The deceptive marketing practice of
greenwashing
is destroying brand reputations — siphoning market share away from products and
services that are genuinely working to address sustainability issues and eroding
shareholder trust along the way. But despite various
efforts
to rid the market of the phenomenon, it is showing no signs of dying off just
yet. And in the race to build brand equity, transparency and openness, it’s
becoming more important to understand what does — and doesn’t — constitute
greenwash.
The most recent spate of greenwash controversies points to some interesting
developments and raises pertinent questions for marketers everywhere.
Apparel brands in the hot seat
Nike
The class-action lawsuit brought against Nike proves that making greenwash
claims is not simply the reserve of environmental campaign groups and climate
activists; increasingly, everyday folks are holding corporate giants to account.
In this case, Goliath faced down David in a relatively easy victory: The
case
of Missouri customer Maria Ellis vs. Nike centered on claims the
business was falsely marketing products as “sustainable and environmentally
friendly” when, in fact, they were anything but. She claims that only a fraction
(less than 10 percent) of the 2,452 products that make up Nike’s sustainability
collection are made from recycled materials — and around 90 percent of the
apparel is created using plastic-based materials.
Ellis’ suit read: “Synthetic materials like polyester, a form of plastic derived
from oil, shed plastic particles called microplastics with wash and wear. They
are a prime source of microplastic
pollution,
which is especially harmful to marine life.”
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Her claims might well have been plausible; but she didn’t have any hard evidence
to back up her claims and the suit was
dismissed
last month.
UK fashion brands commit to up their game
Meanwhile, three of the UK’s biggest budget fashion chains —
Asos, Boohoo and
George — have also
been under
scrutiny
by the competition regulator that has promised to get tougher on corporate
greenwash. In a statement, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
said the companies had been presenting products as being more eco-friendly than
they are, without providing further information — a practice that isn’t fair to
customers and distorts competition — and launched an investigation back in 2022.
Rather than face legal action, the three brands have promised to up their game.
They will have to file regular reports to the regulator indicating how they are
improving their communications — that means setting out their sustainability
claims more accurately and avoiding the use of ‘natural’ imagery, such as green
leaves, that might make a product seem to be more environmentally friendly than
it is.
“What we’re asking firms to do is put themselves in the shoes of their shoppers
and see whether that claim is understandable in its own right,”
said
George Lusty, interim
executive director for consumer protection and markets at the CMA. “Is it
accompanied by information that makes clear what that means?”
The UK has laws in place to impose fines on any brand greenwashing — and it’s
not afraid to use them; the CMA has the
power
to impose financial penalties of up to 10 percent of a company’s annual
turnover. But publicly inviting companies to be more responsible in this way is
likely to have the same impact. In an open
letter
to the fashion industry, the CMA has called on other brands to reassess their
own environmental claims.
In a similar move, European Union regulators asked
Zalando — one of the world’s biggest fashion retailers —
to stop using misleading symbols on its website. After a two-year
investigation,
it was noted that the firm was simply misleading customers into thinking some of
its products were better for the environment than they are. As with the three UK
brands, no fines were issued — but the public shaming should help the brand
improve its storytelling: Less ambiguous and opaque symbols, more
straightforward sustainability information for each product.
Brands fall into the trap of greenwash because they attach their storytelling to
one element of their performance rather than addressing their biggest impacts,
according to eco-innovator Mark
Shayler — whose new creative
agency, Good Briefs, is an “antidote to
greenwashing, greenwishing and greenhushing.”
Brands that stumble “make generalized claims rather than specific ones,” he told
Sustainable Brands® (SB). “They court public opinion rather than being
led by the science. And they see sustainability as a way of competing with the
rest of the sector rather than being the right thing to do.”
Continuing sagas
Other high-profile greenwashing controversies remain unresolved. A second
class-action
lawsuit against
H&M, filed in December 2023, is still ongoing. And who knows how the climate
activist group Stand.earth will get on in its
pursuit
of lululemon in Canada over the brand’s ‘Be Planet’ marketing
campaign.
Greenwashing crackdown will only intensify
What is clear is that the pursuit of greenwashing — whether by regulators of
members of the public — is only going to intensify. A recent
survey
of executives across the world found that almost 60 percent believe their own
company overstates its efforts on sustainability. And the majority (nearly 75
percent) say that most brands within their sector would likely be found guilty
of greenwash should they be investigated.
The Nike v Ellis case only goes to show the height of the legal bar consumers
are asked to meet in proving a brand is trying to pull the wool over their eyes.
However, the whole saga will have been unwelcome attention for the brand; and
Nike’s evidence to support its sustainability collection is as conspicuously
absent as that for which Ellis was asked.
It is time for brands everywhere to get their houses in order by documenting
their product claims and providing the evidence to support their product stories
on sustainability. Shayler says brands must better integrate sustainability
storytelling into the heart of their business.
“Sustainability has found itself with more to say to the marketing department,
but in reality it needs to speak more to the innovation and business model
teams,” he says. “Let’s take it away from marketing — as they never let the
truth get in the way of a good story — and build it into the heart of the
business. This isn’t about looking good. It’s about doing good.”
Marketing activist Thomas Kolster
agrees — warning brands not to try and appear more green or diverse than they
actually are simply to attract younger consumers. “They’ll chase you out of town
like a snake oil salesman,” he tells SB. “We’re spending too much time on the
greenwashing
agenda
instead of focusing on the real problem: the urgent transition — building more
meaningful
brands
to make people’s lives healthier, greener and happier.”
In an era of heightened awareness, interest and education on ESG topics,
consumers, regulators and other stakeholders need to see proof of progress.
Unsubstantiated claims just won’t fly — and it’s getting too risky and costly to
even attempt it.
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Content creator extraordinaire.
Tom is founder of storytelling strategy firm Narrative Matters — which helps organizations develop content that truly engages audiences around issues of global social, environmental and economic importance. He also provides strategic editorial insight and support to help organisations – from large corporates, to NGOs – build content strategies that focus on editorial that is accessible, shareable, intelligent and conversation-driving.
Published May 8, 2024 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST