An article in today's Seattle Times issued a snappy warning to its readers: 'think before buying pink'. The advice here is not given in the name of good taste, but with more charitable concerns in mind.
With Breast cancer awareness month now under way, we're so used to buying pink products to support the cause, that fears have arisen over the authenticity of some of these 'charity' items. Think Before you buy Pink is an organisation set up to expose the rogue items, and make sure shoppers don't get caught out. In many cases, the catch is that companies will give a tiny fraction of the sale price to breast cancer charities, while they rack up profits.
In 2004, for instance, 3M launched a big campaign to sell post-it notes to increase breast cancer awareness. The company spent $500,000, according to PR Week, on the marketing campaign (which included a 70-foot-tall pink ribbon, fashioned from Post-its, in Times Square) — but 3M donated only $300,000 to the cause. Think Before You Pink keeps an eye on the pink-ribbon frenzy, rounding up products and helping you locate the fine print on many of those October campaigns. Visit it before you collect yogurt lids or buy another pink candle — and then decide where your money is best put to use. And if you've still got doubts, why not simply make a donation to
Research UK's breast cancer fund?
