Creative consultant Ian Sanders asked a handful of his contacts, "what do you - or does your business - stand for?" This is what he discovered. Read the accompanying blog post at http://iansanders.com/blog/14135989/stand

1. “What do you stand for?”
“What do you stand for?”

2. We asked twelve people:
“What do you – or does your business –
stand for?”

3. “Empowerment.
People use Sugru all over the world to fix,
improve and make a hundred and one
different things. Making stuff work better and
longer for you isn't just a way of keeping things
out of landfill, it allows us as consumers to feel
truly empowered and will go some way in
unlocking a world of creative potential.”
Jane ni Dhulchaointigh
Founder, Sugru
London

4. “Twitter stands for the open and free expression
of ideas and information instantly, without
barriers.
And I work at Twitter because I share this
passion: I thrive on discovering and absorbing
information and ideas and freely exchanging it
with others. The world benefits from having such
a platform as Twitter to foster common
understanding and action.”
Karen Wickre
Editorial Director, Twitter
San Francisco

5. “I hope that my businesses and what I do
underline the importance of labors of love.
I want my work to be remembered as something
that came from the heart, with the right
intentions, never purely about profits, but more
about doing what’s right.”
Tina Roth Eisenberg
Entrepreneur
Brooklyn

6. “The word ‘independent’ runs through Rough Trade
like a stick of rock.
We celebrate independent thinking, creativity and
self-expression. We also operate independently
from standard retail protocol, for example, working
with artists and labels directly. Overall, our
independent approach ensures we faithfully
represent the artists we champion, which in turn
engenders trusted loyalty from our customers.
Rough Trade: an independent retailer for
independent minds.”
Stephen Godfroy
Director, Rough Trade
London

7. “My husband and I share the same value system
and that’s love and relationships. When you
enter our building, you can tell people really like
and admire each other. Because my husband and
I have a strong relationship and deep affection
for each other and our staff, becoming a Duartian
is like becoming part of our extended family.
The measure of a healthy culture is when the
employees, after spending workdays together,
still enjoy playing together on the weekend.
Many employees have met their best friends at
Duarte.”
Nancy Duarte
CEO, Duarte
Mountain View

8. “1) Investing in change: alignment of the
investment of my time, energy, money, words
and actions. The change I'm invested in is the
career and financial success of women;
2) Being a catalyst for action;
3) Mentoring: opening doors and expanding
opportunities. Being supportive, direct,
empowering and transparent. Mentoring those
who will make the same investment in others.”
Kelly Hoey
Strategist, Speaker, Startup Advisor
New York

9. “Onlyness.
Each of us stands in a spot in the world only you
stand in, it's a function of your history and
experiences, visions and hopes. And this matters
because it is the source of ideas. Ideas fuel our
economy. But right now, only a small set are seen
because we ask people to first fit in to
organizations where they have to conform.
When we celebrate onlyness, we unlock the
potential inherent in each of us.”
Nilofer Merchant
Author, Speaker
Silicon Valley & Paris

10. “I, and all of us at Leon, are committed to
feeding the human spirit. To be well-beings
and make it easy for others to do the same.”
John Vincent
Co-founder, Leon Restaurants
London

11. “To me the role of business is to make the world a
better place – for everyone.
I stand for inspirational leadership and the
unreasonable power of creativity.”
Kevin Roberts
Executive Chairman, Saatchi & Saatchi Worldwide
New York

12. “My business Stillworks stands for 'Calm Success'.
Or is it 'Successfully Calm?' (it's kinda in the
name: Still... works).
By reducing stress we not only feel better but
think and do better too.
The world needs to calm down and would get a
lot more done if it did.”
Michael Townsend Williams
Founder, Stillworks
Bradford on Avon

13. “We have one simple aim: to get more people
drinking better beer.
We stand for: 1) Learning - you make more
informed buying decisions when you know a bit
more; 2) Discovery - it's our job to put things in
front of you that you wouldn't normally try/ buy;
3) Adventure - it has to be fun, but now and again
you need to be uncomfortable; 4) Community -
because a beer shared with friends always tastes
better.”
Matt Lane
Founder, BeerBods
Worcester

14. “Unusual, fun and extraordinary.
Never boring.
Sharing.”
Loic Le Meur*
Entrepreneur
San Francisco
*Loic answered the question via Twitter.

15. “What fuels me is helping others (people &
organisations) find their own fuel, getting them
fired up about their businesses and their work
lives, nailing what it is they do and what they
stand for.
I don’t want to play by the rules; I like to look at
the world of business and work differently,
shining light away from the status quo to
illuminate new ways of thinking and doing.”
Ian Sanders
Creative Consultant, Business Storyteller
London

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