Why We Buy and Why It Matters

“An intriguing, thought-provoking book and a call to action, for entrepreneurs, would-be entrepreneurs, and students of business.” * Library Journal *
“Gaines encourages readers to understand they don’t have to be perfect or break their budget to shop more consciously. They can start slow, making one switch at a time, like opting for free-range eggs or fair-trade coffee, choosing a small business to support, and sharing ethical company recommendations with friends. The author’s practical tips and inspiring stories make for a powerful call to think critically before clicking “buy now.” * Publishers Weekly *
“Why We Buy and Why It Matters is a desperately needed buyer’s handbook giving clear next steps to anyone, no matter where their current purchasing patterns lie. It is as informative as it is hopeful, and has the power to shape and change the social purchasing conversation into the future.” – Melissa Sevy, founder of Ethik
“Why We Buy and Why It Matters refuses cynicism and anti-capitalist rants alike. Instead, David invites us to recover the connection between consciousness, community, dignity, and commerce. The small choices we make every day are shaping the kind of people we are becoming. The timely insight David offers in this book is that we can reclaim agency over those choices in conscientious and practical ways. Capitalists, cynics, and everyone in-between need this kind of hopeful guidance!” – Don Golden, founder of Just Capital Quotient
“At Pantsuit Politics, we talk constantly about what it means to be a citizen—not just at the ballot box, but in the texture of everyday life. In Why We Buy and Why It Matters, David is asking what it means to be a consumer. This isn’t a book about consuming less or feeling guilty about what you already have. It’s about consuming with intention—which is a completely different invitation. That reframe is both honest and hopeful, which is a hard combination to pull off. This book does it.” – Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers, co-hosts of Pantsuit Politics
“Regenerative businesses should be the future. David shows how our everyday choices as consumers drive them forward and accelerate the restoration we need.” – Esha Chhabra, author of Working to Restore: Harnessing the Power of Regenerative Business to Heal the World

David Gaines is the CEO of La Terza Coffee, a Cincinnati-based social enterprise coffee roaster, and the author of Radical Business, winner of the CIPA EVVY Gold Award. Long active in the social enterprise movement, he writes and speaks on conscious capitalism, the stakeholder economy, and how everyday choices shape a more human economy. He’s an idealist who believes that any business can be a force for good, and that the world we want is already being built, one decision at a time. He lives in Cincinnati with his wife and two sons.

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