Overcoming Adversity: How an Entrepreneur Transformed her Challenges into Sustainable Businesses - A Conversation with Farah Asemi

SolPods' Lucy Callender speaks with Farah Asemi, founder of ecofleet, a zero emissions, last mile, cargo bike delivery company, and Diagnostics 360, an environmentally-minded medical laboratory company.  Farah explains how her personal experiences drove her to launch her businesses in a quest to find more sustainable solutions for her community and beyond.  She highlights the challenges of being an entrepreneur and what she sees as one of her biggest wins - achieving B-Corp certification, a designation awarded to companies that demonstrate high social and environmental performance.
 
Check out the ecofleet website
Follow Ecofleet on Instagram: @theecofleet
Check out the Diagnostics 360 website
Learn more about B Corp certification
Learn more about the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation 

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Transcript

Intro Lucy 00:03

Welcome to SolPods Studio. We're not your average social network. We're a community of professionals, enthusiasts and students taking sustainability to the next level. Join us on our journey and get inspired by Earth heroes just like you. 

Lucy 00:20

Hi, everyone and welcome back to SolPods Studio. I'm here with Farah Asemi, Founder of ecofleet, a mindful delivery service based in London. I'm so excited for you all to hear her incredible story and what inspired her to start such an amazing company. And Farah, thank you so much for joining us all the way in London.

Farah 00:40

Thank you. Hi, Lucy. And thank you for asking me to participate on SolPods podcast. May I start by saying how much I have enjoyed the previous podcasts, how informative they have been and what lessons I've taken away from them personally. Many of your speakers are amazing and inspirational eco warriors and a really hard act to follow. I hope to do right by them.

Lucy 01:05

Oh, we know you will. You definitely will. Thank you so much for saying that Farah. That means so much. And thanks again for being here. I'm just gonna hop right into our first question. I was hoping you could tell our listeners a little bit about yourself and your story.

Farah 01:21

Absolutely. So a little bit about myself. I was born in Iran and lived there until I was 11. At which point the revolution happened. And I came to England where I attended an American boarding school. And from there, I moved to Washington DC where I attended Mount Vernon School of Design, now a part of George Washington University. I studied interior architecture with a minor in art history. So I have absolutely no formal training or education on the subject of sustainability. What I've learned has been during the past five years with some awareness prior to that I returned to London in the early nineties and have made the UK my home, but I travel to the US regularly to visit my parents and my friends who live there. I feel a third Iranian, a third American due to my education and upbringing, and a third British as I've lived here so long, I'm very proud of my multinationalism and it feels good to be a global citizen. I wanted to refer back to my earlier comment about my awareness of sustainability. Back in 2009, or possibly even 2008, the former Vice President Al Gore was visiting London and I went to hear him speak. The subject had been global warming and sustainability. I will confess that I had a vague idea about global warming when I actually looked up sustainability as I wasn't sure how it applied to life as we used to live it in 2009. And my goodness, how things have changed. And I have learned a lot since then, but I know my understanding and information gathering needs improvement. And thanks to the SolPods platform, I've been able to learn so much more. So a big thank you to you Lucy, Amy Sabik, Amy, and Cassie. And you're just an amazing team that I'm learning constantly.

Lucy 03:30

Oh, thank you for saying that, Farah, and I love hearing your origin story and what led you to the path you're on now, which is so inspiring and really includes so much powerful knowledge and, and so much about sustainability. And I was, I was hoping that you could tell us a little bit more about ecofleet. I love your story about how you wanted to start ecofleet, and I could get a really good picture in my mind of London. And I wanted to hear what inspired you personally to start a company like that.

Farah 04:03

I think with most people, there is a story, you know. And up until I started ecofleet in 2019, I had been very private about my personal health. I think most people are. But the question of why I started ecofleet is one, which almost everyone asks and continues to ask me about and it made me dig deep and find the courage to talk about it. And also to that point, I need to say that today people talk more freely about their physical and mental issues. But when I was a teenager and a young adult, this was not the case. When I was 15, I was diagnosed with juvenile or rheumatoid arthritis. I have had highs and lows. But thanks to modern drugs, I've been well. As good as these drugs are, and they're very good, over time and continued use of them decreases one's immunity. I've had five bouts of pneumonia and I recall the last one which damaged one of the tubes going into my lungs. On this particular occasion, I remember clearly how I got sick. In the United Kingdom, every three years, one has to take their car for an overall service which they call NLT. I had a diesel car at the time and the man running the service center is a friend of mine and we always start chatting about life,kids, this and that. His center is in the basement of a building, which has one access to air flow. For him and all the people working there, they're fine. But for me, with a low immune system, and my extended stay that day, it caused an infection. So when I was diagnosed with the lung issue, I remember clearly, the doctor you're asking me, have you been exposed to diesel fumes? This was in 2018. I sold my diesel car a year later. And then later that year, I was working out of a space in London near Buckingham Palace for listeners who know London. I needed to get to a different part of town. It was raining cats and dogs. I was having such a pain in my feet that day. So walking to the metro which was close but not close enough was not an option on that day. There were no cabs. There were long waits for Uber and the city was in gridlock. So the bus was also not an option as I would get stuck in traffic. I stood at a street corner, I felt really overwhelmed by my physical inability to walk that day and the stress I was feeling to arrive on time. There were so many cars on the road and I just kept thinking, why can't there be a bike taxi that will whiz me around London. I'm happy to pay anything. Just get me out of here and get me to there. That day was the start of my Eco fleet journey in a roundabout way. Before I go further, I just want to sidetrack a little bit and describe London a little for your listeners who may not have visited London. London is truly a magical and special city; dynamic, pulsating with energy and diversity, embedded with tradition and history. It's a multicultural community with amazing food and vibrant neighborhoods. It is vast, and thanks to the amazing transport system, we can commute quite well, but it is a historic city with small roads, lots of deliveries and millions of people flowing in and out. The government and the mayor have embraced making changes in order to make London the modern and advanced city it is today. That said, it is challenging to make changes to a historic city, so we cannot destroy or move buildings and landmarks. This makes deliveries in a big size vehicle close to impossible. So back to my story. A week later from that incident, where I couldn't find a way to get to my appointment, I was describing my awful day to my husband. He could hear my sadness and frustration as he knows me so well. And he could also see the problem and possibly a solution. He said, ‘Farah, a bike taxi, that’s an amazing idea. Why don’t you go after it?’ And so it began, I attended a couple of bike shows in Europe which were amazing, but I did not see anything that was remotely adaptable to what I would call a safe passenger bike taxi. I returned from Europe feeling a little deflated but dreaming about having my own bike taxi. But what I did come across, in these bike shows were a lot of cargo bikes alien to me at the time, but they piqued my interest. Several months later, I was on the top floor of a double decker bus and it was stuck in traffic. I'm looking out and down, and I saw a cargo bike go flying down the bike lane. He was so quick that I couldn't see all the detail, but I knew it was a cargo bike. I'd seen it before at the show. And I thought that's it. This is the way to deliver in and around London. And now most people refer to it as London Last Mile Delivery. I could see that this method of delivery would beat the time of any van or even a Ferrari for that matter here in London. But equally, for someone like me, suffering with a lung issue, it would help to reduce air pollution and that's when I began to hash out plans for ecofleet.

Lucy 10:28

Wow. Thank you for sharing that, Farah. I find it so inspiring that you took such a personal challenge and you decided to turn that into something that helps others as well and finding a sustainable solution to a problem that affects not only the planet but people's personal health. That's a big challenge to undertake. I mean, that's huge. So it's amazing. Congratulations to you. And I was hoping you could tell us a little bit more about how a last mile delivery business works. And what does that look like in a city like London?

Farah 11:10

So I recall when we first started our sales approach, we would have to decode everything, as no one understood our description. This bike, a cargo bike, was a new innovation at the time. Perhaps too much terminology in one phrase. So it would be something like ‘ecofleet is a London last mile delivery on electric cargo bikes.’ It was amazing to see the puzzle on someone's face or to hear the silence and their inability to recall the words we had used, which led to their confusion naturally. Nowadays and especially post-COVID, when everyone was desperate for a delivery, it's different. Everyone knows what a cargo bike is and what it is used for. I think back then there were less than five companies delivering on cargo bikes here in London. Today there are many, many, many more, I would say about 50 to 100 even. But London last mile refers to the last leg of your parcel's delivery. So going by Amazon, we all know Amazon- an amazing company which has its main warehouse located just outside of big cities. And from there, larger trucks deliver into a city's perimeter. Obviously large trucks can't get in and around London so well. And if they do, they're heavily taxed and parking is next to impossible. So cargo bike companies receive the parcels and deliver the last leg of the journey. It is called ‘last mile,’ but in fact, it could be several miles from where we are in West London to, say, North London. So it's called last mile. You would deliver the last leg of the journey. So our bikes which I should add are a Dutch brand but were bought here in London are electric, which means their motors are powered by rechargeable batteries. The batteries are charged using electricity from a renewable source, which for us is wind power. The fact that there is no fossil fuel means that the cargo bike has no emission of CO2 and particulate matter. Just to make people understand, particulate matters are tiny microscopic particles usually undetected by human eye of solid or liquid matter which is suspended in the air. They're very harmful for us. So back to the delivery, once we receive the goods into our warehouse, say on the day or overnight, our riders arrive for their shift, they pick and pack the goods into their bikes and go about doing their last mile deliveries based on what our delivery software has devised as the best optimized route. We use an American software called OnFleet, which is just absolutely brilliant and it's so easy to use. It gives us a live picture of where the riders are, their next delivery, how far they are from it. It also gives us options for proof of delivery. Now, we decided to build on the front end and at the back end of this software by providing customers with a tracking link. So the customer gets a notification that their delivery is due. And then another one say, when it's five minutes away. And finally a last one to say it has been completed. By clicking on the last link, the customer can see where the package was placed. In terms of the bike itself, we have two bike sizes with two different cargo sizes. We don't normally load more than say 150 pounds onto any bike to make sure that the bike is safe. The riders take off, they're allowed breaks and also a lunch break. Sometimes they might have a puncture which causes delays, but on the whole, on most days it's a really smooth operation. One of the things that makes me really happy about our operations is that every quarter, we provide clients with our own version of a better planet certificate. The certificate lists how many miles we've covered in order to complete their deliveries that quarter. Based on the total distance we've covered for them, it calculates the CO2 savings. Let's say, for example, we've covered 1200 miles for a company, the calculation for the saving of CO2 comes to 430 kg or about £950. And in order to give the client a better understanding of what these numbers are, we usually compare it to charging your cell phone. So in this case, it would be £950, comes up to about 51,600 cell phones charged, which is a lot. Clients can use these certificates or figures on their socials in order to demonstrate the steps they are taking to make an impact in reducing their carbon footprint. Their business has many sustainability aspects, but with regards to their deliveries, by using an eco-friendly delivery on electric cargo bikes, they've reduced their carbon footprint. And just to clarify carbon footprint, I know there's a lot of words and jargon in the sustainability arena so I just want to make sure everyone understands some of it. Carbon footprint is a way to measure the impact of human activities on the environment. Specifically the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted such as carbon dioxide. So if you were to imagine having a carbon backpack that you carry around with you everywhere, it represents the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses produced by your daily activities. So every time you do something that releases greenhouse gasses, like driving a car, using electricity or eating certain foods, you add more to the weight of your backpack. And the weight of this backpack then represents your carbon footprint. The bigger your carbon footprint, the more impact you have on the environment. So things like sea level rises, temperatures rising and extreme weather events that we constantly hear about are all result of high carbon footprints. So by doing the deliveries for clients on cargo bikes, we're helping our clients to lighten their backpack. The clients  usually gets very happy by receiving these stats.

Lucy 18:51

I love that visual of a backpack. I think that's really helpful for people who are just getting started in sustainability and also people who are familiar with it. I think it really helps you visualize it a lot. And I also know that you recently shared that you have another business in the works. I believe it's called Diagnostics 360. Do you think you could tell us a little bit about that as well?

Farah 19:15

Sure. So yes, Diagnostics 360 which I call D 360 for short. This too began because of my personal journey. In the United Kingdom. We have an amazing national health service, we call it NHS, which is free to all the citizens that live here. I've been in the system since I was diagnosed at age 15. I also am privileged to have private health insurance, but I like my NHS and all of what it has offered me so far. My NHS hospital where I go for all my appointments is a 10 minute walk away from my home. So it feels like I'm in my own neighborhood. During COVID, there was so much demand and stress on the system that it has had a continued negative effect specifically with giving patients appointments, which as we know, delayed diagnosis for illnesses such as cancer can be detrimental and irreversible. In my case, I was unable to see my doctor for two years. In the past, prior to COVID, I used to see him every eight weeks. And in order to qualify for my medication, I have to have a blood test every six weeks. So it was close to impossible to enter a hospital at that time and have a blood test. It was a struggle and I was truly worried about it. And it made me think; up until then, I had personally only heard of three private labs in London which did blood tests. I did some research and realized that specifically in London, there's a gap in the market in terms of the diagnostic market and especially one with a competitive pricing structure. Also, I'm sure it's like this in the States too, but here and in Europe, we're seeing a lot of health tech platforms which offer people like breath tests and fingerprint tests from the comfort of their own home. And as it is predominantly a B to C market, you can decide to have a complete blood screening and take it you know, decide what you want to have in fact. So not to be decided by a doctor, but by you, taking your health in your own hands. Many of these platforms, however, don't have their own diagnostics lab. This means they would have to partner with the lab like ours to process their tests. And because of the regulatory aspect and the huge cost of its operations, not all health tech platforms want to commit to having their own lab. Also equally the NHS because of the demand made on it is also outsourcing its tests to private labs. So there's a demand for diagnostic centers and the business is viable and in good demand. Starting a diagnostic lab is a huge undertaking in that every aspect of the industry is regulated by a government body called UKAS, which stands for United Kingdom Accreditation Service. And it's there to assess in the credit and make sure that labs such as ours meet specific international standards of things like competency, impartiality and performance. And I'm just really happy about that because any business dealing with human health needs to be held accountable for the highest standards. At D360 we've achieved our organizational UKAS and we're working towards our UKAS iso 15189, which specifically focuses on medical labs. So that's a little something about our second business.

Lucy 23:40

Wow. Thank you for sharing with us. Again, I really admire the way you take a personal struggle and turn it into something that benefits everyone. I find that so incredible. So, congratulations again to you and your endeavors. What were some unforeseen challenges that you faced when starting your sustainable business? And how did you overcome that? Has your business had to pivot at all in the past?

Farah 24:07

Yes. So as I mentioned before, selling a new concept into the London market was tough prior to the pandemic. I would say we were market disruptors of our time. which is a great thing, but one which at first people are skeptical about, you know. But the pandemic created so much fear, panic, hysteria, that everybody just wanted their delivery like now, I don't care how just now please. So the understanding of an electric cargo bike and what it could do on a fast track. So I would say that for us, the pivot was serving the food industry during the pandemic and soon thereafter. And we were delivering food for the NHS hospitals and of the like, and pharmacies were delivering prescriptions. So it was good for us. For a while, there were only a handful of us in this space and the competition was ok. You know, London is a big city. So there was a fair share of business for all of us. And that I would say it's a little tougher because most businesses have their own cargo bike delivery and rider, which is truly actually fantastic. So, for example, my butcher has ditched his van and now delivers all his local deliveries on a carpet bike. It's just simply amazing. Yeah, I might not have this business, you know, but I'm glad to see him adopt this change. I think many people now have a better understanding of the overall meaning of reducing emissions including the carbon footprint. But I would add that everyone has embraced and guards with high value the speed with which deliveries can be done. We have a great bike lane infrastructure here in London and bikes are whizzing up and down constantly, arriving safely and way before a car or a van. And I think this is of great value to most business owners. And though that makes the competition a bit tougher, I'm happy to see the adoption.

Lucy 26:31

And on the other side, what has been your proudest moment after starting your company?

Farah 26:37

Honestly, the first year is such an exciting time but also demanding of one's time. I mean, you're a startup, so you're doing everything yourself with a small team. And then you start growing and it;s wonderful, but then you hear about things and you are able to make a bigger commitment to your sustainability goals. So I heard about B Corp and for me achieving B Corp certification would be by far the proudest moment. For those who are unfamiliar with B Corp, B Corp is a certification process which is rigorous, and it requires a deep commitment to transparency, accountability and ethical practices. I'm proud to say that both Diagnostic 360 ecofleet have worked hard to meet the high standards by the community. And we are proud to be part of this global movement of companies that really use business as a force for good. As a business owner, I believe that the success of our company is linked to the well-being of our communities, our employees and definitely our planet. The B Corp certification will bring new partnerships, it will increase our visibility, and the ability to attract and retain top talent who share our company values.

Lucy 28:23

Congratulations on achieving B Corp status. I know at SolPods that's something that we are also pursuing. So we know how much work truly goes into that. So, congratulations to you. Would you be able to tell us a little bit more about your company's contribution to the Roy Castle Lung Foundation and your personal connection to the organization? 

Farah 28:45

Yes. Volunteering and giving back has been a big part of my personal DNA. It is how my wonderful parents raised me despite what we had and what we did not have. at ecofleet, we make sure to accept as many free deliveries as our schedule permits for charities and good causes. But in addition, I thought it was really important to give to a cause which helps sufferers of lung cancer and sufferers of lung conditions, many of which are a direct result of air pollution. So we've been donating 1% of our annual revenue from the year we started towards Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation and I'm truly proud of this.

Lucy 29:37

That's amazing. And I also love hearing that you take on free deliveries as well. Such a testament to what ecofleet is and, and what you guys stand for. And how do you see ecofleet expanding in the future? And are there any other long term goals you want to share with us?

Farah 29:54

So, if I'm honest, I was unable to raise funds for ecofleet in order to expand it into different neighborhoods I've wanted. I wish I had better help with this. I did not. And this is really not my forte, fundraising is not my forte. There's so much that I can do physically, personally, and there's only so much time that I have. So, yes, it would be so great to expand into London and into different pockets. I would be ecstatic. I once read that goals have to have due dates. I've not written down this goal for ecofleet because I don't want to fail the due date. But in my heart and in my mind, this is what I hope for. I greatly admire companies who have raised funds to do this. But yeah, expanding would be an absolute dream.

Lucy 30:50

Oh, well, I know we're all really excited to see how ecofleet expands in the future and see you continue to grow with it. And since you are such an advocate for clean air and good health, what are some of your favorite hobbies or activities when it comes to getting outside, being active, things like that?

Farah 31:10

Well, I like being outdoors. I have a garden which I nurture and in which I have a vegetable patch. For my birthday this year, my daughter gifted me specific vegetable seeds which I can't wait to plant. I thought it was so sweet. I would love to be on a bike myself. But as a result of my RA I now have brittle bone disease. So a break of any kind would not be a good thing for me. I swim quite a bit. I read and I listen to amazing podcasts such as SolPods.

Lucy 31:44

Oh, I would love to hear that. Those are great hobbies. We are very passionate about gardening as well as I'm sure you've seen on the SolPods platform. That is a big part of who we are. And ecofleet truly is such an incredible business. And I know that our SolPods members would love to get involved. So I was hoping you could tell us a little bit, how can our listeners or our members support you or get involved in something like ecofleet or Diagnostics 360.

Farah 32:15

I would welcome more customers and especially medical deliveries. Especially as all our riders now have training to pick up and deliver blood samples and fluids. I would also welcome more local clients and businesses. It's nice to work in our local community. Chiswick is in West London and it is vibrant, friendly, green, and has a great bike infrastructure. I would say please visit our Instagram and follow us and we are active there. We are in the process of updating our website and we're of course on LinkedIn as well. Before we were certified as B Corp, we were placing ads on job posting websites. But since our certification, I have riders applying to work with us. It's a great compliment and a testament to the team's commitment to do right by our staff.

Lucy 33:24

Thank you again so much, Farah, for all of your incredible answers. And before we wrap up, we like to ask this one question of all of our guests. If you had one sustainability superpower, what would it be and why? 

Farah 33:37

Well, I don't know if it's the right answer, but without hesitation, it would be to invent an electric vacuum robot which would pick up, sweep, and properly sort the litter off the streets of London during the quiet hours of two until four a.m. There would be hundreds of them going to the streets. I would then ask Mother Nature to give a nice hard wash of rain to rinse the streets. You know, London is a big city and post-pandemic, some boroughs don't have the necessary funds to keep up with the street litter. So I would love to see it happen. 

Lucy 34:18

That's a fabulous answer. I could see that being another ecofleet business right there. Thank you so much, Farrah and, and just thank you for your time and your incredible answers. I know that I've learned so much just listening to you and speaking with you and I know our listeners will as well. It's been a pleasure chatting with you and I'm, I'm so excited to chat more with you in the future. Thanks for being here.

Farah 34:45

Thank you, Lucy and a big hello and a wave from London to everyone.

Lucy 34:50

Oh, thank you. And thank you to all of our listeners. This concludes this week's episode. Thanks for listening. 

Lucy Outro 35:02

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