Our Story

Our founder, Karina Shivdasani, was only 18 years old when her brother Vik was left paralyzed from the waist down after falling from a third-story balcony. The tragic accident rattled her family and changed their lives overnight. What brought them together again (and began their healing) were the ideas on spirituality and positivity they encountered in the books and seminars of authors like Dr. Wayne Dyer, Dr. Joe Dispenza and Anita Moorjani. Though she was initially a skeptic, Karina started to weave these authors’ lessons into her own life. She took the time to honor her pain and practice self-care.

Over time, she noticed that the world around her was shifting. It occurred to her that when people feel good, they do good — that when we’re kinder to ourselves, we have a greater capacity to be present for others. Karina knew that there were people around the world with stories like hers, and envisioned one day assembling a community that would allow women everywhere to connect over the common threads of their lives. Fourteen years later, after a successful career in fashion merchandising as an Apparel Buyer for a national retailer, she finally left her job to pursue her dream of creating that community.

Common Assembly is a space created by women, for women. We’re a retail marketplace and a kind community where women can support each other. Where they can share how they’ve learned to take care of themselves, each other and the world at large. By celebrating their stories, we hope that you too can be inspired ways to treat yourself more kindly. We invite you to join us on this journey and explore our Assembly.

The Kindness Impact

KINDNESS FOR THE COMMON GOOD

You can think of the Kindness Impact as our promise to our Assembly, customers and community that we’ll set clear and concrete guidelines for what kindness looks like in every aspect of our business.

Kind Assembly

We’re honored to share our platform with inspiring female entrepreneurs and artisans who share our goal of helping women embody a kinder lifestyle. Our mission is to put their faces and inspirational stories front and center. When you browse our merchandise, you’ll learn about these women — and journeys — that made each product possible.

Kind Manufacturing

To be a part of Common Assembly, vendors must take good care of the people who bring their products to life. Our vendors sign the Kind Manufacturing Contract, which means that they’ve committed to providing their employees with fair wages, benefits and safe working conditions as well as following local environmental regulations related to waste, pollutants and toxins.

Kind Materials

We build our pieces to last so that you can look and feel good in them for years. Currently, we ship orders in 100% eco-conscious packaging, and we’re actively seeking new ways to minimize our carbon footprint and offer a greater selection of sustainable merchandise. As you’re browsing our collections, look out for our product icons to find our sustainable styles and materials.