I used to have a serious problem with Wal-Mart. It rudely assaulted my value-based beliefs with it’s focused and crude quest for “cheap”. They seemed to knew the cost of things, but not their value.
Marvel at the Meaningful Capitalism spectacle
In July, Wal-Mart changed the “cheap” game forever, rolling out an environmental labeling program that makes it mandatory for every product to be labelled with the environmental costs of making it.
You’ve never seen this before
What’s brilliant about Wal-Mart’s move is that they aren’t asking for suppliers to change a thing about what they do. There just asking them to honestly share it… with all 130 million people visiting Wal-Mart each week.
Soon you’ll be reading your Coke for calories and environmental degradation. This can is 150 calories and 4000 L of water… huh. By the way, both those Coke facts are wrong… so don’t go repeating them.
Accountability and authenticity as tools to create social change
They’re counting on the fact that suppliers will change their practices to avoid tarnishing their brand. And they’re counting on consumers, when made conscious of the effects of their buying, thinking twice about supporting brands that degrade the earth.
They’re asking you to determine for your self what you truly value. Whether you are a consumer or supplier.
The Values-Based Capitalism parade begins
With Wal-Mart stepping up and taking lead, it’s hard to image that other retailers will not follow suit. After all this isn’t the first parade they’ve lead.
Wal-Mart is a masterful example of how big companies can use their power in a meaningful way, improving society and bringing about change that government hasn’t addressed.
Count on this parade growing stronger, very soon it’s going to be making a real commotion.
This article was originally written for ZeroFootprint and is being published here in honour of Blog Action Day on the topic of climate change.
Photo by: pantagrapher
