How to Use Your Spending to Spark Change
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Women control more spending than any other demographic. We buy stuff like it’s our job… because culturally, it kind of is.
Generally speaking, we’re the ones who do the Costco runs, the Target runs, who buy the groceries, the toothpaste, the kid’s clothes, and everything else. Women in the US control 91% of purchases.
That means nearly every corporation and organization has to get women to buy their stuff if they want to stay in business. And that gives us the power to dictate what those companies make and how they make it.
Right now, a majority of corporations are using shame-inducing marketing tactics to make women buy their stuff (see more about that in the video on our About page).
But we don’t have to fall for their dirty schemes designed to make us think we need whatever they’re selling. Because they need us more than we need them.
Here’s how we can leverage the staggering financial power we have over retailers to build a better world.
1.Use every purchase to send a message.
The impact of our spending goes far beyond ourselves. Marketing companies around the world are watching us trying to understand what we want more of—they watch our purchases, analyze changes in our consumer behavior, and track trends (It sounds creepy because it is creepy.)
This is why when my friends decided to only purchase Fair Trade chocolate, and got all their friends to buy only Fair Trade chocolate, and they got all their friends to buy Fair Trade chocolate… suddenly Fair Trade chocolate started popping up in stores left and right.
Our consumer choices have the power to change entire systems of manufacturing, production, and labor. And THAT will change systems of slavery, abuse, exploitation, and climate-change inducing habits.
2. Shop and buy less.
This is the most powerful solution because it addresses our most consequential problem: That we buy and dispose of too much.
Here’s why this matters:
It is our demand for excess—and therefore cheapness—that fuels sweatshops, slavery, and climate change. Because we feel the need to buy so much, it all has to be super cheap so we can afford it all. So to meet our demand for cheap products, companies like Target, WalMart, Gap, H&M, etc. cut corners—they exploit workers and manufacture in countries with lax environmental regulation.
Having so much stuff stresses us out. Our homes are cluttered, we’re overwhelmed by our belongings, and that also makes us feel inadequate. So we get rid of everything hoping that will make us feel like we’ve got our crap together.
Our constant purging creates more waste. Even if you donate it, most of what you donate ends up in the garbage… which ends up overseas and becomes the problem of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people.
This sets us on a cycle of buying and purging. It’s bulimic consumerism.
In addition, all this time we spend managing our stuff—shopping, buying, purging—in order to feel like we’ve got our crap together eats up an inordinate amount of our limited mental energy, time, and money.
It’s time to get off the crazy cycle. The only solution? Shop less. Buy less. Throw away less.
Spend that precious energy, time, and money on something that actually matters to you! Go outside, work on a passion project, hang out with your kids, go to a concert, learn a new skill, whatever! Just do something you want to do. Something you care about.
3. If you really need something, buy better.
If you buy things that are sustainable and ethically made, companies will make more sustainable and ethical products.
If you buy things made out of recycled materials, companies will make more products out of recycled materials.
If you buy things from companies that embrace inclusivity, prioritize diversity, and empower women, more companies will embrace those values.
And the opposite is true too…
If you refuse to buy products made by slaves, companies will stop enslaving people to make it.
If you refuse to buy products made with toxic dyes and new plastic, companies will stop using toxic dyes and new plastic.
If you refuse to support companies that objectify women, test on animals, or manipulate consumers, companies will stop doing those things.
You are the puppet-master of all these systems and your spending controls the strings.
So spend intentionally. Use your power to create a world full of peace, justice, and equality.
