The Carlsberg Call Out
“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players” — William Shakespeare.
You’re all a part of it, so be sure to put on a good show. Just when you think no one’s watching, all eyes could be on you.
When you choose to befriend a person, what basis do you make that decision on? Character, values, drive, compatibility, background? Think about the last time a friend made a choice that you didn’t think was appropriate. At your core, you always knew you had the option to hold on to that friendship or let it go.
Associating with a brand is becoming exactly like making a friend. One bad move, and it’s up to you as an individual to stay faithful or shift loyalties. Brands are gauging increasing awareness about this shift in consumer behaviour, and their actions are starting to be deeply scrutinised in the public eye. 20 years ago, people may have thought ‘it’s a business, they need to keep going and make money to survive’. Today, while the survival instinct remains internal, it’s crucial for organisations to stand for and support what they believe in in order to retain customers.
With the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine, numerous brands have made decisions that may hamper their production and sales. Renault, Nestlé, Unilever, Ikea and Uniqlo are just a few of the many brands that have partially or completed suspended operations in Russia as of now, making an impactful statement. But this action from each brand goes a lot further than just halting their business. Together, when a number of organisations take such a stand, it affects Russia, can deeply hamper their day-to-day functioning, and can give a sense of which side of the fight majority of the globe is rooting for.
Amidst this outburst of assertion, Danish multinational brewer Carlsberg took a stand to halt exports and new investments into Russia. The company has over 1,000 employees in Russia, made a € 10 million donation to support humanitarian efforts in Ukraine, and announced that their Russia-based majority-owned sub-company Baltika Breweries will be run as a separate business, in order to sustain its 8,000 employees and their families.
In 2021, Russia and Ukraine accounted for nearly 13% of Carlsberg Group’s revenue. Why then, did it decide to take such massive steps knowing that a major piece of its income would be hampered? In my opinion, the answer is simple — friendship! The organisation strongly cares about the people of Ukraine and their wellbeing, but it surely doesn’t hurt that their move is in tandem with a range of other companies from across the world.
A dedicated section on their company website announcing the decision followed articles by Bloomberg and Reuters, making sure that all of Carlsberg’s patrons knew the firm’s stand. Indeed, bold steps make brave brands. Let’s take a moment today to think and pray for all the innocent lives lost over the past few weeks, and how every drop makes an ocean, be it of grief or glory.
“Alone, we can do so little; together, we can do so much” — Helen Keller.
