Schmuck Awards

Award

Local business a finalist in National AusMumpreneur Award

Local Mum Erin Cox has been selected as a finalist in the National AusMumpreneur Award. The AusMumpreneur Awards celebrate and recognise Australian Mums in business achieving outstanding success. Ms Cox’s business A Plus Market, a unique fashion market which showcases local business and a variety of pre-loved fashion that celebrates plus sized women is being recognised as a leader in Sustainability.

Focusing on empowering women to make sustainable and ethical fashion decisions Ms. Cox’s aim with A  Plus Market is to promote alternatives to throw away consumable fashion, saying “Reduce, reuse and be fashionable is my mantra”.

With fashion being regarded as one of the world’s largest polluters, second only to power generation, Ms. Cox says it is vital we begin to change our behaviours. 

“Fast fashion combined with our throw away culture is resulting in a devastating amount of waste and pollution.”

All stages of the fashion chain have significantly impacts on the environment: 

- The production of such vast amounts of fast fashion has a huge water and energy cost and results in large amounts pollution; a cocktail toxic chemicals enter local water systems and damaging emissions enter the atmosphere, having both local and global impacts.- Clothing items in the score of millions of tonnes are prematurely entering landfill each year. It is estimated that 95% of the textiles that are landfilled each year could be recycled.
Ms. Cox states “We can reduce our fashion footprint through simple actions. We need to increase the life of each of our garments. This can be done by investing in higher quality pieces and through recycling.”

A Plus Market showcases a fantastic diversity of local businesses who manufacture fashion both ethically and with an environmental conscience. Each market also houses an amazing array of good quality pre-loved fashion ready to be saved from entering land fill. 
As well as making a difference for the environment Ms Cox shows that A Plus Market has many positives for the individual. Plus sized women can findshopping for fashion to be very disheartening and alienating. A Plus Market has created a warm community space of fashion and acceptance; women are permitted to feel and look beautiful.

Ms Cox says “I have been overjoyed with the response A Plus Market has received; women are delighted, rejoicing that they now have a welcoming community and a myriad of fashion choices at their fingertips. Women are empowered through fashion and proud to be themselves.”

Hundreds of nominations from all around the country were received; A Plus Market has been selected in the top 10 of the Sustainability category. 
“It’s an honour to have this recognition highlighted with not only a nomination in the National AusMumpreneur Awards but also a selected finalist” Ms Cox says of her finalist selection.
A Plus Market is held regularly in Melbourne and the Regional centre of Ballarat.A Plus Market Ballarat – Saturday 29^th August (Corner of Sturt and Dawson St, Ballarat)
A Plus Market Preston – Sunday 13^th September (Darebin Arts and Entertainment Centre, Cnr of Bell and St Georges Rd, Preston.

For more information on A Plus Market visit: www.aplusmarkets.com

For an interview with Erin Cox contact 0402 507 963 or via email aplusmarkets@outlook.com

Rosie Awards

The first Rosie Creators Award for teenage girls, opens International Women’s Day on March 8. The Award features four creative areas - writing, photography, video and activism.

Winners in each of the four categories will be awarded $500, be featured on rosierespect.org.au and also have their work published in Young Vagabond. The theme for the Rosie Creators Award 2015 is Respect. Girls between the ages of 12 and 20 are encouraged to submit an entry (group submissions are also welcome). Entries close at midnight Monday April 20.

Find out more: rosierespect.org.au/news/award

About Rosie:

Rosie is a unique online info hub for teenage girls, with articles, tips, links and videos helping them to navigate life’s tricky situations. It’s an online gateway, providing information and resources centered around a theme of respect - for body & mind, in relationships, for work & study, and for the world we live in.

Awards

Who are the women in your life who inspire, teach, motivate and enhance the lives of those around them?

Why not nominate them for the Honouring Women in Moreland Awards 2015?

To make a nomination, use the documents attached or go to www.moreland.vic.gov.au

The Awards will be presented at a celebration of International Women’s Day in March. Nominations are open through Friday 20 February 2015.

Women can do anything.