Since 1927, Time magazine has named a “Person of the Year” each year in December – honoring a person who had made a difference in the world over the past year. Looking back, the list of awardees sometimes seems bizarre, and yet it always reflects contemporary perceptions. In 2019, the 16-year-old student Greta Thunberg graced the cover of Time. The climate strikes she initiated propelled the “Fridays for Future” movement into action, as an entire generation demonstrated worldwide in support of a more sustainable way of life. Personally I recall a rally in Hamburg attended by about 60,000 people. Certainly not all of them were students, but it was nevertheless quite a sight to behold. Weren’t kids that age totally uninterested in politics and social developments as recently as 15 years ago? Weren't they derided as mere fun-seekers who would rather buy a one-euro ticket to London than worry about environmental policy?

The fact is, social values are not set in stone but change from one generation to the next. At the moment it would appear the days of unrestrained consumerism are over, having been replaced by more conscious consideration of purchase decisions. And the unifying understanding that ambitious goals cannot be achieved through myriad individual efforts, but only by working together. Which brings us to the topic at hand.

The Coronavirus pandemic fits into this picture as well. It too cannot be fought with hedonism, but requires mutual care and responsibility for one another. In other words, it calls for moral actions.

But what does this realignment of the value compass mean for brands? A lot, because after all, they are key players in consumer society – and feel the impact when it is criticized or questioned. Our agency conducted a study to investigate this context. It revealed that ethical conduct has become a criterium for purchase decisions in a world where products are increasingly similar to one another. Consumers ask questions about production processes and reject the use of palm oil. And they expect brands to assume more responsibility for society. When a fashion brand like Patagonia sews the message “Vote the assholes out” into its products just prior to an election, its target group applauds the move. But companies that align themselves more closely with the global mainstream also face potential conflicts. A current example is the decision by fashion brands like H&M, Adidas and Nike to cease buying cotton from the Xinjiang region due to reports about China’s oppression of the Uyghur people. While consumers in many Western countries expected these companies to take this step, the response from China has been highly critical; stores have been closed down and online shops, boycotted. No one knows yet how this situation will play out. And the controversial football World Cup in Qatar may be the next issue of conscience that brands have to deal with.