Operate Locally To Save Our Planet

Today it's possible to purchase strawberries grown in Spain, mangos grown in Mayanmar and blueberries grown in New Zealand.  We feel good about buying fruits and vegetables grown all over the world but is it good for us?  The same goes for clothing.  Is it good for us to purchase clothing made in other countries and shipped to the United States even if the garment company making these goods claims to "give back" to the world? 

Two weeks ago I attended the One Earth Film Festival in Oak Park, Illinois.  This amazing festival features films from all over the world that focus on the environment and our impact on it.  I actually spoke on the panel for the film titled, The Economics of Happiness. To sum it up (without my giving it the full justice it deserves), this film covers the importance of retaining our local supply chains and purchasing goods and services that are local.  It discusses how big corporations are destroying the planet by shipping goods all over the world and in most cases, they are even destroying the very communities that produce their goods.  

Be careful shopper because these clothing lines will pull anything out of their hat to get you to feel warm and fuzzy about buying clothes that negatively impact our planet.  Many of these companies use words like "sustainable" and "organic" to describe their clothing.  Some even claim to generously donate to charities or improve the world thru their businesses. So how can any company that produces garments outside the United States, but sells the majority of their products back into it be good for our world?  Are we all really fooled by these good will appearances?  If they don't manufacture their goods within the borders of the major market they sell to, they are not helping our planet or the communities producing the goods for them.

We already know that by sewing in China or any other country besides the United States (if that is their major market), garment lines are heavily contributing to global climate change.  What The Economics of Happiness showed me, is that any garment line that sews outside of its major distribution channel, not only has a higher, negative environmental impact but a much higher negative HUMAN impact. These garment lines add to the destruction of the local essence in the communities where they operate.  The people producing these goods start believing their society is far less valuable than those in the countries they are producing them for.  It creates this global inferiority complex and these villages and small communities lose their own traditions, even their identities over a very short period of time. 

I sound like a broken record but The Economics of Happiness validated my belief in how a responsible garment line or any company for that matter, should work.  A truly responsible garment line who cares about the environment and the diverse populations around the world, produces their goods here in the United States or within the country they sell the majority of their goods to. It's wonderful to donate to worthy causes but if a company doesn't operate locally, all the warm and fuzzy marketing in the world won't help us in the fight against climate change. Most importantly, it won't help us preserve the diverse communities and traditions from which these companies operate, and that my friends is a huge loss for us all.

Shop Local!

The Economics of Happiness:
http://www.greencommunityconnections.org/the-economics-of-happiness/

Worldcrunch:
 http://www.worldcrunch.com/world-affairs/toxic-shipping-containers-may-be-contaminating-your-food-and-clothes/shipping-health-cancer-imports-ikea/c1s10701/#.Uyyr44Xivcs

Fumigants:
 http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/222012/fumigant 

Taking Care of Business, Nicely

Way before I started Majamas, I worked for a large watch company.  I was one of only three women on a sales force of 150 men and I learned very quickly that my female customers weren't always happy to have a woman sales rep calling on them.  These customers were used to flirting with their sales MAN and whenever I walked in with my male boss, they were warm, friendly and gracious.  When I worked with them one on one, they'd turn cold and almost abusive.  

Why some business women work so poorly with others, especially other women, baffles me.  I used to think their attitude came from their predecessors.  You know, the women of the 70s who valiantly worked their way to the top, sacrificing family, friends and more just to break into male dominated businesses.  I completely understand how back in the 70s, a woman had to be tougher and more resilient than the working woman of today.  She had no "Boys Club" to welcome her and no girl friends to lean on.  Thanks to them, we working women feel a lot more comfortable in business.  Unless, of course, our boss, customer or even our coworker is a woman.  I realize I am making a big generalization here and being female myself, I am put in this category but everyone in business has, at sometime or another, had to deal with a mean woman at work.

I had the "honor" of dealing with one just the other day.  This woman isn't a customer but a fellow shop owner.  She has a store on the other side of town that carries similar products to Majamas Boutique and one line in particular we both have carried for years.  Actually, I was the one who recommend she carry this line and stock it for older kids since Majamas Boutique only carries baby clothes up to 4T.  Unfortunately, in typical mean-girl style, she went to the vendor and requested they stop letting us sell their baby line so she could be the only retailer in the area carrying it.  What's worse, is the company listened to her and now, Majamas Boutique won't be able to carry it in our store.  The thing is, we both sold this line equally well and our tiny store did nothing to impact her business.

When I approached this woman about what she'd done, she was defensive and cold.  Here we are, both standing in the basement of her store and all I could think was, "what would two men be doing about this?"  I think they'd go golfing and discuss it over 18 holes, stopping at the 9th to have a beer and agree no harm is done with both of them carrying the same thing.  But women don't handle things that way and part of me regrets not asking her out for a glass of wine to discuss it.  My point is, women don't need to be mean when conducting business just to look strong and capable.  We need to stand up and help each other.  Perhaps if women took care of business nicely, looking out for each other, we'd all reap the rewards and become so happy, we'd lose the need to be mean at all.

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Voting start Aug 26th!  

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Dressed To Kill

Over 1100 people have died after the Bangladesh garment factory collapsed and we all feel horrible about it, but do we feel bad enough to stop supporting the garment lines that continue to make their clothing this way?  Are we willing to stop buying those $5 tank tops in Wal-mart, those $10 t-shirts at Target and all those insanely low priced fashions in Forever 21?  What about the high end designers sewing their lines in these shops like Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger and Benetton?

Each time I come across a cheap garment hanging in any store, I immediately look at where it was made and do the math in my head.  See, I own a garment line that ONLY manufactures in the United States.  We buy our fabric from the few mills left in the US and all our trims, elastics and buttons from US companies as well.  So, let me break this down for you.  

If you see a garment retailing for $5.00 in a store, the retailer probably paid $2.00 for it.  That means that the fabric used to make the garment, any elastic or trims, shipping the garments, and the sewing of the actual garment must be covered in that $2.00 cost.  For some perspective, it is close to impossible to purchase any fabric made in the US for less than $4.00 a yard.  So tell me, if a wholesaler is receiving $2.00 per garment, what is that wholesaler paying their people who sew it in China, Bangladesh and other countries after they pay for all the other expenses that go into making that one garment?  Most importantly, where does the wholesaler cut his expenses so he can make his profit?

We all must consciously consider these things every time we shop.  Anytime we see that $5.00 tank top or even a $30 dress, we have to do the math in our heads.  We must consider the true cost of labor for each and every "cheap" garment and consider how that wholesaler who sells these to Target, Wal-mart and large designers makes his money.  The truth is, these wholesalers barely pay their sewing operators and they don't even give them safe working conditions. They have literally sacrificed their workers' safety for fashion!  

Doesn't that make that $5.00 tank top feel a lot more expensive?  

Germaine Caprio
Founder/Owner of Majamas, Nixilu and Eliseo Fashion

Parenting vs. Time

Parenting can be monotonous. Oops! Did I just say that out loud? It’s true and anyone who’s had a baby knows it. We’ve all had those days when going to the park and watching your toddler go down the curvy slide one more time is enough to make you scream.

Yesterday I caught the eye of my neighbor as he sat watching his two year old twin boys playing in his backyard. He had that look on his face and I knew he wanted to say he was feeling tired of the routine, but instead, he smiled and commented on how boys are always drawn to the messiest part of the yard. I smiled back recalling all the days I sat watching my girls playing in my yard and wishing for the time when life would get interesting again.

Yes, my babies made me smile and I love them more than life itself but the reality of being the parent of young babies is the days can blend into each other and time can feel as if it completely stops. I think just knowing other parents feel the same way can help you feel better. It’s not that we don’t love our children and want to be with them but it’s one of those things about parenting that people don’t readily admit to. Like everything, sometimes it’s tough to repeat the same routine day after day and with your children, sometimes you don’t see the big changes until they hit a milestone like walking or starting preschool.

Last week I brought my youngest daughter to high school to start her freshman year. I burst into tears as she and her older sister got out of the car. Visions of them as my little babies flashed in front of me and I can’t stop wondering where the time has gone. They are young women now with their own likes and dislikes but I can still see them sitting in the backyard, having a tea party or playing in their kiddie pool.

I used to hate it when people told me to “cherish the baby years” but suddenly, your children are driving and heading off to college. I say suddenly because in hindsight, it really feels like that. Time is fleeting and our children grow up fast. So, enjoy the days when all you have to do is watch them slide down the slide for the hundredth time because soon you won’t see them all day and you’ll wonder how they got from the park to high school so fast. 

Pivoting To A Positive Place

It seems as if all we hear in the news these days is how bad the economy is and how bad EVERYTHING is. It’s difficult to stay positive when we’re bombarded with bad news in the papers and on television.
 
Years ago, I met a therapist at an event who was explaining the power of positive thinking.  It was a sales seminar and part of me planned on tuning her “motivational” speech out until I heard her describe a practice called “pivoting”.  Pivoting is when you feel completely depressed and down and instead of letting your bad mood rule the day, you consciously decide to turn it around and look at everything in a positive light.  For example, I was selling watches at the time and if I didn’t sell the first customer of the day, I always felt the rest of my appointments would fall flat as well.  Of course, I always blamed my customers for why they didn’t buy until I heard this therapist say that our attitudes directly affect every person we come in contact with.  This therapist said that when we “pivot” our bad moods into good ones, we change not only our negative feelings but those of the others around us.

From that time on, I began playing a game with myself to consciously “flip” my outlook on life whenever I started feeling negative.  With this attitude, I have been able to start and keep my company running, overcome some health issues and even help my daughters see the power of positive thought in their daily routines.  My hope is that this “pivoting” therapy will catch on and the media will begin to look at the positives a bleak economy or any negative situation brings.  I know it sounds corny but people come together in rough times and support each other.  People want to thrive, not just survive, and if we could just get the media to report from a positive angle, maybe we could all pivot on those days when that feeling of impending doom looms over us.