Take the company Kombucha Dog. The founder, Michael Faye, brews one of the only traditionally fermented Kombuchas on the market and has also made it his mission to help homeless dogs find families. He photographs them and then features them on his bottle labels and his website. His purpose: To use his business for “good” and get more dogs into loving homes.
Then there is a subscription service that delivers healthy food at wholesale prices and gives a free sub away for every one that is paid. As many impoverished areas around the country have little access to high quality food, Thrive is providing a solution to help low income families eat healthier.
So what’s led to this moving shift? Well, Millennials have a lot to do with it. 89% decide where to shop and what to buy based on a brand’s social responsibility. And a lot of businesses are realizing that doing good and being successful don’t have to be mutually exclusive goals. Since so much of our lives are devoted to our work, it is natural to want to make it as fulfilling as possible and doing good for others is certainly one way to do that.
Of course, this shift is not limited to Southern California. There are many companies worldwide that are putting their heart where their business is. In fact, there are too many to put into one story. So each week, for the next five weeks, I’ll profile another company that is making a difference and inspiring the rest of us to find our passion!
If you know any companies you think would be a “good” fit, please feel free to send our way.
Southern California is known around the world for great weather, healthy living, celebrity sightings and the crazy traffic. But there is something else that we may soon be known for and it could become a blueprint for other businesses moving forward. People are taking their passion for doing good and making it one of the fundamentals of their business model.
Let me explain. Most of us know that Tom’s Shoes started here with the purpose of giving back. They were one of the leaders in incorporating social responsibility into their core mission. Now we’re starting to see many more enterprises following suit and adopting that principle as the foundation for their company.