We Believe in a Better Future for Everyone

We stand against all forms of racism and discrimination. We support Black Lives Matter and Stop AAPI Hate, and are committed to radical change in support of all marginalized groups. The world will undoubtedly become a stronger, more vibrant place when everyone feels welcome and included.

In the spring of 2020, members of our team (both past and present) and community let us know we had work to do. Since then, we’ve been dedicated to creating company-wide policies and processes that are anti-racist and anti-discriminatory. These affect the employees we hire, the vendors we work with, the brands we partner with, and the creatives we spotlight.

Below, you’ll find all of the steps we’ve taken so far. There's more to come, and we'll continue updating this page as we learn and move forward.

We are committed to ensuring our brand and workplace embody the values of joy, positivity, inclusiveness, diversity, and racial equality
HERE ARE OUR COMMITMENTS:
  • Financial commitment to support the mental health of BIPOC women - In 2020, we committed our support to The Loveland Foundation, which brings mental health resources and services directly to underserved Black women and children. In addition to an initial $100,000 contribution, we donated 15% of the net proceeds of ban.do products on our website for a full year, totaling over $22,000. In fall 2021, we launched a new collection of Tune In products, created in collaboration with Taylor Elyse Morrison. A portion of the proceeds from that collection will support a cohort of girls at Prismatic, a movement to help inspire hope in the next generation.
  • Diversity in ban.do’s team and leadership - Our team is committed to placing BIPOC leaders in key decision-making roles and positions within our organization. We are also committed to further diversifying our overall employee pool to reflect the diversity of our customer base. This year, we promoted Daniela Jordan-Villaveces to Creative Director, to lead all creative efforts for our company and serve as a senior member of our leadership team. We filled another vacated position with a BIPOC candidate. We’ll be continuing to prepare for future roles on our team by creating and implementing intentional hiring practices that welcome BIPOC applicants to ban.do, and ensuring that our company culture provides an encouraging and welcoming environment for any new hire.
  • Diversity, equity and inclusivity education - Through both group training and 1-1 coaching sessions with leaders in diversity education and social unity, our team has grown in our knowledge through the teachings of Adriele Parker, Dr. Janice Gassam, Pamela Gray Daniel and Gayle Green. We are continuing this education through ongoing educational series including a book club, guest speakers and DEI educational series.
  • Diversity in artists, partners and creative contributors - In 2020, we hosted an open call to BIPOC artists through our social media and email outreach. Our Director of Product Design, Daniela Jordan-Villaveces shared her story as an immigrant and artist through an Instagram and email message. We received hundreds of submissions and are pleased to announce that for the upcoming 2021-2022 Planner season we will achieve a greater than 50% contribution from BIPOC artists. For the 2021 product cycle as a whole, we were able to achieve greater than 80% contribution from BIPOC artists and contributors. We will continue to utilize diverse talent in our 2022 product designs, with the goal of consistently achieving 75% BIPOC contributors. We will continue to host open calls for talented artists and creators as we develop products, art and marketing. View our current creative contributors here.
  • Diversity in photography, model selection and photoshoot production - We are continuing to reflect diversity in our model selection. Over the past year, we have focused on also working with a diverse group of behind the camera talent including photographers, stylists, art directors and photo production staff. We have utilized the talents of Tropico Photo and the modeling services of Michelle Norris in our Fall/Winter and Holiday photoshoots. Additionally, we have featured widely diverse models and brand influencers in our on-figure photography. We are committed to continuing to find and utilize additional BIPOC models and photographers and production staff on all editorial photoshoots.
  • Diversity in social media - We are grateful to have a platform to showcase and highlight incredible women from the BIPOC community. In 2020, we committed to turning over our platform several times per month. Since then, we have elevated the voices of 17 BIPOC women through takeovers of our Instagram account, including Dr. Janice Gassam, Jade Gedeon, Taylor Elise Morrison, Daniela Jordan-Villaveces, Pamela Gray Daniel and Monet Bush. In addition to these takeovers, we are committed to partnering with influencers and content creators to provide a diverse view of who ban.do’s customers are. We have worked with 18 BIPOC women influencers to create imagery that has been shared with our communities of 1M plus followers across all of our platforms.
  • Diversity in outside vendors, services, business partners and collaborators - We know we can't do it alone and realize our network of partners must embrace a commitment to diversity and representation as well. We have added several BIPOC businesses to our roster and re-established relationships with several BIPOC brands that had ceased relationships with us. Going forward, we will utilize our Diversity and Inclusion Advisors to help facilitate introductions and raise awareness so that our company and team can gain greater access to BIPOC vendors, business partners and service providers.
  • Diversity and Inclusion Advisors - Our leadership team is partnering with trusted BIPOC advisors. These individuals will provide valuable insight on how to bring a more diverse perspective to our long-term plans and goals.