Traditional retail corporations are defined by maximizing profit at the expense of all else – including human rights, child labour, fair wages, environmental degradation, pollution, excess waste, excess consumption, and consumers’ self image, especially women.
But we believe that in order to create a world that is more equitable, more responsible, more sustainable, more beautiful, we can – and must – do business differently.
A beatnik refers to someone who makes a conscientious choice to operate outside of traditional cultural norms.
At Beatnik, we embrace this notion of being a rebel, of challenging the status quo, of forging a path towards a more conscientious way to conduct business. We want to find ways to pick an entire bouquet of flowers with one hand – to work collaboratively and collectively to amplify the abundance of our yoga community, to provide professional yoga teachers an opportunity to generate added income, to support and promote brands who also care passionately about changing the world.
Our Values
EQUITABLE: We believe that people deserve fair wages for the work they do, and to work under safe, regulated conditions at all times. We believe that kids should be in school, not in sweatshops.
RESPONSIBLE: We believe that the consumer choices we make have an impact on our communities and our world. As such, we must be responsible for how we choose to spend our money whenever possible and within our means – to opt for quality over quantity, to opt for the most ethically-sourced and -produced, sustainable materials we can afford, to support local and global brands that are devoted to making the world a better place.
SUSTAINABLE: We know that the fast fashion industry is one of the most prolific sources of pollution and waste. We choose to showcase brands made primarily from materials that are free from toxic dyes and chemicals, or upcycled from pre-market waste or post-consumer products. We also advocate for the use of alternative products to single-use containers that contribute to the staggering amount of waste and pollution in our landfills, waterways, and oceans.
BEAUTIFUL: No one says it better than Rumi: “Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.” We believe that we all deserve to be surrounded by beauty – to create it, to live it, to embrace it, to embody it, to define it for ourselves.