Whereas we are a new startup struggling amidst a global pandemic, we are conflictedly excited to finally have local Maine stores display our repurposed race sail items this holiday- to be sold for the sole purpose of preventing waste in the ocean racing community, contributing to ocean positive causes and providing you with a piece of the race.
The mass appeal to the over consumption on Black Friday makes us shutter. Consumption is overrated. The result is an overflow of our landfills and overflow of plastic pollution into our precious oceans and waterways which we depend on.
We have a hard time reconciling the message that we want you to buy our products because they are just that, material products. We hope that bringing you products that are functional, fashionable, repurposed, historically significant, unique and limited edition, and for a good cause will ease our conscious. However, this Friday, we insist that we’d much rather you stay home with your loved ones, turn off your electronic buying devices, go out and explore something outside safely at a social distance, write letters or Holiday cards, and/or Zoom connect with friends you haven’t seen all year.
On that note, we understand the allure of a great discount on that great thoughtful item you’ve been eyeing the last few months, you have been waiting for a good deal this weekend! We applaud your patience and hope you have considered the following: whether you really need it, is it good quality, does it support local business?
We are proud to be amongst other amazing brands leading the way in helping to shift our business models away from gross wasteful consumption and encourage you, our friends to consider, too, your shopping habits this holiday season. A few things we would encourage you to consider:
*Buy only what you or your giftees need
*Gift cards can be wonderfully considerate and less wasteful
*What is the item made from? Where? And How?
*What is the end of life destiny of the item? How long will it be used?
*What is the packaging? How will that be discarded?
*If you order online with the intent of returning items you don’t like/don’t fit, are you aware mostly likely those returns will be discarded, landfilled or incinerated - and not put back on the shelves?
What other great ideas do you have for gifts, activities, dinners, desserts, and decor this holiday season? More ideas from us and inspiration we found below!
We were thrilled and are thankful that our Volvo Open 70 Camper Tote made the marketing campaign for the 2020 Thoughtful Giving Guide by our friends at the Plastic Pollution Coalition! We have considered that we simply don’t want these amazingly designed sails that have helped a Volvo Ocean Race team get Round the World from ending up in a landfill. We have also considered that there are other thoughtful, eco friendly gifts that we would encourage you to think about this holiday.
In case you were wondering why we are particularly excited about our Camper sails and EcoAlf’s mission? We loved seeing their brands collaborate last year, it has been part of our inspiration! We strive to work with the sponsors that are on the sails we save and we are in discussions with some global brands aspiring to create positively impactful collections and campaigns! Stay tuned for what’s in store in 2021!
We try to not let you go without some great ocean racer footage, we leave you with the inaugural sail from the Volvo Open 70 Camper prior to the 2011-2012 Volvo Ocean Race start! Check out the fascinating history of The Ocean Race here. Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!
By Melissa Kalicin, Founder, Director of Business Philosophy