Ethical Black Friday: Turning Black Friday Green

Black Friday... Ethical Black Friday...Green Friday...Colour Friday... there are many names for this coming weekend.

As the owner of an ethical business, Black Friday - and the connotations of excessive consumption it denotes - is not something I want to endorse. 

Neither is the slashing of prices that reflect the fair cost of labour and materials.

 80% of items bought on Black Friday go straight to landfill.

Research by the Green Alliance from 2019 suggests that as much as 80% of items bought on Black Friday go straight to landfill. This is the height of unsustainable consumerism and a tragic waste. 

However, as a small business who is struggling with an economic downturn and increasingly difficult market conditions, there’s not much good I can do if I go out of business all together. 

And because I retail other brands’ products, I find that I need to remain aligned with what the brands themselves are doing - otherwise I simply won’t get any sales at all.

I also realise that, with the ongoing economic uncertainty, times are tough for everyone at the moment and many shoppers use Black Friday as a way of purchasing gifts, which they’ll need to buy in the run-up to Christmas. 

On the plus side, it may mean some get to try out products from more ethical brands, such as the ones on My Little Green Wardrobe, that were previously just out of reach.

At least if shoppers are buying more ethically-made goods to start with, then there’s a lower impact on the environment compared to items made with no sustainable practices whatsoever.

There’s also zero point in My Little Green Wardrobe having a stockroom full of gorgeous organic and sustainably produced baby & kids clothing if they’re not going to be worn. That would also be a shameful waste.

So here’s the deal: we are taking part in Black Friday - but with a deal that is good for shoppers and good for the planet too. We're calling it Green Friday.

In our version of an ethical Black Friday, we’re offering a discount of up to 40% AND we’ll plant a tree for every single item purchased over the promotional period.

You buy two things from us, we’ll plant two new trees. Simple as that.

This year we’re partnering with Ecologi which plants trees as part of reforestation efforts around the world. 

Current Ecologi projects include saving the last fragments of rainforest in Kenya, conserving and restoring the declining mangroves in Madagascar, and replanting Andean forests in South America.

Replanting forests simultaneously tackles our climate crisis whilst improving livelihoods for struggling rural communities.

This Black Friday, think carefully before each purchase and buy only what you need to.

With all of our brands operating with improved pay and conditions for garment workers, and many of them already giving back to good causes you really will be spreading joy this Christmas.

We’re asking you to think carefully before each purchase and buy only what you need to.

We’re hoping in this way, Green Friday will be a win for you and a win for the planet.

Shop our Green Friday deals HERE, and shop consciously and with kindness.