My Grandmother + Other People I Admire

Nov 22

November 22, 2023

Hi! This week will be a reflection on family, optimism and criticism and people I admire- yes, it’s all related.

My grandmother was a quiet person. It was very difficult to know what she felt or thought about something. As a child I didn’t question this, but as I got older and started to realize the world was full of all kinds of people (like my free-talking, sarcastic, Brooklyn-raised husband), I began to push her to tell me what she thought and to tell her what I thought. She was just about the kindest person anyone had ever met. She was allowing of almost anything. She was an art teacher, always believing in creativity and self expression, never judging - truly not caring in the best way- what you made. She had an outsize influence on her children and grandchildren, like me both from her presence and also the learned behavior she influenced into our whole family subconsciously.

I share this because it is related to a debate I’ve been having with myself about optimism and positivity versus criticism and negativity (or, as my frequent-debate partner on this says, ‘realism’ as in “I’m not being negative, I’m being realistic”). I see these dynamics play out within my network and my daily conversations, and I experience them myself as well. I have days and weeks that I feel like our whole system is entirely broken, that nothing can save us and we are all doomed, although I rarely share this and only with my closest confidants. I also go through times when I feel like there are people doing amazing things and I’m making real, positive impact, and those things of course I want to share as much as possible. Most of the time I experience both. I hold the pessimism on one shoulder and the optimism on the other and they balance each other out. In terms of what is shared out with the world, I believe that we already have so much bad news to contend with that I don’t want to add to that, and I naturally find myself wary of people who focus on what is wrong with the world.

The people who are actually doing it are where I get my biggest doses of inspiration- they are the people on my optimistic shoulder. They are not talking about it, they are making something, pushing it up a hill and they believe it is important and will have great impact. In many ways, they have to just put their heads down and keep going, ignoring everything else out there. They have to have a real vision for what they’re trying to create, and they have to trust themselves. Here are a few individuals that come to mind that fit this description and who I have immense respect for:

Eileen Fisher, the person. I worked for Eileen personally for 5 years and at her company for a total of 14 years. She clearly had and has a singular vision that enabled her to create a wildly successful and sustainable clothing line. Every time I pass an EILEEN FISHER, Inc store I am struck by how it still looks like no other brand. Eileen’s vision extends to a company that truly strives to treat it’s employees well, including gifting them shares of the company over their tenure. Looking back at my time there, I believe making employees owners is one of the most powerful gestures a company can make and I encourage ALL companies to do this whenever possible.
Dana Davis, Vice President of Sustainability, Product and Business Strategy at Mara Hoffman. I’ve known Dana for many years at this point and I am struck by how she is always working to make their product more sustainable. Many times they are the or one of the first movers on a sustainability trend, including using chemically recycled fibers. Mara Hoffman is not a huge company and they punch WAY above their weight in the sustainability department, I’m sure in large part thanks to Dana’s tireless efforts.
Genia Mineeva of BEEN London. Genia was a journalist before starting her own accessories company that only makes products out of waste materials (like waste from the leather business, pineapple leaves, apple skins and regenerated nylon). I am a little obsessed with the idea that using waste was the founding principle of the company and continues to be their guiding value today. I’m certain we will continue to see more brands adopting these practices (like Pangaia and Ganni) and more materials companies making new materials out of waste (like TomTex).
Dan Green of Helpsy. Dan is an economist and reformed Wall Street guy (my words) who is tackling the world of post-consumer textile collection and sortation. Ever since meeting him earlier this year I’ve remembered Helpsy’s two key values: “Clothes Aren’t Trash” and “Pay Living Wages”. Dan strikes me as someone who is dead serious about making an impact and is throwing 1000% of himself into his business to help not only with the issue of textile waste, but also to pay fair wages to Helpsy employees. Everyone at Helpsy has been incredibly transparent and open with me and I think that comes from leadership, both Dan and his co-founders.
Marianna Sachse of Jackalo. Marianna started a children’s clothing company to make clothes that last, clothes that are made to be repaired and clothes that are made to be resold and eventually recycled. Her intention from the start was a circular clothing company. As an advisor to her business, I’ve gotten a peak behind the curtain these past months and it has been invigorating to hear Marianna explore questions like “How can we make resale a significant part of our business?” and “What’s our in-person setup for repair?” Her business is growing and I love seeing circular business models baked in at the beginning. Watch out world!

My list could be about 100 people long, so I’ll stop there. I am grateful to each of these people for giving me a real-life example of how to accomplish something truly admirable despite the challenges.