Behind the Brand

There was a time when a 'Brand' stood for an expectation of quality. We believed we could trust the companies that manufactured our products to produce high quality, safe products. The name on the package was our way of knowing the product inside was something we could trust. We have lost that innocence.

Corporations no longer care about the actual quality of their products. They care about your 'perception' of their quality. It doesn't matter what the product is, they care about what you think it is.

The 2007 Pet Food Contamination is a good example of how little we can trust brands. The name brand pet foods were made in the same factories with the same contaminated, poor quality, China sourced, wheat gluten as the cheep stuff. This heartbreaking incident pulled the curtain back and showed us that the product is incidental to these companies. They wrap their name and feel good message around that can and cash in.

The examples go on and on... lead paint in Fisher Price Toys, Mattel Barbie Accessories, and Disney Store sleeping bags. Those precious little girls shoes sold at high end Nordstroms (March 09) - made in China and recalled for high lead content. You can't determine quality or safety by the price or the reputation of the retailer.

Protecting your family requires a lot of effort. I contact companies regularly to get more information about where their products are manufactured and where they source ingredients. When asked to put the facts in writing they usually reveal things their misleading packaging doesn't tell you. Where applicable I request the Material Safety Data Sheets. Any service provider (carpet cleaners, exterminators, landscapers, etc.) should not be trusted if they can't provide you with the MSDS for any products they propose to use at your home. Unfortunately you often find yourself having to choose between bad and worse.

Corporations have gobbled up quality food producers like a pacman game. News stories about acquisitions usually read something like this - “Conagra's Acquisition of (Family Owned Organics) Expands Brand Portfolio”. Notice the focus on brand. The value is in the “brand” they added to their portfolio not the products they produce. They are in the business to make money not quality, safe products for our families.

Consumers want to know they can trust something, a company name, a symbol on the package, or the information on the label. Currently that isn't possible. The corporations have marketing geniuses working full time to keep shoppers confused and misled. They have lobbyist fighting every attempt to regulate and protect consumers.

Until consumer outrage begins to affect the pockets of stock holders quality will continue to drift further down the priority list for corporations. They will continue to sell us hollow “Brands”.