Ethical Corporation, April 2010
This is an extract from Ethical Corporation that includes a number of quotes from Founder and CEO of Good Business, Giles Gibbons.
Albert Einstein once said: “Relativity applies to physics, not ethics.” The phrase appeals for its simplicity. Ethics deals in absolutes and certainty, not relativity. Theft is bad, charity is good, and so forth.
Transfer Einstein’s concept to branding and the same unequivocal notions can be found. Ethical brands, by definition, are good. But are they? Well, maybe. In marketing terms, at least, the answer is a muted “yes”. Most consumers perceive niche ethical brands to be cleaner, greener or generally more wholesome.
In objective terms, however, the case is sometimes harder tomake.Most ethical brands tend to be narrowly focused. Their founders identify a problem, and create a brand to solve it. That’s what ethical brands do.
So organic food company Duchy Originals champions non-chemical agriculture. Confection firm Divine Chocolates makeslives better for Ghanaian cocoa farmers. Cleaning products company Ecover keeps chemical detergents out of the water system.
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