Fair Trade's Dual Aspect: The Communications Challenge of Fair Trade Marketing

• Published in: Journal of macromarketing 2009-06, Vol.29 (2), p.160-171
• Main Author: Golding, Kirsty Michelle
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chocolate; Consumer behavior; Consumption; Fair trade; Market strategy; Studies; Sustainable consumption; Sustainable development
• ISSN: 0276-1467; 1552-6534
• DOI: 10.1177/0276146708327632

Effective communication strategies are fundamental to achieving sustainable consumption, yet there is a gap in the literature with respect to their design. Moreover, there is considerable debate with respect to the starting point for such strategies: whether the shift to sustainable consumption can be achieved within the dominant social paradigm or whether a new paradigm is required. Fair trade (FT) marketing presents a valuable case study of these issues in practice. Case analysis of a campaign by the Divine Chocolate Company suggests the importance of transcending the polarization of the radical and pragmatic visions of FT and also the within or without dichotomy of macromarketing in terms of moving consumers along a pathway to sustainable development. The campaign's synergism further has significant implications for the design of communication strategies to effect sustainable consumption. These are presented in terms of two working propositions for exploration in alternative contexts.