In the news again this week is the recurring topic of the ‘gender pay gap’. Yet again we read that men earn around 25% more than women, and their bonuses are, on average, double. If you read my last blog, you’ll know I wear my feminist colours proudly on my sleeve, but here’s the thing. This isn’t simply a ‘women’s issue’. It’s more a working parent issue, and I’m a little fed up with all [...]
Author’s Note: I make no apology for the length of this blog post. Sadly, there’s a hell of a lot to say. The 4th June 2013 marked the 100th anniversary of Emily Wilding Davison’s death under the hooves of the King’s horse, but sometimes I seriously wonder how much we've really achieved since 1913. My (girl’s) school colours were those of the suffragettes, purple, white and green, worn proudly in a self-made posy on Founder’s Day. [...]
My December blog took a look at the big retailer's Christmas ads and came to the conclusion that the ones that misfired did so because they didn't correctly connect with women. Not surprisingly, as women are the major organisers - and spenders - at Christmas, this almost directly correlated to those who subsequently posted poor trading results. This topic is high on my agenda at the moment as I’m working with a brand that is [...]
In the wise words of Al Murray's pub landlord, "white wine for the lady, beer for the gentleman... them's the rules. And where would we be if we didn't have rules?" (Answer: France!). Here in the UK, Molson Coors have pulled their Animée ‘lady beer’ after just one year. Good. In last week’s Marketing, WCRS Planning Director Matt Willifer argued that Animée was a “brave launch by an admirably innovative company” (?) but suggested [...]
I came across an article the other day that stopped me in my tracks. The latest BrandZ report by Millward Brown has discovered a simple way to achieve a 11-fold increase in business growth, but, amazingly, this tip didn’t seem to have reached the business news. So what was it? Well, it’s actually quite simple. Ensure there are women on your board. Whilst the number of mixed-sex boards is still a shamefully small minority, those boards [...]