What do you need to make the switch to European?
Hi everyone, and welcome to our second newsletter update!
Thank you for filling out Monday’s survey: we are learning a lot more about your motivations behind making the switch to European. If you have not answered the survey yet, you can do so here: tally.so/r/w2VEpb.
Last week, we shared Euromentum’s mission with you: we want to shape a better tomorrow by switching to European products and services together.
Today, we want to dig a bit deeper into how we can achieve this mission. Based on what we have heard from you so far, here is where we struggle collectively:
- Finding European alternatives to everyday products and services
If you are reading this, you are probably already taking a hard look at all the non-European products and services you are using today. There are a lot of options out there to choose from but it is not always easy to find them in the first place.
- Trusting alternatives that are truly “European”
Getting to the bottom of whether your chosen product or service really is European can be difficult. Is it manufactured, designed, or merely sold in Europe? From trustworthy labels to dubious claims, you need help distinguishing authentic makers from companies simply involved in European-washing. Like the Yuka app, telling us what our products are made of, we also need to know more about where they are made.
- Actually making the switch
Switching from an old product or service to a new one can be daunting. Even more so when companies make it intentionally difficult, and even lonely, to leave their ecosystem. Who here has actually convinced all of their friends to leave WhatsApp? Additionally, choosing European products can often mean having to pay more but for higher quality and durability. Finally, let us be honest, European makers often do not benefit from the same investment that enables their solutions to catch-up to their competitors. So it is up to us to break this vicious cycle of either buying lesser quality products at the cost of our climate or being forever trapped in Big Tech’s ecosystems.
By now, we hope you see the opportunities as well as challenges lying ahead, in making the switch to European solutions. With Euromentum, we want to pick our niche and be part of the solution.
Max and I will continue sharing our progress through our weekly newsletters. To help make sure we are on the right track, please continue to share your feedback with us, answer our survey, and forward this newsletter to your friends and invite them to sign-up at euromentum.com.
Frank and Max