The Canadian British (sorry Vancouverites, but contrary to popular belief, they’re not from around here) cosmetics company Lush offers a wide range of body and hand lotions. One in particular, however, is noteworthy from a marketing standpoint: the Charity pot. Lush states that the entire purchasing price of the moisturizer goes to support one of the charities in the grassroots program (a compilation of smaller charities around the world). Also interesting: instead of supporting the charity once the purchase was made, Lush already paid them and is now selling the Charity pot to recover costs. Have a look at their Canadian website for more info.
The Charity pot is part of a larger strategy that sets out to position Lush as a brand with an exceptionally positive impact on the environment, humanitarian cause, and an ethical approach to doing business. In stark contrast with my previous post that covered Audi and the topic of green-washing, I’d want to commend Lush – they really do seem to do a lot of good stuff. Here’s their official explanation of the Charity pot:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zor8ZQf52yE
What impressed me most was the smart way of including ethical campaigns into Lush’s every-day operations: the company chooses a couple of interesting campaigns every year that are featured not only on their website, but also in-store when making a purchase. The one time I actually went and bought something at Lush, the cashier asked me if I wanted to sign a petition to stop animal testing. A quick signature goes a long way – and leaves me with the feeling of having done something good by entering the Lush store (and of course buying a Lush product) that day.
All in all, these are excellent examples of a well-thought-out marketing strategy centered around going green, going organic, going ethical, etc. under the slogan:
Happy people make happy soap!
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