This one goes out to all you go-getters who own an ethical-friendly business.
Yes, you are killin’ it.
Absolutely, you are making a difference.
You better believe that your business matters!
Today, we are joined by the lovely Claire Pettibone, owner of Madison Grace, who is going to share with us 3 ways to measure the social impact your business has on others! Hit play on the video below or check out the transcript!

A COMEPLUM CHAT WITH CLAIRE PETTIBONE

Praise: Hey everybody! I am here in Orange County, Southern California with my friend Claire here. I know Claire because it’s our one year friend-iversary. Last year we were in Bali learning how to run do-good businesses. I knew I wanted to talk with Claire because of who she is (just a great fun person), but also of what she does and how she can help other entrepreneurs like us.

But I want you to be able to share with us a little bit of what you do.

Claire: Yeah, I run Madison Grace. It’s a social ethical women’s accessories brand. We’re a boutique we curate from different artisan groups all over the world. From jewelry to bags to home and office goods. But it’s for a specific type of woman. It’s for a woman who is chic and she wants that conscious, ethical, purpose driven lifestyle but she doesn’t want to compromise on style. I lovingly call the community “Women Who Give A Care” because they care about the people who made their products and they also care about how it looks.

Praise: Yes, a woman who gives a care! That is her. That is me. She was even showing me some products from her line, like a really beautiful necklace and ring. I love that you really talked through “This is what Madison Grace is about. This is who Madison Grace is for.” How did you come to having such a clear purpose?

Claire: When I knew I wanted to be in this ethical fashion space, it was a lot of trying to figure out what I wanted to make an impact on. There was a lot of talking with you at Bali, talking with all the different women. But it’s a lot of work, introspectively, trying to sit down and be like, “What’s the purpose I want to do?” For me, it was the purpose of getting things ethically made, and that whole space, really widening that sphere of influence.

Because yes, ethically made things are kind of trendy right now, but in order to widen that sphere of influence, we need to meet people where they are at.

So maybe try a different style or a different purpose. Right now, I have like a game day bag and it’s for sports moms. And you wouldn’t think that an ethical fashion girl would be there, right? But when I introduced that to the sports moms, they responded like, “Oh, what is this?” Which then starts the conversation. So, it’s really just like planting little seeds.

Praise: Yeah, we were talking about that. It’s like awareness because in our world, ethical fashion is kind of a buzzword. But when we say it to some other people, they don’t even really know what it means. So can you give us like a most basic definition? Ethical fashion is what?

Claire: Ethical fashion is caring about the people who made your products. And not only that, but are they being treated fairly?

As far as giving a minimum wage, a living wage, and then also be aware of if they are being given certain hours. Are they being forced, like fast fashion? I’m not gonna name any names, but in order for them to go from runway to the store, the workers have to work crazy amount of hours to sew those shorts that you all of a sudden see. So it’s treating them fairly that way too.

I think a big resource is if you google Rana Plaza. That is what started the whole ethical fashion space, and it’s really a bunch of garment workers who weren’t in good conditions who were making American clothes, but it collapsed. It was tragedy. But that’s what really started the whole space to talk about it.

Praise: Definitely. We were just talking about that too because I come from a culture that loves a good deal. However, just because it’s cheap for us and our wallets here, doesn’t mean it doesn’t cost someone something. Madison Grace is a boutique for the woman who gives a care and I love that because we know who you are for what you’re about.

A lot of the people reading this are women who are starting their own businesses and say they had a purpose like what they do and who they are for. How do they even know that they’re doing what they purposed to do?

Claire: If they know their purpose and the impact that they want to make, let’s talk about measuring actually doing it. So right now, with all the eyesores from all different types of places, Philippines being one of them (we are both Filipino), Kenya, right here in Los Angeles, all different places… First, I’m going to give an example of how I’m measuring, and then I’ll answer your question.

How I’m measuring right now is I have asked them “How many ethical hours has this bag that we’ve collabed together provide your artisan?” Other times, I have some give back products, for them to give back and donate and just keep track of how many they donated. So I like to say that measuring impact is really “left brain, right brain.”

This whole purpose driven ethical, conscious stuff, is a buzzword and there’s a lot of people who aren’t really heart centered or purpose driven. They’re just using that as a marketing tactic. So what does that really mean?  When I’m a potential customer, I don’t know what it means that you give back.

1. Right Brain: Tell Stories

Going back to left brain, right brain… For the right brain, you want to tell stories. I know Praise volunteers her time photographing for Because Justice Matters. She could measure impact by telling the story of that nonprofit or the person that she impacted. And you can actually name the person, hopefully (I know in human trafficking, you’re not allowed to do that, but they do pseudo names). It also doesn’t have to be crazy impact where we think we’ve really changed their life. For example, it could be that Vanessa got two hours of dance that helped her alleviate whatever stress and it was free time, you know? That would be telling stories.

2. Left Brain: Provide Numbers

The left side of the brain is logical. It’s telling numbers. For example, numbers would be how many hours or how many dollars. I am a startup and right now I am working with a nonprofit that feeds children here in America. They give children meals.

Some of my products, I donate seven meals for every product purchase and that’s an actual thing that people are like, “Oh, seven meals. That’s a real thing.” It’s tangible. But really, seven meals is about $1 for this organization. Now, if I told you “I’m donating $1.” They’re gonna be like “Okay, give me the dollar discount.” You know what I mean? But it’s not really it’s intertwined. You partnered with that nonprofit, but they do have logical numbers, which would be the seven meals.

I think customers and clients appreciate that because it’s transparency. The one thing about eco-conscious purpose is that we’re held to a higher standard. And that’s being transparent. How are we going to be transparent? We have to measure this stuff and then tell people, this is how we did it.

Praise: Right. Yeah, it’s showing them with the creative, more heartfelt side, but also providing that there’s numbers to back it up too. This is how we know we’re actually making a difference. This how we know that our business is accomplishing its purpose. I love that because I think what’s the point of us working so hard and hustling so hard, if we don’t even know for going after and doing the things that we’ve set out to do? So I love those tools for measuring impact. That’s really helpful.

3. Use Testimonials

Claire: Yeah! I also want to add one more thing. I feel like, for example, Praise works with clients. Sometimes, if you’re first starting, get testimonials.

Praise: Getting those reviews, yes!

Claire: Yes. When someone gives you testimony when you’re first starting, you’re gonna be surprised. Your testimonial is going to make you realize “Oh, I made an impact on that on that client.” So really, impact doesn’t have to be world peace and saving all the turtles and all that stuff. It doesn’t have to be grand; it could be one person which makes a big difference.

Praise: Totally! It totally makes a big difference. I think about my friends who are yoga teachers, and it’s that person coming up after class and said, “Wow, I feel so much more relaxed than when I first came in.” That’s a way to measure the impact of your business. Getting those stories, whether it’s an online survey feedback or just real life. Claire, you are making a difference in the world by making us feel good and you feel good. That’s a great way to measure it.

Awesome! Well, thank you so much for sharing with us about Madison Grace. Can you share with us your website and how to find you?

Claire: Sure! I’m at madisongrace.co where you can use the code COMEPLUM for 10% off!

Praise: I love it. Okay, that’s it! Bye!

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If you’re interested in more impact-focused resources for the go-getter woman, we’ve got you covered!
You can conveniently find them right here.