Innocent Drinks is a brand close to my heart as it has a strong basis in writing. Their cartons tell amusing little stories whilst getting the boring compliance information across. They engage with their customers even inviting them to drop in to “Fruit Towers” for a chat. I don’t know to what extent that’s a relic from the early days, but it’s a sign of how they create a dialogue with the people that buy their products. In the same way, their web site gives the impression that they’re just cool, regular guys.
The foreign language versions do the same. the French one even perhaps goes a bit further, inviting people to “La Halle aux Fruits” and asking you to bonjour@innocent.fr.
The trouble with a highly popular company like Innocent is that sometimes its customers think they own a little part of it. Of course, they do own some of the brand because they have bought into it literally and philosophically. So they feel some justification in kicking up a stink when, as they see it, it sells out to The Man/Mammon ( delete as applicable).
So why allow Coca-Cola a 30% stake? I’m not going to get into the rights and wrongs of the deal. I (and you dear reader) would be here all day or all night. A recent article in Marketing Week advances the idea that small, ethically-based brands may be acting as Trojan horses within their own larger parent companies and they are actually influencing the marketing and branding of their larger partners.
I for one raise an eyebrow when the very virtuous Green and Black’s was gobbled up by Cadbury a couple of years ago. Now, it seems that the flagship Dairy Milk will be sourced exclusively from Fairtrade sources from the end of the summer. Fairtrade is very much part of the zeitgeist these days, but can it be pure coincidence?
It should not be forgotten that Cadbury’s has its own ethical past with its Quaker founding principles and its Bourneville village near Birmingham built in the 19th century for its employees and others who would otherwise have lived in slums. Just as Lever Brothers built Port Sunlight.
The very same Lever Brothers who through their modern Unilever incarnation bought Ben & Jerry’s in 2000. It is reported from within Unilever that Ben & Jerry’s has had an impact on the sourcing policies of other brands in the portfolio such as Lipton tea and PG Tips. Ice cream production has been moved from Vermont to Europe and a sustainable dairy programme has been developed with the help of of the parent company with aim of making the operation carbon neutral. These large scale projects would not have been possible without funding and support from Unilever.
So, three companies, three brands, Innocent, Green & Black’s and Ben & Jerry’s. All trailblazing worthy brands that have had to bring in outside help in order to expand. Sold out do the litte guys or Trojan horses ready to attack from the inside? Innocent say they chose Coca-Cola because they promised to be the most hands off. Let’s hope their engaging style does not suffer in the process.
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