Exclusivity detrimental to small business growth

24 Mar 2014

Business has a critical leadership role to play in driving consumer perception regarding sustainability, and should be doing more to encourage awareness around the positive impacts it could have on both society and the bottom line. According to Suzanne Ackerman-Berman, director of transformation at Pick n Pay, it is not acceptable for big players in the supply chain to insist on exclusivity in exchange for helping smaller suppliers.

Exclusivity detrimental to small business growth

Speaking at the Fairview wine farm outside Cape Town at an event that formed part of Fairtrade Week 2014's event calendar, she added, "As consumer's awareness of sustainability increases, there is a greater responsibility on corporate SA to source products ethically and to ensure they are produced in a social and environmentally friendly manner. We need to find ways to meet the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to address their demands in terms of the environment, the economy and their social well-being."

Poor understanding of sustainability

South African consumers do not always have a good understanding of what sustainability means or what makes certain products sustainable. New research, funded by the Belgian Technical Cooperation (BTC) in association with Fairtrade Label South Africa, indicted approximately 65% of respondents revealed no awareness of sustainability, while 75% of respondents showed no awareness of sustainable and ethical products.

"Industry leaders have a responsibility to lead the way in terms of addressing the broader sustainability needs in South Africa. Mentorship and access to skills and markets are the greatest assets that as established businesses we can share with small emerging entrepreneurs and farmers. It is about helping small business understand the importance of ethics in business, how to accept change and to adapt to the unexpected so that they can thrive in any competitive market.

"Exclusivity does not help to grow small businesses. Small businesses should be encouraged to produce an excess that forces exposure to wider markets, thereby increasing and creating healthy competition," she says.

The group was the first retailer in Africa to commit to Fairtrade, and to give its assurance that it would stock Fairtrade products as they become available locally. "When we signed the agreement with Fairtrade in 2010, we committed ourselves to becoming a key player in the creation of a Fairtrade market in South Africa, as well as in the promotion of new local and regional Fairtrade supply chains. Our commitment in 2014 remains as strong as it was then," she concludes.

Pick n Pay is also a Fairtrade at Work partner, which means the retailer has also committed to using Fairtrade products in its working environment.