We’ve teamed up with Soma for our ultimate hydration giveaway – to celebrate the launch of our new Back To Life Hydration Serum.
We’ve asked Mike Del Ponte to share his thoughts on hydration, design and the sustainable practices at Soma:
So, what’s the story? How did Soma come to be?
The idea for Soma came about one night at a dinner party. Unwilling to place a cheap plastic water filter on the nicely set table, I thought to pour the filtered water into a glass wine decanter as an alternative to serve the guests. Unfortunately, as I did this, the lid of the water pitcher fell off, spilling water all over the kitchen floor.
Having always had a passion for humanitarianism and entrepreneurship – I set out to create a water filter that’s beautifully designed, easy to use, made of sustainable materials and supports charitable initiatives.
Why is it so important for our water-carrying products to be sustainable?
As we all know, a plastic water bottle can live up to a thousand years. Most of them don’t get recycled and end up living in a landfill or floating in the ocean, causing a lot of harm. Soma supports the movement to create change and cut down on the massive amounts of plastic trash. Each time you refill your bottle or your carafe, you are part of the solution.
The products are beautiful, how do you go about designing them?
We had a vision. We wanted it to be the Apple of water filters. We had a general direction and were fortunate to connect with two industrial designers who were external to the company. We wanted to be as simple and modern as possible. Our goal was to use natural elements to differentiate ourselves from products already on the market.
How many of your glass bottles of water should we be drinking on a daily basis?
The rule of thumb is the coveted eight glasses a day – which is hard! Our Soma bottles are 16oz, which means if you drink 4 bottles a day, you’ll reach the eight-glass goal.
Can you tell us a little bit more about your filter products and how that works?
Soma’s filters are the first sustainable water filters. The filters are made from coconut shell carbon which are created by taking coconut husks, that otherwise would end up in a landfill, and making them into a highly absorbent carbon. As your tap water is being passed through the filter, the carbon is able to absorb contaminants like chlorine, mercury, copper, and more. The coconut shell is then surrounded by a plant-based casing. Instead of using a petroleum-based plastic like most other filters on the market, our filter and our cartridge are made from sustainable, plant-based materials.
Tell us a little bit more about your partnership with charity: water
We’re proud to partner with charity: water in their mission to bring clean and safe drinking water to over 663 million people without access to it.
Every time you buy a Soma product, we donate to charity: water. These contributions go directly to sustainable, community-owned water projects in developing countries.
What do you do in order to ensure sustainable business practices?
We want our customers to feel good about their water, so we strive to find ways to not only create more sustainable business practices, but to find solutions to the global water crisis. As a certified B-corporation, impact is a critical part of Soma’s DNA. We infuse it into everything we do, from our product design and supply chain to our company culture and partnerships.
We know that Meghan Markle loves her Soma glass water bottle. Do you have any other VIP fans?
Meghan Markle taking her Soma bottle to yoga was definitely a highlight! Olivia Wilde, Nicole Richie, and Adrian Grenier are some other VIP fans of Soma. Michelle Obama even selected it for her Vogue holiday gift guide!
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