What do we mean by "Mindful Business"?
“The way you do business”
For your business to be truly sustainable, it needs to be built on solid, mindful foundations. In this pillar, we invite you to reflect on what's underpinning your business, its purpose and attitude.
What kind of consumption and purchasing behaviours are you encouraging? What kind of impact are you having on the wider society?
Let's make sure we're all getting out of bed for the right reasons in the morning!
Topics inside this pillar include:
Sustainable Consumption
Stakeholders
Purpose & Profit
Circular Economy
Social Impact
The quick wins in this pillar are the quickest, most impactful ways to start to shift the base of your business towards a more sustainable model. We start by thinking about the way in which you encourage your customers to behave.
We all want to see healthy sales but overconsumption is a huge issue, and is often whipped up by brands - heavy discounting and promotion that relies on a sense of panic and urgency. The quick wins will help you to find the right balance.
The big wins in this pillar help you to address the underlying purpose and model of your business (for especially significant results) - you'll need to dig deep.
We'll explore some of the bigger steps you can take to really address the "soul" of your business. Those underpinning structures and values that can help you make a real difference and will help ensure the success of your MindfulCommerce journey.
QUICK WINS
1. Could you make flash sales with heavy discounts less frequent?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Frequent flash sales encourage people to buy things they don't need - and excessively cheap products don't reflect the true social and environmental costs of making them.
Why would customers take care of their belongings if they're not seen a high value from the start?
EXAMPLES:
The tide is starting to turn here, and the public are paying attention. When Missguided launched a £1 bikini it made headlines. Whilst the bikini did sell out, it also attracted a lot of criticism, and raised debate around the role that the ecommerce sector specifically has to play in the rise of heavily discounted fast fashion.
Pretty Little Thing has been criticised for its 2020 Black Friday sale that included discounts of up to 99%, raising questions as to whether garment factory workers were paid a fair price!
2. Could you encourage consumers to shop in a mindful way by helping them to consider their purchases more carefully?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Online shopping has never been easier. People think less and buy more - at the click of a button. This has led to overconsumption which is driving climate and ecological collapse. Think about some of the ways in which you can position your products in a mindful way.
This approach actually has the potential to show off your brand in the best light, holding up your products as something worthy of spending time and care over selecting. You'll also be tapping into the zeitgeist, as consumers look to attach more meaning and value to higher quality purchases.
CASE STUDY: GOOD ENERGY
Good Energy launched an overconsumption campaign on Black Friday 2020 encouraging people to buy and use less. When the general message is "buy buy buy" going against the grain can speak volumes.
3. Does your stakeholder engagement include views from traditionally underrepresented groups?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: STAKEHOLDERS
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
This can add value to your organisation, help you think differently and help you manage risk. Make sure that your business is influenced by a range of different voices. The experience that a wide range of diverse stakeholders can bring to the table is so valuable. This can bring real (and ongoing) insights to your organisation, help you think differently and help you manage risk.
CASE STUDY: GOOD ENERGY
Good Energy are setting up a Good Future Board where they invite school children from a range of backgrounds to help steer the business on social, climate, environmental and energy issues.
4. Do you open a dialogue with your stakeholders on sustainability issues and ask them what they want to see you working on?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: STAKEHOLDERS WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Market research is one example of engaging with your most important stakeholders - your customers. But it's worth speaking to other groups too - like suppliers, partners, investors, employees and experts. This is key to understanding where you can create the most impact, and bring them along on your sustainability journey.
PEOPLE WHO CAN HELP YOU: TWELVE Expert consultants like Twelve (who helped us create this
Framework), can help businesses design a process that takes the right peoples’ voices into account.
BIG WINS
5. Can your product be recycled or repurposed after use?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: CIRCULAR ECONOMY
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Are you producing something that has to end up in landfill and continue to pollute our ocean and planet? Can you change this by joining the circular economy with a closed loop solution? More and more businesses are starting to look closely at this and are making it a big part of their marketing campaigns - ensuring transparency to consumers.
CASE STUDY: FAIRPHONE
Fairphone is built to be modular so its parts can be broken down and upcycled. PEOPLE WHO CAN HELP YOU: RECURATE
Recurate enables merchants to plug-in a resale option on their Shopify store - positively promoting a circular economy and allowing merchants to resell products.
6. Could you make your products and packaging from recycled materials?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: CIRCULAR ECONOMY
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Virgin natural resources are being used at a rate the Earth cannot keep up with and is contributing to climate change.
But, we can turn this ship around by recycling and reusing what we already have.
PEOPLE WHO CAN HELP YOU: RETURNITY
Returnity is here to help brands facing public and economic pressure to switch to more sustainable packaging. They custom design reusable bags and boxes that pay for themselves after 15 trips and can be reused over 40 times. At the end of their lifespan, they are responsibly de-manufactured, and properly recycled.
CASE STUDY: LUCY & YAK
Lucy & Yak launched an “Imperfect Yaks” collection in an effort to create a closed-loop economy where nothing goes to waste.
This collection includes pieces that are “less than perfect” and didn’t go to plan in the making.
7. Could you turn your ecommerce product into a service?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: CIRCULAR ECONOMY
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? The rental economy is having a real moment! And we're not talking property. Rentals of consumer goods (excluding cars and home rentals) generated $60 billion in revenue in the United States in 2018, and this figure continues to rise. Read more about the trend here. By selling a service, you can engage in an ongoing relationship with the customer and can take responsibility for items at the end of their life to ensure they don't end up in landfill.
CASE STUDY: MUD JEANS
MUD Jeans lease rather than sell jeans, allowing customers to either keep or swap them at the end of the contract. They also offer a discount to customers who send their old jeans back to recycle.
8. Could your products be made more durable?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: CIRCULAR ECONOMY
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
The more durable a product is, the longer it will last. That means less waste and less need for creating and buying new things. This ultimately puts less strain on the planet.
CASE STUDY: PROJECT BLU
Project Blu works with local communities in some of the world's poorest nations to collect ocean-bound plastic and old clothes to create a unique fabric that is durable and used for making hard-wearing pet accessories.
9. Is your product or service designed to help people live or work more sustainably?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: PURPOSE & PROFIT
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
We need more entrepreneurs and innovators to come up with solutions that inspire and enable more sustainable behaviours.
EXAMPLE: IKEA
IKEA has a whole section of their range called 'Sustainable Life at Home', a collection of products from LED light bulbs to water-efficient taps - which help people engage with more sustainable living. This big picture thinking fulfils a real need in society, but can also prove hugely inspiring. The curious entrepreneurs who are looking to make improvements within this space are ready to rise to the challenge!
10. Do you regularly give a percentage of your profits to good causes?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: PURPOSE & PROFIT
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
As a business owner, you have the opportunity to help those in need. Supporting a cause that's aligned to your company mission will help give your team a sense of purpose, maximise your positive impact, trust, loyalty and profit. By putting your profit where your mouth is, you signal the clearest, most transparent intent of doing good with your business.
You can set up your own charitable partnerships that align with your purpose - or join an initiative like 1% for the Planet to make a regular contribution to good causes.
PEOPLE WHO CAN HELP YOU:
SHOPPINGGIVES
ShoppingGives is an ecommerce app that makes it easy for merchants to donate a % of sales to charity. ShoppingGives' app "Change Commerce" lets the customer choose where their money goes according to their values (from a large list of charities and not-for-profits).
DAILY KARMA
Daily Karma's "Shop for Good Donation App" allows customers to donate to your selected nonprofit(s) directly in the purchase flow.
11. Do you partner with any charities or non-profits to campaign for positive social and environmental change?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: PURPOSE & PROFIT
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
As well as strengthening your company's reputation, this will help extend your positive impact much further than you can through your products alone.
CASE STUDY: LUCY & YAK and ECOLOGI
Lucy & Yak partner with Ecologi to become a planet positive workforce in order to protect our environment.
Lucy & Yak are an independent company making handmade clothing, famous for their brilliantly coloured and patterned dungarees.
12. Does your business have a genuine purpose beyond just making profit, and is this purpose clearly articulated on your website?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: PURPOSE & PROFIT
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Does your business exist to solve one of the world's pressing social and environmental issues? Do you generate profit with purpose?
Purpose-driven businesses grow three times faster than their competitors and leading or working for one makes your own life a lot more meaningful too.
CASE STUDY: ORIGIN AFRICA
Origin Africa was established with the purpose of raising funds for humanitarian development projects through the sale of ethically produced clothing. 100% of profits are invested in locally driven businesses with a targeted social purpose. And these social businesses are run by inspiring local people.
CASE STUDY: TONY’S CHOCOLONELY Tony's Chocolonely is driven by a clear mission - to make chocolate 100% slave-free and this is clearly communicated across their website and packaging.
13. Have you applied to B Corp?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: PURPOSE & PROFIT
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
B Corp is a certification for purpose-driven businesses that are operating ethically and responsibly. It's a global community of more than 3000 businesses of all sizes, many of them are household name brands.
It's not easy to become a B Corp but it's 100% worth it!
WANT TO GET STARTED?
Get started using the free B Impact Assessment today. We can help you on your journey to becoming B Corp! Email us: info@mindfulcommerce.io
14. Could you make your sustainable innovations open-source?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: INNOVATION
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Sharing really is caring. When it comes to meeting global sustainability goals, competition must make way for collaboration. If you've developed something extraordinary - could you share it?
Not only will this help other companies become greener, you'll also secure your reputation as innovative and altruistic.
CASE STUDY: FINISTERRE
Finisterre developed their recyclable, water soluble Leave No Trace bag to replace plastic bags, and have made the designs available to anyone who wants to use them.
CASE STUDY: ORGANIC BASICS
Organic Basics made the source code to their low impact website open source on GitHub.
15. Could you use targeted advertising to encourage people to buy products only when they need them?
MINDFUL BUSINESS: SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Targeted advertising often encourages people to buy things when they don't need them. What if targeted advertising was used for good? This could help encourage people to shop in a more mindful way and increase positive impact.
WHO CAN HELP: GOODCARTS
GoodCarts can help brands to seamlessly share digital coupons with shoppers post-purchase from other “shop for good” stores in their community. GoodCarts helps merchants to get more customers and sales from other mission-driven stores with similar values.
Resource: Mindful Masterclass #6
Starting an ecommerce business is daunting enough – but founding one that flies in the face of conventional practices and set ups? Truly scary. It takes real gumption to take the plunge and put a truly mindful business model into action – and this is primarily because your focus is on something more than just your bottom line.
While this might feel as though you’re putting yourself at a disadvantage, especially in relation to the cheaper competition, it's important to remember that you’re actually unlocking a differentiating factor - a reason for people to choose you!
We explore this idea in a bit more detail in one of our Mindful Masterclass articles, where we dig deeper into the business of BuyMeOnce, an online retailer that actively encourages its customers to buy for life by buying better. Take a little read here.
Ready to make some real changes and fully embrace Mindful Business?
We hope the above has given you some real food for thought when it comes to the base that your business is growing from.
By tackling these underlying core components of your enterprise, you can make incredible impact from the ground up, ensuing that the positive effects of these changes scale alongside you!
Congrats! You've reached the end of the Guide - we would absolutely love for you to join The MindfulCommerce Community, connect with others on the journey to running a more mindful, profitable business and to benefit from our Mindful Deals on tech and experts mentioned throughout the guide.