CEO Today Magazine December 2019 Edition

www.ceotodaymagazine.com Today’s consumers expect brands to have a sustainable, charitable or social message and to be purposeful in their product, positioning and communications. Of course, this is no bad thing. Consider Nike championing equality and questioning stereotypes through its connections with Colin Kaepernick and Serena Williams, or Unilever’s commitment to championing its own ‘Sustainable Living’ brands. Modern brands have made it easy enough to choose a product that reflects our social and environmental values over a similar one that doesn’t. But how many consumers are willing to go the extra mile – to embrace a truly sustainable solution that may be less convenient, or potentially reconsider consuming altogether? We can’t always have it all This is a problem. The concept of brand purpose is now so diluted that people have become complacent. It is simply a tool to placate the conscience of consumers by convincing them that they can have it all. In 2011, when Patagonia asked us not to buy this jacket, it seemed to herald a new era of consumerism that encouraged us to reduce, repair and reuse. But eight years on, with a climate in crisis, how many brands have attempted to shift to a business model that enables reduced consumption? How many are really urging consumers to do their bit through new products that empower this? The opportunity for brands today is to be a change- maker – to innovate for new, more sustainable consumer behaviours and to make them desirable and aspirational. Change is tough, but it’s better than extinction. By Lisa Desforges Strategy Director B&B Studio Has the Branding Industry’s Obsession with Purpose Made Consumers Complacent? www.bandb-studio.co.uk 30 SPECIAL FEATURES