Now that the rush of the holiday season is behind us, and we are into 2022, I have had some time to reflect on last year. The pandemic has been a difficult time in my personal life – the loss of several loved ones, along with close calls and hospitalizations of others, were some of the scariest things I had to go through. Those challenges brought into perspective the things and people that really mattered. While Blackbough Swim is a huge part of my life, it is nothing compared to my family.
However, despite all the difficulties 2021 brought, I’m proud to say that Blackbough was able to hit several major milestones. From doubling our team and ending the year with 26 employees, to settling into our new office, to having collabs with people whom I just used to fangirl over and pin on Pinterest, we ended the year on a great note. We wouldn’t have made it through without your support, so from the bottom of my heart, thank you for sticking it out with me.
In celebrating the new year, I wanted to share a bit more about my business and our future plans.
My team members’ well-being, happiness, growth, and fulfillment are important to me, and I strive to make Blackbough not just an ideal customer destination, but also an ideal employment destination. Here’s what Blackbough does for its team:
Health and Well-being
We cover the costs of a premium health plan for our employees and dependents. We also have partners who provide free and comprehensive mental health support services for our team.
Competitive Salary
All our employees start at a salary level well above industry standard, with plenty of opportunities for growth and promotion in compensation. We make sure to provide enough support and benefits in order for our team to have a comfortable and we’ll-balanced life, usually beyond what’s mandated by our local laws.
Work Arrangement
Our work arrangement policy is “what works for you and lets you do your work most effectively, works for us”. We offer our employees flexible work hours, and most of them opt to work from home or out of the HQ. We don’t see this changing any time soon.
Personal Development
Employees who wish to take classes, workshops, certifications, or other learning activities have their tuition and fees covered. We encourage our team to branch out and look for opportunities to improve and learn new skills.
My team is my number one investment, so whenever you buy from us at Blackbough, I hope you appreciate how your purchase goes a long way in supporting us
Operating Hours
We operate Mondays through Fridays, generally from 9am-5pm GMT+8. Our team members have weekends and holidays off. Sometimes though, you’ll find us posting and responding outside of these hours. I’m extremely hands on and always up managing the business, so we hope you see all the love we put into Blackbough Swim.
For all inquiries, we do our best to answer them within 1-2 business days - processing concerns as quickly as possible and making sure we get everything right.
Fulfilling Orders
All orders are packed by our team with much care, and shipped out within 2 business days from our HQ here in Manila, Philippines.
Packaging
For the past few years, Blackbough has striven to reduce our carbon footprint and implement environmental-friendly practices through fully biodegradable mailer and product bags, and the integration of multi-use packaging. Aside from these, we are also transitioning to recycled paper packaging within the next few months.
Materials
Starting with our first collection release this January, every Blackbough swimsuit moving forward will be made from recycled/upcycled fabrics. We have done extensive testing and prototyping to be able to manufacture fully-recycled swim fabric while retaining the perfect buttery and soft texture that sets our older suits apart from other brands.
Packaging
We are also offsetting carbon emissions through our shipping by purchasing carbon credits, and aim to be a carbon-neutral company this 2022.
We have a ton of exciting plans for this year - new bikinis (duh!), more styles and sizing options, literally some of the best prints we’ve ever made, new baubles and cute accessories, and new collabs. My team and I are absolutely stoked to see these come to life.
If you made it ‘til the end, I hope this read was worthwhile. I firmly believe businesses like mine should be more transparent about their operations and the people behind it. I’m immensely proud of Blackbough and how far we’ve come, so I wanted to shed light on how your support has built our team and this brand through the years.
Again, thank you for your continued support. Here’s to making 2022 our year!
