Lush co-founder takes pride in being a ‘woke nerd’

Pritti MistryBusiness reporterLushMost corporations and executives would squirm on the thought of being known as “woke” and should even regard it as an insult. However not Mark Constantine. Lush’s outspoken co-founder and chief government wears it like a badge of honour and isn’t ashamed of turning it right into a enterprise philosophy.The agency is famend for placing activism on the coronary heart of its brilliant tub bombs enterprise, tackling a variety of points from trans rights to police accountability.The 73-year-old continues to be steering the empire with the identical ideas which have outlined its three a long time on the Excessive Avenue, which has seen it broaden from a small Dorset retailer into a worldwide model with 869 shops and an annual turnover of £690m.Lush has taken among the boldest stances in British retail together with shutting down a few of its social media accounts over considerations concerning the affect on younger individuals, and extra just lately closing shops for a day to protest towards hunger in Gaza.”I like being woke,” admits Constantine.A self-confessed “over-achiever and a nerd” who loves studying, he’s up earlier than the morning time for his fundamental ardour – writing about birdsong – in between his meditation and Alexander approach, a remedy for good posture and motion.However his message is crystal clear to those that overtly resent his values: “You should not are available my store.”It is a robust assertion in an period when many companies keep away from political or cultural debates for concern of alienating clients and risking income.Ben & Jerry’s has lengthy worn its social activism on its sleeve, which has precipitated stress with its mother or father firm.The place Lush has remained an impartial agency, Constantine believes promoting out means sacrificing the enterprise’s values.”For those who’ve bought what you are promoting to another person, I feel you are asking rather a lot for them to do the whole lot you need. What ought to Ben and Jerry have carried out? They need to by no means have bought.”Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen maintains they have been against promoting however as a publicly-traded firm, says US rules compelled their hand and the model’s social mission was written into the contract with the mother or father firm.”I’ve an enormous appreciation for Lush, their values, and the way they use their strongest software – their voice – to advocate for these values,” Cohen advised the BBC, following Constantine’s Huge Boss interview, including, “I am not ‘asking’ for something.”Talking to the BBC’s Huge Boss Interview podcast within the busy run-up to Christmas, Lush’s Constantine says getting ready for the festive interval is “very like warfare”. “You’ve gotten your troops, you’ve got your provides. Every part’s organised and prepared. After which it is only a query of when will the onslaught happen?”He means that males could also be extra more likely to be out shopping for last-minute presents, saying with fun the corporate sees a number of males “who are available on Christmas Eve and inform us they’re regulars”.However the important thing to attracting consumers within the first place is by making retail “enjoyable”, says Constantine.Lush has turned buying into extra of an expertise with choices comparable to spa therapies and events for patrons.And it is experiences comparable to these that would assist reverse the Excessive Avenue’s declining prospects, he believes.Whereas some enterprise leaders have recommended {that a} rise in employers’ Nationwide Insurance coverage contributions and within the minimal wage might lead to hiring freezes, Constantine views it in a different way.”It is excellent news for everybody and it is good for the economic system since you’ve acquired extra money coming into the economic system on the largest level.”The people who find themselves getting these raises are on the backside. “I am delighted to pay the additional cash to get the employees as much as a correct degree, and I feel we must always have fun that.”Nonetheless Lush’s pay document is just not with out blemish. In 2020, it admitted to underpaying its Australian staff greater than $4m over practically a decade. An organization spokesperson advised the BBC after the Huge Boss interview: “We made errors, we discovered these errors and have paid the cash we owed, and we’re guaranteeing these errors can not occur once more.” In the identical yr Lush confronted claims of poor working situations at its Australian manufacturing facility. The spokesperson added: “Since these considerations have been raised we swiftly developed an motion plan to handle the areas of concern.”Lush is privately owned by all six co-founders – Constantine and his spouse Mo, Rowena Chook, Helen Ambrosen, Liz Bennett and Paul Greeves – all of whom began the enterprise in 1995 and have remained lively since.Two of Constantine’s three kids additionally work for the corporate, which is especially pleasing for a person who believes household is on the coronary heart of a profitable enterprise and is essential to longevity.”Household companies give higher returns on funding at each degree,” he says, claiming they last more as a result of they journey out the great instances and the unhealthy.It is a lesson he realized from the late Dame Anita Roddick, founding father of The Physique Store the place all of it started for Constantine in 1977 – manufacturing and supplying merchandise to Roddick’s shops.Nonetheless, he says the federal government doesn’t perceive “the energy of household companies” after it introduced that from April 2026 household enterprise belongings of greater than £1m will face inheritance tax when handed on to kin. He believes this tax will drive many house owners to promote up, which is the “actual fear on succession”.A spokesperson for the Treasury stated the federal government was “pro-business”, mentioning that it had capped company tax at 25% and was reforming enterprise charges.”Proper now, 53% of Enterprise Property Reduction – value £533m – goes to simply 158 estates. Our reforms will channel that funding into important public providers,” the spokesperson stated.Nonetheless, Constantine stays bullish about the way forward for bricks-and-mortar buying. However he thinks fashionable retailing would profit from a return to the old school values that when outlined British retail, particularly innovation and kindness. “I prefer to serve. I just like the Jeeves type of feeling,” he says with a smile.