I heard a very interesting report on NPR's Market Place last night. It had to do with "Transparent Pricing." But the reporter, Adam Hanft, had a new take on the term. You can hear the entire report here (scroll down - you'll need Real Audio).
In short, Hanft says that with true pricing transparency customers would be able to make more informed purchases - but not just about the content and place of manufacture, but also about the manufacturer's stand on important social issues like pollution, health care and retirement funding. Hanft says that a product's price tag should include details on the cost to the manufacturer not just of component parts, but of health care insurance, pollution prevention and other structural costs. Americans could then make truly informed decisions about which products to purchase.
Would you pay more if you knew a company didn't use sweatshop or poorly paid off-shore workers? Would you be willing to part with a few more dollars if you knew that the pension plan of the workers who made your product was well funded and secure, or that their health was well taken care of? If the answer to those questions are yes in the larger population, perhaps Wal*Mart wouldn't be quite so popular. Perhaps...
I might just do a little more research on this for later. Stand by.
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