Melissa Botelho
Founder & CEO,
Conscious Collective
Canadian companies can bolster their Environmental,
Social, and Governance (ESG) structure while also supporting the local community, through conscious corporate gifting.
Across the country, corporations are utilizing their power and platform to create a brighter future and promote positive values. Consumers and stakeholders encourage them to be socially responsible, prioritize sustainability, and give back to communities.
These social expectations are standard in today’s business world – and can directly impact a company’s market success. “The business’s ESG framework ensures their practices accurately reflect their values,” says Melissa Botelho, Founder and CEO of Conscious Collective. “A very effective way to promote the ‘social’ element is through conscious corporate gifts.”
Conscious Collective is dedicated to helping corporate leaders achieve ESG objectives and boost economic equality through gifting. The organization creates custom gift boxes that are made up of offerings from small, local, diversely led, sustainable, and ethical businesses.
Walk the talk
“Our corporate gifts are a great way for companies to communicate their brand values and improve stakeholder loyalty and reciprocity,” Melissa explains. “Plus, it’s a vehicle of social procurement – they can use their purchasing power to create positive social and environmental impacts, while sparking joy.” Businesses can select pre-curated packages or build a custom box to reflect their values.
Within the corporate social responsibility space, Conscious Collective stands out because of their established connections with unique, minority led businesses. They recognize that when many different voices are amplified and financially supported, it strengthens democracy. Conscious corporate gifts that support small, diversely-led businesses help generate economic equality and growth. They work with tons of exciting vendors, including Peace by Chocolate, Kebaonish Proudly Indigenous, Ethica Coffee Roasters, and hundreds of others.
They walk their talk each year, donating their time and profit to a charitable cause and inviting others to join in.
Achieving multiple goals
This year, Conscious Collective has partnered with the registered Canadian charity, Up With Women, an organization which provides a year-long coaching program for low-income women and gender-diverse individuals who are at risk of becoming homeless. Conscious Collective has put together over 350 holiday gift boxes for their clients to help inspire and empower them on their journey of building sustainable careers and exiting poverty permanently.
By donating towards the purchase of these gift boxes, corporations support both a preventative approach to homelessness as well as the small Canadian business vendors who are featured in the gift box.
The box contains goods from many vendors including Kotmo, a woman-owned business manufacturing the first recycled and recyclable pen in Canada; Kootenay Knit, a woman owned company producing ethically sourced knitwear; and PleaseNotes Goods, a black women-owned self-help and wellness business. You can see them all here.
“We make it easy for big companies to source their employee and client gifts from small local makers,” Melissa adds. “When they help others, they also help themselves.”
To donate to this campaign or learn more about Conscious Collective, Up With Women and the awesome small business vendors ready to make meaningful change for economic equality and sustainability, visit consciouscollective.io.
Conscious Collective only provides gifting services to organizations, not consumers.
