Greentailing

Greentailing
The democracy of green
April 01, 2009

Justin Doak

Regardless of one’s geographic location, lifestyle, culture, religion, body type, age or sex—the meaning of a smile is universal. Commonalities like this are important in retail, as they enable a brand to clearly communicate and connect with a broader customer base. This is no different than our winning politicians who adopt sweeping agenda items that speak to their relevant constituencies and motivate support. Now the tough news: commonalities are rare. We know this is true by watching campaign after campaign use the same battleground topics, but this time our winner did something different, he dug deeper and connected.

Toss all your political bias aside and let’s explore the heart of this comparison: President Obama’s victory was powered by a new face of America, made up of all ethnicities, age groups, geographies and income classes. He broke away from the dividing lines and spoke to voters not guided by traditional cultural attachment to race, religion or region. And he did this by speaking through commonalities—presenting platforms where all of America could grow and change for the better.

Inclusiveness brought President Obama his success—and nothing is more inclusive than green. That is the democracy of green. Efficiency, health and resourcefulness simply speak to everyone—it is our new common thread. What better way for a retailer or manufacturer to cross the dividing lines of customer types and grow support than to incorporate green practices into all aspects of its business model?

Many hard lessons have been learned as retailers and suppliers have expanded their brand(s) into new territories and/or launched new initiatives. This has forced retailers to improve ethnic and cultural sensitivity in their marketing and store and/or product design. As a result, cultural sensitivity quickly became a risk-management practice. However, now that retailers understand the science of respecting and meeting the unique demands of different customer types, ethnic and cultural marketing have evolved to become business strategies in and of themselves.

Let’s put our proactive hats on, jump a couple years into the future and look through the eyes of the emerging customer. We land in a national chain restaurant. A “Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability” (LOHAS) customer stops in to get some lunch and is confronted with a menu that offers no organic selection. As he continues to search the menu for something safe, he watches non-compostable packaging and plastic bags get distributed to customers at the counter. Frustrated, he turns to leave, only to see an employee mopping the floor with a toxic-looking yellow substance that smells bad and a waste receptacle area that offers no options for recycling.

Who’s to say the frustration this customer has experienced is any different than cultural and ethnic offenses that have happened in the past? I might be going out on a limb here, but I think they are exactly the same—and for this reason, I see the green movement as one of the most exciting and powerful transformations facing the business world.

We all have unique values that guide the way we live, eat, play and shop. However, it is within the common threads that we socialize and build the infrastructure to support our humanity. President Obama has seized this time as an opportunity to reshape our economy as one that is green, providing incentive for good practices and raising the bar of performance. These efforts are not done as lip service, but as a genuine effort to become a more efficient and resourceful country, while building a common ground of understanding between each of us. As youth, workers, planners and politicians participate in this transformation, so will retail. Retailers don’t do this for mere risk management’s sake, but also as a strategic opportunity to capture the attention of customers who have a newly shaped set of values.

In my March column, I asked DDI readers to raise a green flag of opportunity within their respected businesses. This month, I ask how that idea would be perceived across your different customer types. More times than not, I suspect it would build support for any brand—that is the democracy of green.

Join me next month, when we’ll assess the values and challenges of third-party certification.

Cheers,
Justin Doak
CEO, BlueBin
Send your green retail questions to justin@thebluebin.com.