Why We Partnered With Poppy Barley
I have been a Poppy Barley customer for years, and to be honest have been asking them to collaborate for a few years now. So when they said yes, I did a little happy dance. I wasn't approaching it as a founder looking for a brand partner, I was approaching it as a fan who also happened to have a brand.
Poppy Barley is a fellow B Corp certified company, which tells you almost everything you need to know about how they operate. Ethically made, environmentally aware and genuinely beautiful. When I looked at what they stand for and how they build, I saw a lot of Elate reflected back.
Both of our brands were founded on the same frustration: the things women reach for every day should be made better. More thoughtfully. With real people and real impact in mind. Poppy Barley starts at your feet. We start at your face. But we're walking the same road.
Here are 5 reasons I LOVE Poppy Barley, and why I know you will too:
1. They make things you keep.
The highest compliment you can pay a product is that you refuse to replace it. I've been resoling my Poppy Barley shoes for years. Not because I can't afford new ones. Because I don't want new ones. That's the goal for Poppy Barley and for Elate. We're not in the business of selling you something new every season. We're in the business of making things that earn a permanent place in your life.
2. They're a fellow Canadian B Corp.
B Corp certification isn't a marketing badge. It's a legal commitment to meeting rigorous standards across environmental performance, worker wellbeing, and community impact. Poppy Barley holds that certification. So do we. When you shop either brand, you're putting your money toward a business that has been independently verified to operate the way it says it does. That matters more than any campaign promise.
3. They were built by women, for real life.
Kendall and Justine Barber founded Poppy Barley on a frustration most women know well: shoes designed without any apparent consideration for the person wearing them. They built a brand around fit, function, and genuine craft and they never stopped asking whether the product actually worked for the life their customer is living. We recognize that instinct. It's the same one that built Elate.
4. They take size inclusivity seriously.
Poppy Barley offers an extended size range across their entire collection, not as a footnote or a limited add-on. Beauty has historically had the same problem. Products formulated for a narrow idea of who wears makeup. Elate was built to push back on that. We respect Poppy Barley for doing the same work in their category, and doing it without making a performance of it.
5. Their quality shows up in the details.
The leather. The hardware. The way a Poppy Barley bag closes. The way their shoes feel after two years of daily wear (and I wear mine almost every day!). There's a particular kind of quality that doesn't announce itself it just reveals itself slowly, over time, as everything else around it wears out. That's what Poppy Barley makes. And honestly, it's what we're always trying to make too.
What We're Doing Together
We've put together a giveaway featuring products from both brands, because the Elate compact fits perfectly into the Poppy Barley Cosmetics case.
The brands you choose are a reflection of what you value. We don't think you should have to compromise on ethics to have something that's also gorgeous and functional. Poppy Barley lives that standard. This partnership isn't a marketing move. It's an alignment.
Shop the On Repeat Edit from both brands and enter our giveaway running May 26 to June 4 for your chance to win a prize worth over $700 in from Elate and Poppy Barley.
