A note from Amy:

At this pivotal moment in time, I feel we are bearing witness to the evolution of humanity.

As I watch the heart breaking events, I ask myself how can I do better? What have I been blind to? How can we use our small business to humbly be of service now and forever?

As a former social worker and the founder of a socially conscious business I feel compelled to try my best to take concrete action to work towards ending systemic racism, economic inequality and to promote social justice. Sana Jardin is built on the principle that commerce can be used as a vehicle for social change and the economic empowerment of low income women. I now want to take that mission further and graciously transform from a community based social impact business to one that expands and amplifies a more globally inclusive focus. We believe in the power of business to help to create economic opportunities, equality and give people of all backgrounds the game changing importance of influence.

I have spent time reflecting and listening and have developed the following action plan:

1. Place more people of BIPOC origin on our Advisory Board in an effort to promote inclusion  
2. Develop an internship and mentoring program for people from low-income communities and people of BIPOC origin
3. We will continue to partner and collaborate with BIPOC brands that we feel are aligned with our brand and actively seek out like-minded black owned brands.
4. Although we are a small staff and not hiring at the moment due to COVID-19, we will more proactively seek out BIPOC job candidates
5. We will support charities we feel are important in fighting systemic racism. We have donated to MBK Alliance/Obama Foundation and will donate 20% of the profits from our websales for the month of June to 8 Can’t Wait and the NAACP
6. We are developing an employee volunteering program where we will volunteer as a way not only to help people,  but to develop greater awareness and empathy within ourselves towards those who have less privilege than we do
7. We have developed a Sana Jardin book club called “The Beyond Book Club” where all members of our team will meet regularly to discuss books, movies, and podcasts about race to focus on the inner work of racial justice 

A monumental paradigm shift is occurring and we aim to do all we can support this. We recognize that we have a lot too unlearn and to learn.  If you have any suggestions as to how we can be more impactful, empathetic and useful, I am all ears.

 

Sana Jardin Mentoring Programme:

Sana Jardin is committed to working towards social justice and economic inclusion for people from BIPOC backgrounds. 

As one of our first steps, we have developed a mentorship program for black founders and are now accepting applications. Although we are a young business, we want to do all we can to help elevate founders who face barriers to success caused by systemic racism and to assist them in giving them a wider foundation from which to grow and gain influence in their field.

The mentorship program will include:

 One on one time with our Founder, Amy Christiansen, to focus on strategy, communications, product development, sales and marketing/partnerships and introductions to key industry leaders. 

Support from relevant team members at Sana Jardin including social media, marketing, operations & PR.

 

Criteria include:

Black owned business that is UK or US-based.

Early Stage - must have a formal 3-year business plan and annual sales of  less than £200K.

Business focus on start-ups in the field of  beauty, sustainability, social consciousness, fashion, wellness or lifestyle.

To be considered, please email us at info@sanajardin.com to receive an application form.