INTERVIEW

Lavina Liyanage and Lauren Scott-Harris are the founders of EARNT, a one-of-a-kind platform offering exclusive rewards to those who volunteer their time for good causes.

We speak to Lavina and Lauren about the history of EARNT, what’s special about West London, and what’s to come with our exciting community-driven EARNT x Olympia partnership.

When and why was EARNT created?

Lauren: EARNT was launched in 2022. It was born out of frustration and hope. 

I had worked in PR my entire life and seen just how powerful brands are. Having studied politics, it was really interesting to me to see that people no longer seemed to revere government or religion, but they all worshipped at the altar of brands. 

When influencer culture erupted, you could see a new kind of economy emerging and the lengths people would go to get brand discounts, privileges, special treatment, etc. It was fascinating. 

The idea I couldn’t get out of my head was: what if a sneaker company released a limited-edition sneaker that was ONLY available to people who had joined, for example, a verified beach cleanup or a tree planting? No queues outside shops, no bots; you had to earn the right to access these with your time and by doing something good for the world. The system would be super strict: no shortcuts and no gifts, meaning that if Kim Kardashian herself wanted these trainers, she too would need to do the beach cleanup. The more I thought about it, the more I thought it was a triple win: the beach gets cleaned, consumers attend an IRL event with other fans, and the brand still sells the shoe while getting some good done in the world. 

Now, this was just the first idea, so pairing the beach clean with a sneaker brand was imperfect, but it let me imagine using social consciousness as a marketing strategy and how you could unite causes, brands and consumers in mutually beneficial ways. 

We set up our system and tried it with all kinds of brands. Our events were constantly booked out with long waiting lists, and we could see that lots of people really want to do things to help. The old system of organising volunteers was dated and ruled out people who couldn’t commit to long-term, weekly slots; we all want and need something more bite-sized.

How are you working with Olympia?

We are SO thrilled to be working with Olympia. We are partnering with all the brands launching on this development and getting them to create wonderful ETYs (earned thank yous) that both local residents and those from further afield can unlock by volunteering with causes local to Olympia. Whether this is at Barons Court Project sewing blankets, hosting at the Age UK Summer BBQ, or helping to paint and garden at local schools, we are getting the community ready for the big launch and mirroring the excitement about it back to them. We have amazing ETYs lined up with restaurants, hotels, gym, and venues that we are truly so excited about. 

What’s special about partnering with a west London location?

Firstly, we were introduced to Yoo Capital by one of our volunteers who came on a River Café activation with us many years ago. We had invited people to earn VIP status at the restaurant and access a special EARNT menu by doing four hours of litter picking in the river. We had over 1500 people sign up for just 30 spots. One of those people told us she was an Olympia resident and that EARNT could work well for the new location. 

It was very special to be introduced that way, but Lavina and I both also live in West London, so it’s a part of the world that is very special to us. Some of the schools that are adjacent to Olympia have also been partners of ours for a few years and we really love helping them: they have a special place in our hearts. 

What’s in the pipeline for the EARNT x Olympia partnership in 2025? 

We have some amazing partnerships coming up:

Incipio – earn access to special previews of their new restaurants.

D3 Collective – be invited to a special summer pop up to preview their menu.

We’ll also be collaborating with the new hotels, gym, and schools so watch this space for announcements.

If you could support a dream cause, what would it be and why?

Lauren: The dream for me is always primary school, probably as I have an eight-year-old son. I am hyper aware that teachers and headteachers are saints and need all the help and support they can get! 

Lavina: I love anything where you can see the impact on people straight away—it helps others realise just how easily they can make a real difference. I’m also drawn to anything that tackles social isolation, particularly among older members of the community. Loneliness is a huge issue, and one where we can make a really big difference.

How can people get involved? Why is it so important to support local causes?

Each activation is about 50 to 100 people. 

It’s so important to get involved because humans are meant to be part of a community: you only really learn something when you do it. Writing a cheque is one thing, but working at a local school – helping paint it, for instance – or doing a session in a food bank is really important. Compassion is literally medicinal for us all. When we give it, we tend to get it. 

Are there ways for businesses to get involved?

Of course! Just email us! 

Any summer EARNT news you want to tell us about for our summer fun issue?

We have a lot of really great summer activations coming up, with Olympia and beyond. Beauty brands, jewellery brands and many, many more, so follow on Instagram and make sure you are on our database to make sure you don’t miss anything. 

THANK YOU LAVINA AND LAUREN!

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