Design a Space VS Major retailers

Why hello Summer, so glad you could join us? Do you hear the sarcasm? Should you be surprised? While the planet's heating up, we're also seeing abnormal weather patterns. Summer should have started 3 weeks ago but all we've experienced are flash floods and the occasional balmy nights. Nonetheless, my annual ritual to find the perfect Summer sandal was still on. I do luv Melissa shoes but being made from plastic it ain't so great in Summer. So I went on the search.

While wondering down Melbourne's famous laneways, I came cross Design a Space , a retail space whose aim is to provide high profile space for emerging Australian designers. I luv how it gives a platform for creative talent to showcase their passion the way they choose to, without succumbing to the pressures of major players. This is where I found my Summer sandals.

Admittedly, there's nothing really sustainable about these Jaci Bailey sandals, except that they're made from a natural fibre and that they will be my forever Summer shoes until they die (fingers crossed they last, well they ought to given the price I paid for them!). But I have this belief, that by supporting local designers who assumingly are small businesses, they are in a position to create and function sustainably. The catch 22 is that they might not have the funds to do so. But that's the challenge. To say it cost more to operate sustainably is a cop-out. As I see it, while large corporations have the money to implement a sustainable policy, the sad facts are that (1) it's rarely communicated to be truly effective, (2) it's a marketing grimick so as to keep up with the Jones and (3) employees don't care as at the end of the day they're just a name on the payroll. A small business on the hand, are in a stronger position to make a change and to see it through. Changing culture is difficult especially in a large context but changing it in a small controlled environment is promising. If you start your business "right" in the inital stages, you create a culture where there is an understanding on how it should be run. In larger organizations, what I've seen and this is not primarily on sustainability but with daily operations is the culture of "if it ain't broken, don't fix it". If it's already difficult to change this attitude for greater efficiency, imagine the challenge it must be to change attitude for sustainability.

Hence, I have faith in small businesses than in large corporations.