Labels...

I'm what the marketers might call 'price sensitive' at the moment. 

Since returning from travel and committing myself to the less-than-lucrative pursuit of becoming a writer, I find spare cash a distant memory and have to look closely at any purchase I make. Price tag is the big factor for me if I shop at the moment.

Everyone has these sensitivities as they shop. Marketers know this and they work tirelessly to understand their customers and pitch their 'brand stories in a way that resonates. Whether you value price, fashion, expedience or status they will seek a pitch that reassures you that they have what you want.

What about ethics?

Increasingly people have demonstrated a willingness to pay a premium for a product that offers an ethical edge. This may be environmental protection, workers rights or sustainable development. The point is people will pay more for the knowledge that their purchase meets a certain ethical standard.

How do we know a brand is ethical though? The products we find everyday often live a varied international life before they find our shopping basket. Accessing information about this life may not be as simple as reading the label. And as a price sensitive consumer how can I access these ethical premiums on a limited budget?

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The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) are colloquially known as the 'consumer watchdog'. Their job is to protect the rights of people as they shop and after they take their purchases home. These are rights that often we forget we have. This is not accidental, as many retailers and manufacturers would prefer if you just accepted your bad purchase rather than hassle them with little things like warranties.

The ACCC have some pretty strict regulations on making claims about products. These include things like claiming environmental bona fides that are spurious or non-existent. In setting out these regulations the ACCC notes that "Environmental claims can be a powerful marketing tool." In a nutshell, Green sells.

Regulations prevent business from misleading or deceiving consumers in any way. They further go on to acknowledge that consumers come from a variety of educational backgrounds and levels of language proficiency. 

ACCC regulations seem to give us the reassurance that brand pitches offer us reliable information. The notion that all labeling is trustworthy is probably too simplistic an approach. In reality this regulation simply gives us recourse to the ACCC if we feel we've been mislead, or outright lied to.

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There's a stack of well known labels that offer a degree of confidence that they are ethical or green.

Brands such as Fairtrade and Oxfam are established globally and have broad recognition  throughout the community. They both display a label that is simple, recognisable and generally easy to spot as we search for an ethical alternative.

Fairtrade offers small producers in developing regions: "fair access to markets, wage justice and environmental standards." Their goal is to even up the imbalance of access to trade and the market that exists for smaller communities throughout the world.

Fairtrade's certification process gives consumers the confidence that their purchase has been made at the expense of producers. Their initiatives also seek to support education, healthcare and training within communities.

Oxfam works toward the goal of "a future free from the injustice of poverty". Through their online shop they sell good produced through partner communities in twenty countries. Many of the goods are Fairtrade and are supporting sustainability and industry.

Like Fairtrade, Oxfam seek a better deal for small producers in developing regions. Most importantly they help smaller players compete in a global market dominated by companies, some larger than small countries.

For the consumer though, these brands offer comparatively small choice. This may be fine for the devoted ethical consumer, but many people enjoy their shopping expeditions precisely for the variety. I wonder if 'retail therapy' would enjoy even the dubious efficacy it currently has if people were limited to one or two items.

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In fashion choice reigns supreme and ethical claims can get a little grey. 

A designer friend recently opened my eyes to the 'designed in...' vs 'made in...' dilemma.

Basically some fashion brands will offer you a double edged label. On one side the label proudly proclaims 'Designed in Australia'. This allows the brand to trade on the warm fuzzy feeling you get buying something local and supporting local business. Flip it over though and while the label may say 'Made in Australia' it is equally likely it will proclaim a nation like Bangladesh or China, where manufacturing overheads are significantly lower.

The Designed... appellation simply means that an Australian designer drew up the idea and stitched up some samples locally. The real stitch-up is on the consumers as they leave with the impression they are getting a local product.

Overseas manufacturing doesn't have to be a bad thing. Many argue it supports a growing standard of living in countries where previously subsistence farming was the only source of living for many people. However with the recent tragic building collapse that killed hundreds of garment workers in Dhaka, Bangladesh there are still plenty of questions over ethical manufacturing.

Often this will be done by a brand that has an established reputation as being 'Australian Made'. When they move manufacturing offshore they simply de-emphasise the 'Made' in favour of the 'Designed'. It's not a lie, just a little sneaky.

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Who flips the label over though, really? 

I wonder how many people even really look at the label, or if they do they are more likely checking the washing instructions. Let's face it, so many people are just happy to find a pair of jeans that make their bum look good. Other concerns fall to the wayside.

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Coffee may be a good example for the future.

Twenty years ago Australians did not enjoy the quality (or the obsession) of bean culture that currently pervades our society. As we've taken this indulgence to heart, we've also allowed a certain amount of ethical awareness seep into our consciousness.

The Fairtrade label now makes it simple for coffee lovers to see, at a glance, whether their beans meet both their gustatory and ethical standards. Not everyone buys Fairtrade coffee, but enough do that a multinational chain like Starbucks introduced it to their menus.

Brand recognition such as Fairtrade enjoys in the coffee market helps guide consumers without them knowing it. This is the point of marketing and what is being done to us anyway in all aspects of our life. Were other ethical choices just as obvious, say in fashion, people could then gravitate toward a particular brand where their are similar choices (such as socks, underwear, t-shirts). Whose to say what the impact might be for workers rights and conditions in the countries where these clothes are made?

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A Beginning...

This article was designed as a launching point for further investigation into the growing area of ethical shopping or conscious consumerism (or whatever you want to call it really). As such I recognise that there are a huge range of areas I haven't even touched on. These include the criticisms leveled against 'ethical' labels, ethical consumption as a middle class indulgence and the impact of market forces on vulnerable workers as we try to use ethical considerations to leverage workplace conditions.

My hope is to release future posts on these and many other questions arising from this growing area of our everyday lives. Please leave me your questions, comments and criticisms as I'd love to engage with people on what issues affect them as they open their wallet.

Thanks as always, for reading...