Vancouver social shopping site ethicalDeal does it green

• By
• Victoria Revay

Image by Flickr / Ray M
Carts in Green

Vancouver-based group coupon site ethicalDeal brings 'change' to the marketplace

You’ve probably heard of group coupon sites. You know, those sites where we, the people, can actually affect the prices of things we’re going to purchase: movie tickets, personal training sessions and facials at the spa have never been more accessible than now. That’s because the more people that commit to a deal, the better the deal gets. Remember the power of collective bargaining from your high school econ course? The gist is that no matter what, you save money.

On my last count, there were more than 90 "live" social shopping or group coupon sites, operating in at least 25 countries on three continents. The most popular North America-wide and US only sites are LivingSocial, Groupon and Buywithme. The list seems endless. Not only that, but now sites like Yipit, based in San Francisco, actually gather all the information from these sites and filter them for you, so you have less work to do.

With all this choice out there, why should you give Vancouver’s latest discount group shopping site ethicalDeal a chance?

The deal on ethicalDeal

First of all, why not support a locally based initiative? The company is founded and based in Vancouver. It features only local, green companies, green services and green retail shops. You want to order a discounted sack of veggies from SPUD in the a.m. and be in a cheaper-than-usual Semperviva Yoga down dog by 6 p.m.? You can do that.

ethicalDeal is also part of a bigger picture project called TheChange. It’s a green virtual wonderland, part green-living city guide, part sustainable networking directory and a green-deal site. You can search eco-friendly, socially conscious, community-empowering businesses and even browse for job listings and school programs, all the while getting to know interesting individuals that are helping shape change in the community.

Bottom line to shop ethicalDeal? The savings. Daily green deals are emailed to your inbox, up to 50-90 percent off. For me, while I’m heavy into buying locally grown and organic produce, and maybe a few organic household items, it is a big financial commitment to shop green everyday. But ethicalDeal helps me make these purchases more often.