge he was exposed to, I received the same education. I fought through my tears all night, while further researching the cruelty behind the dairy and egg industries. I will never forget the images I saw that night of male chicks being tossed alive into a grinder because they were the wrong gender to produce eggs.

I considered myself “vegan” from that day on, but I definitely still had a lot to learn. I still wore (and even once purchased) leather, I still used cosmetics with shady animal testing practices, and I even encouraged my friend to buy a sad looking puppy from a pet store (what was I thinking??). Fully educating and reconditioning myself probably took a full year. I didn’t really have any vegan friends and I didn’t know vegan restaurants (or shoes) existed, so even though I was in Los Angeles, I was pretty much alone. I’m so grateful for all the social media resources available to those who are just now transitioning to a more compassionate lifestyle; things have really changed in the last six years!

 

CV – What do you typically eat in the span of a day?

JS – I’m sad to say my diet has definitely suffered since starting my business. I always rush myself through breakfast and lunch in order to get all my shipments out on time. I’m a big fan of sandwiches, so when I do set aside time for lunch, I love Beyond Meat or Field Roast with Just Mayo, tomatoes, avocados, and sprouts on wheat bread. I sometimes run over to Napizza, a local pizza place that also has a fantastic build-your-own-salad bar! I snack a lot, usually with cheezy kale chips, carrots dipped in Bitchin’ Sauce, and Suja juices. We experiment a lot with dinner, but our go-to dishes are pasta (I make a pretty epic cashew-based creamy, cheesy sauce), tacos, lasagna, or anything with Gardein chick’n scallopini.

 

CV – What is your favorite vegan indulgence?

JS – I’m truly addicted to Califia Farms coffee drinks. I don’t even know if they have much caffeine, but it’s become impossible to start my day without one.

 

CV – When people learn that you are vegan, what is the #1 question they ask & what is your response?

JS – The most frequent question is probably, “why?”. The word “vegan” has gotten pretty muddled, so a lot of people presume it’s a health choice. My answer is pretty standard: I realized I don’t have to use or eat animals or things that come from animals to survive and thrive, so why would I cause unnecessary suffering and killing?

 

CV – What vegan product could you not live without?

JS – This is a new one, but I’m obsessed with Olivine perfume. It took me a long, long time to find a cruelty-free scent that I really loved, but Olivine has nailed it. My favorite scent is “Amongst the Waves,” but their whole selection is fantastic!

 

CV – In your wildest dreams what will your life look like in 5 years?

JS – In my personal life, I’d like to move back closer to Los Angeles, where most of my friends live, and be on my way to starting a family. Professionally, I would love for The Tree Kisser apparel shop to have an office, a storefront, and a larger customer/fan base. I don’t want my entire life to revolve around the line, however; I have a lot of other compassionate start-ups I’d like to see in action! I suppose you said in my “wildest dreams,” so if I’m going with that, I’d like the entire world to have stopped exploiting animals, both human and non-human, so I could retire from activism and travel the globe!

 

CV – What can we expect from The Tree Kisser in 2014? 

JS – This year will definitely be focused on expanding The Tree Kisser line. I’m looking into producing my own apparel as opposed to sourcing it from other suppliers, but that’s a pretty big undertaking that will require a lot of planning and resources! I have a bunch of other projects circling around in the back of my mind, but I’m trying to keep the focus on my business until I feel it’s sustainable enough to branch out from. I’ve never been great at sticking with one project, but fortunately I love this one so much that I think I’ll be able to stay on course!