Tag Archives: retailers

The reasoning behind conscious consumption

August 9, 2020Uncategorizedcompanies, consumers, consumption, environment, ethics, morality, retailers, values, working conditionsmartijn

The Twitterverse was recently asked “Morally, is it worse to get something from Amazon, or Harvey Norman?”

The question solicited many responses: some described the character of the CEOs, others mentioned the wages and taxes paid (or not paid) by each company, while yet other Twitter users cited the labour conditions experienced by workers at these companies.

These factors may or may not influence whether you buy from Harvey Norman or Amazon, but they aren’t issues that help to answer the moral question. As a matter of fact, the question whether to buy from Harvey Norman or Amazon arguably isn’t a moral one at all.

Don’t get me wrong, I think it is important that people ask themselves questions such as these, but this specific question is a not a moral one: rather, it is an ethical question, the answer to which is informed by your values.

At the risk of sounding pedantic, let me explain.

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‘Bullying’ clothing companies are asking struggling suppliers for discounts

May 14, 2020UncategorizedAustralia, Bangladesh, brands, business ethicss, companies, corona, covid19, ethics, fashion, retailers, Supply Chainmartijn

Prominent Australian retailers been caught out again for “unsavoury” behaviour during the coronavirus pandemic – including asking for discounts and pushing back orders from struggling suppliers overseas.

Kmart has backflipped on its request for a 30 per cent discount it forced on its Bangladeshi suppliers, but is still enforcing tight turnarounds.

Mosaic Brands, which owns Crossroads, Millers, Noni B and more, has told its suppliers, also in Bangladesh, that it won’t be meeting some of its payments for eight months, according to the ABC.

Mosaic was called out early in the pandemic for its pushy sales techniques, peddling hand sanitiser and face masks to shoppers to capitalise on the panic-buying surge.

The behaviour is nothing short of bullying, business ethics expert Martijn Boersma said.

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No Absolution Through Conscious Consumption

September 20, 2019Uncategorizedbrands, Climate change, companies, consumption, environment, retailersmartijn

Evolving consumer ethics will see a dramatic shift in the way Australian companies do business, with an emphasis on aligning to their shoppers’ values.

Businesses will have to change their operations to keep up with consumer standards, from seemingly superficial things like packaging, to core operations such as worker treatment.

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Supply chain migrant worker exploitation

May 6, 2015UncategorizedAustralia, companies, exploitation, Food, fresh food, government, human rights abuses, information, labour, Reporting, retailers, Supply Chain, transparency, worker exploitation, working groupmartijn

Fresh Food Supply Chain Worker Exploitation — Photograph: Bloomberg via Getty Images

Supply chains that deliver everyday products to our fridges and tables can link unsuspecting consumers to labour and human rights abuses. Supply chain transparency is a better answer to the issue of worker abuse than “cracking down” on visas, which can make workers more vulnerable to exploitation.

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