I love September, it’s definitely one of my favourite months of the year. The summer heat may have faded, but the nights are still light and the weather should still be warm enough to pad about a British “Staycation” city of your choice.
There are so many great places to stay around the UK and when the kids have gone back to school, the prices start to drop, it’s not so crowded – the perfect time to escape as a couple and enjoy “us time”.
Choosing a good shampoo and conditioner is a very personal thing.
Well tamed locks make you feel great, can make the difference between a great night out and a disaster and frankly a bad hair day can be enough to make you want to stay in.
There’s a lot to consider. Fragrance, texture, hair type, cost and packaging all come into play (oh the workings of the female mind).
Over at Daisy Green HQ we’ve known about Faith in Nature for year. The company was formed over 30 years ago by Rivka Rose who was on a mission to create superior natural personal care and beauty products.
Over the years, they’ve honed and developed a wide range of natural shampoos and complementary conditioners – something to suit every hair type.
The weather has been absolutely atrocious for weeks now. If, like me, you are planning a last minute holiday somewhere a little warmer (and far less wet) you’ll be dragging out your suitcase and checking out last year’s holiday togs.
Buying clothes made to last, is a great way to maintain a more ethical wardrobe, but a couple of new purchases specifically for my jollies, always gets me a little excited!
Our friends over at Rapanui clothing have some fantastic news. In partnership with the University of Isle of Wight, they have developed something monumental. A product that will change the face of textiles for ever. Check out their press release…
We live in a society of individuals who do not like to wait. You only have to look at advertising to know that. We want it and we want it now. We want to buy now and pay later. We don’t want to wait until Christmas to have it .We might as well start using it now if we’ve got it. Let’s face it. Delayed gratification is a lost art.
There is a theory that delaying gratification increases the intensity of pleasure on receiving it. Having just started work in customer service, I like to assure people that it will be worth the wait. And I believe it. Take Luxury Gift Wrap for example. I usually buy bargain wrapping paper to wrap the enormous boxes that little children love to rip open at Christmas. But as the children get bigger, the parcels get smaller and this year, I was seduced by the Luxury Gift Wrap. Along with a significant proportion of the nation, so it seems. I couldn’t wait to see it and touch it, but now I know it’s in great demand, I want it even more. This must-have Christmas item for ethical shoppers has people all over the country waiting in eager anticipation. Wrapping Christmas presents has never felt so desirable.
The original FreeLoader is one of the most popular products here at EthicalSuperstore, and judging by the amount of customer queries we receive about it, you’re all keen to harness the power of the sun for your charging needs. However, with ever changing charging platforms and fancy new gadgets launching every week, it’s hard to keep up with the FreeLoader’s compatibility with your devices (and as I’m a Product Information Assistant it was starting to get to me!).
Well, the answer to all of your questions (and mine!) is here. The FreeLoader Pro is the ultimate, professional solar charger capable of charging your most power hungry, energy sapping gadgets and devices.
With a Multi Voltage switch allowing you to charge anything from your mobile phone and mp3 player right through to a digital SLR and video camera, it’s this years must-have green gadget for any tech-geek, eco-warrior, or light-stepping adventurer.
So, let’s just clarify;
Q: Will the FreeLoader Pro charge my iPhone 3G?
A: Yes!
Q: Can I charge my digital camera battery with the FreeLoader Pro?
A: Yes!
Q: Does the FreeLoader Pro have a battery level indicator?
A: Yes!
Ahhh, result.
Let’s just hope all of the products we stock don’t follow in the FreeLoader’s footsteps; ticking all of the boxes and answering all of your questions right out of the box, otherwise I might find myself out of a job!
There are many reasons why you choose your first bank. For some it was their parents who opened their account for them. For others it was the bank offering the best student bribe benefit. While for others it was just the convenience of which bank was located in their High Street. For me choosing a bank was a no-brainer. I come from a “Co-op” family (pronounced “kworp” in the part of Manchester I am from). My great uncle was the Chief Executive of the Cooperative Wholesale Society – the Tescos of the 1950s when he was in charge. My grandpa was the chief actuary at the Co-operative Insurance Society in the 1970s. My brother-in-law still works for the Coop Bank today.
My mum was so brand loyal to The Coop that we even had to go to the Coop dentist which was appropriately on the corner of Redfern St in the centre of Manchester. Never did find out whether she got dividend on our treatment or not. In the early part of the 20th Century the Coop really could look after every aspect of your life. From baby food sold in the Coop supermarkets through to the funeral service which the Coop still dominates today. So in this context I opened a Coop bank account in 1986. I have laterally switched to their “fun” online brand Smile because I never need to go to a branch. But I have stayed loyal to the bank. And that loyalty isn’t much to do with heritage. It is down to the fact that they have taken ethics to their very core.
In 1989 they announced their ethical policy and overnight placed themselves in a different league to the other high street banks. The Coop Bank has conducted several stakeholder reports or social audits that look at the views of all of the Bank’s stakeholders. The report is independently audited and you can see clear action plans for how they are going to do more on each of the areas of concern. Even the CIS skyscraper in the centre of Manchester (where my Grandpa proudly had an office on the 19th floor) now has a giant solar panel down the whole of its south facing lift shaft. When you enter the reception you can see a giant display of how much energy is being generated.
And yet can I really say I love a bank after all the banking turmoil of the last 2 years? Well you probably won’t be surprised to learn that Coop Bank didn’t dash for the cash in the sub-prime market. In fact in March 2009 it actually posted a tidy profit for last year – rather in stark contrast to all the “state owned” banks who have fallen from grace.
I have no intention of moving my bank accounts and have already convinced 2 of my kids to bank with Coop. Perhaps it has always been in my DNA to bank with the Coop but they keep giving new ethical reasons to stay.
“We have to make people think that it’s unfashionable just as we have with smoking. We need a similar campaign to convince people that this is wrong,”
said Tim Lang, the Government’s natural resources commissioner.
And all of this negativity surrounding bottled beverages seems to be having an impact with recent figures from market research company TNS suggesting that last year bottled water sales fell by 9% (this on the back of approx 10 years of year on year increases in sales).
However, is the bottled water industry really so bad?
Mothers are great. They do so much for us every day, but sometimes we forget to say thank you quite as much as we ought to.
This is where Mother’s Day steps in – it’s a chance for us all to think about our Mums, and most importantly, it’s a chance to say a great big Thank You.
Here at EthicalSuperstore we’ve got loads to thank our Mum’s for…
But what is the best way to say thank you?
Our number one tip is to make sure you put thought into it – after all, whether you can be with your Mother on Mother’s Day or not, they definitely deserve recognition and some top notch looking after – they’ve certainly earned it.
So we’ve racked our brains and come up with a masterplan…
…just click the promise voucher above, print it out, then fill it in as appropriate and deliver. Don’t limit yourself to Mother’s Day with this one – You could give a voucher any day of the year as it doesn’t actually need to cost you a penny – it’s definitely a case of ‘the thought that counts’, making it a perfect Credit Crunch busting Mother’s Day gift idea.
It’s the perfect way to treat your Mother, because you can tailor it perfectly – and even better for your Mum, she can cash in your gift whenever she fancies.
This is a gift that keeps on giving – it’s a surefire Mother’s Day winner!
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