Has Innocent lost its innocence?At the time of their 10th anniversary it’s been announced that Innocent has sold a minority share in the company to Coca Cola. Is this deal going to work or is it going to end in tears? I’ve always liked and admired the Innocent company and its products. The packaging looks great. The message is simple. I simply can’t help smiling when I see that daft truck covered in artificial grass drive by me. There is something uplifting about the company. Take a look at the website to see what I mean. The founders have stuck to their guns doing what they believe is right. This deal seems to be following a trend of very large companies buying into or buying up small so-called ‘ethical’ brands: L’Oreal and Body Shop, Unilever and Ben and Jerry’s, Cadbury’s and Green & Blacks. Since Anita Roddick is most unfortunately no longer with us we cannot know her perspective on the L’Oreal deal now. Ben Cohen has spoken publicly of his disapproval of Unilever’s management of Ben and Jerry’s. Cadbury’s announcement that they intend to use fairtrade cocoa in all Dairy Milk bars sold in the UK and Ireland from September would appear to give credence to the idea that Green & Black’s has had a positive influence on Cadbury’s. However Cadbury’s does have a long history of social conscience. Coca Cola unfortunately does not. The company is linked with human rights abuses, environmental degradation and forced product recalls. The three founders of Innocent clearly believe this deal is right for them. In the open letter on the website they make the point that Coca Cola will open distribution channels for them and that the injection of £30M from Coca Cola will allow them to do more of what they already do well. They also go to great pains to point out that Coca Cola will have a minority shareholding and this is what I think is bothering me. If Coca Cola really is the right partner for them why do they need to emphasise how small the shareholding is? That sounds more like they are really saying ‘Look we know this is a crazy match but the upside is too big to allow us to focus on the downside so we’re in denial’. I really really hope it works out for them but I’m worried and will be watching closely. Add a CommentYour comment will appear once it has been approved. |