In an ideal world, every time we purchase something—a great pair of boots, a serum from a new skin care brand, a jug of milk, beautiful kitchenware—we’d do so with a fully informed point of view. We’d have a complete understanding of the company and its values, where each thing is made and by whom, and anything else that would make us feel good about spending our money, and companies would be transparent about the cost of production, formulation, and packaging. The world is, obviously, imperfect, as are most of us. The idea of shopping with a conscience 100% of the time is almost laughable in its idealism: We’re busy, we need something immediately, we’re on a tight budget, we really like the cute top that was just served to us via an Instagram ad.
And if you’re rolling your eyes, saying, “They’re supporting women by asking us to shop?” Actually, yes. To launch a small business is an incredibly difficult proposition. While there are more women-owned businesses in the US than ever before (great news, as they generally translate to increased profits, more diverse workforces, and a commitment to work-life balance and fair paid-leave policies), they face greater challenges. Female entrepreneurs are usually offered smaller loans at higher interest rates and generally get the short end of the stick in terms of financing. (Last year US start-ups with all-women teams received 1.9%—or around $4.5 billion—of the approximate $238.3 billion in venture capital allocated, according to Pitchbook via Techcrunch.)
Plus, so many female founders are creating products designed specifically for women—products men couldn’t ever conceive of, let alone get right. So it’s because of all this that we’re putting our support behind them and, hopefully, helping them succeed. We know it’s a tall and unrealistic order to ask readers to shop with their conscience all the time, but small steps are good steps, and even if you learn about one new woman-owned brand you’re excited about from Glamour, we’ve done our job.
