Worldwide, businesses are under increasing pressure from the public, who want the truth about how their favourite brands are reducing their environmental impact. Companies found to be overstating their green credentials can face significant reputational damage – as several recent cases have proven.
How can marketing teams ensure that they remain compliant, as well as creative? And what are the dangers of putting out green credentials that can’t be validated?
In our first episode, host Charlotte Rees-John is joined by brand management expert Georgie Collins and Duncan Sparke, an award-winning marketer from Brighton-based agency Man Bites Dog.
Find out:
- What greenwashing means in practical terms
- Real examples from companies who have been found to be greenwashing
- The legal and reputational pitfalls of greenwashing
- The impact of the impending Digital Product Passport
- What it means for your business.
On the podcast
Charlotte Rees-John - Employment Partner and Head of Retail, Hospitality and Leisure sector
Charlotte is the Head of our Retail, Leisure and Hospitality sector. She is also an Employment Partner with over 20 years’ experience. She acts for a number of key clients including Costa Coffee, PureGym and McArthurGlen, and has worked for many other well-known brands in the Retail, Leisure & Hospitality sector, including Mothercare, McDonald’s, Arcadia Limited, Whitbread, Top Shop and Pets at Home to name just a few.
Georgie Collins - Partner and Head of IP
Georgie is one of Irwin Mitchell’s greenwashing experts. She advises on issues of reputation, defamation, privacy and crisis management. She is a regular speaker and contributor to issues concerning brands and reputation management, transatlantic policy, trade and investment.
Duncan Sparke - Divisional Director at Man Bites Dog and Co-Chair of the CIPR’s ESG Panel
Duncan is an award-winning marketeer and divisional director at Brighton-based agency Man Bites Dog. The agency helps major brands tell their sustainability story through thought leadership projects and standout campaigns.
Duncan has worked with organisations including Unilever, Castrol and Standard Chartered, has recently completed a specialist net zero course at University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainable Leadership on Business & Climate Change, and is a prominent speaker on greenwashing issues and their effects on marketing functions. It’s this combination that makes Duncan an excellent and insightful guest for our podcast.