Nowadays discernment goes beyond simply appreciating a quality product. The demand for transparency and the desire for brands to share the same ethical values as your own is beginning to count a lot more when making a tasteful judgement.

Brands that completely connect with our moral compasses are still thin on the ground, and we as consumers rarely have the time or the resources to uncover a brand’s financial backing or understand their moral agenda.  

Enter Glia, a new app that matches consumers with businesses that share their values.  To begin, users must complete a simple poll, placing the causes they want to support in order of importance, highlighting any deal-makers or deal-breakers in the process. Based on research into the practices of the 200 largest US businesses, the app will then inform users of how compatible nearby companies are with their beliefs.

Glia is acting as a middle man for those in search of and those providing ethical products.  The service is reflective of an age in which product overload is making consumers rethink their purchasing behaviour. When brands themselves are adopting more ethical practices (Patagonia for example, launched a collection made entirely from reclaimed fabrics last year), perhaps it's time the consumer also pays their dues.