Ethics And Retail: A Good Match

By Debbie Hauss, Editor-in-Chief

I don’t want to be naïve: I know that business success hinges on the bottom line ― margins, sales, profits. But I also cling to the idea that ethical pursuits not only make a retail company a good place to work and shop, but also help a company succeed. On some level I guess I believe in the concept of ‘good karma.’

I was extremely disturbed when I learned that Foxconn had to place nets outside their building, below the roof, to prevent employees from committing suicide. It tainted my perception of other companies, in this case Apple, doing business with Foxconn. I’d like to believe that no company, even Apple, is immune from the effects of questionable business practices.

So I read with great interest the recent news from Ethisphere announcing the 2012 World’s Most Ethical Companies. A total of 145 companies, from a variety of industries, are selected each year for exhibiting “leadership in promoting ethical business standards.” I was happy to learn that a number of retail companies made the list, including Target, Costco, Safeway, Gap and Whole Foods.

Other retail companies that made the list this year include Starbucks, Patagonia, Wegmans, Marks and Spencer, Best Buy, eBay, Timberland, Office Max, Petco and Ten Thousand Villages. Two retail companies have been chosen each of the six years Ethisphere has published the list: Cheers to Patagonia and Starbucks!

Ethical business standards can include different types of business practices related to compliance, ideas that offer public benefit, and sustainability. Retail TouchPoints covered retail sustainability efforts in a two-part feature article titled The Current and Future State of Sustainability in Retail, published last year.

I also participated recently in a Twitter event on the topic of Sustainability, hosted by the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), in conjunction with the release of the group’s 2012 Retail Sustainability Report.

I hope that Ethisphere and RILA continue their efforts to promote the benefits of good business ethics; and I hope that a growing number of companies continue to make strides in committing to more ethical business practices. I also hope that more individuals, like myself, draw attention to and participate in those efforts ― as business executives, consumers and as human beings.

Follow Debbie on Twitter: @DHauss