Consumers actively support made in USA, Black-owned, women-owned, small businesses & cruelty-free businesses.
Consciously announced today that its browser extension has educated consumers on company policies, practices, and ethics over 100,000 times, helping consumers make more informed decisions while they shop. Users can customize the shopping assistant to get alerts on whether a brand is made in the USA, Black-owned, cruelty-free, women-owned, or a small business.
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Users simply choose which causes they care about, and then, when they view a product on Amazon or Whole Foods online, Consciously appears as a small box in the right-hand corner of their browser, letting the shopper know how the brand rates on the issues. It then recommends product alternatives if the product does not align with the consumer’s selected causes.
Consciously answers the demand from consumers for more information about company practices. Seven out of ten consumers are asking for more transparent and reliable information.1 In 2020, 92% of S&P companies disclosed their environmental, social, and governance information, compared to only 20% in 2013.2
“We created Consciously so that consumers could have quicker access to company policies and practices,” said Kim Pieper, the founder and CEO of Consciously. “Consumers don’t have time to do research while they shop. Plus, our users report it is extremely difficult to tell where a product is made and what practices a company is using without Consciously.”
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Along with educating consumers on business practices over 100,000 times, Consciously’s database features information on brand practices and ethics for nearly 10,000 companies. Their browser extension has helped thousands of consumers support Black-owned businesses to further racial equity, women-owned businesses to support gender equity, shop small businesses, and shop cruelty-free to defend animal rights.
Consciously has also assisted consumers in shopping Made in USA to help them choose products closer to home. Seventy-five percent of new sellers of Amazon’s products were made in China as of January 2021, an increase from 47% in January 2020.3 Consciously plans to expand to a number of other causes, including environmental causes and political giving, in time for the 2022 midterm elections.
“We hope that Consciously allows consumers to quickly vote with their dollar,” said Pieper. “A few small product swaps can make a massive difference.”