Good morning questioning consumers!
As we mark Black Friday, that grotesque manifestation of consumerism in all its awful glory, it befalls us to question each and every impulse to buy, buy, buy. As such, in today’s edition, I’m delighted to share with you this selection of 5 shopping-related social tips, thoughts and talking points, all of which I’ve come across or re-discovered over the past two weeks. Please enjoy!
1. What I abide by: Making buying ‘friction-ful’ – Ever more frictionless buying has long been the goal of big business. Amazon’s ‘1-click-checkout’ is this at its extreme. Personally, I prefer to go to the other extreme. For the past couple of years, I’ve created a folder in my web browser. Whenever I have the urge to buy something, I instead bookmark it and leave it for 4-6 months. Only after this time has elapsed, and if I still feel I need or want it, will I consider committing to the purchase. Do you have your own mindful shopping habits? Please share if you do!
2. What I’m shocked by: 100 billion items per year – This week, I checked out Netflix’s well-timed documentary, ‘Buy Now: the shopping conspiracy’. (Spoiler: a rather superficial, uninteresting and sickly production that I can’t recommend watching.) The one horrifying stat that’s stayed with me is that the fashion industry produces 100 billion items of clothing every year. And how many humans are we? So, if you ever needed a motive not to buy your next garment, here it is!
3. What I’m bidding on: Three Peas’ charity auction running til 1st December – This incredible set of auction items is worth your attention this Black Friday and weekend. Three Peas are a fabulous group of friends who back in the day supported Action for Education alongside many other organisations in Greece. Make your bid to be in for a chance of winning handwritten notes and illustrations from esteemed names including Stephen Fry, Axel Scheffler, Michael Morpurgo and Emma Thompson!
4. What I’ve been publishing – Remnants of War, Migration, Love: A Poetry Collection – It’s been a privilege over the past 3 months to work with my close friend Taha Salim to edit and help publish his first collection of poetry. We are delighted to announce that it’s now available for purchase online with a book launch planned for 12th December in Barcelona. I was also lucky enough to write a short introduction to this collection of deeply personal and emotive poems, which I’ve also shared online. Check out Taha’s website to read a few of his poems and purchase the book!
5. What I’m looking for help with: Equity-based salary frameworks – Not the first time this theme has come up, I’m looking for insights and resources on equity-based salary frameworks. Frameworks that go beyond performance, responsibility, local economy benchmarking and experience to recognise and address systemic injustices and individual circumstances. I’m specifically looking for inspiration as we grow and expand our team at Circular Design. Short of setting our own salaries, a practice rooted in Reinventing Organisations, are there any inspiring examples out there? Or anyone that can help?
That’s it for this fortnight! As ever, please let me know your thoughts and feedback – and send anything you’d like me to include in upcoming editions this way.
