Fed up of businesses aligning themselves with politics!

[thehorsehasnowbolted]

I was about to grab a turkey and cranberry sandwich yesterday at a major retailer when I noticed on the package that 5% of that purchase would go to Shelter.

Why are we being increasingly forced nowadays to contribute to causes we may not necessarily agree with in this way? Why don't businesses stick to selling goods? Why the constant virtue signalling? It's annoying

I do not intend to comment on this charity in particular, but I have seen my fair share of pensioners being out of pocket to evict problem tenants who were in a position to pay the rent and look after properties but simply didn't want to and just played the system.

The results of charities activities are not always 100% positive, so customers shouldn't be forced to contribute in this way.

Why do businesses assume that their customers agree with the charities they pick? The constant virtue signalling is patronising and insulting.

OK, so essentially bribing politicians is fine by you

Donations are legal and are not the same as bribing. It is to be expected that a business will donate to the political party that will better suit their objectives

Hmmm, I also work in government affairs. Any business that gives a donation absolutely expects a level of influence over any legislation which may damage them, or a nice little contract e.g. PPE in the pandemic.

I will add, I have never worked for a company which donates to a political party, that is morally questionable.

The industries I know about are always doing this and I don't know why they aren't called out on it. The hypocrisy is mind blowing.

It seems that they are indeed called out and that there is customer backlash. What's mind boggling is that they don't seem to care, they ignore their customers and keep on doing it.

It's as if their political activism has completely replaced their business goals

Donations are (sometimes) legal, though there are questions to be asked. But amazingly enough, affiliation with charities is also legal! I know, who'd have thought it!

So much "customer backlash" that M&S have been able to support Shelter for nearly two decades and donated over a million pounds to that one charity alone.

@Notonthestairs it's a bijou pocket sized mini backlash.

Those are my favourite kind.

I read this - "Last year, they funded all the calls that we answered over the Christmas period, helping us offer support at a particularly distressing time for those facing homelessness." - and thought well done M&S. That's a lot of turkey cranberry sandwiches sold.

I hate this argument of “unless you do everything you may as well do nothing”

Even if M&S is investing the majority of their profits in to child trafficking, arms dealing and drug production then the charity they are supporting is still benefiting!

This is not just a backlash, this is an M&S mini bijou backlash.

OP, the Mail article you found asserts the same argument as you, including questioning the value of Nike's Kaepernick / Black Lives Matter campaign, calling Nike "a radical political party".

But it doesn't acknowledge that the Kaepernick campaign was hugely commercially successful. Nike is a massive money-making behemoth. Companies do this stuff because it helps them make money.

www.forbes.com/sites/jiawertz/2018/09/30/taking-risks-can-benefit-your-brand-nikes-kaepernick-campaign-is-a-perfect-example/?sh=7bf8ec3345aa

Regardless of the timing, Nike understood that a campaign of this nature could alienate some consumers, and decided to take a calculated risk. Understanding who their target consumers are and what they value as a cohort, they were able to make a bet; one that paid off.

According to a recent poll released by ESPN, the ad reached Nike’s target consumer. "Nike took a strategic risk to alienate some customers in order to appeal to their core base of 18 to 29-year old males," said John Gerzema, CEO of The Harris Poll. "It was a calculated move to become a more polarizing brand and it seems to have worked."

Online sales grew by 31% during the bank holiday weekend after the ad launched, according to researcher Edison Trends.

abcnews.go.com/Business/nike-sales-booming-kaepernick-ad-invalidating-critics/story?id=59957137#:~:text=Nike%20stock%20ended%20the%20day,A%20Dick's%20Sporting%20Goods%20Inc.

Nike stock climbed higher Friday after news that the company blew through expectations for second-quarter sales, validating the company's controversial Colin Kaepernick ad campaign that was released during that period.

The sportswear giant revealed its "Just Do It" anniversary campaign during its second quarter, which ended on Nov. 30. The campaign starred former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, and quickly sparked both praise and calls for a boycott. Sales rose, however, with the company reporting a 10 percent jump in income to $847 million, driven primarily by strong revenue growth.

Nike stock ended the day 7.2 percent higher at $72.37 on a day that most stocks traded precipitously lower.

Oustanding work, @MasterBeth .

OP, take note. This is what we in the trade call 'evidence'.

Morrisons do this with their milk. You can buy the standard milk at the standard price or the same milk with an added 10p which goes directly to the farmers. Customer gets to choose.
I presume a fair number of people buy the donation version as it has been on sale for some time
I agree it is nice to have the choice and have stopped using one company who support charities I don't want to support

Understanding who their target consumers are and what they value as a cohort, they were able to make a bet; one that paid off.

The effect of the clamour was not very long lived, was it?

You still will not acknowledge that no one is being 'forced' here. A customer does not have to buy that sandwich with the Shelter affiliation. M&S have lots of other sandwiches to choose from or a customer can go to another retailer.

This.

The op is clearly not their target customer if this is the first time they have noticed this.

Yes, it was. The subsequent fall in share price has more to do with operatioal and inventory issues, and the strength of the dollar, not their brand positioning, which remains strong.

finance.yahoo.com/news/nike-stock-plunges-earnings-inventory-103539852.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAACOat_ixaPy2x8qtxQpsr-KbaxmfRPgG7YspoLT2MPe0I-1w4gwbhrzxoXQRGjfh7K557aioN_Yy38XtyO_Qb2fahnaXUlb_3uNrHRZpI_6sOPhBVsLHoB9148bQs93XOEnaoflDaBKHkoQT9bHZFsVPPS9cki0eVE9gbb06QVxw#:~:text=Why%20Nike%20stock%20is%20falling,China%20sales%20missed%20analyst%20estimates.

Ah well that's because OP believes that they are entitled to buy that sandwich from that retailer and that they are so important that the retailer should bend to their will (despite evidence to the contrary) because they are a customer and therefore automatically entitled to anything they demand, even though it's highly unlikely that the retailer will even notice that one person has not bought a sandwich.
People are so diverse that it's an impossible task to make sure every single last one is perfectly happy with what you offer, so you go with the majority.
OP either is demanding the impossible that every customer and potential customer is kept happy or they are so self centred that they believe that their opinions are the only ones that matter and demand change, confused when that doesn't happen because they can't accept that they may be wrong, misguided or misinformed, because obviously they're so important.

Sadly not an uncommon attitude.

I have the answer!

OP is actually working in market research on behalf of M&S to find out how the MN demographic feels about retailers and charity affiliations. That has to be it.

Well played, OP!

So you don't think market research data is reliable, because it might only be 70,80,90% reliable and not 100%, but an opinion piece from the daily mail is data to you?

I rest my case.

Plot twist, OP is actually the turkey sandwich.

Or the spirit of the turkey, resenting being in the sandwich...

OP is Philip Green, still bitter after all these years.

The op is clearly not their target customer if this is the first time they have noticed this

Wrong. You could actually describe me as this retailer's typical customer, and I do shop with them often. It's just that I'm not a sandwich person but I felt like trying a festive one for a change.

As I say, they used to be fairly woo-free, but recently they have ramped up the side-taking, virtue signalling and off- imagery. They spent probably loads on preachy football placards which they have now had to hide behind the fridges after the FIFA debacle. It's embarrassing and uncomfortable

FWIW, I cooked some turkey, made some cranberry sauce and prepared my own sandwich at home. Delicious and for sure a lot healthier.

It's a shame because they are a quality retailer, they don't need agree to all this nonsense and risk going down the pan