IT'S BIGGER THAN THE BELTS
Back in 2006 I started work for a company that changed my life and the way I saw business over the course of about 7 years. The company had values that I admired, and they sought to bring those values to life every day through everything they did - sourcing ingredients, production of goods, selling those goods, and involving themselves with both local & broader global communities, and grassroots non-profit organisations. Essentially, the business used the sale of its quality products to raise global awareness of humanitarian and environmental injustices around the world through carefully considered campaigns, some of which involved fundraising.
So, what did I learn working for a business like this? That it's so much more than about just selling products or services. It's so much more than a bottom line. In my opinion, businesses have a responsibility to do more than just sell a product or service. Businesses have a responsibility to make informed ethical decisions about how they operate. Gone are the days where businesses are viewed as faceless, non-human entities. There are people behind all the decisions being made, and those people are responsible for how the business operates. Those people are responsible for creating the business culture that's presented to the world, and those people are responsible for any influences that culture may have on all of its stakeholders - everyone from suppliers and manufacturers of raw materials, to employees and customers, and to our planet. Businesses are responsible for how they operate, and how those operations impact every facet of the world they're a part of.
PM Leather has always been about more than just selling belts. We're bigger than the belts. We have a culture and ethos we've spent our whole lives building, because it's who we are as people, and we're incredibly proud of that. It's a culture that draws on, and celebrates, ongoing education and improvement. Raising awareness about the various inequalities, injustices and exploitation that occur all over the world is important to us. So too are the milestone celebrations of historical events that have paved the way for so many people throughout history, and our way of life today. In saying all of this, I'm going to acknowledge that we've also made mistakes - it's how we've grown as people and further developed our personal values and, in doing so, the values of PM Leather. "Learn from the past to better our future," is a good motto for us.
"Alright, Dani. So what are PM Leather's values?" Excellent question. Take a look...
As we continue to grow as people, PM Leather's values will continue to reflect that growth.
I've spent years learning how to campaign for various, sometimes quite confronting, causes and it's something I'll be bringing more of to PM Leather. What does this mean? It means that you'll be seeing issue-based campaigns from PM Leather that directly arise from our values. It means that you'll be able to celebrate those events that need celebrating with us. It means that you'll see some changes to our website and our social media posts that'll reflect those campaigns when we run them. It means that you'll have the opportunity to be better informed about who we are and what we stand for, and to know if supporting our business is something you feel genuinely good about doing.
Will we ruffle feathers? Maybe... And we're OK with that.
Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. I hope y'all are just as excited about this as we are.
Dani
(She/her)
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