Cafedirect named as Britain's best brand as consumers embrace ethical shopping
Fairtrade coffee label Cafedirect has emerged as Britain's strongest brand in a customer loyalty survery published yesterday. This is quite a coup for the relative newcomer in the coffee business, which came out on top when researchers at Millward Brown asked 2,000 people their views on over 4,000 brands.
A clear message to come out of the survey was that brands with a strong ethical or environmental commitment are currently very much in favour with customers...
One of the newest entrants to the top 100 was Innocent Drinks, coming in at no.63. As one of the fastest-growing UK brands, Rebecca Smithers in The Guardian says it now presents a serious threat to its less ethically-sound rivals.
Another winner was Toyota at number four, perhaps reflecting its reputation for making greener cars including the Prius hybrid fuel model. At number three was Waitrose, which has often been praised for its ethical initiatives, particularly in regard its commitment to fairtrade produce. The brand with the worst reputation was Barclays, which had the highest number of customers who would not recommend it. Perhaps coincidentally Barclays has traditionally had a less than spotless ethical record.
Top Ten Brands
1. Cafedirect
2. Google
3. Waitrose
4. Toyota
5. Vodafone
6. Virgin Mobile
7. 02
8. Olay
9. Volkswagon
10. Douwe Egberts
Bottom Ten Brands
1. Barclays
2. Spar
3. Texaco
4. NatWest
5. Co-op
6. Lexmark
7. Palmolive
8. Total
9. Lloyds TSB
10. Abbey
