Whole Life Times: A Refreshing Enterprise

August 2004 | Conscious Business

A Refreshing Enterprise

Ethos Water slakes both thirst and conscience

by Liz Finch

When Peter Thum first came face-to-face with the spectacle of impoverished children living without clean water in the townships of South Africa, he could not get the image out of his head. Back in the states, he contacted Jonathan Greenblatt, who had been equally appalled by human suffering he witnessed during his travels.
“There are 2.4 billion people on this planet who don’t have basic sanitation services, and more than one billion people don’t have access to clean water,” Greenblatt says. “As a result, a child dies every 14 seconds from things that are eminently curable, like diarrhea. We need education and we need access to clean water to tackle those issues.”

So Greenblatt, who had nine years of professional experience in consumer products and public service—and Thum, who had 10 years of consumer packaged goods experience, including six years in marketing and sales management with Gallo Winery—came up with a way to do just that. The pair decided to address the global scarcity of clean water by capitalizing on America’s easy access to clean, bottled water. In 2002, they founded Ethos as a for-profit company with a social cause.

“By linking a commercial enterprise to a global cause, Ethos is creating a new form of social purpose business,” Greenblatt says. “We are enab- ling consumers to help children around the world through the simple act of quenching their own thirst.”

In the process, they are providing a “clean, crisp-tasting” product in 100% recyclable bottles that feature a message directly on the bottle encouraging consumers to recycle.

The mission of the company says it all: “Grab a Bottle. Make a Difference.” When consumers pluck a bottle from the shelves of natural foods markets, coffee shops, health clubs, yoga studios and cafes around our state, they are generating funds that go directly to one of two water projects around the world: Ethos directs 50 percent of its post-tax profits to Water Action in Ethiopia and Water Partners International in India. These organizations use contributions from Ethos, along with funds from other supporters, to provide water and sanitation services to children and their communities. The company plans to partner with additional organizations over the coming months and years, and will be increasing its donation percentage over time.

Thum and Greenblatt are equally concerned with the people who help create the product. “Because we realize our most important investment is our people, we provide our employees with excellent compensation and benefits,” Greenblatt says.

The partners who retail the product and the consumers who purchase the bottles of premium water also share in what Greenblatt calls Ethos’ “commitment as a company.”

“We are building a great company by using our profits to invest in communities in need, rather than simply to enrich those who started the business,” Greenblatt says. “In the long run, investing in communities is far more enriching to all of us.”

Liz Finch is a freelance writer who lives in West Hollywood with an ever-expanding population of rescued cats and rabbits.

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