Retail Stars Blog Series - Brand Purpose

Brand purpose is the reason for brands to exist beyond just making money. It’s about the actions that retailers take to do good in society. I think it’s important that retailers are transparent about what they stand for but also what they do as a result so customers can trust them and connect to retailers on an emotional level. 

In recent months and even years, there’s certainly been a crack down on retailers to understand what they’re doing to be environmentally friendly as well as their fairness to their workers but also suppliers. Retailers are working toward minimising their waste, being energy efficient and maximising usability of their products. In this blog, I’ll take a look at retailers that I think have a clear brand purpose across three key themes; what they stand for, environmental purpose and people.

What they stand for

Unilever is always a standout star when it comes to brand purpose, particularly due to their scale and reach. They have 25,000 sales team to help them deliver their ‘Sustainable Living Plan’, which consists of two aspects. Firstly, they engage shoppers (with their retail partners) at the point at which they purchase products and secondly, by providing training and entrepreneurship opportunities to smaller retailers which helps to improve their incomes.

Another retailer that springs to mind that I believe has always had a strong and clear brand purpose is The Body Shop. Even since I was a child, I knew what the Body Shop stood for. I knew that their products weren’t tested on animals and that they campaigned on environmental issues. They have recently tried to go beyond brand purpose by bringing activism into their stores, not just for the staff but to get the customers involved too. The Body Shop want to bring them together to discuss issues that they care about, while at the same time inspiring positive change.

Environmental purpose

Many retailers have been focusing on reducing the usage of plastic bags. The number of plastic bags has reduced significantly since the introduction of 5p charge per plastic bag. But what else are retailers doing to reduce their environmental impact, which includes waste as well as their carbon footprint?

I think most people are aware of Waitrose where they have trialled (and recently expanded) their ‘Unpacked’ initiative which started in June. Primarily designed to cut down on plastic waste, it is interesting to see how customers have reacted to this change as they now have to bring in refillable containers, not only for fruit and vegetables but also dry food such as pasta and household goods such as washing up liquid. Overall, I think consumers have embraced it, particularly when prices are around 15% cheaper than when the products were packaged in plastic.

Interestingly, Carlsberg have recently developed two prototypes for the world’s first cardboard beer bottle. Designed to breakdown naturally to avoid hazardous waste, you might be wondering how it all works as surely the beer would just soak through the cardboard? A thin layer of recycled PET inside the bottle stops beer from turning it soggy while the other prototype has a film of PEF, which can be produced from plants as opposed to oil. I think it’s a great idea for all drinks manufacturers to follow suite and Carlsberg are certainly heading in the right direction to help save the planet!

People

There are several aspects to our theme on people and it revolves around fairness. I have taken a look at retailers that have a strong brand purpose in relation to their own people in addition to their suppliers and even their suppliers suppliers. 

Tony’s Chocoloney is a great example of a retailer that has a genuine brand purpose - to end slavery in the cocoa industry. It may be more than double the price of a similar-sized chocolate bar but when you understand the story, it’s a price that I think consumers are willing to pay. Did you know that the chocolate is shaped to represent the different African countries? With each piece being uneven to represent how money made from cocoa is unevenly divided. Tony’s Chocoloney pay a premium to farmers as well as actively tracking down and combatting child labour - with 100% traceability of their beans to ensure transparency and fairness.

Next, with the National Living Wage due to rise to ￡10.50 an hour by 2025, some retailers are offering fair pay to their workers. With the likes of Ikea, Burberry, Lush, Richer Sounds and even smaller companies such as Farm Drop, it shows that it is possible to be successful at the same time as giving the living wage to all staff. We know how hard everyone in retail works - I’ve been there, done that, so surely it’s only right that employees earn a fair amount? I certainly believe that if employees are treated right, they are much happier (and productive).

What can other retailers learn from this?

Having a strong brand purpose is not just good for the planet or your people but it’s good for business. Shoppers certainly pay attention and are increasingly purchasing products and services with the retailer's values in mind. As a result, I believe that retailers need to realise that most consumers expect them to do what’s right, even if it means taking a slight hit on margins. It’s evident that retailers are trying to reduce their environmental impact and improve fairness for their workers and suppliers but I think that there’s still a long way to go before a significant impact is achieved.

How can retailers put this into practice?

For me, what’s really important is for retailers to have a vision and mission statement - what do they believe in and what do they stand for? But it’s not enough to make commitments, retailers need to have a real and feasible plan that they can execute, ensuring that they achieve what they set out to do. I don’t think it’s enough to just say retailers will reduce their waste and carbon footprint - consumers want to know how much will they reduce it by and how they will achieve their goals.

I’d be interested in knowing who your Retail Stars are - join the conversation with #whoareyourretailstars and #retailstar