With all due respect to Seth Godin, small really is the new big, but not for the reasons he thinks…

Everywhere you look, small is overtaking big, as the size of choice.

– Artisans and specialty food manufacturers are growing more popular, as consumers are favoring the authenticity and quality vs. mass production and brawn. (see this week’s Business Week article - link at the bottom of this post)

– Ultra-concentrated products, like method laundry detergents, are beating back their full strength competitors

– 100 calorie packs have created a $100 million category

– Little fuel efficient cars like the mini and the prius are chic-er options than their suv counterparts, and make a lot more sense with rising gas prices and instability in the middle east

– Home owners are downsizing, rejecting McMansions as Sarah Susanka’s vision of the Not So Big House is being adopted in towns across America. (Increases in mortgage rates and the housing bubble are certainly helping this trend along.)

– Consumers are looking to reduce packaging waste. Packaging giant Landor reports that 42% of consumers are either “green interested” or “green motivated”. De-packaging and using earth-friendly substrates are becoming important business tactics in the changing marketplace. (Pangea Organics uses 100% plant based materials in its packaging and embeds all its packaging with organic seeds, so labels can literally be planted and bloom into herbs such as basil and amaranth)

– Companies are beginning to offer consumers ways to offset carbon emissions, reducing their environmental footprint.

– iPods are getting smaller…mobile phones are getting smaller…

– Entrepreneurs keep launching the small companies that are the hallmark of the American economy.

What about you? Are you ready to get big by going small?

Happy Earth Day!

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/apr2007/sb20070419_501045.htm?chan=smallbiz_smallbiz+index+page_top+stories)

At a time when people believe that the power of corporations exceeds the ability of government institutions to be a positive force for change in the world, Milton Friedman’s “the business of business is business” is being roundly rejected. Thankfully, enlightened CEOs worldwide are taking it upon themselves to integrate philanthropy into the corporate culture and design solutions to social, economic and environmental problems.

Timberland is a great example of a company that is succeeding on both fronts. Over the past five years, earnings have averaged 20% growth, sales averaged 10% growth and the company has zero debt. At the same time, the company has carved out space as a global values brand, structuring itself to do business differently, merging together for-profit structures with social justice, sponsored volunteerism, and an improved environmental footprint.

One of my favorite Timberland initiatives: the company has added an eco-nutrition label on each of its packages, calling attention to the environmental and community impacts of manufacturing this pair of shoes. They’ve raised the level of discourse, creating a platform for conversation about the role of sustainability in production. Imagine if other consumer products followed their lead…in addition to studying trans-fats and carbs on package labels, we would be able to make brand selections based on environmentalism. It would take corporate transparency to a new level and give everyday consumers the data they need to make informed decisions.

So often we see that the true innovation ecosystem is our people and planet. Are you making business decisions that make this world a better place to live? And if not, why not? The inspiration…and the need…is everywhere.

(If you’re looking for more inspirational stories, examples and CEOs, check out Marc Benioff’s The Business of Changing the World)