Today we’re excited to be connecting with Garik Himebaugh again. We’re excited to feature one of their products in our gift guide – learn more below and we encourage you to use your gift budget to support small businesses & creatives whenever possible.

Garik, so thrilled to have you joining us again, this time to talk all about products and so let’s jump right in. Please give our audience some background on the product side.
Holiday Gift Guide roundup—we put together 50+ ethical gift ideas. By giving ethical and sustainable gifts you’re supporting living wages for makers, better environmental practices, and small businesses. Giving gifts with a positive story is more memorable. Share your values and your passion for sustainability with friends and family this holiday—you might just help them join the cause!

We put together this guide to help people vote with their wallet and make a positive impact in the world with their holiday shopping. We selected the gifts from our Certified Brands, which we research for Transparency, Sustainability, and Fair Labor. Only the best brands pass our certification, ensuring that when you vote with your wallet, it drives real change. Help your loved ones dress like they give a damn.

Do you remember the moment you realized the world needed this product?
We all wear clothes—every single day. But before I turned 25 I didn’t pay much attention to the clothes I put on my body. As long as I was reasonably presentable and didn’t stand out too much: great.

That all changed when I started my journey of self improvement. One of the things to improve: how I dressed. I wanted to look better, feel more confident, and fashion helped me do that.

Back then I was brand agnostic: H&M, Zara, or whatever brand was in the mall. I just wanted clothes that looked good and made me feel like myself. And so my love for fashion began.

I used to study outfits on Pinterest and create boards with my ideas. And in this way my style and my confidence grew rapidly.

Then I learned that fashion has a dark side. Well actually, first I learned that it has a good side. Let me explain…

At a summer flea market in Boston I spotted some boots that were stylish and made with impeccable craftsmanship. I asked the guy behind the table about them, and he shared that they’re handmade in Guatemala by workers paid living wages. Stylish and they made a difference in the world? Obviously I bought them.

Once I got home that night I started asking questions… why are living wages important? How many clothing makers earn living wages? What’s the environmental impact of fashion? And what is fast fashion?

This lead me to answers: 2% of clothing makers earn living wages, fast fashion has created a culture where > 50% of new clothes end up in the trash in less than one year, and 60% of clothes are made from fossil fuel fabrics like polyester.

Gone were my days of shopping Zara and H&M. I realized that these brands, and many others, are part of the problem. They’re part of a broken fashion system. And I didn’t want to support that system anymore with my dollars.

I wanted to look great (obviously) but do so only supporting brands that were changing the fashion system for the better. Brands like that shoe brand I had discovered: Adelante Made to Order.

I realized that in doing so, we have tremendous power. Obviously the fashion system is huge. And the problems are massive. It’s unfair and unjust and overwhelming.

But we’re not helpless. By changing how we shop we can literally change the world, starting with a broken fashion system.

Imagine: when you shop a brand that pays living wages, you’re supporting a brand that outperforms 98% of all fashion brands. That’s important! I realized that if I believe in the power I have, the power we all have, I could make a difference.

So I started building a wardrobe shopping only the most ethical and sustainable brands. And my style and my confidence continued to improve. Now I can say that the clothes I wear align with my beliefs and who I want to be in the world. They align with the person I aspire to be.

Later, I started Eco-Stylist to help others do the same. Because everyone can make a difference. And if we’re going to change fashion we need as many people as possible to support change in the fashion industry.

If you had to boil your product or brand down to one core message – what would that message be?
Dress like you give a damn.

What’s next on the product or brand roadmap?
We recently launched a new service that is breaking down the barriers people face to shopping sustainably. When interviewing our users they told me “Yes, your brand guide is helpful, but I still need to find clothes that are my style, my size, my price range, and ship to me!” So we launched a personal shopping subscription to help people overcome all of these challenges. It’s the easiest way to discover and shop sustainable clothing, and very accessible at just $25/mo.

Save time with personal shopping recommendations based on your size, style, & location. All from certified sustainable brands.Your stylist will curate ethical and sustainable shopping suggestions for you based on your unique style profile. There’s never a commitment to purchase clothes—only buy what you love!

How it works: sign up, take your style quiz, and receive personal shopping recommendations just for you in your email every month.