A journey into veganism and vegan business

I’ve been vegan for about eight years now. My ‘why’ was purely a matter of someone telling me they were vegan, which planted a seed ~ I have always been veggie; I was brought up so, and had always supported animal rights since childhood. When I reflected after that conversation, I realised how readily available all the ingredients were, and how there wasn’t any real reason I wasn’t  vegan. So I decided to change it, and that was that. Now it’s really important to me that my business is also vegan.

Veganuary is a month-long challenge, or pledge, to try veganism for the whole of January ~ run by the charity Veganuary. Take a look at their website to get information and support at giving the challenge a go this year! This seemed an apt time to reflect on my journey into veganism, and vegan business...

My journey was a little bumpy at the start ~ more below, along with my top tips ~ but it was relatively straightforward,. Veganism goes beyond diet for me. It’s about ethics, values, and spirituality. It’s about respecting all creatures, preventing harm and suffering, and in many ways, feminism. It is also a good move for the planet, and happens to be healthier.

Vegan Business
The WHY ~ from the outset, I created my business around my values...

• Safety ~ I stay up to date in my field and honour best practice and legislation. I am trained in trauma and my practice is trauma informed. I create a safe space by listening to you, personalising your experience, and keeping boundaries. Consent is everything. Changing your mind and/or saying 'no' is always ok.
• Authenticity ~ I am open about who I am and what I have to offer. I share my personal experiences where they are relevant and can be helpful. I am passionate about what I do. I believe in you and your ability to heal. My personal values include living by veganism, sustainability and zero waste, so my business does too.
• Empowering ~ The aim of all my treatments and sessions is to empower you with information about and techniques for improving your own wellness. I work with you to support you to communicate your needs and take control of meeting them. You are the expert on you; I help you to upskill that expert. You are in control.
• Inclusive ~ My services are aimed at those who identify as women, though everyone is welcome (with the exception of women-only events). I provide an LGBTQ+ safe space. I treat people with equity and account for individual need. Unless treatment would be dangerous for either of us, you will not be turned away.
• Accessible ~ I hold a number of concessional treatments per month. Anyone who is struggling financially is welcome to get in touch to discuss their situation. Everyone should have access to services to support their wellness. I also hold regular group sessions, which are much cheaper than one to one sessions, and some of my sessions are online, which are accessible to those who are unable to leave the house.
• Honest ~ If I don't think I can help you... if I don't think a treatment is working... if I think a treatment could be harmful to you... I will tell you. If you ask me a question, you will receive the full and real answer, even if that answer is 'I don't know.' If your need is beyond my expertise, I will tell you and signpost you to a specialist. You know what to expect at all times.
• Holistic ~ I am trained in many disciplines. I will use a combination of these to help you (with your permission) in a complete way. I don't follow a strict programme or 'one size fits all' approach. I adapt during and from one treatment to the next to treat you fully, for maximum benefit. I explain options to you and treat you according to your preferences.​

The HOW ~ I ask myself a lot of questions before making decisions, and I ask a lot of questions from others before doing business with them. I do a lot of research, which obviously includes ingredients used in products, but extends a lot beyond this; I consider how responsibly resources have been sourced, any impact there may have been on habitat, and the ethics of any components to a product. I always make informed choices based on my ethics when choosing suppliers. My choices are based on ethics before profit. Wherever possible I support other vegan businesses; my business takings and profit are not spent on non-vegan products or services. I like the idea of the 'vegan pound' where we spend as much of our money as possible within vegan circles, keeping it ethical and 'clean' throughout its onward journey.

​The WHAT it looks like - it means I only use vegan and cruelty-free products. I use vegan suppliers where possible or known, If it's not vegan, I don't use it. I maintain the high quality of treatments and services which is also part of my values system, but within the confines of keeping things vegan. In French there are two words, végétalien to mean people who don't eat animal products or derivatives, and vegan to mean people who live a vegan lifestyle, beyond food, in all aspects of their life, not using any product that has involved animal exploitation. I am vegan by British and French definition in my personal life, which is reflected in my business.

That's it in a nutshell. It's fairly simple; not always easy, and sometimes I have ideas I can't put into motion, or at least not as soon as I have them, because first I need to invest time in research, and even then, I may not find what I'm looking for... yet! My premise is that I do that hard work so you don't have to ~ you just need to turn up and be.

I am of course always open to discussions, suggestions, and being questioned. In fact in the section below you'll see that my latest giveaway is all about hearing from you!

So what is ZoCo Wellness up to in support of veganuary?

Giveaway! I want to know what's important to you as a vegan client. What do you look for from a vegan business? What do you want to know? What do you expect? What do you want? In return for your perspective, and your digital support of my business, I am giving away a Home Energy Cleanse to one lucky winner. To enter, find my Veganuary Giveaway post on facebook, instagram, or twitter ~ give it a like, give me a follow, and comment your opinion / experience / suggestion. For a bonus entry, tag a fellow vegan. It's as simple as that! Find  information about crystal home cleanses here.

Freebie ~ I have a free download available for those who sign up to my newsletter in January. This veganuary themed PDF has a two-page tick list of vegan experiences; ideas and tips to shake up your veganuary, and a bonus page of recipes.

Vegan business ~ I will also be showcasing a different vegan business each day of January from 7th ~ if you are a small, independent vegan business, make yourself known! Especially if you are local to Devon/Cornwall.

My vegan journey... 

As I love cooking, the change wasn’t daunting. I started with a lot of stir frys, which I’d always made vegan anyway, but this time with rice noodles. The biggest change for me was the amount of ice cream, milkshakes, and eggs I used to eat. A few quick wins I found were:

• Overnight oats (different flavours/seasonings, with any plant milk)
• Dried soy mince (rehydrates in any sauce)
• Thinly sliced extra firm, pressed and marinated tofu, fried (apparently a bit like bacon for a breakfast/sandwich)

A few more complicated wins later on were:

• Scrambled tofu (using lots of herbs, spices, onion, peppers to give flavour)
• Aquafaba (the 'water' inside the can of chickpeas which can be whisked up like egg white for meringues and mousses)
• Black salt (great to add 'eggy' flavour to things like mashed tofu and salad cream to imitate egg mayo)

I did find several things difficult. The dairy substitutes at the time just didn’t make the cut, but it was eggs I missed the most A month into my veganism, I was feeling really tired and craving eggs. I put this down to the amount of protein I was (not) eating, and increasing this surely did the trick. To start with, I made sure there was an element of protein in every meal, and after a while, I didn’t have to think about it anymore. At first I found most dairy substitutes really awful! This was partly because there was less available at the time, and partly because I was expecting like for like. I found an aftertaste with soy milk which I really didn’t like, and nothing at all would taste like cheese. In the end I avoided anything masquerading as cheese for a good six months, after which substitutes were useful for texture, and slowly started getting better on the market. In that time, I discovered rice milk, and eventually oat milk, which is now my go-to.

7 veganuary tips...
1
. Taste test ~ if you have a vegan friend, see if they'd be happy to let you sample some of their vegan cupboard/fridge products. There's nothing worse than spending money on something new only to find out you don't like it and feeling bad for wasting it. I tend to keep a few different plant milks in the cupboard, and vegan cheeses in the fridge, and am always happy to introduce people to new flavours.

2. Think drink ~ we tend to concentrate on food when changing our diet. Watch out for honey as a sweetener in herbal teas, chai and syrups, isinglass/egg as clarifiers in wine and beer, and milk powder in hot chocolates, smoothies, and coffee mixes.

3. Reliable information ~ I often use Happy Cow when out, to identify good vegan places to eat. I've used this in villages, cities, and across Europe. Barnivore is another good one to check whether alcoholic drinks are vegan. There are of course also sites such as the vegan society, veganuary itself, and viva which are full of information and recipes.

4. Try a vegan café/restaurant ~ generally speaking these specialist establishments know how to make vegan dishes and drinks taste good. They are experts at it! They are usually very happy to chat all things vegan, and make suggestions and recommendations based on your likes and dislikes. Not only are you supporting a vegan business, you also have the chance to get a lot of bonus information.

5. Accidentally vegan ~ many products are already vegan, but unintentionally so, and therefore don't advertise the fact.  There are lots of posts online about these ~ do watch out, as some brands occasionally take backward steps by adding non-vegan ingredients when they change their recipes(!)

6.  Join a group! ~ There might be a local vegan face to face meet up near you. What's for sure is that there will be a local vegan group, which is a great place to find out the latest deals, which shops stock the latest new vegan chocolates released, and vegan friendly restaurant menus. The other groups I've found useful are 'accidentally vegan' groups on facebook. 
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7. Beware the milk ~ this tends to get everywhere, even in the most unlikely of places. One frequent example is salt and vinegar crisps, which shocked me at first as I'd have thought it would be the safest flavour! it crops up in guacamole, dark chocolate, and bread.

It's a lot to take in at first, but in my experience, the mental list of vegan friendly things, soon grows roots. If in doubt, ask! Vegans tend to love chatting vegan, and reaching that stage where they can impart information to the new vegans on the block! A quick Google also tends to prove handy!

We are none of us perfect ~ start small, do your best, and take it one day at a time...