Being Beautifully Green

As the desire to be more "green" becomes a mainstream idea in today's culture, I'm seeing more and more very fashionable options that are still eco-friendly and animal-friendly. My biggest challenge in the past, as I'm sure it is with most, is the availability of these products and, frankly, the lack of style many of them had.

Toms shoes in general are kind of odd to me, but I did think the wrap boots were funky and fun in a Princess Leia-kind of way. But apart from that, not so much.

I have found a few other designers and companies that are doing beautiful pieces that I would buy even if they didn't carry the "green" label. olsen Haus is one of my new favorites and, although pricey, the Natalie Portman line at Te Casan (sadly no more although I did see some pieces on Gilt Group the other day).

I was looking online for other options and came across this site - EcoStiletto. Of course the title caught my attention at once.

So who are they? Well according to the site:

EcoStiletto features green picks in Fashion, Beauty, Parenting and the Good Life and explains, in real-girl terms, how eco-friendly choices can help turn your carbon footprint from a ginormous Ugg into an oh-so-slender Manolo.

We're not about guilt, we're about information. We're not about forcing you to change, we're about giving you alternatives. Because everyone wants to make a difference, but no one wants to give up the little things that we love. Making a difference doesn't have to mean making a huge change in your lifestyle. Sometimes it just means considering the alternatives.

Perfect, right? And what's even better is "Nobody pays to play on EcoStiletto; if there's an ad on our site, you'll recognize it as such."

Integrity and providing a great service. I'm kind of in love with them already.

But then they said this: Enter to Win Free Shoes.

Ummm, okay!

Each month they are giving away shoes worth $500 or more and this month is a pair of these amazing ankle boots from Beyond Skin (another great shoe line that I've always liked for their style and their philosophy).

The site talks about celebrities, fashion, beauty and kids. Pretty much a great clearinghouse for fashion and eco-friendly. What I also love is that they have a list of Things That Suck, which is a list of things to watch out for from animal testing to product ingredients. And they tell you why it is bad, not just give you a big long list.

So if you are looking for a way to add style and, oh yeah, be a little lighter on the earth, this is great resource. I need to go back to it myself and see if I can find a new eye cream...

The Price is Right?

A part of my job in Advertising and Marketing is to think about the perceived value of products and services for my clients. What are people willing to pay for something and what can I do to enhance the product and how is it positioned? The goal, of course, is to find that point on the cost curve where profit will be optimized. Price and production are a part of it but I also have to think about perception as well (oh yeah, place and promotion go into it too!).

If people don't think you product is worth what you are charging, then you will go out of business quite soon. Obviously that is why branding is such a huge issue to all of the luxury companies these days. If you pull that curtain aside, it can be difficult to tell some brand's products from other lower priced brands.

Most of the time I'm aware when I am being the object of a marketing campaign. But sometimes I feel the product is worth it. Or at least it is for me. At other times, there is no amount of branding that can push me to spend a single dollar.

Then there are those products that I like and would buy but my perceived value does not match up with the price tag shown. That's how I feel about Té Casan's shoes. They're cute. I like them. I'd buy about five pairs right now but I just don't feel they should be priced the way they are (JCrew's shoes are another one in this category).

Take the Natalie Portman Plath pumps. I think they are adorable. I love the pink. I love the purple. I love the pom-poms.



Cute, right? And vegan. They make me happy.



But I just can bring myself to spend almost $400 for them. Not sure why that is. In my mind they should be about $85. Maybe a hundred. But four hundred?

No.

The fact that they are out of my size and therefore unavailable to me does push them up the curve a bit, but still not $400.

I wonder if they did their focus groups.