Creating a Kinder World of Commerce… One Business at a Time
Our campaign, A Kinder World of Commerce, was born out of a deep desire to create a kinder, more sustainable way of doing business by educating our community on the importance of shopping locally and socially responsibly. Our first seven months were spent interviewing the owners of these types of companies by exploring the specific values that motivate them and the ways in which they go about putting these values into practice… and last month we talked about how values inspire the visions of socially responsible businesses.
What we haven’t talked about yet is how we went about determining which businesses qualify as kinder brands in our book. It all started with a spreadsheet and a basic understanding of social responsibility and the “triple bottom line of people, planet and profit”. But what do those terms really mean? As we dove deep into our research, we were led by the United Nation’s 17 global Sustainable Development Goals. It was here that our journey really began, and the seeds of our Values Matrix were sewn. We discovered that there are certain categories that most socially responsible businesses care about and certain values within each of these categories that drive their actions.
By the time we finished our research, we had a matrix that would serve as our moral compass. A clear set of criteria helps us purposefully and strategically vett businesses and hold ourselves and businesses interested in being interviewed accountable to each other. This matrix also keeps us from arbitrarily saying “yes” or “not right now” to a business and allows us to provide them with clear, specific guidance around what they can do to become a “yes” in the future.
Here is the guide we use to identify brands we believe are motivated by an authentic desire to do good, rather than just look good to the public. These are also the criteria we believe will help us build a kinder, more vibrant and sustainable community:
We recognize that it’s not realistic to think, or even expect, any one business to embody every single one of these values all at the same time, but we believe we’ve gotten awfully close with the businesses we introduced you to last year.
This journey that Claudia and I embarked on a year ago has been the most fulfilling, uplifting experience of our lives. Meeting these business owners has brought us so much joy and hope and has fueled our desire to keep going. So, if you know of any businesses that are passionate about using their gifts and talents to make a positive difference in our community, we invite you to let us know about them. And if you’re not sure if the business you have in mind is a good fit for this campaign, feel free to send us their names, and we’ll do the research and find out.
Together, we will create a kinder community with kinder brands and kinder people, one business at a time. To re-read any of the Kinder World of Commerce articles from 2021, visit: www.monicalenchesre.com/community-matters.