Alba keeps things ‘Honest’ with new line of eco-friendly products

NEW YORK - Jessica Alba has another new baby. She’s launched an e-commerce company at Honest.com (named after her 3-year-old daughter Honor) to sell eco-friendly and toxic-free baby products and household items for a monthly subscription.

Alba, who welcomed her second daughter Haven in 2011, said Tuesday the idea was born after she learned that toxic chemicals are in widely used products.

“I would buy what I thought was like an eco-brand and pay out the wazoo for it and then find out that it’s made with the same ingredients as any other brand, but the packaging is a little more biodegradable and you’re like ‘But I care about the product touching my kid.’”

She decided the best solution was to make available the kinds of products she would buy. To launch the business, she partnered with author and environmentalist Christopher Gavigan, ShoeDazzle founder Brian Lee and PriceGrabber.com executive Sean Kane.

The 30-year-old actress said the venture is “hands down” more nerve-racking than the opening of a new movie but also more gratifying.

“I came up with the idea. I had to pitch it to my partners and they came on board and together we created the company from scratch,” she said. “From the packaging to the bottles to the product that’s inside, the way that the interfacing is with the Web site, all of that is really from me. .?.?. It’s taken three years to get here.”

To make a purchase, consumers sign up on the site and choose from subscription packages for products including diapers, shampoo and laundry detergent.

Alba plans to expand the line based on customer feedback.

“It’s important that a brand that’s meant for families actually listens to families, and it’s not just some big corporate entity making these huge decisions,” she said. AP