Critical evaluation of Western fashion brands’ response to the controversy surrounding the treatment of garment workers in Asia.
Case Study Task The case study forms the second assessment of the module. It is an individual paper worth 50% of the overall module mark. The case study assessment is this:
Critically evaluate how Western fashion brands should respond to the controversy surrounding the treatment of garment workers in Asia.
The topic links to a number of marketing related themes – corporate social responsibility, ethical consumption, brand image, and public relations.
The issue of good corporate citizenship is important to all managers and it is increasingly important to marketing professionals. Brands are now expected to “do the right thing” when facing the social and ethical issues of our time. Failure to do so can have negative implications for the brand in the marketplace and it can weaken the beneficial effects of the marketing effort of the business. Consumers may even boycott a brand that is seen to be unethical or to have behaved badly. Conversely, a brand that has shown itself to be a good corporate citizen may benefit from a consumer “buycott” and corporate virtue may even help to achieve competitive advantage.
The assignment considers the alleged poor working conditions of workers in the garment industry in Asia who make products for Western fashion brands. Allegations of ill treatment and exploitation of workers create ethical issues for many Western fashion brands that outsource production to Asia. From a marketing perspective, allegations of unethical practice in the production process present issues in terms of brand perception and positioning with the potential threat of consumer boycott potentially leading to erosion of brand credibility and market share.
You are asked to consider why the public concern about factory conditions in Asia should worry you as a marketer / brand manager, and to consider what might be done to minimise the negative impact on your brand.
It is important to note that it is usually not the fashion brands that mistreat garment production workers directly. The Western fashion brands often do not own the garment factories where exploitation takes place, and many brands do have codes of ethical conduct which describe how they aim to behave. However, the problem is potential for bad publicity for these brands because they commission manufacture of garments from local Asian manufacturers where abuses have been shown to take place. It is very difficult for the Western fashion brands to monitor and control what happens in the factories. Therefore, consumers may tend to blame the fashion brands for sweatshops and other issues. As a marketer any issue that may affect how consumers feel about our brand is your concern.
Preparation:
These sources will help you to prepare your paper. You can use some of them and reference them in your paper if you want. However, obviously there are other sources out there too so you should find other sources as well to make your paper more unique. Do not forget that you should include a fair number of ACADEMIC SOURCES in your paper’s reference list. Submissions with little or no academic sources will probably fail. For relevant academic sources check Google Scholar.
