“Be the change you want to see in the world”
- Mahatma Gandhi
The future of the planet is in our hands and FLAME Alumni, Deepak Ramakrishna and Swayam Doshi have pledged to secure this future by bringing about a change in the way people shop. Co-founders of Suspire - Rewarding Sustainability, these geniuses have created an online marketplace for planet-conscious consumers by bringing them sustainable apparel, cosmetics, and accessories in exchange for a rewarding experience.
So, what gave birth to Suspire?
Talking to Deepak about what instigated the thought of Suspire, he informed that the insight came from the fact that countries that supply to fast fashion and cosmetic businesses are responsible for creating massive amounts of waste every year. Moreover, they use large quantities of water and contribute to increased packaging plastics in our landfills. Designed for wasteful and limited use, fast fashion may be temporary but the harm that it causes to the environment is permanent. And hence was born Suspire - a climate-conscious initiative trying to revolutionise shopping behaviours. “We believe that ecology and the environment have become critical aspects of modern luxury, and everyone should have an equal opportunity at this lifestyle,” said Deepak. Suspire brings together sustainable and climate-conscious brands, that are actively working towards making our planet more hospitable, and creating awareness about the same. Consumers are matched with these eco-friendly brands, thus helping them reach newer, more planet-conscious markets.
How exactly does Suspire work?
Deepak and Swayam realised early on that in order to bring about a lifestyle change, a consumer needs to be rewarded for going the extra mile in order to become a "conscious" or "eco-friendly" consumer. Therefore, they decided to make sustainable shopping a rewarding activity by making consumers a part of their transparent and straightforward loyalty programme that includes:
1 - Loyalty Points
2 - Impact Points
So, when a consumer shops consciously, Suspire rewards them!
Here’s how it works:
While Loyalty Points provide the consumer with a certain percentage of their order value back as cashback which can be used as discounts on future orders, Impact Points are a milestone-based system. Here, as and when a consumer earns the requisite points for a certain milestone, they are rewarded with a Tree or Coral Tile in their name, where the planting of these are carried out by their NGO partners like Trees - Bangalore and Coastal Impact - Goa.
The consumers can also monitor the progress of their saplings or coral on their Suspire account and can actually witness the impact of their purchase.
What makes Suspire sustainable?
In order to co-exist sustainably, Suspire is built on actions and decisions that are taken consciously. To reduce the environmental impact, this marketplace collaborates with apparel brands that use long-lasting, natural, and sustainable materials such as hemp, Tencel, linen, bamboo fabric, and piñatex — all of which are 100% biodegradable; and cosmetics brands that are cruelty-free and 100% vegan. Each of these brands is dedicated to creating timeless pieces that can be passed down for generations by focusing on less water-intensive growth, creating less CO2, and eliminating the use of microplastics.
Furthermore, along with being sustainable, Suspire also believes in the power of transparency and communicates very openly with their audiences about their intentions. They are all for creating a healthy community and a positive work culture for the labourers. So, they make sure that vendors refrain from engaging in unfair labour practices and provide the workers with fair wages and safe working conditions.
Everything that this duo does, is with a long-term view - constantly working towards nurturing a community that makes a lasting impact. They surely are driven by “Change” but they also know that it isn’t something that happens overnight. It requires adjustment, patience and belief, and this duo is all set to give their all in building a sustainable empire and a better tomorrow!
To know more about Suspire, go to: https://www.suspire.in/