Yahoo News ’Tis the season for purchase power — why right-on retail is the way to make a difference this Christmas
We’re living in more honest times, where brands have to pick a side. Inboxes might be heaving with cheerful entreaties to buy rubbish for Black Friday but if they really want to connect with consumers, brands have to stand for something — their values are often as important as the product or service itself. Consuming with a conscience isn’t new but this year we’ve seen more interest in brand values and pressure on them to behave in a certain way than ever before.
Take Iceland. After a lot of soul-searching it broke up with Kerry Katona and found a heart in its freezer chest. The most talked about Christmas ad this year wasn’t the usual middle-class wet dream from John Lewis, although it was a close second. The ad that broke the internet was from Iceland, originally created by Greenpeace and ad agency Mother — and considered too “political” to show .
We now know that’s not the exact reason it wasn’t allowed to air but, either way, it got everybody talking about Iceland and the damage palm oil has done to orangutans. Even Selfridges is stocking Iceland’s palm oil-free mince pies — what a brave new world this is.
Conscious consumption is on the rise and it’s no longer limited to sustainability. Consciously to consume now you must consider a brand’s political and social stance too.
When reports of sexual harassment allegations against Arcadia and Topshop boss Philip Green hit the papers, all eyes were on Beyoncé — her clothing line Ivy Park launched with Green and Topshop in 2014. Following the news of the allegations, Beyoncé’s company Parkwood swiftly bought out Green’s 50 per cent share.
It was an important and powerful move, and one that shone a light on the fact that where we shop or choose to do business goes far beyond money and products. It’s about values and, ultimately, doing what’s right.
In the UK, women make up to 85 per cent of purchasing decisions — if we collectively want to take a stand against retail giants such as Green, we have the power to do so not through protest or Twitter rants but by choosing to spend our money elsewhere. It’s vital that we remember this.
When reports that the chairman of US trainer company New Balance donated $400,000 to a campaign fund called Trump Victory, consumers all over the world got mad, with many burning their trainers. Similarly, when Nike this year backed Colin Kaepernick — he was sacked after kneeling during the US national anthem in protest against racial injustice — conservative consumers burned their trainers too. Brands are powerful but it’s the public who are bringing about the changes to how and why we buy things.
"It’s the public who are shaping the future and bringing about the changes to how and why we consume"
In the UK, we let Black Friday become a thing in 2010, when US retailers decided we should have it too, but in 2018 it feels even more soulless. So on this Black Friday I hope we continue to consume more consciously. If you get stuck remember to ask these three most important questions: do you need it? Is the company a good company with values you align with? And will there be a really enormous queue?
Dwayne’s sushi train rocks my world
Sunday evenings — private time ring-fenced for anxiety and social media. That was until Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson upped his social game and owned Sunday’s on Instagram. Yes, everybody’s favourite wrestler-cum-actor-cum-influencer is brightening up the weekend’s end for his 121 million followers and counting.
Each week he posts a Sunday “cheat dinner” but, unlike most people’s meals, The Rock’s involves what looks like an entire fridge from Itsu. He hashtags it with made-up words like “woosabi” and rather adorably refers to it as the “sushi train” — which we’re all welcome to ride. The sushi-train can have anything up to 90 pieces of sushi aboard at any one time. He follows it with a plate of peanut butter cookies and then, incongruously, posts a recommendation for a music documentary. This week: Walk the Line, about country music star Johnny Cash. I love you, The Rock. Please run for President.
*Last Thursday I took part in an event at the British Library as part of its Inspiring Entrepreneurs series. The event saw retail behemoth and businesswoman Mary Portas discuss her latest book Work Like a Woman — a Manifesto for Change.
As the evening’s interviewer, writer Sali Hughes discovered, Work Like a Woman is more than a book — it’s a movement that challenges everyone who works within an alpha culture (spoiler: that’s most of us) to try a new way of working. One that allows everybody, not just men, to succeed.
Mary remarked that her book could have been called Work Like a Human — “because at its core it’s about being kind, being collaborative, trusting your instincts and doing what is right”. Who wouldn’t want to work like that?
