Purpose | Values | Vision

Purpose | Values | Vision
Exchange Supplies is an ethical purpose and values driven social enterprise, and we think it is important for everyone — our customers, the people who use our products, and us — to be clear about who Exchange Supplies are, what we do, and why we do it.

• At work our Purpose
  

Is to make the world a better place, reducing drug related harm.

• In our work we value
  

Greatness | Innovation | Kindness | Helping

The feeling we get when we provide great products and service.
Innovation and making our products, services, and processes better.
Kindness and understanding of each other, and our customers.
Helping everyone to do as well as they can.

• The Exchange Supplies vision
  

Is of a world free of hepatitis B, C and HIV where prohibition, stigma, and discrimination against people who use drugs has ended, and work is an inclusive, meaningful, and positive element of life for all.


Our vision, mission, and values have been updated over the years as we have evolved. The statement above was published in January 2021, before that our vision, mission, and values statements, were again revised and updated in January 2019:


Vision

• Exchange Supplies is a social enterprise, with a vision of a world where there is no transmission of blood borne viruses between people who inject drugs. Where society does all it can to promote health and prevent drug related harm, by properly regulating drugs, ending discrimination against drug users, and providing free access to injecting equipment.
  

Mission

• Our mission is to be the go-to supplier for injecting equipment, perfectly adapted to reduce the spread of blood borne viruses, to maximise our impact on the reduction of drug related harm — particularly blood borne virus transmission — by improving injecting equipment, and providing free access to accurate detailed harm reduction information.
  

• We are also on a mission, as a social purpose company, benefiting from the value of having a staff team from a wide range of backgrounds, to be a great example of an organisation that employs current and former drug users, and offers a flexible, inclusive, and supportive workplace that values diversity.
  

Values

• We share the desire to do what we do, as well as we can, to help each other to work to the best of our ability, and are committed to providing equipment and services that are of maximum utility, and highest quality and to demonstrate kindness and respect for each other, our customers, users of our products, our suppliers, the wider community, and the environment.
  

Being a Social Enterprise
Social Enterprises are different from traditional for profit companies, whose principle concern is their financial bottom line. Social enterprises work to be successful profitable businesses, that also achieve social and health objectives or 'a triple bottom line'.

For us at Exchange Supplies we measure our success as a business, not only by our financial profitability (which is important), but also by our progress towards achieving our health and social objectives.
Our health objective is to:

• Reduce the health impacts of injecting drug use, particularly the transmission of blood borne viruses; and
  

Our social objectives are to:

• Provide employment to people who use, or have used drugs; and
  

• Be part of the broader movement of people and organisations who share our vision.
  

We are collectively committed to investing effort, and our surpluses, in maximising the financial, health, and social impacts of our work.


The vision, mission, and values statement above were an incremental update / refinement / expansion of our 2017/18 Vision, Mission, and Values statements which were:

Our vision

• Is of a world where there is no transmission of blood borne viruses between injecting drug users, where using drugs is no longer a cause for discrimination, and where society does all it can to promote health, and prevent drug related harm, with free access to appropriate injecting equipment, and a right to treatment.
  

Our Mission

• Is to be the go-to supplier for injecting equipment, perfectly adapted to reduce the spread of blood borne viruses, to maximise our impact on the reduction of drug related harm — particularly blood borne virus transmission - by revolutionising injecting equipment, and providing free access to accurate detailed harm reduction information online, and in print.
  

Our Values

• We share the desire to do what we do as well as we can, together making Exchange Supplies a great social enterprise. We are committed to achieving our goals, while showing mutual respect for each other, our customers, users of our products, our suppliers, the wider community, and the environment.
  

This was a development of our Vision, Mission, and Values statement in 2016 which were:
Our Vision

• Is of a world where society does all it can to prevent drug related harm, with universal healthcare that considers equitable access to health interventions, appropriate products and services to be a human right.
  

Our Mission

• Our mission is to be a world class social enterprise, setting the highest standards for effectiveness, innovation, quality, efficiency, and service, so that we can maximise our impact on the reduction of drug related harm in the UK and all over the world through the supply of great products and information.
  

Our Values

• We are individually and collectively committed to putting integrity, the desire to do what we do as well as possible, and making Exchange Supplies a great place to work at the heart of our values.
  

We demonstrate this through the quality of our work, and the display of mutual respect for each other, our customers, users of our products, our suppliers, the wider community and the environment.

Before that, the Vision, Mission, and Values statements were:

Our vision for Exchange Supplies

• Is of a world class social enterprise, making a significant difference to the health of injecting and other drug users, in the UK and all over the world, setting the standard for service, quality, innovation, and value.
  

THIS WAS UPDATED because we're part of a wider movement and it is important that our broader objectives are a clear part of what we are working towards for the future.

Our Mission

• Our mission is to reduce drug related harm, and improve and prolong the lives of drug users.
  

THIS WAS UPDATED because 'mission' needed more detail about the work we do, and the way that we will do it.

Values statement

• We are driven by the desire to do what we do as well as possible, the need to supply practical and effective products, and our belief in the need to reduce the harms caused by drug use and prohibition.
  

We are individually and collectively committed to working with integrity, and mutual respect for:

• Each other;
  

• Our customers (both drug services and drug users buying online);
  

• Users of our products and services (drug users and drug workers);
  

• Our suppliers;
  

• The wider community; and
  

• The environment.
  

THIS WAS UPDATED to make it a bit more succinct, and clear.