Learning : From the corporate world to elevate conscious businesses (interview with laura wittig of brightly)
Laura Wittig (@LauraWittig) is the Co-Founder and CEO of Brightly (@brightly.co), a curated discovery platform for all things ethical and environmentally conscious.
In this podcast episode, Laura sheds light on what smaller socially and environmentally conscious businesses can learn from the corporate world to thrive in the market landscape today; what purpose-driven businesses may be able to accomplish that nonprofits with similar missions may have greater challenges with; and more.
To start, get a glimpse below into the conversation between Laura and Green Dreamer Podcast's host, Kamea Chayne.
Musical feature: Trust The Sun by This is Us by Girl Pow-R
“We want to be holistic in our approach—most brands aren’t going to get a 10 out of 10 across all of the verticals, but we do want to see a demonstrated commitment to making the world a better place.”
If you feel inspired by this episode, please consider donating a gift of support of any amount today!
This is a conversation on Green Dreamer with Kamea Chayne, a podcast and multimedia journal illuminating our paths towards ecological balance, intersectional sustainability, and true abundance and wellness for all. This preview has been edited for clarity. Subscribe to Green Dreamer Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or any podcast app to stay informed and updated on our latest episodes.
On Laura's approach to professional growth:
"I've always been a huge proponent in my professional career of constantly moving in service of learning and growing. I think oftentimes people get stuck in careers and they can't really get out because they put these constraints on them.
My constraint has always just been, am I learning? Am I growing? That has been something very core to me."
On deciphering between greenwashing vs. green brands:
"We do have a groundswell of bigger brands who are engaging in greenwashing. Oftentimes, journalists will get reached out to by a brand launching a new product, and the journalist will ask, 'How are you eco-friendly?' And the brand will say, 'We donate a portion of our proceeds to charity.'
That's not what we're talking about here. I think that donating to charity is amazing, and brands that do that should be commended for it. But they shouldn't be able to say they're an ethical and sustainable brand [just because they donate to nonprofits..
The way we think about it at Brightly is, we want to encompass as many pieces of the supply chain as we can and be holistic in our approach. Most brands aren't going to get a 10 out of 10 across all these verticals, but we do want to see a demonstrated commitment to making the world a better place through aspects like innovations, materials, supply chain responsibility, and other initiatives of that nature."
On the mission and vision of Brightly:
"We want to make it easy for people. We want to meet them where they are, give them the right recommendations, and then give them a space to connect with each other.
The future of Brightly is for us to continue to be like your BFF who always has good recommendations. I think everybody has one of those in their friend circle. We'd like to be that for our audience, and we want to be a bright spot on the internet."
Final words of wisdom:
“You are creating so much change every day. So if you end up not having the best day, give yourself a break! What you are doing by supporting conscious consumerism and supporting Kamea is so impactful.
So, be excited by the impact you're having and continue to create great things in the world!”
Podcast Sponsor:
Arbor Teas is a small, family-owned business based in Ann Arbor, Michigan with a big focus on sustainability. The company only sources loose leaf and organic certified teas, packages all its teas in backyard compostable materials, uses solar power in its operations, and offsets all of its emissions with CarbonFund. We’re grateful for our sponsors making our show possible and invite you to shop organic teas from Arbor Teas.
