Keywords

Introduction

The fashion industry contributes $2.4 trillion to global manufacturing and employs about 60 million people worldwide, mostly women (UN Alliance for Sustainable Fashion, 2020). In Latin America, the industry represents around 10% of the worldwide market (Hecho x Nosotros, 2020). In this region, there is environmental degradation (ECLAC, 2018), about 30% of the population is living in poverty (ECLAC, 2019).

Latin America is formed by diverse countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, which are considered emerging markets (MSCI, 2020). For these markets, Brazil and Mexico represent the biggest markets for the fashion industry (Hecho x Nosotros, 2020). Sustainability has been an important issue for consumers, especially for the new generations, who are socially and environmentally conscious and expect that fashion brands to be more ethical, transparent, and sustainable (Gazzola et al., 2020; Kaur et al., 2022), and the Latin American market is not the exception. There is a potential for sustainable fashion through high-quality raw materials, connection with nature, culture, textile traditions, the use of technology, and the local economy’s reinforcement (Hecho x Nosotros, 2020). Thus, this chapter aims to explore the adoption of sustainability initiatives in the fashion industry in Mexico through the case of a Mexican BCorp, Someone Somewhere, which is a native digital firm targeting millennials with social consciousness (Google Ads, 2021).

This chapter is structured as follows. The use of social media within the fashion industry will be presented. It is followed by an exposition of methodology and the case of Someone Somewhere, after which there will be a discussion on the firm balances purpose and profit (B Lab, 2020a) and uses of social media and e-commerce to increase the impact of sustainable fashion. All this shall be rounded up by a conclusion.

Social Media in the Fashion Industry

Marketing focuses on creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offers that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large (AMA, 2020). To satisfy consumers’ needs, fashion firms need to use new social media channels: “Attention-grabbing content will be key, deployed on the right platform for each market, using persuasive calls-to-action and, wherever possible, a seamless link to checkout” (BOF and McKinsey & Company, 2020a, p. 16). According to Damian (2017), a business involved in social media would understand its consumers by finding out people’s interests and insights to give them helpful information and content. “Content in the form of a constant stream of up-to-date material on a website, Twitter feed, Facebook, Instagram … is now essential marketing currency” (Posner, 2015, p. 29).

Social media platforms are useful marketing tools to get engagement with consumers, nurture a positive attitude towards the firm’s brands (Damian, 2017), and gain traffic and brand exposure (Dodson, 2016).

Digitization continues in the fashion industry (BOF and McKinsey & Company, 2020a). Digital platforms and digital marketing strategies are present in the fashion market. New brands emerge through e-commerce platforms while consumers continue buying online fashion-related products. One of the trends in e-commerce is the use of social media platforms (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) for social interactions and to assist in the sale and purchase of online products (Gazzola et al., 2020). “Social media allows the creation of brand awareness faster than by traditional channels” (Ahmad et al., 2015, p. 2). Also, social media fosters fashion marketing through customer service and creative advertising (Kim & Kim, 2020). Fashion firms need to improve their customer experience through marketing and digital promotion (Gazzola et al., 2020; Mogaji et al., 2022; Mukonza et al., 2021).

With the introduction of new technologies and the use of social media, it became necessary to have a real integration between the different marketing channels (Piotrowicz & Cuthbertson, 2014) to promote and deliver positive consumer experiences (Gundlach et al., 2006) and to be competitive in the marketplace (Salmani et al., 2018). The borders of the different channels begin to disappear; thus, an omnichannel emerges by integrating customer, brand, and retail channel interactions to create a seamless retail experience. Under this omnichannel context, firms need to manage the store, website, direct marketing, mobile channels (i.e., tablets, apps, smartphones), social media, and other customer touchpoints such as mass communication channels (i.e., TV, radio) (Verhoef et al., 2015).

Strong brands that are able to compete successfully in the market today are characterised by rapid growth, social media influence, and e-commerce focused distribution. (Gazzola et al., 2020, p. 4)

Sustainability in the Fashion Industry

Sustainability is an essential issue in the academic and business arena. On the one hand, scholars have established that although it comes from sustainable development, “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (WCED, 1987, p. 43, cited in Bansal, 2005, p. 197) is a macro concept. On the other hand, firms have a crucial role in the sustainable development of countries (Elkington, 1994; Bansal, 2002), as such corporate sustainability is a concept used at the organizational level.

For this chapter, corporate sustainability is understood as meeting the needs of the stakeholders in the short term without compromising the needs of the stakeholders in the long term (Dyllick & Hockerts, 2002), considering economic, social, and environmental issues (Elkington, 1998; Hart & Milstein, 2003). Corporate sustainability has moved to create shared value, which leads to consumer engagement in positive behaviour change (Kim & Kim, 2020).

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a new business mindset: “[B]rands that are able to reorient their missions and business models in more sustainable ways will be able to cater for a more captive audience than ever before” (BOF and McKinsey & Company, 2020b, p. 19). When firms implement sustainability initiatives, they incorporate ethics in business activities and create value for their stakeholders (Székely & Knirsch, 2005). They are also making efforts to improve social conditions (e.g., creating jobs) and environmental welfare (Sharma 2003, cited in Linnenluecke & Griffiths, 2010).

Consumers are more conscious about sustainability as well as businesses (BzRitch, 2015). For example, Gen Z and millennial shoppers are more concerned with sustainability (BOF and McKinsey & Company 2020b; Gazzola et al., 2020). In 2020, during the pandemic, consumers looked for purpose-driven brands and sustainable fashion (Bianchi et al., 2020). Thus, firms need to make changes to move towards sustainability (BOF and McKinsey & Company, 2020a): “Sustainability will become a minimum requirement. Brands must ensure that they operate in ways that are environmentally and socially responsible” (Bianchi et al., 2020, para. 11).

Sustainable Fashion

Fast fashion has increased consumption, negative social impacts, and adverse environmental effects (Todeschini et al., 2017). For example, there is a lack of better working conditions in supply chains, high water usage, the use of incineration to dispose of unsold clothes (Pal & Gander, 2018), and the absence of using raw materials considering its full recycling (ECAP, 2019, cited in Claxton & Kent, 2020). Thus, sustainable fashion emerged to deal with these negative issues (Mukendi et al., 2019). However, there is no industry standard, so it is impossible to find a single definition. Different terms have been used to refer to sustainable fashion, such as ethical, eco, green, and slow fashion (Mukendi et al., 2019; Lundblad & Davies, 2016).

Sustainable fashion represents “the variety of means by which a fashion item or behaviour could be perceived to be more sustainable, including (but not limited to) environmental and social impact, as well as, slow fashion, reuse, recycling, cruelty-free, anti-consumption and production practices” (Mukendi et al., 2019, para. 3).

Slow fashion focuses on diversity, small- to medium-scale production, local materials, traditional techniques, pricing relative to social and ecological costs, mutual trust, and a connection with its impacts (Fletcher & Grose, 2012).

Fletcher and Grose (2012) suggest opportunity areas in the fashion industry towards sustainable fashion, for example, a design that looks to solve social and environmental issues, collaborative work, use of local materials, accessible and eco-friendly processes, and working together with others for positive social changes. The scale of fashion production in sustainable fashion is related to the community’s capacity to monitor its impacts (i.e., social and environmental) and its cultural benefits. “Commerce will still act as the driver, but success will be measured in social, cultural and environmental value” (p. 174).

BCorps and Sustainable Fashion

The B Corporation (BCorp) model is a new business model for sustainability, integrating social and environmental aspects (or just one of them) into the core business (Stubbs, 2019; Nguyen & Mogaji, 2021a). It makes profits considering social and ecological impacts (Hiller, 2013), and it contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (Schaltegger et al., 2016; Nguyen & Mogaji, 2021b). The SDGs on the other hand are the latest framework created to end poverty and hunger, protect the environment against climate change, preserve all individuals’ human dignity, and promote peace (United Nations General Assembly, 2015).

BLab certifies BCorps (Honeyman & Jana, 2019). BLab is a non-profit organization from the United States (Tabares, n.d.), which acts as a certifying body and gives access to a global community of BCorps. BCorp certification creates the distinction between “good companies and just good marketing” (Honeyman & Jana, 2019, p. 25). This certification evaluates the entire firm and its practices, such as worker engagement, community involvement, the environmental footprint, the governance structure, and customer relationships (Honeyman & Jana, 2019).

The BCorp movement emerged in the United States, but it spread worldwide. For example, a BLab global partner, Sistema B, is located in Latin America. Sistema B was established in 2012 and included Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Colombia (Honeyman & Jana, 2019). In 2016, Sistema B had presence in Mexico, and in 2018, it was in ten Latin American countries (Najera, 2018). There are around 624 BCorps in Latin America, and 64 are from Mexico (Garcia, 2020). Two of them focus on apparel, footwear, and the accessories industry. This chapter focuses on one of them and illustrates how BCorps can be part of sustainable fashion industry.

Methodology

This chapter follows a case study research strategy (Eisenhardt, 1989). The case focuses on a Mexican-certified BCorp, because it provides the context to explore an innovative sustainable business model that looks for social change and uses marketing tools (i.e., social media) to increase the impact of sustainable fashion (Mukendi et al., 2019) in an emerging economy. Secondary data support the present analysis (Godoy, 1995). Information was gathered between September and November 2020 from online sources such as newspapers (online versions), press releases, publications from different organizations, the firm’s website and reports available online, and social media. Someone Somewhere was chosen through purposeful sampling (Marshall, 1996), considering it is an example of a Mexican BCorp which focuses on sustainable fashion. This case provides insights into the development of an innovative social business model which includes digital channels and e-commerce to target millennials with social consciousness.

Someone Somewhere: The Mexican Case of a BCorp

Mexico and Sustainable Fashion

Mexico is in the Americas, in the North America region. It shares a northern border with the United States and a southern border with Belize and Guatemala. It is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and the Mexican Gulf (Nationsonline, 1998–2020). According to the World Bank, Mexico has a land area of 1,943,950 square kilometres (Trading Economics, 2020a), with a population of about 125.3 million (OECD, n.d.) and a GDP of US $10,275.63 per capita (Trading Economics, 2020b). Poverty and inequalities are prevalent in the country. There is a need for greater equality of opportunities for women and indigenous people to address high well-being disparities (OECD, 2019).

Mexico’s strategic location, its emerging market status, the 7% average annual growth of the fashion market, the young consumers, and the e-commerce boom which made about 17.6 billion in sales by 2020, make the country attractive for the fashion industry (Peretto & Sadlak, 2019).

In Mexico, fashion is the tenth most important industry for the economy (ProMexico, 2020). In 2019, the textile and clothing industry contributed to 3.2% of the manufacturing industries’ GDP. The textile industry is concentrated in Mexico State, Puebla, Hidalgo, Mexico City, and Guanajuato, while the clothing industry is concentrated in Mexico City, Mexico State, Puebla, Jalisco, and Guanajuato (INEGI, 2020). In 2018, it employed around 500,000 people, mostly women (Fashion Revolution, n.d.). In 2020, this suffered a considerable reduction in the pandemic context (CANAINTEX, 2020).

Sustainable fashion is a growing niche, and it is positioning in Mexico through the development of innovative initiatives towards sustainability (Dannemann, 2020). For example, there are efforts to expose and value the artisans’ work with textiles developed by indigenous people. There are platforms, such as Ethical Fashion Space, whose purpose is to create connections between consumers, academia, and government. Others, such as the Fashion Revolution, work to develop conscious consumers, support local producers, and make decent working conditions (Dannemann, 2020).

National designers and national firms move to sustainable fashion to have a fair, transparent, human, and eco-friendly industry. For example, Bamboo Life manufactures sunglasses made of wood and bamboo. CANCINO, Lydia Lavín, Eilean Brand, and Armando Takeda use organic fibres and eco-friendly materials in their creations; Caralarga manufactures jewellery with cotton and other natural materials. Carla Fernandez uses cotton, leather, and natural fibres in her designs. Someone Somewhere works with 150 artisans who obtained 30% of T-shirts’ sales, backpacks, and other products (Aguilar, 2020).

There are 10 million artisans in Mexico; 54.5% are poor, and 17.7% are extremely poor. Also, there is a lack of value in their production processes and their cultural value. In some cases, they have difficulties in accessing materials of good quality. They are not aligned with fashion trends, and their distribution channels are not efficient. Some Mexican artisans have informal jobs, and there is a lack of connection between the new generations and their indigenous roots (Someone Somewhere, 2018).

Someone Somewhere’s Profile

Someone Somewhere combines artisanal handcrafts with innovative products and distribution channels to reach the millennial market in Mexico and the United States (B Lab, 2020b). Between 2008 and 2010, a group of friends—José Antonio Nuño, Enrique Rodríguez, Fátima Álvarez, and José Miguel Cruz y Celis—used to work with marginalized Mexican communities as part of their mission group’s activities. At that time, they began their bachelor’s at Tecnológico de Monterey, a private university in Mexico. They agreed that they wanted to do something for Mexico (Resnik, 2016).

In 2011, Flor the Mayo emerged as a combination of artisan handcrafts and shirts. Flor de Mayo started operations with its relationship with five artisans from Naucalpan and Puebla. This group of friends, under Flor de Mayo, started to sell shirts to their friends. In 2014, they changed the product from shirts to T-shirts to reach the millennial market. They began to work with 25 artisans from Maseual Siamej, a cooperative in Cuetzalan, Puebla (Resnik, 2016). In 2015, Flor de Mayo received support from the National Entrepreneur Institute, which was closed down by the current Mexican government. Flor de Mayo worked to connect 7 million Mexican artisans with millennials (Resnik, 2016). A year later, the firm received support from Promotora Social Mexico, which is an organization that makes social impact investments in initiatives that seek an improvement in the quality of life of marginal communities in society (Promotora Social Mexico, 2020), In 2016, Flor the Mayo started to work with communities from Puebla, Oaxaca, and Chiapas. Based on their knowledge, each community focuses on different fabrics and embroidery for the firm’s products. Flor de Mayo designed its first product line and changed it to enter in the United States. As a result, Someone Somewhere emerged in April 2016 (Resnik, 2016).

Someone Somewhere launched a campaign on the Kickstarter online platform. The purpose was twofold: to create brand awareness and get economical support for the project to encourage consumers to pre-order Someone Somewhere products, and to showcase its product line in a pop-up showroom in its offices in Mexico City (Resnik, 2016). According to Enrique Rodríguez (co-founder of Someone Somewhere), he and his partners understood that they need to develop a social business model to work together with artisans and to develop scalable production. This social business model considers artisan production integrated with contemporary design, supply chain, the ability to own digital channels to connect with consumers, data-driven strategies, e-commerce platforms, and social impact aligned with business growth so “that it strengthens our values, so that our customers can remain engaged and proud to wear our products every day” (Rodriguez, 2020).

Someone Somewhere became a BCorp in 2017 (B Lab, 2020b), “becoming a BCorp certified company was the first step forward in assuring our commitment to track and improve our social and environmental impact” (Rodríguez, 2020). Someone Somewhere presents itself as a BCorp on its website. Accordingly, there is the certified BCorp logo at the bottom of the home page, as well as its actual impact report. In 2021, a Facebook post to share its commitment to zero emissions in 2030 served as another way of communicating its BCorp status to consumers who purchase its products. Someone Somewhere includes a card where it mentions that it is a BCorp, which guarantees that your purchase contributes to the development and economic well-being of artisans, designers, and producers.

In 2018, it received the Best for the World honour in the community impact area by BLab. This annual recognition is for top-performing certified BCorps in each impact area (B Lab, 2020b). It works with 180 artisans from five of the poorest states in Mexico: Puebla, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Hidalgo, and Mexico. Ninety-eight per cent of the artisans are women (Someone Somewhere, 2019a).

Someone Somewhere’s mission is to “contribute to the well-being of artisan communities through the generation of fair and constant employment besides promoting the preservation of millenary traditions through durable goods” (Someone Somewhere, 2018, p. 4). Its objectives are threefold: local brand awareness and global presence, value-added creation and integration of handcrafts in new markets, and access to millennial market through digital marketing (Google, 2018).

The Marketing Mix

Product

Someone Somewhere offers backpacks and accessories such as cases, tote bags, caps, masks, mini-wallets, and laptop cases. Also, it sells products for men, such as T-shirts, hoodies, and jackets. For women, it sells the same products as those offered for men, but adds a dress (Someone Somewhere, 2019a).

The type of handcraft developed by artisans is dependent on the product. For example, Puebla’s artisans work with embroidery for T-shirts. Chiapas’ artisans produce embroidery for caps, while Oaxaca’s artisans focus on travel products (Resnik, 2016). Label extraordinarily communicates the artisanal handcraft. The name of the brand is represented in the label. In Someone Somewhere, the product has the name of the artisan who developed the product. In Someone Somewhere, the artisan who created the embroidery for each specific product writes the name of the community where he or she belongs to (Someone Somewhere, 2019b; Resnik, 2016).

Price

The price of the products varies according to the type of products. For example, hoodies are around $50, T-shirts are $24.50, and backpacks are between $44.50 and $64.50. Also, the firm offers sales promotions and free shipping over $44.50 for the Mexican market (Someone Somewhere, 2020). In addition, it provides discounts for the US market (Someone Somewhere, 2020).

Supply Chain and Distribution Channels

Someone Somewhere’s design team visits indigenous artisan communities in which it wants to work. The purpose is to create together with local artisans the products for the Mexican and foreign markets. The artisans develop samples of their design proposals for the Someone Somewhere team to approve. Then, the artisans’ community organizes to produce the agreed number of pieces in a specific time. Someone Somewhere’s founders choose a leader for the artisans’ community. She must have particular characteristics, such as decision-making and literacy skills (Resnik, 2016). Artisans send their embroideries to Someone Somewhere’s workshops, where they are assembled into the final products. Later, the final products are sent to different sales points (Resnik, 2016).

Artisans’ payment is by hour and by square centimetre (Resnik, 2016). However, Someone Somewhere worked during 2019 to develop a model for fair wages across its value chain, which estimates the payment per hour according to her/his regional and familial situation to contribute to the family income (Someone Somewhere, 2018).

This work with the artisans has impacted them by increasing average income per artisan by 36% and an economic spill of around $37,500 in the different communities where Someone Somewhere works. Also, artisans receive a constant income, financial independence, empowerment, the building of support networks, and the revalue of their culture due to their relationship with Mexican BCorp (Someone Somewhere, 2018).

Someone Somewhere, together with the Public Entrepreneur Community for Artisan Impulse, developed a tax proposal that wants to promote, together with the actual government, the incorporation of artisans in a formal economy in a fairer scheme. Furthermore, this BCorp offers workshops for artisans and work in research projects aligned with Mexican artisans’ communities’ growth (Someone Somewhere, 2018).

Someone Somewhere has three physical stores in Mexico City: Condesa, Santa Fe, and Roma Norte (Someone Somewhere, 2019c). Also, it has its e-commerce platform for the Mexican market (Someone Somewhere, 2019b) and the US market (Someone Somewhere, 2020). E-commerce offers a better experience to its customers while contributing to the development of a more conscious society regarding its consumption behaviour and its impacts on the planet (Someone Somewhere, 2018).

Someone Somewhere and Its Online Presence

When fashion brands combine traditional channels with online channels, their online presence facilitates the connection with millennials, the exchange of content between brands and consumers, and the development of online fashion communities (Halel et al., 2018).

Website

In online context, consumers evaluate products through design elements (i.e., website) (Cachero-Martínez & Vázquez-Casielles, 2021; Bleier et al., 2019). Thus, retailers need to offer a shopping experience through aspects that they can control, such as web design (Cachero-Martínez & Vázquez-Casielles, 2021), to provide consumers with helpful information (Lim and Ting 2012, cited in Bleier et al., 2019), such as product features and description, return policy information, pictures, videos, expert endorsement, and customer reviews (Bleier et al., 2019). The Mexican website includes different menus such as backpacks, men, women, accessories, for business, in stores, and the shopping cart. The first four menus show the product lines of the BCorp and the prices for each product. The business menu invites firms to buy their corporate gifts with Someone Somewhere. In stores menu, consumers find the location of the three physical stores in Mexico City (Someone Somewhere, 2019c). At the bottom of the website, visitors find the return policy, frequently asked questions, the B Impact report of 2018, contact, WhatsApp, and the different social media in which Someone Somewhere has presence, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Also, there is the certified BCorp logo as well as Made in Mexico label (Someone Somewhere, 2019b), which represent expert endorsement according to Bleier et al. (2019). Someone Somewhere does not have product videos, customer star ratings, and recommendations.

Social Media Presence

Digital presence is crucial to gain loyalty, allow customers to connect with the brand, and maintain customer engagement. That notwithstanding, it is useful to keep the updated operation of stores on the firm’s website (APPICAPS, 2020).

Facebook

Someone Somewhere created its Facebook page in 2012, and it has around 91,000 likes and about 92,000 followers. Every day, the firm posts a message regarding its products and its new innovations, the role of artisans in co-design, sales promotions, artisans’ day, and news related with the firm such as stories of some of the artisans through pictures or short videos. Posted images, which include products and artisans’ work, are the same as those published on Instagram; however, they add information about the firm and its purpose. It is possible to redirect Facebook users to Someone Somewhere’s website for online purchases (Someone Somewhere Mx, 2020a). Some posts are shared by followers. There are positive comments regarding how consumers’ love Someone Somewhere’s designs, some questions regarding prices, and some negative comments which include complaints, such as (a) the quality of the products, for example: “It is awful that you do not include reviews just because you don’t get 5 stars. Your hoddie needs more embroidery and it not good for cold weather” (Tania Fernanda, 2020); (b) some followers mention that the firm takes advantage of Mexican artisans; and (c) some followers disagree with the name in English rather than in Spanish.

It is important to mention that Someone Somewhere always answers in a very polite way to its followers and invites them to know the brand better in order to understand its purpose and its commitment with Mexican artisans. Also, it aims to consider all customers’ suggestions to improve its designs and operations. Looking in Facebook for posts regarding the fact that Someone Somewhere is a BCorp, there is just one post on January 2021 that mentions that the firm is part of B system and focuses on its commitment to achieve zero emissions in 2030 (Someone Somewhere Mx, 2020b). This is the only one found to mention that the firm is a BCorp indirectly.

Twitter

Someone Somewhere joined Twitter on May 2018. It has 499 followers. It makes weekly publications promoting its products and sharing news about the firm and its productions processes developed by artisans (Someone Somewhere, n.d.-a). It retweeted news regarding the firm published in Google Ads (2021) and other tweets posted by Mexican social enterprises. It launched surveys in order to know if its followers know the conditions of poverty of Mexican artisans. These surveys allow the firm to have interaction with their followers. Also, there are a few tweets and comments of consumers who share their experience buying products from Someone Somewhere. A customer expressed her disappointment because she did not receive her products, and the firm answered that it is working to solve this situation. The majority of the posts published on Twitter do not have any comments. This represents an opportunity area for the firm in order to establish more engagement and connections with its followers in this platform.

Instagram

On Instagram, Someone Somewhere has about 782 publications and 58,200 followers as on November 28, 2020. Its page mentions that it is a BCorp and also includes its mission “to lift millions of rural artisans out of poverty” (Someone somewhere.mx, n.d.). Its posts are about artisans elaborating clothes, Mexican traditions such as Day of the Dead, and promoting its products. It includes a link to the firm’s website for online shopping (Someonesomewhere.mx, n.d.). Some of the comments of the followers are related to their like of the collections, questions regarding prices, and some reviews regarding the new product launched during the pandemic, such as facemasks: “We bought some facemasks. They are nice, but they are extremely uncomfortable” (diego.mma, September 3, 2021).

YouTube

Someone Somewhere has 812 subscribers and about 28 videos which show the firm and some news related to it, its mission, artisan techniques, and its products (Someone Somewhere, n.d.-b).

Having its own digital channels is part of the social business model developed by the founders of Someone Somewhere, because they understood that by using social media they would reach and engage its target: millennials with a social consciousness.

Discussion

Fashion connects people (i.e., designers, producers, retailers, and consumers) and disseminates culture associated with clothes (Fletcher & Grose, 2012; Nguyen & Mogaji, 2022b). It is showed by Someone Somewhere, which seeks to connect Mexican artisans and their culture to the millennial market. In fashion experience, there are little extras that make a difference. The physical evidence (i.e., packaging, business cards, carrier bags, in-store décor, content and usage of digital media, e-commerce platforms) is crucial for differentiation (Posner, 2015). Someone Somewhere understands this issue and uses its label with the artisan’s name and community embroidered by her as a persuasive element that adds value to the firm, enhances customer perception of the Someone Somewhere brand, and positions the firm in the hearts and minds of its consumers.

The crisis originated by the COVID-19 pandemic has changed people’s behaviour: “bifurcated spending, accelerated adoption of e-commerce, and increased demand for purpose-driven brands and sustainable fashion” (Bianchi et al., 2020, para. 2). As a result, digital commerce could increase from 35% to 55% of total sales, but online and digital purchases are influenced by digital means, such as mobile and social media (Bianchi et al., 2020; Gökerik et al., 2018).

The new normal calls for a reshaping of the fashion industry. Fashion firms need to shift to digital presence (Mogaji, 2021). Someone Somewhere adopted e-commerce and digital tools to offer value-added services to its customers. This BCorp uses multiple marketing channels such as brick and mortar stores and online sales. However, it needs to move towards a more integrated experience through omnichannel strategy, because, currently, customers expect more: intuitive online shopping experience, fast deliveries, and individualized forms of communication (Bianchi et al., 2020).

Consumers demand purpose-driven firms and sustainable fashion (Bianchi et al., 2020; Nguyen & Mogaji, 2022a). Someone Somewhere fulfils this requirement, because it is working with artisans from the poorest states in Mexico and uses fair trade to allow them to improve their well-being. This process produces economic and social impacts because the lives of artisans are enriched through the satisfaction of economic needs in their marginal communities (Fletcher & Grose, 2012). Also, it rescues local production and promotes responsible consumption (Dannemann, 2020). Someone Somewhere co-designs its products together with the artisans. This collaboration favours the human touch, “where knowing the effect of trade on producer, region, and community is integral into decisions made in the development of the products” (Fletcher & Grose, 2012, p. 110).

Corporate sustainability has three dimensions. For example, economic sustainability could be achieved by buying from local suppliers to support local economic development. Environmental sustainability looks for minimizing adverse environmental impacts, and the social dimension includes decent working conditions (Camacho & Vázquez-Maguirre, 2016). Based on these dimensions of sustainability, Someone Somewhere achieved economic sustainability through the creation of job opportunities in the artisanal communities. Also, it focuses on the social dimension of sustainability because its mission is to contribute to the well-being of artisan communities through the creation of fair employment. After analysing Someone Somewhere’s B impact report, environmental impact is the one with the lowest score (BLab, 2020b). This score suggests that the environmental dimension of sustainability could be an opportunity area for this BCorp.

Being a certified BCorp, social and environmental impacts are part of the core business of Someone Somewhere. It contributes to SDG 1 (no poverty) through its work with artisans, which helps them to improve their quality of life; SDG 5 (gender equality) because Someone Somewhere promotes the participation of women in economic activities that will improve their well-being and their community, as well as SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth) through the payment of a fair wage to the artisans for their creations. Someone Somewhere also contributes to SDG 10 (reduced inequalities) with its work with artisans’ communities from the poorest states in Mexico. In addition to this, and as a result of its collaboration with Cubo and Bitácora Social to understand the needs of its stakeholders in its value chain, and its alliances with Promotora Social Mexico, GBM, Unreasonable, We Work, Sistema B, Somos Via, Universidad Iberoamericana Ciudad de México, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Universidad LaSalle, Malacate and Amarella, Someone Somewhere contributes to SDG 17 (partnerships for the goals) (Someone Somewhere, 2018, 2019b).

Conclusion

In Mexico, there are innovative initiatives in the fashion industry that show the presence and development of sustainable fashion. The Someone Somewhere case exemplifies the connection with culture and textile traditions, as well as the improvement of the local economy of the artisans’ communities in the poorest states of Mexico.

This case illustrates the combination of the BCorp and the use of marketing to increase the impact of sustainable fashion (Mukendi et al., 2019). On the one hand, the BCorp model is an innovative sustainable business model which introduces sustainability in its core business and processes (Stubbs, 2019). Also, it captures economic value by delivering social/environmental benefits and superior customer value (Stubbs, 2017). Someone Somewhere focuses on economic and social sustainability dimensions through its efforts to improve artisans’ communities’ well-being with the payment of fair wages for their embroideries. It will be interesting to see how this BCorp introduces innovations to improve its environmental performance, such as the agreement made with B system to achieve zero emissions in 2030. Furthermore, Someone Somewhere contributes to the following Sustainable Development Goals (n.d.): 1, 5, 8, 10, and 17.

On the other hand, Someone Somewhere uses its label as physical evidence to differentiate its brand. Its target market is the millennials. Thus, it uses digital tools, such as social media (i.e., Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube), to reach them. Through its multiple channels (i.e., brick and mortar and e-commerce), this BCorp connects with millennials in Mexico and the US market. One opportunity area is omnichannel marketing to create consistent and seamless customer experience by the integration of its multiple channels (Kotler et al., 2017).

This chapter contributes to the extension of fashion marketing literature from a sustainability perspective in emerging markets (Brooksworth et al., 2022a, 2022b), exploring the combination of an innovative sustainable business model, such as the BCorp model, which is used as an assurance of the commitment of Someone Somewhere to artisans and their development, with the use of e-commerce and social media to increase the impact of the brand in the fashion industry.