Episode 237: Billionaire Boycott List, with Ariel of Cobbled Goods

Welcome to Clotheshorse, the podcast that woke up at dawn to record in an effort to beat the heat!

I’m your host, Amanda and this is episode 237. 

Would you be surprised to hear that your favorite shoe brand is neither as countercultural/punk as it portrays itself to be nor family owned?

What if I told you that wealth inequality and shoes are directly connected? 

What if I told you that your latest shoe purchase may have subsidized lobbying efforts to fight a rise in the minimum wage or reduce taxes for the wealthiest people?

 My guest this week is Ariel, the founder of Cobbled Goods, an incredible online resource for finding ethically, sustainably made footwear…which can be quite a difficult undertaking! Ariel recently launched a “Billionaire Boycott List” that shows (and names) the popular shoe brands that are actually owned by billionaires, along with other details about the companies’ CEO pay, political involvement, wage theft, and so much more.  And I have to say, when you dig in to who owns what shoe brands, it’s wayyyyy murkier (and surprising) than apparel. 

So we’re going to share all of the bad news about shoes this week, along with how you can make better decisions about the shoes you do buy (and why that matters).  We will also explore how where, when, and how often you shop are political decisions!

Before we jump into my conversation with Ariel, I have a big announcement!!

Clotheshorse is coming to the West Coast in October, and I’m doing two live shows

🐴 Thursday, October 23, Seattle WA at Here-After, 

🐴 Sunday, October 26, Portland, OR at Holocene, 

There are only about 100 tickets available for each show, so do not procrastinate! Links are in the show notes

Live Clotheshorse episodes follow the classic 90s talk show format (minus the paternity tests and ripped shirts): We get to talk to a variety of cool guests and audience questions/comments are an important part of the whole experience!

SEATTLE: I am still finalizing this show but the tentative theme is “How you as an individual can make a difference in your community”

PORTLAND: Rebuilding and Reimagining: Bringing back sewing as a common skill. This episode will get started with a little walkthrough of where and how sewing became a less common skill here in the United States and why/how the removal of home economics education from school curriculums actually fueled increased consumerism (and maybe, just maybe helped “fast casual” restaurants become massive chains).

And I can officially announce the guests:

• The best sewist I know, my stepmother Karen McCarty.  She’s going to tell us about how she–as a baby boomer–learned how to sew and how that skill has impacted her entire life.
• The owner/designer of Altar, a clothing brand and boutique based in Portland, Cassie Ridgway. We are going to talk about how and why she learned to sew and the challenges of manufacturing clothing here in the United States.
• And Frances Andonopoulos, the founder/director of Sincere Studio, Portland’s first and only non-profit community sewing studio.! They are going to explain why they were motivated to start Sincere Studio and why teaching sewing in 2025 is an extremely important and radical act! Also: Frances and I are working on a Halloween-themed sewing event at Sincere Studio on 10/25. Stay tuned for more details!

Okay, go get your tickets!

Alright, listen it’s already getting hot in my office here at Clotheshorse World HQ so let’s jump into my conversation with Ariel!

Thanks to Ariel for spending some time with us.  I urge all of you to go check out Cobbled Goods. For one, to see the billionaire boycott list (get ready to be shocked by some of those shoe brands). But also, to look for more sustainable alternatives.  And he even has resources for finding secondhand shoes.  I have always found shoes to be the most challenging piece of the slow fashion way of life, so his work is so valuable!

And speaking of valuable work, now is the time where I remind you again….the seemingly small things that you do every day are very important, super radical, and most definitely making a difference…even when that day’s media cycle feels overwhelming and massive.

So this morning, I woke up super early to record before the sun started its nefarious work (jk I love the sun because it is making my garden grow so much right now).  I grabbed my phone almost immediately after I opened my eyes…and I was greeted by a link from Dylan, my kid. It linked to an article from the local newspaper where I grew up…and the story was essentially about my grandmother’s house being burned down by some children who rolled a lawnmower up to her fence, and lit the gas tank on fire? Yeah, I’m not sure what happened there. But wow, what the fuck.  My family has in one way or another lived in that house–a small rowhome in a now “not very nice” part of town for like 70 years.  So now it’s gone.  But for me…this was just an overwhelming emotional bomb hitting me first thing in the morning.  I have been no-contact with my mother since 2019 (for many, many very good reasons), and as part of that shift in my life, it meant I could no longer be in touch my grandma (who like any good mother, had to be loyal to her child). That’s been really difficult for me because my grandma was the light in my life growing up.  I strongly believe she is the reason I made it to adulthood.  To know that her house is gone, that there is nothing I can really do to help without getting involved in that family again (which I just cannot do)…well, it’s a lot.  I’m telling you this very private, personal thing (sorry Julie) because one, I want to be clear that going “no contact” with a parent is neither easy nor a “fix.” It’s just harm reduction. Please do not send me advice about this. The other reason I’m sharing this is because…wow, it is sometimes just so hard to get up and do the work of fighting for a better world.  It’s harder than ever this year…because…well, you know.  But then, there will be another wild card situation that pulls the scabs off your emotional wounds AND maybe you (like me) also have an ear infection that kept you up half the night.  Fun times. 

But as I pulled myself out of my bed, I reminded myself that the world (including me) is only doomed if we do nothing.  Much like an ear infection will go away if you see a doctor and get medication…but it will rage out of control to a point of no return if you kinda just throw your hands in the air and say “well, i’ll just get another ear infection in the future, so why bother dealing with this one.” It reminds me of the moments when my depression has been at its worst, when the thought of washing my hair felt like the greatest chore because I would just have to wash it many times in the future.

The fight never ends. I don’t know if life ever gets “easy,” per se. But it can be better. LIfe can be better for everyone and every living thing.  And that’s what gets me up every morning, that’s what reminds me that while there will always be something to “fix,” something to protest, someone somewhere that needs help…nothing changes if we do nothing right now.

This week, Rebecca of Old Flame Mending (an early guest on Clotheshorse) announced that the business will be closing its doors.  It was just too difficult to make the math work for the business, in a world where it is shockingly difficult to get people to pay to have their clothing repaired, much less to get them to pay a fair price for it.  As I saw that news appear in my feed, I felt so sad. Because I have felt (and observed) this growing sense of scarcity in the sustainability/slow fashion world.  It’s kind of impossible to make a living out of getting people to buy less stuff, whether that’s via repair services, teaching people how to do these things themselves, or even writing and sharing information about it.  And this sense of scarcity…well, it ends businesses.  It creates a sense of competition in a community that really needs all-hands-on-deck collaboration from everyone. There is a very well known person in the world of sustainability who has been blocking all of us who share information and education on social media because they feel that because they talked about it first, that the rest of us are copying them by talking about it now.

Here’s what I have to say about that: yes, there is a scarcity of money and paying work in this space. I am only able to do Clotheshorse because I also work a full time job that supports me, pays my kid’s tuition, and buys a lot of cat food. It’s a difficult balance and there are many, many days where I can’t make the basic math of TIME work in my favor.  But this is important to me, for all of the reasons I explained earlier.  And yes, while there is financial scarcity in the world of slow fashion, of building a better future, of standing up for what is right…there is an abundance of people, passion, community, and care.  And that means…there is also an abundance of POWER and the STRENGTH of many rad, smart, passionate people working together toward a common goal.  That means change can happen if we stick with it.  And what and how we do that along the way might change, but what remains consistent is that we are there, doing it. 

I want to share what I commented on Rebecca’s post about closing Old Flame Mending:

And I mean that with all of my heart. I am so proud of what Rebecca has done and how many people she has inspired over the past few years. I know that the work of Old Flame Mending has literally changed lives as people carry Rebecca’s message and work into their future decisions and conversations.  Mending IS  a radical act in the fast fashion world that we live in now.  What Old Flame Mending was doing was more than just repairing clothes, it was making a political statement against hyperconsumerism and quasi disposable clothing.  

I am so proud of all of you who wake up every day, ready to actively do good things for the world around you…even when it is difficult and scary. Even when you are tired or sad or sick. And fighting for a better world comes in many forms: Protesting. Calling/emailing your elected representatives. Getting food, books, and healthcare to our communities. Educating others. Speaking up. Boycotting. Donating. Running for office. Shopping local and small. That’s just the beginning of the long list of things you can (and are) doing.

As I have been saying a lot this year: I believe in you.  I believe in me. And I believe in us. Let’s keep doing what we’re doing. Things WILL get better.