Agnese Kazāka Embodies the Modern-Age Businesswoman, and Her Non-Linear Story May Be the Career Inspiration You've Been Waiting For
Linear stories of success are boring. Mostly, because they really are an exception to the rule and hard to relate to. In reality, when life shifts us, we start to ask ourselves questions — for example, this job does not fulfill me anymore, what next?
Agnese Kazāka asked this same question when Covid-19 started, and she understood she needed to quit. All she knew was that she wanted to spend more time outdoors. From this small decision, a bigger one was born: to co-found For Lovers & Trees, the iconic clothing brand for people who want the best of both worlds, to go from a hike to a business meeting in style.
In this refreshing conversation, Agnese reveals how she processes change and how she's been able to marry her interest in building brands with her personal life.
Explain what you do in one sentence.
I am the co-founder of For Lovers & Trees, MANTRA for lovers, and other creative projects; I love to create brands, identities, and special events.
For Lovers & Trees is a brand that has boomed in the last couple of years, and those who know the brand are aware of the strong community of proud For Lovers & Trees wool-product owners and wearers. What is the secret sauce to this virality and your strong community? We're sitting down with our pen and paper! :)
The secret is that the brand goes far beyond the knitted pieces we create. It is about so much more. Our mission is to inspire people to spend more time outdoors. We truly believe nature makes us happier. So it is all about building a strong community with shared values.
Before co-founding For Lovers & Trees, you worked as a marketing manager for the well-known luxury clothing brand Amoralle. What made you pursue your own venture? We'd love to understand what gave you the courage to go off and do your own thing.
I worked there for almost 4 years. It was a wonderful adventure full of great lessons. When the Covid pandemic started, it changed the way we worked. We all began to work remotely from home, and I started to ask myself questions. Is this really how I want to spend the next year? From there, it really was a downward road for me professionally, and I felt that I had reached my maximum at that company. I understood I wanted to leave while I was still happy doing my job.
My friends and I started organizing charity hiking events. My lifestyle quite changed, and I simply wanted to tell a different story—a story about going outdoors. I wanted to live all those hiking adventures and be able to implement them in my business and daily life. From there, I started to play with this idea of having my own brand that would be all about nature stories. Together with my partner Kristine, we decided to give it a try. We wanted to have a brand voice that we really believe in and enjoy ourselves.
What unexpected challenges did you face when choosing to pursue the e-commerce co-founder path? Did you have the certainty that it was going to be a successful venture? And finally—girl, help us out, what are your methods to deal with uncertainty, in general?
Well... Uncertainty is the only certainty there is. You just have to trust the process and know that life is always happening for you. I am always reminding myself that things will change, people will come and go, and there will be processes happening beyond my control. I have the ability to focus my energy on the things that are within my control and just do my best to share my love and passion, to create, and to do good. Businesses go through winter and summer. You have the power to create raving fans and turn your clients into friends that will be there during those winters.
When it comes to the certainty that our business will be successful, I suppose we all have different metrics for determining whether one's business is successful or not. I always try to see the world as a playground. I easily find myself passionate and fully immersed in things I enjoy. I'm always keen on testing and learning new things I'm interested in. Another lesson of mine is that “done is better than perfect,” which keeps me from postponing things.
Unexpected things happen very often, but the first example that comes to my mind is that you always have to be aware that business is business, and you have to play along with certain rules. You have to be well-prepared when entering new markets and have the best possible team that you can have. In the first year we launched, our brand didn't yet have a registered trademark, so someone saw the chance and it almost hit hard on the business. We got very lucky and got the full rights without trials. But that is one thing that I am constantly learning as a business owner: to deal with challenges very quickly and, with years, with far less hard emotions.
What has been the biggest milestone For Lovers & Trees has hit so far?
I would say the one million turnover was a great milestone, along with such a great community of nature lovers all over the world. There are so many milestones I am happy for. We really did great joining such a cool and professional team. Also, all the nature adventures we have organized so far, all the beautiful collaborations with influencers, and people wearing For Lovers & Trees all around the world keep me very inspired to continue doing what I am doing.
2024 has big goals for you as a brand—you're looking to expand into the US market. How do you prepare for that? What markers are important to hit?
For now, our focus has been on Europe's market—Sweden and Germany. The USA has always been our goal in the long run, and I hope we will continue our expansion there very soon. Our goal in the very near future is to keep creating capsule collections with influencers and brand ambassadors, as this has been a very successful way for our brand to scale.
How do you approach storytelling on social media? What makes the cut and what usually does not when you're posting for your brand?
We have set certain principles that determine what and when we are posting. Our mission and values: we believe that nature makes us happier. That is why we try to incorporate our values of going outdoors, picking up trash, and planting trees on social media. Also, we communicate about the brand qualities: natural materials, local production, highest product quality. We try to be relatable and to include moments from our daily life with our team, key products, and sales.
Share something new that you've learned about yourself or the world through your entrepreneurial process.
I have learned that you will never know until you try. Sometimes the 10th time trying results in success.
What is one thing you’re focusing on right now?
I am now focusing on attracting funds for the brand, as we are in search of a new strategic partner.
What are the opportunities that you value most since the start of this venture?
The feeling that everything you truly want and make the effort to realize is possible. The new and interesting personalities I get to meet all over the world. Connecting with people that are very influential in e-commerce and digital marketing. And nowadays it actually doesn't really matter if you are based in New York, Paris, or Riga. If you have a good idea that you really believe in and a great story to tell, you can find the right connections while living in Riga.
10 years ago, did you know that you would run your own business? What advice do you have for your 10-year-younger self?
I always really wanted to have a brand one day. I remember after finishing high school, I couldn't decide whether to study business and finance or arts. But I knew I really wanted to be able to create and add value. The advice I would give my younger self is not to take things for granted, to enjoy the moments life unfolds for you, and remember that it will not last forever. Enjoy life and try not to take everything too seriously.
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