Brand Review: FEED — The Swoop

I have long admired/ stalked/ wanted to be Lauren Bush Lauren. Not just because she is a former model. Or married to Ralph Lauren’s son. Or the grand daughter AND niece of TWO former presidents.

It's because when I was little and you asked the age old question “What do you want to be when you grow up”, I either would have said opera singer ballerina (not a real profession) or a lawyer (much more real) to sound impressive. But the truth was I just wanted to be featured in Vogue for changing the world. And that's precisely where my admiration for LBL (...of course we have pet names) started. That admiration has only continued to grow and deepen over the years.

LBL started FEED back in 2007 after traveling with the World Food Programme. She witnessed first hand the global hunger crisis and its devastating (and compounding!) affect on communities. It seemed that there was a simple solution: providing more AND nutritious meals to more people. Why not sell a product that provides money to do just that? The initial FEED bag, a durable burlap sack which I have used to schlep a surprising number of things through the years, raised money to provide meals. Since the beginning, each product has been stamped with the number of meals it provides to children in need. With a focus on the life changing potential of school meals, FEED makes it incredibly transparent exactly what you are buying in addition to the physical item in front of you. All of these purchases have added up to over 95,733,571 meals for children in need. Food does more than just fill bellies. It also provides significant improvement in health outcomes, expands access to education, and fosters poverty alleviation.

Perhaps the most inspiring part of FEED as of late has been their expansion. From humble beginnings with that simple bag, they have now expanded in jewelry, home-ware, leather goods, and a just opened cafe & shop in Brooklyn. With each product, FEED grows into a brand that can be easily incorporated into daily life while also helping to provide meals to those in need.

If you need anymore reason to love Lauren & FEED (which really by this point how could you), she also writes great posts on the FEED blog about conscious buys like this one for Mother’s Day and Valentine's Day.

Some day, Lauren and I will actually be best friends (obviously with young Barbara Bush too) and we will laugh over coffee and our FEED leather bags at the absolutely total healthy amount of stalking that I undertook to bring us to this place of blissful, meaningful friendship. Until then, I’ll have to settle on drooling over the following products:

ONE: This crossbody bag is functional, adorable and doesn't have the FEED name too obviously emblazoned on it and will look especially great when I go to the FEED cafe in Brooklyn #fangirl.
TWO: Remember when I said that African beading was what it traditionally took for people to know that you made ethical shopping choices? While a bit more obvious than the other subtle pieces here, I have to share that I own this bag and I love it for all its beaded glory.
THREE: This clutch has the most adorable lining. What is the point of that you wonder? To make you happy every time you open it. Duh.
FOUR: Why not make a feminist statement while also making a responsible fashion choice?
FIVE: I cannot get enough of gold bracelets. This one is definitely next on my "to buy" list.
SIX: I travel a lot (Hello LDR) and I think tucking this dopp kit into my suitcase every time would make all the joys of traveling melt away.

FEED does more than just making you look good, which as you know is exactly what we are about here at The Swoop. These are the multitude of ways that FEED is doing more in the world: