"The road to success is paved with losses, mishaps and mistakes, but it can still take you where you want to go as long as you don't lose sight of your ultimate destination."
Meet Monique Montfroy, founder of Texcoco Collective.
Texcoco Collective is a culmination of her love for the environment, her passion for design, and her deep respect and concern for the state of our earth. It’s one of few sustainable Australian labels that works with local artisans and skilled workers to craft beautiful vegan bags made from Mexican cactus leather, actively helping to turn the tide on wasteful practices.
Monique believes it is our moral responsibility to actively repair the earth and she aims to do this through ethically sourced materials that uphold the integrity of our precious home.
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Table of Contents
Thank you for joining us, please introduce yourself to our readers.
Monique Montfroy: My name is Monique Montfroy I am the founder of sustainable fashion brand Texcoco Collecitve. Much of the world I see through the colour, texture and grit of my camera lens. As a documentary photographer, photojournalist, fashion designer and sustainability advocate, I’ve had a natural affinity for creating art that celebrates the human condition in all its many forms from a young age. I’ve documented everything from the earth’s environmental degradation to those championing its repair, all through the lens of a camera.
Texcoco Collective is a culmination of my love for the environment, my passion for design and my deep respect and concern for the state of our earth. It’s one of few sustainable Australian labels that works with local artisans and skilled workers to craft beautiful vegan bags made from Mexican cactus leather, actively helping to turn the tide on wasteful practices. I believe it is our moral responsibility to actively repair the earth and I aim to do this through ethically sourced materials that uphold the integrity of our precious home (earth).
Can you tell our readers in what ways you are disrupting your industry?
Monique Montfroy: We are facing a massive problem with waste. Waste of water, resources, time, and lives. It’s really common to hear the facts and numbers about how much waste, water usage, and unpaid labor goes into our products. I believe we can do and be better than this. I’m putting the mindfulness back into consumption, one ethically handcrafted bag at a time.
The Global Fashion Agenda has found that manufacturing leather is the most environmentally impactful material from cradle to gate. Around 80% of the leather worldwide is tanned using chrome and other heavy metals. And all that water is discarded into our waterways and polluting the ecosystem. Did you know it takes roughly 100,000 litres to tan one cow hide? That represents one person’s water consumption for nearly two years…
I am on a mission to rethink harmful and unethical practices in the fashion and leather industry with the ethos of nurturing the earth, and not contributing to harmful plastic production. Texcoco Collective is a luxury fashion accessory brand committed to eco-conscious design, environmental conservation and thoughtful consumption.
Using cactus leather is the first step to minimizing these global issues and contending with the traditional cow leather production method. I have partnered with Mexican supplier of the world’s first highly sustainable, “vegan leather” material made of cactus. The material is organic as there are no chemicals used on the farm. The cactus plant actually absorbs C02 during the night. So it is actually carbon negative. Lastly, it saves water, it doesn’t need any irrigation system, because the cactus absorbs water through the mill due in the atmosphere at night time.
Did you become a disruptor by choice or by necessity? Tell us more about the journey.
Monique Montfroy: Starting from a place of love for the environment, a passion for design and a concern for the earth. I didn’t set out to be a disruptor in my field it came naturally. As a way for me to explore all my passions and a way to think and be better.
It was on a three-month artist residency in Mexico when my ‘ah-ha moment’ struck like a bolt of lightning. It was 2017 and I was in Mexico as part of a program with an environmental NGO group. I lived and worked in far corners of the gulf of Mexico, taking photographs and getting to know the locals and their culture. Here, I witnessed firsthand the detrimental impacts of plastic waste and over-consumption on underdeveloped communities. I knew I had to do something.
I had bought a cow’s leather handbag as a memento of my time there. I asked the vendor where the leather was from and who made these bags. I found out these bags were mass produced and the vendor couldn’t tell me where they were from or who made them. I knew I had to make something that was kind to our planet and the people and animals we share it with. It had to be sustainable and traceable, and it had to truly give credit to the skilled artisans and designers involved in the process with me.
Now for the main focus of this interview: Many readers may wonder what are the biggest challenges women entrepreneurs must overcome to be successful?
Monique Montfroy: Having an idea and starting a whole business around that idea are two different things. The latter takes a lot of time effort and perseverance. I knew what I wanted to do and what product I wanted to create but with the limited knowledge and minimal business background, I had a lot of challenges to tackle.
Especially in the initial stages, limited funding, not being taken seriously, a small network and lack of knowledge in product development and sourcing were all factors. No one goes into business with a guarantee of success. It is this lack of confidence and fear of the unknown are major issues for women to overcome.
Lacking an adequate support system, especially in business and your industry area can hinder women’s success also. It takes a village to raise a child, and it takes a strong network to build a successful business.
How did you overcome these obstacles? Who helped you during these difficult times and how did they?
Monique Montfroy: To overcome this, I have had to learn to build my confidence and overcome my negative self-talk. I have joined a variety of women entrepreneur groups. These groups have provided me with mentors and peers to inspire me, help me grow and learn from their outside perspectives and experiences.
Once I had the confidence to believe in myself, the next battle was funding. I had to pitch to investors and raise funds through crowdfunding. Putting myself out there, I had to put my fear of failure behind me and ask people to support my idea. This was a huge step for me as often we women struggle to ask for help.
Once you find your network of supporters, don’t be afraid to ask for what you really need from them.
How did these lessons shape the way you conduct business today?
Monique Montfroy: I don’t let my insecurities keep me from dreaming big. Now I am more sure of my decisions, I am more connected and confident with myself. I have learned to trust myself but if I am unsure I reach out to my network to clarify my ideas.
I have also had to re-evaluate my relationship with money. Money is not evil, we can use it to do good things. I’ve learned that balancing profit and purpose are integral to my business model and if I focus on the impact I want to have then to profit will follow.
What advice you wished you had received when you started, that you’d like to share now with aspiring women entrepreneurs?
Monique Montfroy: The road to success is paved with losses, mishaps and mistakes, but it can still take you where you want to go as long as you don’t lose sight of your ultimate destination.
Out of all of your proudest moments as an entrepreneur, is there a particular one that stands out the most?
Monique Montfroy: After almost a year of product development and sourcing, a proud moment was when I received my first order of stock. It was this moment when I really felt like “yes! I’ve really done something good here”. Maybe this was because it was a tangible item that I could touch, feel and smell. But what it really signified was that this tiny idea I had many years ago had grown into this beautiful, sustainable product that was for so long ‘just an idea’.
What do you plan on tackling during the 2022 year? Share your goals and battles you expect to face.
Monique Montfroy: I have three main areas of focus this year, certifications, product development, and wholesale, building brand awareness and education.
I strive towards building my sustainable business model and aim to be b-corp certified. This will be a big task as their are many areas that have to be evaluated across my business, especially when it comes to manufacturing overseas and making sure all compliances are met, and how to develop these areas if need be.
Excitedly, I am in the development stage of creating a new range of handbags in collaboration with Guatemala designers. I want to release a new range of bags and wallets, as well as other products such as camera straps and belts. Building a wholesale business model that will push my product to like-minded boutiques and retailers will in turn build my brand awareness. The battle I have already been facing with this is that I work with small family-owned business to manufacture my products, they have quite small capacity to produce stock. Balancing stock availability with demand will be a challenge to faciliate growth.
And lastly education around sustainability in fashion, business, and living. I will be holding events and panel discussions that explore various topics for people to become more informed on ways to live a more sustainable life, build ethical wardrobes, and understand your buying power as a consumer.
I’m sure our readers will be very thankful for the insights you have shared. What is the best book you’ve gone through lately and please share some take away lessons from it.
Monique Montfroy: I recently read the book “Cult Status” by Tim Duggan. This book shared very valuable case studies from the start-up journey of very loved brands today. It gave me insight and lessons on building a purposeful business with a truly passionate community.
Beyond profits and customers, this book tells how to make a meaningful business with hardcore fans that will continue your brand message. There are a lot of key takeaways, and the biggest was to think impact first. These days it is more important than ever for businesses and brands to not only have a mission statement but also an impact statement. Duggan describes the difference “a mission statement lays out your purpose, then what? and an impact statement is the so what? What effect is it going to have?
Thank you so much for your time but before we finish things off, I do have one more question for you. When was the last time you did something for the first time and what was it?
Monique Montfroy: Most recently (this week) was the first time I had an on-air interview with a news network. I’ve never been filmed and interviewed in this manner for it to be broadcast out into the universe. It was extremely daunting but I walked away with huge satisfaction and accomplishment that I stepped way out of my comfort zone and had the opportunity to share my story.
Mike Weiss, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Monique Montfroy for taking the time to do this interview and share her knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Monique Montfroy or her company, you can do it through her – Linkedin
Disclaimer: The ValiantCEO Community welcomes voices from many spheres on our open platform. We publish pieces as written by outside contributors with a wide range of opinions, which don’t necessarily reflect our own. Community stories are not commissioned by our editorial team and must meet our guidelines prior to being published.
