
Sustainable(ish) [028] BUY LESS, BUY BETTER WITH TARA BUTTON FROM BUY ME ONCE
In today’s episode I'm chatting to Tara Button, the founder and CEO of Buy Me Once, and author of A Life Less Throwaway.
After receiving a Le Crueset saucepan as a gift, Tara set out to look for a website that sold "the Le Crueset of everything" - meaning products that are made to last, and that will be cherished and are capable of being passed on to our kids and grandkids. When she couldn't find one, and the idea just wouldn't leave her alone, Tara founded Buy Me Once, a website selling only products that are built to last.
After starting out small, the site went viral after a journalist wrote about it, and it's had praise from Ashton Kutcher and Caitlin Moran amongst others, and led to Tara being asked to write a book about her philosophy. A Life Less Throwaway is a brilliant book for anyone struggling to buy less - it dives into some of the ways we're constantly being manipulated by advertisers to buy more, and to upgrade, and is packed with practical advice to help you find your style, and resist that urge to impulse buy.
I could have chatted to Tara for hours, and there's so many great gems of advice and information in this episode - enjoy.
Useful links
Some of Tara's Top Tips to Buy Less and Buy Better
- Make a list of all the things you DON'T need! Do you really need any more cushions? Or kitchen gadgets? Or black t-shirts?
- Be aware of the adverts that you're seeing. Acknowledge them, and say "No"!
- Love your stuff! Buy only stuff that you will love and cherish for a long time.
- Work out what you want out of life and what makes you happy (this will invariably be people and experiences, not things). Then make a plan to direct your energy and spending in those directions.
- Work out your style, and make sure that everything you buy fits with that.



