Leaders Perception Magazine is currently running an interview series called – Navigating AI’s Impact On Business
Today, we had the opportunity to interview Max Justus who is a Founder and CEOat Grounded People .
Welcome to our interview with Maximilian Justus, founder and CEO of Grounded People, a sustainable footwear brand dedicated to reversing the harmful environmental impact of the global fashion industry. Born and raised in British Columbia, Max’s love for nature and entrepreneurship led him to create a company that incorporates sustainability and social responsibility into every facet of its business model. In this interview, Max shares how Grounded People has worked to reduce its environmental impact, the challenges they’ve faced in implementing sustainable practices, and the solutions they’ve found to overcome them.
Interviewee Name: Max Justus
Company: Grounded People
Max Justus’s favourite quote: One of my favourite life lesson quotes is from the renowned American cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”
The Interview
Thank you so much for joining us today! Tell us a little bit about yourself. What is your backstory?
Max Justus : My name is Maximilian Justus, I am the founder and CEO of Grounded People, a sustainable, unisex footwear brand dedicated to reversing the harmful environmental impact of the global fashion industry with ethically sourced footwear. From a young age, I always had entrepreneurship tendencies, I was always fascinated by go getters and knew that’s how I wanted to be. Born and raised in British Columbia, I deeply loved nature and its beauty.
In what ways has your company worked to reduce its environmental impact, and what results have you seen from these efforts?
Max Justus :
Grounded People is an entirely sustainable, ethically sourced, fair wage, and environmentally focused footwear brand committed to helping curb the harmful and detrimental impacts of waste created by the global fashion industry. Manufactured in one of the world’s ONLY 100% vegan shoe factories in Brazil, Grounded People incorporates sustainability and social responsibility into every facet of the company’s business model. At Grounded People, each shoe is produced from sustainable materials, some on their second life, such as 100% recycled cotton and recycled car tires or volcanized natural rubber for the shoe’s extra-durable outsoles. The shoe’s production can be traced back from start to finish using blockchain technology from retraced for total transparency. Grounded People offers an industry-disrupting 5-year warranty to solidify the brand’s commitment to the quality and craftsmanship of its shoes.
What challenges have you faced in implementing sustainable practices, and how have you overcome them?
Max Justus : With every problem, there’s a solution. Change is coming, and Grounded People, in part with the future generations, will continue to work toward the solution. The global fashion industry is now one of the biggest pollution culprits, producing 92 million tons of textiles in landfills yearly. Still, I hope that this can change by educating people and creating more sustainable brands.
The challenge is always keeping up with fast fashion brands. Unfortunately, these brands target mass audiences and produce more and more products, but at what cost? Thanks to the team I’ve surrounded myself with and our suppliers and manufacturers, we continue to grow a fantastic following of customers that value high-quality products.
Leaders Perception would like to thank Max Justus and Grounded People for the time dedicated to completing this interview and sharing their valuable insights with our readers!
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