Business as Usual Was Always Broken

This article first appeared on our Instagram account and was emailed to every person on our email list

We’ve never believed in “business as usual” and we sure aren’t starting now.

Before you read any further, know that you won’t find a list of promises, steps, initiatives, or things we’ve already done to “fix” racism. Also, know that we don’t have a PR person on staff or shareholders to answer to that helped us write this note. What you will find is our honest intention to keep up the good fight, fight harder, keep listening, and never back down. You as our customers deserve to know our stance. ⁠
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We started Made Trade to empower small businesses, independent makers, and artisans in the U.S. and around the world who are committed to sustainable and responsible sourcing of materials and the ethical and fair treatment of the people making their products. We highlight POC-owned and Women-owned brands across our site because we know visibility matters, and we believe in voting with your dollar. Every time you shop with us, you know who and what you are supporting. Transparency is at the center of what we do.⁠
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We’re a white-owned business with an anti-racist agenda, run by a family, and made up of allies fighting for people and the planet every single day. We stand proudly for the sustainable and ethical use of our planet’s resources and the equal treatment of its people. We also operate in a country and a world where deep change is desperately needed.⁠
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Change is Black Lives Matter. Change is protesting in the streets. Change is an acknowledgment that for the past 400+ years America and its leadership have failed Black and Brown communities over and over. Change is taking a stand. Change is not being silent. Change is not business as usual. Change is voting with your dollar. Change is voting with your ballot. Change is letting the folks who’ve run this country know it’s time to retire or be fired. Change is holding us accountable. Change is holding yourself accountable. Change is not just using your voice, but using your intellect, spirit, time, and energy to make change become a reality.⁠

But change does not happen all at once. Dismantling “business as usual” does not happen in a day, week, month, year, or even a decade. It’s small, consistent steps, meaningful efforts, and loud voices that persist and continue to work towards a common goal of eradicating systemic racism and inequality. 

We’re not perfect and we don’t pretend to be. We’ve made mistakes, we’ll make different mistakes again, we’ll fumble, we’ll fix it, and we move forward and do better. We still have so much to learn and many more voices to listen to. If we think we’ve finished doing the hard work of addressing inequality across race, gender, and the environment, then we’re wrong. That work is never finished. That torch just passes to the next generation and then the next. It’s our job to carry the torch and pass it when our time on this planet is up.

Business as usual is what created an inequitable America. We’re going to keep doing our part to change that. Today, tomorrow and a decade from now.

Cayley and Andy 
Co-owners of Made Trade