There’s no denying I’m a huge consumer! I’m definitely a Marketing Execs wet dream as I’m easily swayed by bright and shiny new products. I love to shop and have lots of nice stuff. But here’s the thing; I know I’m being super wasteful and that there’s a better way. I know that my shopping habits (and it’s not just me, it’s the entire Western world!) impact the world in which we exist and it really needs to change.
Sure, I can tell you that I’ll never shop again but that’s not to going to happen! This is where I need help and KNOWN EFFECTS is one company that can offer some assistance.
KNOWN EFFECTS are a team of passionate and creative individuals who are bringing together Australia’s small businesses and are making environmentally friendly products that demonstrate ethical production and sustainability.
I had the opportunity to interview founder Ainsley Schumacher and ask her why we all need to rethink the way we shop…
Ainsley, tell us a little bit about yourself. What drives you? What life experiences lead to the decision to launch KNOWN EFFECTS? Do you subscribe to a sustainable way of life?
I reside in Byron Bay, NSW with my amazing family. We are coastal people with compassion for this planet we all share. This is where my drive comes from, my family and our environment. I want to help create a world where it will be clean, safe and a place that is supportive of creatives, designers & makers – not money hungry corporations that only have the dollar in-mind. I can start with my family by teaching our children the importance of keeping our environment and natural resources safe, the bigger picture of shopping local and supporting small businesses and sharing and showing their knowledge with their friends as they grow.
Small businesses drive me. Small business owners’ ideas, passions and how they create their products really excites me. I want to help businesses grow ethically and as sustainably as they can. I feel I am in my comfort zone when I am brain storming with brands on how we can be even better at what we do and how we can get it all out to the world, it’s what made me want to create a marketplace more so than my own product and label.
Our home life is quite environmentally friendly however we are always challenging ourselves to be better, coming up with alternate ideas where we can to make less of a negative impact on the environment. It has kind of become a competition when one of us thinks of something; the other has to go that one bit better – we are always thinking about ways we can become more sustainable.
What is KNOWN EFFECTS?
KNOWN EFFECTS is based on the ‘KNOWN EFFECTS’ of consumerism. We wanted to create a community that supports businesses both small and large that are making positive changes to the way business is done. We have built an online marketplace that will become a one-stop ethical shopping platform. We are focused on creating a community filled with like-minded people from all areas from artisans, makers, fair-trade advocates to those who are driving the way in sustainable lifestyle products and living.
What motivated you to establish KNOWN EFFECTS
In our travels around the world in our early 20’s, naïve to say the most, we were confronted with atrocious working conditions in some countries we had visited. Everything about some of these places made us angry, sad but motivated in wanting to make a difference.
Our motivation is that the reality is no-person or business is perfect but if we combine our knowledge, experience, failures, achieved goals and grow together so we can help each other reach the same end goal of more ethical and sustainable businesses, products making fair-trade priority on the larger scale and pushing the larger companies to be responsible for their products, including all of their workers and environmental impact.
What are the different types of brands that KNOWN EFFECTS supports?
The brands we support under KNOWN EFFECTS range from handmade organic clothing, homewares, sustainable timber products (they grow their own trees!), eco- home improvement products, food, vegan make-up, organic skincare – the works!
In addition, KNOWN EFFECTS would not be sustainable without an up-cycled category for brands who have the talent to turn things that are heading to landfill into some new, exciting and useful. This further allows us to support sustainable brands and create a hub for consumers to purchase new and reinvented sustainable items.
Check out the Known Effects website here.
Are you also guilty of over consuming?
*all images were provided by Known Effects
Categories: Beauty Products, Fashion, People & Places
A Red Lip And A Nude Shoe 
Definitely guilty of over-consumption but I am trying to be more selective about who I buy from over the last few years.
I’m starting to do the same, only recently alas. I know I’ve definitely haven’t bought as much this year as I have previously.