This week we talk to a couple of tastemakers who built and are growing a brand that is changing the game in personal care products, creating a new era in self care. Known at their fragrance house for choosing to spend ten times more than Tom Ford Fragrances on raw materials, co-founder and Head Of Creative, Phil Wong, and Creative Director Taylor Okata of Hawthorne talk pouring style, love, and also respect for their customer, into each and every product they design. Hawthorne was founded when Phil and Co Founder Brian Jeong were sick of overusing outdated products made with cheap ingredients that pushed an outdated version of personal care products for men. With shared values and aesthetics, longtime friend and stylist Taylor joined the team, and on the podcast we talk all about their collaborative creative process---a process that includes the constant pulling of references, the building of moodboards, and tons of daily discussions. We discuss the Hawthorne trio’s experience with the products that had existed in the space before they got there, how the brand has culled their modern point of view, and the responses they receive when their customer discovers Hawthorne has multi-racial and Asian owners. We ask them all about how they roll deep in the candle game with their seven-candle offering, we get into their gifting customer, and working with Target and Nordstrom. The team talks about their love of and the importance of scent, having the best of testers in their friends, and they talk being in talks with a celebrity investor. We discuss diversity, category and gender, bravely breaking into the market, and more. As always, we wrap with what tops these trendsetters #Obsixed lists of current obsessions, but not before doing a deep dive into all the Hawthorne products, including greatest hits and personal faves. Trust me, after listening you’ll find yourself adding to cart and buying their bundles. Our conversations with creatives continue, as Story + Rain Talks to Phil and Taylor of Hawthorne.