How to make your child’s birthday party environmentally and socially responsible: An interview with the founders of ECHOage

November 11, 2011 . The eleventh installment in our on-going Leaders of Sustainability series of interviews with executives and entrepreneurs of sustainability-minded business is with Debbie Zinman and Alison Smith, Co-Founders of ECHOage. ECHOage was created to help concerned parents turn their child’s birthday party into an environmentally respectful and socially mindful celebration.

As always, our hope is that entrepreneurs and business leaders of sustainability-focused businesses will find this series helpful and instructive in growing their businesses and dealing with both the challenges and opportunities facing small business trying to make a profit at the same time reducing their impact on the environment.

I spoke to Debbie and Alison from their offices located in Toronto, Ontario.

Justin:  Thanks for taking the time to speak with us today. Before we delve into ECHOage, can each of you please tell us a little bit more about yourself and your career prior to co-founding ECHOage?

Debbie:  Sure. I am a high school teacher by training and I have a background in social science research. I am familiar with mothers and their specific needs and desires because I had the pleasure of co-running the Moms2B Seminars which caters to the specific needs of women pregnant with their first child.

Alison:  My background is in marketing and communication, which I did exclusively for a number of years before starting my own business in children’s clothing and furniture.

Justin:  At what point did the two of you have that “a-ha” moment and decide to come together and create ECHOage?

Debbie:  It’s an interesting story.

Since Alison and I have children that are around the same ages, we often found ourselves attending the same events. One afternoon, while attending a child’s music class, we started talking and a friendship began.

A few months later, my daughter and I were attending a birthday party for Alison’s son. As children arrived at the party, Alison and I noticed the same thing. They were not involved in the process of giving the gift; it was actually the parent handing the gift to the parent that was hosting the party. It wasn’t a child focused activity. Just as significant was that, after the party, there wasn’t an interest or a focus on the gifts either.

As Alison and I attended more children’s birthday parties over the coming month, we noticed the same thing over and over again.  The process of giving and receiving birthday gifts was an activity more centered on the adult than the child. We also quickly realized that so much of the meaning, the purpose, of gift giving at a child’s party had been lost; children were simply not enjoying it as much as they should, and that the excitement rarely lasted longer than it took for a child to open a gift.

We thought the gift giving, and receiving, experience could be greatly improved for everyone involved. We realized that there could be something done for parents, for the environment, for children, and for charity, if the ritual of bringing gifts to birthday parties was altered slightly. It was at this point we had our “a-ha” moment, and dedicated ourselves to building something that would really make a difference in people’s life.

Justin:  Now, ECHOage is an online service that makes children’s birthday parties more environmentally friendly. Can you please tell us how ECHOage works?

Debbie:  Absolutely. To begin with, with ECHOage, you do not send out any paper invitations – everything is done online. Next, as a guest of an ECHOage party, your gift to the child is done on-line through our website. This avoids all of the greenhouse gas emission associated with driving to the store and purchasing not only the gift, but also all of the wrapping and packaging that usually goes along with it. It’s easy to imagine how all of this can add up, especially when you consider that many kids’ parties have 20 or more children attending.

Justin:  Now, with the money that is collected, I understand that half is used by the child to purchase one gift, and the other half is used for a charitable donation.  Can you please tell us a little bit more how this works?

Debbie:  Sure, I would love to. The money that is contributed by those attending the child’s birthday party is pooled on our website, and then distributed.  So, half of the money is going to buy one meaningful gift for the birthday child which will be selected by the birthday boy or girl.

And the other half is going to a charity of the child’s choice.  So, what we do at ECHOage is to facilitate the whole process.

It’s exciting to see that children are buying something that they were dreaming of having, that they wouldn’t necessarily have been able to afford, and something that they truly desire. And now it’s memorable because it came from all of their friends.  The other half of the funds is donated by ECHOage to the charity that the child has chosen, and the host parent receives a tax receipt for that donation. We’ve partnered with charities in the United States and in Canada that directly improve the lives of children.  So, in Canada, the charities that we support are: Evergreen, Free The Children, Children’s Miracle Network, World Wild Life Fund, Eco Kids, Autisms Speaks, Indigo Love of Reading Foundation, Girls Inc., Kids Believe In SickKids, Camp Oochigeas, and Second Harvest

Justin:  What kind of feedback are you getting from the children and parents that have participated in an ECHOage birthday party?

Alison:  We have received a lot of comments from parents saying how ECHOage has really made it easy for them to demonstrate to their children, in a meaningful and tangible way, that their actions can have a real, positive impact not only on the environment, but also on the life of a child in need.

We’ve been told that ECHOage offers a fun, convenient and exciting way for children to get involved. It can be difficult to talk to our kids about other children that are in need, or of the importance to support worthy causes. Parents have told us that they found ECHOage, and the information that we have about each charity on our website, a real “door opener” for that conversation with their child.

Debbie:  I’d like to add a few comments to what Alison just said.

The heart and soul of ECHOage is the magical combination of bringing meaning to a party, giving a child an educational experience that is real, and giving them a hands-on opportunity to help other children, and the planet, all at the same time.

Children today are more and more knowledgeable about the environment, and the impact humans are having on our planet. A child attending a traditional birthday party understands that all of the wrapping, packaging and waste are going straight to a landfill, and it is wasteful.

We’ve received many comments from children who have told us how proud they were to have a birthday party that was not wasteful, didn’t harm the environment, and gave them an opportunity to give something to a child in-need. Alison and I also strongly believe that if children do something that is charitable or environmental or giving or selfless at a young age, they are more likely to repeat this behaviour when they are older.

Justin:  ECHOage is now active in both Canada and the US. What’s been your strategy for growing your small business?

Alison:  We’ve discovered that when parents, particularly mothers, discover something that they think is meaningful and can improve the lives of their children, they are very passionate about telling others.

Supporting and encouraging this “word of mouth” component is really what has been most successful for us. The whole experience of a birthday is a ritual in our society, and mothers like to talk about it, and mothers like to share good experiences with others. Our strategy is very much one of supporting communication at the “grass roots” level, which has proved very effective for many reasons, particularly because we believe that ECHOage is an idea that’s time has arrived.

Justin:  As two successful entrepreneurs, what advice could you pass along to someone just starting out?

Alison:  First of all, I don’t think you can ever have too much information. There is a world of information available at your fingertips and entrepreneurs today need to make sure they thoroughly research their market, competitors, and have a strong understanding of all of the on-line resources that can help them succeed.

Secondly, and I think that this is really the best piece of advice that I have ever received, really trust your instincts and develop a small circle of advisers around you that you trust and whose opinion you value.

Debbie:  I agree completely with what Alison has said. I’d just like to add that, as long as what you are pursuing brings meaning and enrichment to other peoples’ lives, you are probably on to the right track. Success then depends upon execution, and being able to focus on a wide variety of different tasks and not get overwhelmed. We are excited, and love what we do, which helps us with all of the challenges that entrepreneurs must overcome.

Justin:  Today, ethical consumption remains a small percentage of all goods and services consumed in Western countries. Do you think we will see a dramatic movement by consumers towards ethical consumption over the next 10 years? What do you consider to be the keys to making ethical consumption the “default” selection amongst mainstream consumers?

Debbie:  The first thing that comes to my mind is the importance of rewarding those who make ethical consumption decisions. When a child contributes to an ECHOage party, we send them an award that thanks them for helping to protect the environment. It is something worth rewarding, and we want to reinforce that behavior. I think you could apply this type of thinking in many different areas.

I think we also need to address the incorrect assumption that it always costs more to do something ethical, or to buy a product that is considered “green”.  This is one of the first things we considered when we built ECHOage. Having an ECHOage party is not going to cost you more, it’s going to cost you less to go green, and charities will benefit as well.

Justin:  What keeps the two of you motivated and driven during those difficult and challenging times that every entrepreneur faces?

Alison:  For me, I would say that ECHOage has been such an intense labor of love for me and for Debbie. We wake up excited each day, anxious to work on ECHOage and bring it to as many people as possible.

It’s about finding something in your life that has real meaning to you. We all know that creating a business and being an entrepreneur has significant challenges that can consume almost every hour of every day. We’ve placed an emphasis on taking the time to celebrate our successes, and analyzing together when we could have done things a little bit better.

But what’s most important is to work on something that is meaningful to you, work on something that you are passionate about, work on something that you want to talk about and share. Building a business is a tough thing to do. If you are passionate about, and love the experience, it’s not tough – it’s a pleasure.

Debbie:  We also help each other stay motivated. It’s critically important that you not only like the people you work with, but also that you trust and respect them. I am always anxious to hear Alison’s ideas, and enlist her help in addressing whatever challenges I face. We get along so well, and when we have hurdles to overcome, we work well together.

Our greatest motivation comes from taking a step back and appreciating the impact we are having on the world around us through ECHOage. We put out a press release for Earth Day this year about the impacts ECHOage has had. We determined that approximately 50,000 packages (along with all of the wrapping paper, cards and ribbons) have been averted from landfill, and that the emissions from 50,000 trips to the toy store have been avoided. When we realize that we are able to have this kind of impact on our environment and society, we really become energized to tackle the next challenge or opportunity.

Justin:  That you Debbie and Alison for taking the time to speak with us today.

Alison:  It’s been great to speak with you.

Justin:  If our readers are interested in learning more about ECHOage, what should they do?

Debbie – Thanks Justin, it’s been fun. The best place to learn more about our company and its services is our website at www.echoage.com

Debbie Zinman & Alison Smith of ECHOage