Beyond the Barcode Swipe
Conscious Capitalism, Fair Trade and the Future of Business
In Every Purchase Matters, Paul Rice delivers more than a memoir or a business book. He hands over to us a moral compass disguised as a shopping guide.
As the founder of Fair Trade USA, Paul has spent the last four decades building a movement that challenges us to reimagine the act of consumption not as passive participation but as active citizenship. His message is disarmingly simple and profoundly urgent: What we buy shapes the world.
From coffee plantations in Colombia to cotton fields in India, the global economy has long operated on the invisible labor of the marginalized. Fair Trade turns that invisibility into visibility, creating a more transparent and just supply chain.
But Paul doesn’t just chronicle wins; he opens the curtain on the messy, complex and often disheartening realities of pushing for ethical sourcing in an extractive system.
Yet even through the setbacks, Paul never loses hope — because he knows transformation comes not from perfection but from persistence.
Social Capital: The New Bottom Line
What makes Every Purchase Matters deeply aligned with the mission of the Dave Alexander Center for Social Capital is its belief that business is not just about efficiency, but about empathy.
It’s about designing strategies not merely for shareholder value, but for shared value — the kind that uplifts workers, protects the earth and builds long-term trust among stakeholders. That’s the essence of Social Capital.
The Center champions leaders who believe, as Adam Smith once mused, that there are principles in human nature which “interest him in the fortune of others.”
Paul Rice embodies this ethos. He didn’t set out to build a feel-good brand. He built a system — a rigorous, disciplined infrastructure of certifications, audits and partnerships — that holds businesses accountable to the people behind their products. In doing so, he’s cultivated a model where trust is as essential a commodity as the coffee or cocoa being traded.
Trade, Not Aid: A Dignified Path Forward
One of Paul’s most radical contributions is reframing charity into dignified commerce. The Fair Trade model he promotes isn’t about sympathy; it’s about sovereignty. It creates direct market access for farmers and cooperatives in developing nations, allowing them to command better prices, invest in their communities and break cycles of dependency.
This vision echoes the Center for Social Capital’s conviction that the greatest product any business can offer is not a widget or a service — it’s human flourishing.
When farmers are treated as partners, not pawns, the ripple effects go beyond any quarterly earnings report. Schools are built. Health clinics are launched. A child dreams bigger because her parents earned a fair wage.
The Reset Business Needs
Today’s most forward-thinking leaders — the ones the Center celebrates — understand that the old ways of business no longer suffice. Climate crises, labor unrest and generational shifts in values demand something more than performative sustainability pledges.
Every Purchase Matters offers a roadmap for this necessary reset, a way to embed conscious capitalism into every layer of the value chain.
This isn’t an abstract ideal. Rice shows how companies from Patagonia to Ben & Jerry’s, from niche startups to big-box retailers, are operationalizing ethics at scale.
The book’s case studies and behind-the-scenes insights reveal what it takes to lead with integrity — the tough boardroom conversations, the inevitable trade-offs and the clear-eyed courage to stay the course.
The Power of the Consumer
Yet perhaps the most revolutionary message in Every Purchase Matters is that we are all leaders. You don’t have to be a CEO to change the world. You only have to pause before your next purchase and ask: Who made this? Were they paid fairly? Does this support the kind of world I want to live in?
In this way, the book is a love letter to the conscious consumer; a call to arms for the millions of us who want to align our values with our spending. It reminds us that social capital is not just something businesses build. It’s something we all co-create, purchase by purchase, decision by decision.
Join the Movement
At the Dave Alexander Center for Social Capital, we believe that Social Capital is the new gold standard of business success. It’s what connects us, builds resilience and drives sustainable growth.
Every Purchase Matters affirms this belief, providing both an ethical framework and a pragmatic playbook for businesses and consumers alike.
If you’re ready to align your business practices, your consumption habits or your leadership values with something larger than profit — something rooted in justice, community and impact — this book is your guide.
Because, in the end, the most revolutionary act may just be the one we do every day: choosing what — and who — we support with our dollars.