Was reading the news today about how many big-name brands have taken a political stand against Russia’s war against the Ukraine by suspending business in Russia:
I find it fascinating the way that modern brands have evolved to have values and beliefs the same way people do.
What do you think about it?
I don’t think that’s what has happened here.
It’s either pull out of Russia or face a global boycott.
But pulling out of a country where they probably have billionaire investors would have been tough to get through all the paper work to make it ‘legal’ to do so.
Whether they’re doing the right thing for personable reasons or not… it’s clearly to save face.
Plus the supply into the country would be difficult with ports and airspace monitored, plus road checks going to and from Russia.
Yeah, I’d caution against interpreting business maneuvers as “moral positioning”. There would be some legitimate crossover, but at the global mega-corporation decision-making table, revenue simply never succumbs to ethics alone.
It’s all about the bottom line. From boycotts to supply chain issues that affect cost, I’m sure the numbers had all to do with it, not some altruism within the corporate entity itself. A business is not a person, though they have the same legal status as one.
I suspect individuals within the businesses feel the same outrage and sadness about the situation in Ukraine as others do.
However, publicly traded corporations must make decisions based on what they think is best for their stockholders. When they don’t, they can be sued.
The sanctions, boycotts, logistical hurdles, unstable currency exchange rates, public relations concerns, and general chaos, gave them defensible business reasons to make their decisions.
I’m assuming that our Russian friend, Anastasiya, has put her company’s Siberian Heritage reclaimed wood export project on hold for the time being. Brand image presentation and website design 🚀🌲
She may not see this for a while as internet access, especially social media, has been pretty much severed for the Russian people. I believe it’s officially now a crime to discuss publicly what is happening or call it a war. If you do, you are a traitor and undermining the national interest.
BLM was quite a positioning nightmare for big brands, it was like: “um do we change everything to black now?”
Netflix, Amazon, yada yada… all completely changed what they represented for a limited time… now its Blue and Yellow flags.
Its sad how people don’t realize its just for marketing and PR and they don’t ACTUALLY give a rat’s tucus lol.
Woke=successful business now.
Saw this today and thought of this thread:
What do you think about brands developing a fictious personality like Wendys in this case and saying things that other multinational businesses might be a bit uncomfortable opnely saying?