In 2015 I wanted to organize White Saturday with the AECC (Spanish Association Against Cancer) . My idea was that the e-commerce that subscribed to this initiative would donate an amount of money from their purchases to the AECC on the Saturday after Black . It was a reaction against Black Friday but it didn't go well. The Association has very strict measures when it comes to organizing actions like this so that companies do not take advantage of their brand.
In 2016 I contacted 7 influencers to promote a similar action. It didn't go well either, and furthermore, I realized my inability to generate enthusiasm among people more capable than me.
On November 17, an ethical question assailed me. Was he setting up White Saturday as a business strategy to sell more? The shadow of the doubt made me give up for the third year.
This 2018 I didn't even think about it... until yesterday.
Allow me an anecdote that explains the change. Every day I take my daughters to school. There is a "hell junction" where you have to stop for minutes to get onto a busy road. When the road is one way, you are the one who drives at full speed on that road and you pass the intersection by long but when you return you have no choice but to gobble it up. One of those days of forced stop a driver let me pass. He had to stop for me to get up and signal to me with his lights and his hand. I was very surprised.
The next day, on my outward journey, I ran into the unfortunate people at the intersection (where I would be minutes later), I remembered the Good Samaritan from the day before, I stopped and let the martyr pass.
This happened two years ago. Today it is common practice for drivers to let each other pass at that point. It's like the good deed for the day. You let it pass, they wave a thank you hand, and you feel a little better.
Almost nobody waits more than 30 seconds anymore but we spend a lot of time suffering the "crossing from hell". What happened? Simple. Someone planted the seed of education and little by little, we became hooked on his example.
It looks a lot like my White Saturday . People want to help, we want to feel useful, much more than spending our savings on days created for the sole purpose of spending everything.
Yesterday I went through the crossing and a kind lady let me through. Minutes later I let a bus pass. Why not plant the seed for White Saturday ?
(…And here we change the dates to coincide with White Saturday 2020)
From November 27 to Monday November 29 at 11:59 p.m. (both inclusive) Minimae, individually, will donate 15% of purchases to the Spanish Association Against Cancer . You do not pay more or less but you know that 15% of your purchase goes to a place that touches us all closely.
Minimae is NOT a big business. A very good day you can sell 10 products through the web, a very bad day, none. We do not intend to sell more, we intend to concentrate more purchases in three days... and that you do not do it within four.
Hopefully small actions like White Saturday serve to raise awareness among companies that really move money. My humble reflection is that there are other paths that are more satisfying than that of compulsive purchases.
P.S. In a few days we will announce the result of the action.
PS2: The 15% that we will donate will be from the works of our own production: Project Gutenberg by Minimae, Icons of 20th century design and Icons of 20th century architecture. The other collections, unfortunately, do not leave us room for actions of this type.
PS3: This is an individual action. We have not reached any agreement with AECC, we will not "wear" its logo, we will not be linked to it beyond the donation we make.