Mention at least 5 specif points from this article ? -1-prod-fleet01-xythos.content.blackboardcdn.com/blackboard.learn.xythos.prod/58249d599753b/1138605?X-Blackboa... Q1 / 17 1JOURNAL OF STRATEGIC MARKETING 14 353-368 (DECEMBER 2006)67% + | @ »RoutledgeTaver & Sanck CroupIdentifying fair trade in consumption choiceJOHN CONNOLLY*Dublin City University Business School, Dublin City University, Collins Avenue, Dublin 9,IrelandDEIRDRE SHAWSchool of Business and Management, University of Glasgow, West Quadrangle, Gilbert ScottBuilding, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UKAlthough increased consumer concern for ethical issues has been recognised inresearch, this has tended to explore such concerns in isolation, neglecting to considerthe often complex interaction between ethical issues in consumer decision-making.Such interrelationships are important to the study of fair trade in terms of providing aricher understanding of market potential and development in strategic decision-making. The present paper, therefore, seeks to explore fair trade within the context ofother discursive narratives such as green consuming, ethical consuming, and voluntarysimplicity and the strategic marketing implications for fair trade organisations.KEYWORDS: Fair trade; green consumer; ethical consumer; voluntary simplicity; brandsINTRODUCTIONInterest in the issues surrounding fair trade have gained increasing prominence in both themarketplace and within the marketing literature (e.g. Doonar, 2004a,b; McDonagh, 2002; Shawet al., 2000). While some research has explored consumer responses to fair trade this has tended toexplore fair trade in isolation (e.g. Shaw et al., 2000; Strong, 1997). Despite the fact that thediscursive claims of green consumption, ethical consumption, and voluntary simplicity are oftenpositioned separately within the literature (e.g. Craig-Lees and Hill, 2002; Laroche et al., 2001;Peatttie, 2001) or alternatively, as complimentary activities (e.g. Robins and Roberts, 1997), theissue of fair trade within these narratives has not been subject to much scrutiny. The purpose ofthis paper is to review the existing published research on fair trade alongside other ethicalconsumer concerns such as ethical consumption, green consumption and voluntary simplicity.The exploration of such interconnections is important, as research exploring fair trade in isolationmay fail to uncover the often complex interaction between all issues of concern to the consumer.Following on from this, we outline three areas within the realm of marketing and strategy wherefair trade organisations can engage with consumers on a broad ranging and inclusive level, to take* Corresponding author: john.connolly@dit.ieJournal of Strategic Marketing ISSN 0965-254X print/ISSN 1466-4488 online ©2006 Taylor & Francishttp://www.tandf.co.uk/journalsDOI: 10.1080/09652540600960675354Q ✩ IBACKGROUNDROUNDIThe fair trade marketCONNOLLY AND SHAWaccount of the diverse issues that concern consumers of fair trade products. Finally, the resultantimplications of this wider perspective for strategic decision-making in organisations will bediscussed.Sales of fair trade products doubled between 2001 and 2003 (Fairtrade Foundation, 2003),¹resulting in current annual sales of just over €147m in the UK. In Europe sales have now topped€560m. Indeed, the most recent literature on the subject refers to the significant growth in fairtrade (Doonar, 2004a,b; Jones et al., 2003).Moreover, the growth in the market for fair trade products cannot be dismissed as anecdotal.Indeed, it is important to note the wider context within which this growth is placed. Otherproducts reflective of consumer ethical or moral concerns have also experienced significantgrowth rates, for instance, in the UK consumer demand in the organic food sector rose by 55%between the years 2000 and 2001 (Desai, 2001). Meanwhile Europe has also seen a boom in theorganic food market (Soil Association, 2006). Further examples of consumer ethical concern canbe found in financial services offering an ethical focus, as well as consumers' willingness to boycottcompanies-recent examples of which include Coca-Cola, Esso, Nestlé and Shell. It is importantto note, however, that although fair trade has been experiencing significant growth rates, fairtrade tea and coffee together only capture 2.3% of the market (Williams and Doane, 2002).Indeed, fair trade only represents about 0.01% of all goods traded globally (Fairtrade Foundation,2004).Fair trade labelling organisations in particular have played a key role in the development of thefair trade market, creating what Renard (2003) refers to as a reality within the market instead ofconstructing an alternative outside the market. Playing an important role in the growth of fairtrade in the UK was the introduction of Cafedirect, a fair trade coffee brand, to mainstream retailoutlets. In recognising the importance of traditional product features, including quality and taste,Cafedirect sought to be more than just an ethical brand and also placed importance on productquality and availability in mainstream markets. The label also enjoys widespread recognition inEurope.The increased presence of fair trade products, including coffee, tea, honey, bananas, orangejuice and chocolate, in mainstream as well as alternative outlets has improved access, range andavailability of these products. This growth, however, has not been reflected in all markets. Unlikethe food sector where fair trade products can be readily identified by a label, such developmentshave been slow in other areas, including clothing, homewares and flowers, where availabilitytends to be restricted to specialised outlets. This is reflected in markets in the UK and elsewhere.Yet there appears to be a growing awareness among consumers of the environmental and socialimpact of their consumption particularly in response to a globalised economy (Giddens, 1991,1994). This perspective is important in light of research that has revealed that interconnectionsexist between different consumer ethical concerns (Shaw and Clarke 1999; Shaw et al., 2000). Asa result, a danger exists in examining fair trade in isolation, as it is likely that this concern existsalongside a number of issues of concern to the consumer, such as environmental or animal welfareissues. In addition, recent developments in the market may further add to consumer confusionsuch as the development of own-brand fair trade products by supermarkets such as Tesco and± XBb untitledt-1-prod-fleet01-xythos.content.blackboardcdnCONSUMPTION CHOICEEnvironmentally concerned consumersEnvironmentally/ecologicallyconscious consumersGreen consumersX3 / 17 |.CopySainsbury's (Doonar, 2004a), the mainstreaming of the market with TV advertising campaignsand price discounting (Jones et al., 2003), as well as alternative labels linked to ecological issues.From a review of the existing literature, therefore, in this conceptual paper we suggest that fairtrade can engage with consumers through the areas of green consumption, ethical consumptionand voluntary simplicity and that these conceptualisations are overlapping phenomena.Furthermore, ethical consumers may be adopting a lifestyle approach to their ethical concernsthrough elements of voluntary simplicity or ethical simplicity. This raises a number of issues anddilemmas for the fair trade movement as fair trade is considered a sub-set of ethical consumerism(Bird and Hughes, 1997).Green, ethical & charitable consumerEthical ConsumersSemi-ethicals/slaveryHumane consumersConserving consumerEthical simplifiersThe voluntary simplifierCONCERNED CONSUMERSThe marketing literature over the past two decades has commonly used the terms 'greenconsumer', 'ethical consumer' and 'voluntary simplicity' as typologies for concerned consumers.While we do not suggest these are the only terms that have been used to describe such consumergroups (see Table 1, for example), we do suggest these are presently commonly utilised. Moreimportantly, however, these terms reflect the perceived diversity existing within the literature inthis area. At the same time this diversity often fails to highlight the concerns and feelings whichconsumers of these varying categorisations have in common. Thus, these terminologies will beDownshifters+Table I Marketing categorisations of consumersFisk, 1973Responsible ConsumersThe socially conscious consumerEcologically concerned consumersAnderson & Cunningham, 1972; Webster, 1975; Brooker,1976; Mayer, 1976; Antil, 1984; Osterhus, 1997.Kinnear, Taylor & Ahmed, 1974; Kinnear & Taylor, 1973;Schwepker & Cornwell, 1991; Roberts & Bacon, 1997;Balderjahn, 1988; Bohlen, Schlegelmilch &Diamantopoulos, 1993.***n.xythos.prod/58249d599753b/1138605?X-Blackboa... Q67% + | @355Ger, 1997Pickett, Kangun & Grove, 1993Shaw & Newholm, 2002Murphy, Kangun & Locander, 1978; Berger & Corbin, 1992;Follows & Jobber, 2000; Brown & Wahlers, 1998.Dembkowski & Hammer-Lloyd, 1994; Straughan & Roberts,1999; Keesling & Kaynama, 2003.Roberts, 1996; Shrum, McCarty & Lowrey, 1995; Prothero,1990; Schlegelmich, Bohlen & Diamantopoulos, 1996;Titterington, Davies & Cochrane, 1996; Laroche,Bergeron & Barbaro, 2001; Peatttie, 2001;Diamantopoulos, Schlegelmich, Sinkovics &?Bohlen, 2003.Schlegelmilch, 1994Strong, 1997; Shaw & Clarke, 1999; Shaw, Shiu & Clarke,2000; Shaw & Shiu, 2002McDonagh (2002)Shama, 1985; Rudmin & Kilbourne, 1996; Etzioni, 1998;Craig-Lees & Hill, 2002.Schor, 1991, 19989356Q ✰ ✰CONNOLLY AND SHAWused to explore the nature of the interconnections which exist among these consumers and theimplications for fair trade.The green consumerSince the late 1980s and early 1990s when the environmental crisis hit home to large numbers ofconsumers, the notion of a green consumer has become an increasingly accepted phenomenon. Inparticular, the so-called 'Green '90s (Fuller, 1999) saw incredible publicity for both greenproducts and green consumers, whilst research on green marketing continued at pace (see Menonand Menon, 1997; Peattie, 1995; Peattie and Charter, 1994; Prothero, 1990; Schlegelmilch et al.,1996; Vandermerwe and Oliff, 1990). In addition, a plethora of green consumer guides becameavailable to aid the green consumer in their decision-making (Connolly et al., 2004). As a result,discriminating consumers could now arm themselves with information from detailed guides ontopics ranging from clean beaches to food additives (Irvine, 1989).Furthermore, a great deal of research has been conducted to try to identify and understand thegreen consumer (Peattie, 2001). Indeed, much of the literature on environmental consumptionhas attempted to profile environmentally conscious members of the public, with numerous studiesaddressing the characteristics of green consumers either as a primary point of investigation or as asecondary issue (Straughan and Roberts, 1999).Despite, or rather because of this, there is no universally accepted definition of the greenconsumer (Connolly et al., 2004; Fuller, 1999; Kilbourne and Beckmann, 1998; Peattie, 2001).From a marketing perspective, as can be seen in Table 1, efforts to identify environmentallyconscious consumers can be traced back to the 1970s (Anderson and Cunningham, 1972), withnumerous categorisations involving terms such as environmentally, ecological, or sociallyconscious consumers. Despite the various labels, the central theme running through thedefinitions is of consumers who consider the environment important and thus evaluate theirpurchase decisions to take this into account. Indeed, green products can, according to Crane(1997), be regarded as possessing a set of attributes which are in some sense ethical. Thus, indocumenting studies concerned with environmentally concerned consumers Table 1 also detailsresearch which addresses more broad ranging concerns.We contend, the distinction between green consumers and ethical consumers is ambiguous.For instance, in Elkington and Hailes (1989) The Green Consumer Guide, the green consumer isdescribed as one who avoids products which are likely to endanger the health of the consumer orothers, cause significant damage to the environment during manufacture, use or disposal,consume a disproportionate amount of energy, cause unnecessary waste, use materials derivedfrom threatened species or environments, involve unnecessary use of or cruelty to animals andadversely affect other countries. On the other hand, Strong (1996), in addressing the issue ofethical consumption, noted a connection between environmental concerns and ethical issues andstated that the green consumer had become ethically aware and had been joined by manyconsumers who believe in the principles of fair trade. At the same time a number of studies withinthe marketing domain distinguished between ethical consumers and green consumers (e.g.Gabriel and Lang, 1995; Matthews, 1994; Vaughan, 1993). Indeed, Shaw and Clarke (1999)stated that ethical consumers are distinguishable by their concern for 'deep-seated problems, suchas those of the Third World' (p. 109) in addition to environmental problems. From a similarperspective, Shaw and Newholm (2002) declare that 'the inextricable link between consumptionand ethical problems, such as environmental degeneration and fairness in world trade, has resultedin the emergence of a group of consumers commonly referred to as ethical consumers' (p. 168).↓SX1

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The concept of ethical consumption has gained significant attention in recent years, with consumers…