This time of year store shelves seem to turn all shades of pink. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and everything from cookies to socks take on a girlie shade of blush. While many of the products support a great cause, they don't all give a portion of sales to breast cancer research. And some provide pennies of your purchase to this important cause. Wondering how to determine the difference between a marketing ploy designed to sell more stuff to unsuspecting shoppers and a passionate company truly wanting to do some good? We've got tips to help you avoid spending money on pink impostors and instead support the products that are truly helping fight breast cancer.
Think Before Automatically Buying Pink
The biggest thing to keep in mind this October is that, just because something is pink or carries the breast cancer ribbon image, it doesn't mean it's supporting the cause. "It wasn't until I read the fine print a bit closer and saw terms like 'a percentage of net proceeds' or even '10% of net profits' and realized the chance was probably better that there was no net anything with nothing being donated to charity," says Karen Whittier of EmbraceActivism.com. "I think the concept of using a portion of a purchase to benefit a charity is great—giving people an easy way to make a difference, but scams that take advantage of people's goodwill can spoil it for everyone." EmbraceActivism.com says they donate ten percent of the retail price to non-profits dedicated to research, treatments and cures. A yoga mat in a tote sells for $45.50 which means that $4.55 from each sale will go to designated charities.
Follow Breast Cancer Action
Breast Cancer Action is a non-profit working on breast cancer advocacy and awareness. In 2002 the organization coined the term "Pinkwashing" to describe a company or organization that claims to care about breast cancer by promoting a pink ribbon product, but at the same time produces, manufactures and/or sells products that are linked to the disease. BCAction recently released information about a new perfume PROMISE ME which they believe contains dangerous ingredients, while at the same time supporting breast cancer research. “Pinkwashing puts profits before women’s lives,” BCAction Executive Director Karuna R. Jaggar said in a news release. “We are deeply concerned that a perfume that can harm women’s health is being sold in the name of breast cancer. When women’s lives are a stake we need rigorous precautionary standards: when in doubt, leave it out!”
A Logo Doesn't Mean an Endorsement
Just because product packaging contains a non-profit's logo doesn't mean the charity is endorsing the product or that you should choose that one over another. According to the American Institute of Philanthropy, "Many people wrongly assume that whenever a charity’s name is used to market a product, the charity is endorsing the product and the product is superior to those of competitors. Consumers may not be aware that charities often enter into exclusive licensing partnerships with companies."
Ask Questions, Don't Expect Answers
Ideally as consumers we'd like to know how much of the purchase price will go to the charity, when they'll get the money and if there are any stipulations that might prevent the charity from receiving the money, but according to experts that information may be very hard to uncover. "I think consumers can insure their purchase is contributing towards the fight against breast cancer by looking for explicit terms and giving the consumer the power of directing which breast cancer charity benefits from their purchase," says Whittier. But BC Action says the answers aren't always easy to find. For instance, they say Give Hope Jeans sold at White House Black Market for $88 promised "net proceeds" from the sale to a breast cancer charity. But what the label didn't say was that there was a $200,000 cap on contributions. This means that no matter how many jeans are sold, once they had reached the $200,000 limit they would stop giving. Those details aren't always easy for consumers to uncover. In the end, it's best to just make a donation to your favorite charity. Don't rely on the products you buy to support the causes you believe in.
