Zander Marenberg
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Ankit Patel
Rutgers Business School
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You buy a pair of socks, and something awesome happens for the world. This is possible because each new sock is designed specifically for a cause, a UN goal, and each respective sock design has a partner organization doing work to achieve that goal.
Conscious Step innovates how we see fashion and how it can overlap with a philanthropic purpose. The company sells socks patterned with a unique design corresponding to seventeen of the United Nations Sustainable Development goals. When a pair of socks is purchased, a portion of the funds collected are donated to the corresponding cause. These numerous movements range from distribution of clean water to HIV treatment. While the business model of charity isn’t anything new to Conscious Step, their product has the advantage of being a conversation starter that offers free advertisement for a purpose.
The mission of Conscious Step is to “bring more awareness to the problems faced by the world today and the organizations fighting these problems.” They are truly devoted to playing a part in making the world a better place, one step at a time. Conscious Step’s aim is to take a product that everyone uses (socks) and produce it in a way that gives back to the planet rather than taking from it. Our chosen company is always working to ensure that the purchase of their products supports emerging markets, guarantees fair wages and promotes environmental sustainability. The mission statement listed on their website and reiterated to us through our conversations with company employees is “Every person has the ability to inspire change. When we all make conscious decisions about our products and their impact on our planet, we can collectively move toward a brighter, poverty free world.”
“Conscious Step is a social enterprise creating well designed socks to fight for global causes. In partnership with the some of the world’s most impactful organizations, each design contributes to a different global cause. In partnership with UNAIDS, the company has socks that provide 1 week of HIV therapy for an expectant mother; with Room to Read they have socks provide 2 school books; with Action Against Hunger they have socks that provide 6 meals for a starving child; with Water.org each pair provides 18 months of clean water to someone without this basic need, lastly, with Trees for the Future they have socks that plant 20 trees.”
Prashant Mehta collaborated with his close friends after his mother presented him with the power of giving. Their goal was to offer an easy and inexpensive method for consumers to donate to a cause, while being able to be tangibly and physically reminded of their donation. In addition to satisfaction given to the customer, these socks also employ communities in India where fair labor standards are enforced, these practices are a model for fair business trade and, as an additional benefit, support existing industries in the form of farmers.
Conscious Step founder, Prashant Mehta, was happy to discuss both qualitative and quantitative benefits and impacts of his company during our team interview with him. He said “My goal with Conscious Step is to do my part making the word a better place one step at a time, I've always been fascinated with being proactive in the fight against poverty, and Conscious Step allows me to do so.” Mehta also said, “As a company, we strive to cover all 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. If every business out there chose even just one of those seventeen goals to support, incorporating a way to change their company mission and/or values, we would create a much better and more efficient world to live in.” Lastly, when asked for specific philanthropic statistics off the top of his head, Mehta said, “Right off the top of my head I can tell you that we have a pair of socks that when purchased provides 18 months of clean water through water.org. We have another pair that when purchased can provide approximately 6 food packs with the help of Action Against Hunger. A third option provides around 1 week of HIV therapy through the assistance of UNAIDS. Obviously that’s not all, but those are good examples of what just one sock pair purchase can do for our world.”
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Prashant Mehta, Owner
Conscious Step is small business that sells socks in an effort to combat poverty worldwide. They strive to touch upon all 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.