After suffering from debilitating period cramps, Edi Reid tried unsuccessfully to relieve her symptoms with pills and medicines, often experiencing terrible side effects or allergic reactions. This is what set her on her path to discovering a natural, holistic solution to her pain and discomfort, which came in the form of raspberry leaf tea. With her symptoms dramatically reduced, she knew she had to spread the word to others. She launched Baiji to deliver high-quality tea products that would help ease pain and bring balance back to people’s lives. Their range of teas are specifically designed to help overcome life’s daily problems, leaving you feeling renewed and free from anxiety, fatigue, period pain, digestive issues and more. Here Edi talks to The Natural Parent Magazine about the inspiration behind Baiji, how she balances work and family, and her hopes and dreams for the future.
The passion: What inspired you to set up your business?
All my life, I’ve suffered terrible period cramps. I would take days off school to recover from the pain. And when I started working, this meant using precious sick days or holiday leave to get through it. I knew something had to change.
I tried every medicine and pill around to relieve period cramps, but I either had allergic reactions or unbearable side effects. So I decided to research natural, holistic ways to relieve period cramps. After all, I couldn’t be the first woman in history to go through this – surely there would be something out there.
That’s when I came across raspberry leaf tea. For the first time, my pain and discomfort decreased dramatically. It was a miracle! I knew that I had to share this with as many women as I could.
And beyond raspberry leaf tea, I discovered more about the powers of natural ingredients to help with mood, sleep and more. That’s what Baiji is built on – helping other people embrace balance with teas designed to improve their health and wellbeing.
The launch: How did you start out in the beginning?
Baiji launched late last year, but long before that, there was a lot of planning getting the product, packaging and proposition right. During this process, I discovered I would become a mother. I decided to wait till she came into the world before launching Baiji. But during this hiatus, my drive to help others through my brand still stayed the same.
Starting out after launch was a whirlwind. I was scurrying around sending out orders, assembling and packing boxes, and keeping social media running hot till late into the night. We also supported our launch by going to markets to help build awareness and give Baiji some love beyond the digital world.
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
Discovering the right combination of ingredients for the tea blends was the biggest breakthrough. I knew the final result would have to be something effective and tasty. I enlisted family and friends as testers and refined each tea blend over a few months to find the right balance of flavour and vigour.
Another breakthrough I had was about realising the potential of the brand. At first, I thought solving period pain through natural means would be too niche. In my research, I found many communities around the UK with the same problems that I had, similarly seeking natural remedies to help, and then I knew I was onto something – and this helped me refine my brand to appeal all the more.
