The Good Guys Being Bought Out – what is this?

Posted on March 22, 2006 | Leave a comment

As far as corporate buy-outs go, this week and last have been a real bummer for me.

First I heard about the Body Shop selling out to Loreal, which has been attacked in the past by The Body Shop’s founder for employing only “sexy” women for its sales counters.

I have enjoyed buying products from the Body Shop because of the values the corporation embraces:

  • No animal testing on its products
  • Its Support of Community Trade
  • Its Pursuit to Activate Self Esteem
  • Its Defense of Human Rights
  • Its Efforts to Protect Our Planet (such as using recycle packaging, etc.)

    The company’s founder,
    Anita Roddick    , says she didn’t “sell out” and will remain with the company as consultant. But a lot of people are angry and won’t shop at Body Shop anymore.

    Then I read on The Vegetarian LJ Community about Tom’s of Maine selling out to Colgate-Palmolive!
    There are a number of criticisms and praises of the Colgate-palmolive company. Tom’s of Maine is the toothpaste that I use again because of its company values and natural ingredients. The company has a Statement of Beliefs that has driven its company:
    Statement of Beliefs

  • We believe that both human beings and nature have inherent worth and deserve our respect.
  • We believe in products that are safe, effective, and made of natural ingredients.
  • We believe that our company and our products are unique and worthwhile, and that we can sustain these genuine qualities with an ongoing commitment to innovation and creativity.
  • We believe that we have a responsibility to cultivate the best relationships possible with our coworkers, customers, owners, agents, suppliers, and community.
  • We believe that different people bring different gifts and perspectives to the team and that a strong team is founded on a variety of gifts.
  • We believe in providing employees with a safe and fulfilling work environment and an opportunity to grow and learn.
  • We believe that competence is an essential means of sustaining our values in a competitive marketplace.
  • We believe our company can be financially successful while behaving in a socially responsible and environmentally sensitive manner.
  • We believe that we have an individual and collective accountability to the Company’s beliefs, mission, destiny, and performance goals.

    Now with this buy-out, however, I don’t know what will happen to those set of beliefs or the credibility of the product. One article quoted one of the founders as saying that they “wouldn’t be around forever” and wanted to “find a good home for the company.”

    What about the employees? Couldn’t it have been arranged to designate the employees as the heirs?

    It disappoints me greatly to see these respectable, responsible businesses selling out to larger corporations.

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