The Holiday shopping season has for sure been a different one this year. I hope that during the pre-holiday sales you all took advantage of things like, Good on you app to find the best sustainable fashion brands for those clothing purchases. I loved the decoration ideas of places renting live trees that are then replanted until they become too big. A quick search will give you a similar service in your area, that allows you to rent a live tree for the season year after year. When the tree becomes too large it is retired to a forever spot in a forest. What a great concept! Now with all the presents wrapped up and under the tree, we can prepare for the next round of sales to try to pad those balance sheets from a bit of a lackluster retail year for many.
What that means for us is that our vote counts more now than ever before. That vote we make with our wallet that lets every sector understand that we will support those brands that support our planet and the people on it. It counts more now because the sellers need it more now than ever before. Every purchase we make is speaking at a loud volume at the moment. Just as we have all had to find our way to come "together" , metephorically speaking, to get through this crazy year. Brands have had to find new ways to stay profitable or if not that at least not go bankrupt. It has meant a lot of sales. The traditional Black Friday became a month long. Cyber Monday has extented to the rest of the year in many cases. So many great deals are tempting and for some of us the only time when we can afford some of the things we need a few of the things we want. Keeping that in mind, lets make sure we are supporting the brands that are doing their best to make a difference in whatever sector you might be looking to spend you hard earned money, or that gift card you got that is burning a hole in your wallet.
According to Statista which tracks retail spending in the US both on line and in store, as much as 15% of all holiday spending is still yet to be spent as people wait for the after the fact sales. This spending is often done for oneself, getting the marked down products that you really wanted but Santa seemed to forget.
We can find out where things are made and get some of that much needed transparency, letting us know who is really being naughty and who is being nice, at sites like Know the Origin . I recommend getting to know them. We all know that the best thing we can do to work with a sustainable mentality is to reduce, reuse, repair and recycle. Finding ways to swap with the use of things like The Swapchain to find ways to make the process of reuse, mainstream that is Blockchain secure and Blockchain transparent. Don’t we wish every brand would adopt those attributes! The Global Fashion Exchange, that is affiliated with SwapChain also has Swap shops, physical brick and mortar stores that, we hope to be able to visit safely again one day soon.
We also have to face facts sometimes those things we need or really, really, want just are not available and must be sourced from new production. Finding those things is were our Vote (the one we cast with our wallet), really comes into play. A visit to the fashion revolution to take a quick look through the transparency index is a great place to start, if your wishes tend to fashion that is.
Last tip, for today before you go on your shopping/swapping spree. Think slow. By that, I’m talking about finding those brands that work in a way that creates a more custom experience, that make clothes meant to last. A couple of personal favorites of mine are Mudd Jeans and the French brand Asphalte I understand that they are not the cheapest choices, but they are not overpriced when you look at the long term long wear aspect. Loved clothes last and you will love these.
Happy, (deal) Hunting, and don’t forget to sign up so you don’t miss the upcoming “Circular Economy: Regeneration powered sustainability”
