Ethical and sustainable and on-trend products are not mutually exclusive. If retailers are open-minded and intentional with their sourcing, ethical goods can be fun, accessible, and of-the-moment!
Somewhere along the way, society’s collective concerns about the environmental and ethical implications of fast fashion got murky. In the minds of many retailers – and consumers – the notion of harmful products sparked by fast fashion expanded to include a negative association with all trend-focused products sold to broad audiences. So much so, that many retailers opt to avoid that target consumer altogether.
Among retailers, this perception has morphed into a belief that ethical products should only be sold or marketed to niche audiences, such as consumers who are laser-focused on sustainability or luxury shoppers. But this isn’t the case. There are countless options for retailers to cast a wide net with their ethical products and create genuine excitement across broader audiences.
This is why TO THE MARKET’s ongoing collaboration with companies like FabFitFun are some of our most engaging partnerships. Every time we collaborate with FabFitFun, we are bringing ethical products into the homes of thousands of consumers from all walks of life. It’s a refreshing shift away from the ultra-niche focus these types of products are often relegated to. With each box we make sustainability accessible to shoppers who, in a brick-and-mortar setting, may not have even turned onto the aisle where ethical products are sold, whether that’s due to price or not knowing where to look for them.
For many consumers, making the shift to shopping ethically is overwhelming – but FabFitFun makes it easy. Each product we sell together is a joyful, tangible piece of proof to each consumer that sustainable goods fit right in alongside other products, and that they don’t need to break the bank.
Our latest collaboration with FabFitFun is a great example of this. The latest FabFitFun box includes TO THE MARKET’s eco-friendly dryer balls, artisanally made in Nepal, of 100% organic New Zealand wool. When shoppers bring the dryer balls into their homes, they gain a product that fills a common household need, but in a more ethical and sustainable way than other products would. Each dryer ball set contributed to the wellbeing and fair pay of the artisans who crafted them with care, and each one reduced the consumer’s need to buy dryer products made of harmful materials.
Last summer’s FabFitFun box featured a TO THE MARKET lemon print melamine tray. The tray was an ethically made take on a vibrant and popular aesthetic. The tray was the perfect opportunity for consumers to stay on trend while doing good with their purchase.
At TO THE MARKET, we believe that making long-lasting change requires reaching broad groups of consumers. Positive movements are contagious, and the more shoppers who are brought into the sustainable and ethical arena, the better. As a company that deeply values progress over perfection in the journey to change retail, we feel that every single ethical purchase, large or small, is a win. Each time a consumer makes a new-to-them shopping decision that’s better for the planet, we’ve gotten one step closer to a better world. When we introduce a new consumer to the ease and style of ethical goods with FabFitFun, we’re making our values loud and clear: ethical and sustainable products are for everyone.
By Trish Cope, Sales Director