Featured business – Back to Wood
Bourne Local Feature is where we ask five questions to one of our market stall owners about their creative process.
We ask Martina Zabert, the owner of Back to Wood, five questions about her creative process.
Hello Martina, what made you begin working with wood. Has it always been an element that you’ve felt a connection with or appreciation for?
Working with wood means that I get to fulfil my passion for creating things using my hands. I also enjoy working with wood because I believe the amount of plastic society uses is alarming and unsustainable, especially for kids’ toys. Wood is a great resource and an excellent alternative to plastic. It’s resistant, smooth, beautiful and durable.
I’ve always loved wood and appreciated its beauty. I love the versatility, natural texture, the singularity of each tree, which makes every piece of wood unique and the fact that it is a renewable resource (if produced and utilised sustainably).
How important is it to you to use recycled or natural, sustainable wood?
Using natural timber is very important to me. I would love to use recycled wood, but it has been treated most of the time and is not the best to work with when producing kids’ products.
I decided to work with pine for a few reasons, the main one being that it is produced here in Victoria from plantation forests and is a softwood. It takes the pine tree only a short amount of time to grow compared to other types of timber, thus making the renewability of the resource faster and less impact on the environment.
What is one of the challenges of having a local business and keeping the process within Australia?
The biggest challenge is that it takes a long time to get the market stall business to grow. Getting people to know the project, go to markets, and purchase my toys is difficult, but I love it and understand that good things take time.
Another challenge is ensuring the price of my products makes them accessible to everyone. I use only local Australian suppliers, but the price difference with international providers is often huge and very difficult to compete with on an ongoing basis. That said, I believe the way of consuming is changing. People are looking to support their local economy, working with their community and becoming more aware of the impact of buying mass-produced products.
If you could choose one of the best moments as a business owner, what would it be?
That’s a tricky one; it’s hard to choose just one moment! People approaching me, asking questions about the toys at my market stall – inquiring about who makes them, the concept behind educational toys and learning through play motivates me to keep going. I love that people are interested, and I always appreciate their kind words and support.
Is there another brand, organisation, or business you enjoy following on socials, respect their ethics, or love their products/ services?
There are so many talented people here in Australia that are doing amazing things! One Being -Skin Health + Meditation + Energy Healing@skin.withstephanie. I love what Steph does and think her treatments and the products she works with are amazing.
Photo credit – Dust & Salt, Back to wood at Bourne Local Market.
