Suella Braverman seems nice, doesn’t she? The MP for Fareham and Waterlooville has previously claimed that migrants are staging an “invasion” of the UK and described homelessness as “a lifestyle choice”. More recently, Reform’s education, skills and equalities spokeswoman warned the UK is being “ripped apart” by diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies.
Now, call me a member of the “Guardian‑reading, tofu‑eating wokerati” (as Suella undoubtedly would), but I find it hard to see how helping people from less privileged backgrounds get on in life can be framed as a negative. But of course, it’s all about the rhetoric, and recently DEI has taken a bit of a pummelling.
A couple of weeks ago, working on a feature profiling food and drink founders from ethnic minority backgrounds, I spoke to Christarose Maphosa, founder of Onyo, a travelling pop-up shop celebrating diverse-owned grocery brands. What she told me suggests this backlash is already being felt on the ground.
“We’ve made a lot of progress, but that’s now stagnated, and we risk regressing,” she said. “As an industry, our understanding of the equitable approach needed with founder-owners from ethnically diverse backgrounds has stepped on. However, in the past 12 months, there’s been a noticeable retraction.”
Maphosa pointed to the scaling back of BAME-focused accelerator programmes at Tesco and the Co-op. “We’re at risk of forgetting why we decided to give equitable support to ethnically diverse brands and owners, who still face barriers today.”
The JEDI Matters collective
Against this grim backdrop, it was heartening to hear of the recent expansion of the JEDI Matters collective. And no, this isn’t a cue for Star Wars jokes, in this case JEDI stands for justice, equity, diversity and inclusion.
Founded in 2023 by Pip & Nut, Cawston Press and Lucky Saint, JEDI Matters is a collective of SMEs championing DEI among smaller businesses, where it can be harder to prioritise. With fewer people, smaller budgets and less scale, SMEs can struggle to carry out work in the DEI space – but, the collective points out that’s only true if they operate in isolation. By working together they can “collaborate for greater efficiency, effectiveness, impact and change, regardless of their individual size”.
The collective puts on events, supports mentoring and helps facilitate employee engagement. Bold Bean Co, Moth and Absolute Collagen joined in late 2024, and Caravan Coffee Roasters and Here We Flo have recently been welcomed into the fold.
“At a time when so many businesses are rolling back on JEDI commitments, it’s incredibly encouraging to see the collective continue to grow,” says Pip Murray, founder and CEO of Pip & Nut. “It’s so important for founders and businesses to come together to say ‘no’ to stepping back on justice, equity, diversity and inclusion.”
Susan Allen, co-founder and chief brand officer at Here We Flo, agrees. “We describe ourselves as funny, feminist and fierce – and part of that fierceness is creating space for people to show up as their authentic selves. So, for us, continuing to invest in DEI work was never really a question. It’s not a trend or an initiative, it’s foundational to who we are and why we exist. Being part of the JEDI Matters collective has shown the power of collaboration. It’s a true example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.”
Making grocery better
God knows, founders of challenger brands are busy enough as it is, so seeing them set aside time, energy and resource to do the right thing is inspiring. This isn’t flashy on-pack messaging that helps shift units, it’s people sitting in meeting rooms and on Teams calls behind the scenes trying to make grocery better for those who, historically, have been shut out.
And for anyone not swayed by the moral perspective alone, there’s a solid business case too. Consider last year’s report by EY UK, which pointed out the “critical importance” of DEI in “improving productivity and workforce innovation in UK companies amid an unpredictable macroeconomic environment”. Or a 2024 Kantar survey, which showed that 75% of consumers globally said diversity and inclusion – or lack thereof – influences their purchasing decisions.
So yes, there’s principle at stake, but there’s also more to it than that. So, hats off to those who are standing firm amid the yawn-inducing ‘snowflake’ jibes – they’re likely to see a positive impact on both their people and their bottom line. And, as an added bonus, they’re probably pissing off Suella Braverman too.
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