Author: admin

“The failure of any nation to adopt humane conditions of labour is an obstacle in the way of other nations which desire to improve the conditions in their own countries.”

International Labor Organization preamble, 1905

This is a petition to the board of directors at Hershey Company. Your candy company produces a large share of the chocolate that is consumed today in the United States of America. The cocoa used in your products is predominantly sourced from Ghana and the Ivory Coast. These countries produce most of the world’s cocoa exports (Bales 2012).

Unfortunately, use of child labor, and in some cases child slavery, is a continued issue in the field of cocoa production. “During the 2008-2009 harvest season, 997,357 children ages 5 to 17 were estimated to be working” in the cocoa fields of these two countries (Brown 2019). This is incredibly dangerous work. Survey data shows: “54 percent… of these children, were estimated to be reporting injuries from dangerous activities” (Chocolate 2008). In addition, children that spend their days working the fields miss out on education. This is illegal. Not only that, but children that don’t go to school have stunted growth intellectually and emotionally.

Sadly the local governments have been turning a blind eye to child trafficking on cocoa plantations. When interviewed about this issue in 2010, Ivory Coast Chief Secretary at the Department of Labour claimed that “people are coming here for vacation, it is not for cocoa” (Dark Side of Chocolate). Bold lies such as this, demonstrate how deeply ingrained this issue is and that these governments can’t be trusted to work in the best interests of their people. 

The Harkin-Engel “Cocoa” Protocol is an international agreement, ratified in 2001, which attempts to reduce and eliminate child labor in the cocoa industry. It was signed by all the major chocolate companies, including Mars, Hershey, and Nestle (Chocolate 2008). At first your company made pledges to remove child labor from their supply chains by 2005. You argued that an outright ban would hurt those we intended to help. You further advocated for self regulation as you knew the supply chain best. While all the companies that signed the protocol did begin to develop industry wide standards to eliminate child labor, they fell short of their self-imposed 2005 deadline. That deadline was then extended to 2008, and then to 2010, and finally to 2020 (Doherty 2005). As child labor continues to be a significant issue in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, it has become clear that your firms are unwilling to self monitor and make meaningful changes to your supply chain, as your primary fear is the impact this would have on the bottom line. We therefore conclude that self regulation has failed. 

To solve this issue, we propose three changes that should be codified by law. Lessening the dependence of child labor will take a US federal legal framework. 

Our Recommendations: 

1. Clear standardized federal reporting by companies whose supply chain will be regularly audited by a third party who then provides reports to the public. 
2. Requiring chocolate to be labeled as using child labor or free of it, determined by objective auditors such as the Fairtrade organization.
3. For chocolate companies that cannot comply with the stiff third party auditing, a mandatory price floor will be imposed on chocolate purchased. 

We came to these conclusions after reviewing academic and governmental literature. This has included an analysis of different legal frameworks and the resulting effects. Additionally, we use the Day Chocolate Company as an example of a model that companies can follow. One conclusion we have reached after reviewing objective measures is that the problem is only getting worse. Tulane Researches, working for the Department of Labor, have found that from 2009-2013 child labor usage has increased 18%. This is because of a growing middle class in places like China who are demanding more chocolate. 

Western Countries have responded to the horrific reports of child labor in West Africa by passing sweeping laws. However, most have done little to change the situation as most of the laws  have remained toothless and unenforced. The UK passed the Modern Slavery Act in 2015, which required large companies to publicly post actions taken to prevent slavery or forced labor. The goal was to help consumers make informed decisions and make companies internally aware of their risks and human rights violations (Forced 2010). This was overseen by an anti-slavery comissioner who has yet to take any major actions. Australia also passed a Modern Slavery Act in 2018 which some argue is the strongest in the world. Companies over $76 million in revenue must “report the risks of modern slavery in their operations and supply chains and actions taken to address those risks.” Yet, there are no punishments through the form of fines or penalties, only the possibility of public shaming (George 2014).

Closer to home, the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act was held as a world model. It’s intention was to inform consumers by providing access to company disclosures required by law. The problem was that there was no standardized reporting format. Additionally, it was only required for companies with over $100 million in revenue. Out of the 535 chocolate companies in the US, only 10 have revenues that meet that threshold (Hershey 2019). Most recently in 2020, senators proposed new US federal law called the Business Supply Chain Transparency on Trafficking and Slavery act which is modeled after the California legislation. 

The Fairtrade organization labels products that are “produced under that conditions of no child labor, enviormental sustainability and strict labor standards” (McGonnigal 2012). The organizations hope is that positive farm conditions and above market prices will lift farmers out of poverty. This in turn lessens the pressure on the race to the bottom for prices which in turn results in extensive use of children who are kept from school. The goal is to impose fairtrade, not free trade. As fair trade helps members survive and compete on the international market through multiple initiates. The first is paying above market value for crops. Also, paying ahead of time for part of the crops lowers farmers’ reliance on risky debt and the addition of long term contracts allow farmers to plan ahead. A pool of money is additionally set aside for community projects such as building of schools or promoting access to healthcare. These policies were very informative to help us craft our recommendations. However, we believe federal legislation should require outside groups such as the Fair Trade organization to act as arbiters assessing compliance to federal law. It is important to note that 90% of coca is grown and harvested on small farms of 4.8 hectares (McGonnigal 2012). Thus our recommendation of a price floor for non-complying companies is the best punishment as the difficulty of holding small farms accountable is large for such small farms. 

Business has a role to help address this problem as they are the ones who create it every year as they buy cocoa. For too long, manufacturers have abdicated responsibility to “middlemen” who use ruthless tactics to get the lowest cost possible from farmers. These middlemen use tactics such as rigged scales and price offers well below market value. While downstream from the manufacturers, this behavior causes farmers to live in poverty. Poverty is the main cause that leads to the use of child labor and slavery. A price floor for non-compliers would help and not lead to much of an increase in chocolate price. Research has found that, “Growers in West Africa receive just 3.5-6.4% of the final value of a chocolate bar, compared to the 56-70% that manufacturers receive and the 12-17% retailers receive” (Time 2012). It has been extremely difficult to gain accountability in governments in the Ivory Coast. The working age has long been set to 18. Yet, there has been little enforcement and an estimated 109,000 children who work on cocoa farms with 10,000 of which are victims of trafficking (Tulane 2015). As Ali Lakiss, the director general of Saf Cacao, the largest cocoa exporter in the Ivory Coast, succinctly puts it, “The farmers don’t get the best price. If the cocoa price is good, then kids go to school. No money, and kids work at home.”

The carrot in our framework is the ability for corporations to create new and innovative policies to address the issue. While they are being audited and looked after by an objective third party. The stick is the punishments that result if they fall out of compliance. If that third party deems non-compliance, labeling “child labor used in the production of this cocoa” will become required. Public shaming and consumer avoidance will result. Additionally, a price floor will be established on what they can pay producers and middlemen which takes away any monetary incentive to lower costs, instead focusing the company on quality of supply chain and of producers. Management will thus be forced to address the issue, or risk consumer flight and permanently higher costs of production. 

Our model for an ethical company is Day Chocolate Company. Between 1947 and 1993 the Government of Ghana operated a state run buying system which bought all the coca from millions of farmers. The cocoa price was determined by the state. However in 1993, the Ghanian Government agreed to liberalize the cocoa market as part of the World Bank and IMF Structural Adjustment Program. This led to farmers being exposed to wildly fluctuating and declining prices in the international market. In 1998 the Day company was founded as a partnership between a UK based company and a consortium of over 2,000 farms in West Africa primarily in response to the market liberalization (Uebelhoer 2008). The Day Chocolate company has an admittedly unique governance structure with large shares owned by the farmers and 2 out of the 6 board members are farmers. However, this arrangement has given the company incredible PR and advertising which in turn has helped the company achieve 23% higher margins than industry standard (Doherty 2005). They have also seen a rapid rise in sales of $100,000 in 1998 to $5.5 million in 2004. The company’s UK based sales team credits the partnership of having farmers who are shareholders that gain from the profits of the company. They have recorded over $2,000,000 in social premiums that have gone to community projects to help farmers in West Africa (Doherty 2005).

To inform our selection of guiding metrics we turn to the US Department of Labor who contracted with Tulane University researchers. Over the last 15 years these researchers have created metrics to access the state of child labor and slavery in West Africa. As part of their survey they focused on children 5-17 years old asking about their previous 12 months. They asked if they were involved in hazardous work such as land clearing, carrying heavy loads, exposure to agro-chemicals, use of sharp tools, the hours worked they worked and if they worked at night. Additionally other variables related to children working in cocoa not attending school and cocoa work interfering with schooling were collected. Tulane University researchers determined that their sample of over 1,000 households was representative of the population. We think that for the metrics to be accurate and responsive, the survey should be conducted yearly. To measure the effectiveness of changes, a downward trend in hazardous work and a positive trend in education should be seen overtime. We additionally, think that hazards and education should be the focus of metrics to access the performance of programs as it is not tied to any company in particular. It’s important to note that the 2013 report found a 18% increase in child labor from 2009 showing that the problem is getting even worse in West Africa (Forced 2010). 

We can do better and still provide American’s with delicious low cost chocolate. However, companies need to be accountable legally. We have seen their failure to self-regulate. Our legal framework encourages companies to do better while allowing them to innovate above our set moral bar. Additionally, NGO will help us hold these companies accountable. 

Works Cited

Bales, Kevin. Disposable People. Univ of California Press, 2012.

Brown, Marie-Claire. 21ST CENTURY AND NO EMANCIPATION IN SIGHT: IS THE U.S. ANTI-SLAVERY FRAMEWORK ADEQUATE? Naval Postgraduate School – Monterey, California, Dec. 2019.

“Chocolate’s Bittersweet Economy – Feb. 14, 2008.” Business News – Latest Headlines on CNN Business – CNN, https://money.cnn.com/2008/01/24/news/international/chocolate_bittersweet.fortune/. Accessed 9 June 2020.

Doherty, Bob, and Sophi Tranchell. “New Thinking in International Trade? A Case Study of The Day Chocolate Company.” Sustainable Development, vol. 13, no. 3, Wiley, 2005, pp. 166–76. Crossref, doi:10.1002/sd.273.

Forced Child Labor and Cocoa Production in West Africa. https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ILAB/research_file_attachment/Final%20Fourth%20Annual%20Report.pdf, 2010.

George, Erika. “Incorporating Rights: Child Labor in African Agriculture and the Challenge of Changing Practices in the Coca Industry.” Https://Jilp.Law.Ucdavis.Edu/Issues/Volume-21-1/George.Pdf, 2014, https://jilp.law.ucdavis.edu/issues/volume-21-1/George.pdf.

“Hershey, Nestle and Mars Broke Their Pledges to End Child Labor in Chocolate Production – Washington Post.” Washington Post, The Washington Post, 5 June 2019, https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/business/hershey-nestle-mars-chocolate-child-labor-west-africa/.

McGonnigal, Caitlin. Karl Marx and the Fair Trade Chocolate Industry in the Ivory Coast. Student Pulse, 2012, http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1611/karl-marx-and-the-fair-trade-chocolate-industry-in-the-ivory-coast.

Nations, United. “United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect.” Welcome to the United Nations, https://www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/about-responsibility-to-protect.shtml#:~:text=The%20international%20community%2C%20through%20the,cleansing%20and%20crimes%20against%20humanity. Accessed 9 June 2020.

“Survey Research on Child Labor in West African Cocoa Growing Areas.” Payson Center for International Development Tulane University School of Public Health, Tulane University, 2013, https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ILAB/research_file_attachment/Tulane%20University%20-%20Survey%20Research%20Cocoa%20Sector%20-%2030%20July%202015.pdf.

Time to Raise the Bar: The Real Corporate Social Responsibility Report for the Hershey Company. Cornell, 2012, https://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1811&context=globaldocs.

“Tulane Publishes Cocoa Child Labor Report: 21% Rise in West Africa.” Confectionerynews.Com, 30 July 2015, https://www.confectionerynews.com/Article/2015/07/30/Tulane-publishes-cocoa-child-labor-report-21-rise-in-West-Africa.

Uebelhoer, Jane. “Child Labor on West African Cocoa Farms.” The Global Studies Journal, vol. 1, no. 4, Common Ground Research Networks, 2008, pp. 149–58. Crossref, doi:10.18848/1835-4432/cgp/v01i04/40973.

 “COCOA: A Better Future for Farmers.” Spore, no. 160, 2012, pp. 13–17. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/24344108. Accessed 17 May 2020.

Voora, Vivek, et al. Global Market Report: Cocoa. International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), 2019, www.jstor.org/stable/resrep22025. Accessed 17 May 2020.

ILO-IPEC. Analytical Study on Child Labour in Lake Volta Fishing in Ghana. Geneva; 2013.

https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/5448a60a0.pdf

C059 – “Minimum Age (Industry) Convention (Revised), 1937 (No. 59).” http://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12100:0::NO:12100:P12100_INSTRUMENT_ID:312204:NO.

Government of Ghana. The Labour Act of 2003, 651, enacted March 31, 2004. http://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/docs/SERIAL/66955/63431/F1429852156/ GHA66955.pdf.

Government of Ghana. The Children’s Act, 560, enacted September 24, 1998. http://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/docs/WEBTEXT/56216/65194/E98GHA01.htm

By: Conner L, Daniel N, Gerardo S, Matt W, William S

Situation Analysis Summary

Cowbucker was founded in 2012 after three friends at the University of Oregon wanted a hat that would solve multiple problems. “The Bucker” was their solution which is their mix of a trucker hat and a cowboy hat. It is a cap that allows the head to breathe like a trucker hat, but prevented the “redneck effect” with a full brim for 360-degree shade.

 Recently Cowbucker has expanded their products to include all kinds of hats, such as, Beanies, Trucker Hats, Strawhats (Cowboy Style), Boonie (Fisher hats), Dad Hats, and even Fanny Packs.  Cowbucker collegiate team headwear still makes up a core part of their business and they target the 18-25 age range. Their Bucker is about $35 and other hats are around $25. Their unique design paired with branding from college athletic teams allows them to stand out in a crowded market.  They have licensing partnerships with dozens of college teams. 

Recently Cowbucker has introduced hats beyond the standard Bucker. With their motto “Better Adventures” they are psychographically targeting outdoor adventurers. They have also moved into a style they term Dad Hats. “Kick ass hats. Better adventure” is their motto. And the second half is associated with a active lifestyle falling under the segmentation variable of behavior. As seen on the website, many of the people pictured are outdoors, hiking, fishing, camping, and even tailgating. With this, Cowbucker seems to be expanding their brand to target a more generic audience. First was “The Bucker” which gave a “redneck” styled look, and now they are offering product like, trucker hats, dad hats and even fanny packs.

However, this strategy is not without its large perils. They are known for one unique hat design and now are moving into generic hats that are already dominated by brands like Nike who are armed with incredibly well funded marketing and distribution channels. Outside of the dominate brands, there are a significant number of hats from small brands being sold on Amazon.com. A simple search for “trucker hats” on Amazon brings up 30,000+. The everyday outdoor demographic Cowbucker is now targeting, is dominated by outdoor brands such as Bass Pro Shop and Cabela’s. These brands have gained market share through a history of quality products and branding. 

Cowbucker has shown strengths in their ability to cultivate licensing deals and design ability to make good looking “Buckers” that match the team. We recommend they should focus on “tailgating sports” where spectators spend time outside and where “The Bucker” makes both functional and social sense. As stated earlier, the licensed sports apparel store industry in the US had $7.8 billion in revenue in 2018. In professional sports, fans are very loyal and are used to spending a premium to get unique appeal to standout in the crowd. Moving into professional sports requires working with specific teams and getting their licensing approval, which is contingent upon their ability to cultivate those relationships. Having those deals will create a moat around their product allowing them to have a niche that is well protected from more generic brands. 

Objectives

Marketing Objectives 

1. Product development- COMPLETED.
2. Approach a current NFL license and negotiate a three percent licensing agreement by May 31, 2019.
3. Develop and offer products on Cowbucker website for four NFL teams by July 31, 2019. 
4. Obtain permission for Cowbucker hats to be sold in stadium and in team merchandise stores for four teams by August 31, 2019. 
5. Sell at least 2,000 units during the 2019-20 season
6. Feature Cowbucker hats in stadium and team merchandise stores for 12 more  teams for a total of 16 teams by August 31, 2020

S-T-P

Segmentation:

The total available market (TAM) for this product is US NFL Fans. This is a substantially large market with 70% of US consumers considering themselves NFL fans and 52% regularly watching regular season games (Statista Survey. “Would…”;Statista Survey. “Do …”).  These fans can be segmented by where they watch their team’s games. This factor will differentiate between people who casually watch football on TV and people who attend watch parties or the games. To measure the attendee segment we compared the 2018 average attendance of 67,042 to the 2018 average viewership per game of 15.8 million to find that 4.28% viewers attended the game (ESPN.com). The number of potential consumers in this segment is larger than this since the individuals who attend the game changes each game. However, for the sake of computation we make a very conservative estimate of 4.67 million people who attend NFL games (4.28% of 109 million). We also estimate 5-10% of viewers attend watch parties.  Again, using the conservative estimation of 5% we find that 5.45 million people go to NFL watch parties.

The nature of this product inherently requires segmentation by team. While we intend to eventually serve the markets of all 32 NFL teams, we will initially have a beachhead market of four teams. We segmented teams by region to select attractive teams for the beachhead initial release. Each of these markets will be segmented by the viewing location as discussed in the above paragraph (Appendix II). 

Target Market:

Since our product provides a way to stand out while showing team spirit, we feel that to achieve product market fit our target market should be avid fans who watch football in a social setting. This includes the people who attend the games and people who go to watch parties. We find this market to be sizeable market conservatively estimated at 10 million consumers. This figure could likely be more than doubled in reality. Structurally this segment can be difficult to compete in. There is strong competition and licensing acts as a barrier to entry, but we feel that the Bucker is significantly differentiated enough to attain success. Cowbucker’s existing products and resources have proven successful in the similar market of college sports. This market segment is feasible for Cowbucker to flourish. 

Key insights into the target market include that they are each a part of a team based subculture. They base a portion of their identity by being a part of this group. They can be motivated by others within this group and key members (players on the team) of their aspirational group. This factor will influence the level of team spirit they are motivated to display. Life stage, personality, and self- image will impact their decision between standing out with the Bucker or blending into the group with a standard team hat. These factors are widely varied across individual consumers. We recommend Cowbucker to target fans who are motivated to show team spirit strongly. This will be a concentrated marketing strategy offering limited products to a specific market. 

The beachhead market will consist of four teams. We selected the New Orleans Saints, Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, and Tennessee Titans. We have identified these teams to be ideal markets due to their cultural and geographic influences in the South. We expect the Bucker to be particularly successful in these markets due to the cultural influences of these areas. After the first season Cowbucker intends to further penetrate the NFL fan markets by expanding to other teams. 

Positioning:

By launching the NFL line Cowbucker is extending their existing brand position to the NFL fan market. The value proposition of the product is the combination of the comfortable and functional aspects of the Bucker with the ability to display team spirit in a unique and notable way. While brands like New Era and Nike produce typical licensed baseball caps and 47 Brand offers licensed caps and bucket hats, the Bucker is highly differentiated from existing products on the market. The competitive advantage Cowbucker can capitalize on is the unique style of the Bucker along with the comfort of sun blocking brim and breathable mesh.

With the unique patented design of the Bucker, Cowbucker will be clearly and deliberately positioned to contrast existing products. Nike, New Era, Fanatics and 47 Brand all produce nearly indistinguishable licensed caps. These hats offer fans a casual way for fans to represent their team, but they do not offer enthusiastic fans a way to strongly show team spirit. 47 Brand has attempted to differentiate themselves by also offering bucket hats and visors. However, they fail to stand out as well as sacrifice functionality. The Bucker achieves each of these things. With this product, Cowbucker will strategically position their brand as the leader in team spirit and functionality (Appendix III). 

Marketing Mix: 

Product:  

We suggested multiple ideas to Cowbucker for their new product such as, making more of a functional outdoor hat, adding more branding to the hats, specifically new teams and sports league, adding new styles of hats, and even branching off into different kinds of apparel like slides and shirts (see Appendix III.). Cowbucker decided to go with, new NFL branded hats on its “Bucker” line up, a shopping product. This made the most sense due to the fact that Cowbucker already has licensing at the collegiate level and has a great product to put it on. Even though it’s a big step from college level licensing to the professional ranks, they have proven to sell lots of those hats which has great potential as NFL merchandise. We felt like Cowbucker could succeed from this because there isn’t anything like this out on the market and it would make a great fit for the fanbase especially for the teams like the Cowboys and Texans. Even though there is no glaring need for this product, it could easily slip into the market and be profitable. We believe this product can be successful in the long run due to the fact that Cowbucker doesn’t need to change the overall product too much other than color and branding. No changes to the actual design of the hat will be a great cost saver. The Bucker hat with NFL branded teams fits very well into the company’s product concepts and potential new products because of the Bucker hat line up Cowbucker has with similar branding. This can become profitable in the long run if it can successfully enter the market and has beneficial marketing to promote the product into the minds of the consumers. 

The hat itself is made out of high quality lightweight materials that is breathable for whatever outdoor adventure awaits the consumer.  The durable quality of the hats consistently keeps it at peak performance. The look is uniform with the other Bucker hats as well as having the same features like the 360° brim, elastic band for a comfortable snug fit, buoyancy capabilities, and a pocket to hold your valuables. Under the manufacturing label, the hat will carry the Cowbucker logo on the inside of the hat, on the mesh, on the back brim, and on the string. The packaging will depend on who is ordering the product. Individual orders to consumers will consist of a simple plastic wrap to surround the product and then it will be placed into a small box, secondary packaging, for shipping. For large orders, the same plastic wrap will be used as the primary packaging then a larger box that can contain large amounts of the product will be used as secondary packaging. If the buyer needs to return the product, there is a 45 day return policy. There also needs to be a proof of purchase as well as the product needs to be in the same condition it was purchased and the original packaging.

Price: 

“The Bucker” branded for University of Oregon cost $35 in the Duck store. While they sell the same hat on Amazon for $20 This is with the store taking their cut along with the University for the team license. Average University licensing costs are 10 percent of the producers gross revenue. An NFL license is 12 percent and then an additional 3 percent royalty to the existing licensee that we work with. This comes to 15% total for license fees. Despite that, we suggest to keep the price at $35 similar to their licensed NCAA hats selling price in retail. Typical licensed snapback hats sell for $25, however we feel the Bucker is unique enough to command a higher price . 

We do not recommended that Cowbucker get their own licensing agreement with the NFL. This is costly and not practical for a company their size with their sales volume. Instead, as sports licensing expert Scott Sillcox says, you just need to approach one of the hundreds of already approved NFL vendor and come to a deal with them. The reason why is because the NFL requires new vendors to pay a minimum $100,000 licensing deal. Partnering with already approved vendors happens all the time and there are a number of companies just in Oregon that can be approached. A paid online portal for finding them are available here (https://licensedsports.net/login.php).

The NFL requires a 12% royalty on the vendors sales. So if a manufacturer sells their products to the store for $10, the NFL royalty would be $1.20, not the price the retailer sells it for to the consumer. The additional royalty to the already approved NFL vendor is negotiated on a case by case basis and would likely be based on how much in sales the company believes Cowbucker can generate and how much of a hassle/ liability it would be.

Cowbucker cost is $10, we will sell to the store for $20 which gives us a margin of 50%. This calculation factors in the $3 licensing cost for selling it for $20. The 50% margin is standard in the apparel business The store can then markup that hat $15 and land on a retail price of $35. This will give the retailer a 42% margin. Industry average for a great product in the sporting goods category is 35%

Selling the bucker for $20 to the retailer would mean the store can have a 50% margin. NFL fans also expect to pay a premium for licensed goods. At this price, we will also offset our additional costs with respect to licensing. 

Place:

We recommend two different marketing strategies for the two different channels, online and retail. We will sell our product in each NFL teams store, a strategy known as producer to retailer. Once in the team store, fans can buy the product during the game and around the stadium. Since this is an unsought product, we need to get it in front of the consumer while they are at the store looking for team branded products. To help with this, we suggest that Cowbucker produce display wingstacks in the pro shops of the various teams. Consumers also expect to pay more for this product since it is licensed. The second channel strategy would be on our online store which is known as producer to consumer, with Amazon being an intermediary on some of our product. We would then have more control and a higher markup with selling the product online, however, we would also have a higher cost for marketing the product. 

Promotion: 

We recommend two promotional strategies, a retail one and and online one. For online we would use Facebook ads targeting customers on it and Instagram. We will target first fans of the team that have liked the page and have checked in to the stadium.  From there we will target fans who have also liked content that contains the teams name

For retail we will have our products with the sports clothing and accessories. We will make sure we get visibility by adding this right on the side of the aisle, where most people walk by. During the NFL season we will put our hat on a manikin that is also wearing the same team shirt. For example, a manikin with a Texans Bucker hat and Texans shirt. 

For business to business sales (retailers, stadiums, etc.), we will offer quantity discounts on mass purchases in order to promote the Bucker hat, in addition to other styles that the retailers may want to purchase. This is a great incentive for team-oriented stores to purchase a larger amount of units, which will stock shelves and gain popularity of this product/brand. If a business chooses to buy under 1000 units a year, we would sell them at $25 per unit. If they choose to buy over 1000 units, they would be paying a price of $20 per unit.

Another promotion strategy is product placement. Getting professional athletes to wear the Bucker hat is a great way to convince their fans to do the same. By sending athletes such as Marcus Mariota, who is an alumnus of UO, a free custom Bucker hat, he may be convinced to wear it in a setting such as a press conference, or any public appearance, where it can draw attention. This is a low cost ($100) option that may or may not be successful. However, there is a very low risk for a potentially high reward. 

Giving professional athletes free samples of Cowbucker hats to wear during press conferences and other sporting events could be a great promotional strategy because their fans would see them wearing the hats and want the same product as their favorite athletes. This uses the concept of aspiration groups to gain market interest in this product. 

Cowbucker Inc. can also run a sweepstakes, with the grand prize being two Bucker hats and a pair of tickets to the next Super Bowl. This can draw attention to the brand, and the 9 runner-ups can win a Cowbucker hat of their choice. This can be advertised through Facebook and Instagram, which is a common place to draw entries. The hats can also be signed by professional football players to add value and appeal in order to attract more people to enter. 

Timeline: (See appendix VI.) 

New Product Strategy:

The market Cowbucker wants to serve is a similar market Cowbucker already is in, the sports fan market. Cowbucker already has the collegiate line of “Bucker” hats that combines functional outdoor headwear with your favorite college team. This is perfect for the fan who wants to support their team but also wants a functional hat that doesn’t expose them to the elements.

Idea Generation/ Idea Screening:

Now that Cowbucker already established that their “Bucker” hats work in a similar setting, they should expand this to the professional level such as the NFL. Cowbucker followed the R-R-W model and we believe they can be successful. This should be completed by week two, 1/11/2019 .

Concept Testing/Marketing Strategy Development:

In this stage, Cowbucker will create prototypes and present it to potential consumers. This will get easier when they acquire the licensing from the league. Once Cowbucker has presented the new product to a test group, they will repeat this with new groups until they get enough data to where we are certain they can come up with a solid product a majority of the customers in their target market will enjoy. Our suggested initial target market is NFL teams in the Southern United States as well as teams with open stadiums. We will help further develop Cowbucker’s marketing strategy along the way. We suggest this portion to be completed by week five, 2/1/2019.

Business Analysis:

Once Cowbucker has determined the product they want to sell, they will review their costs and profit projections to predict where this new product could take them. This should be completed by week six, 2/8/2019.

Product Development:

Cowbucker will gather all the necessary materials and created a finished product. They will create enough to test this in the target market. This should take until week 13, 3/29/2019. 

Test Marketing:

After enough of the product is completed, Cowbucker will further test it in controlled marketing groups as well as places in their target market whether it’s near the stadium or where licensed product is sold. If this portion does not pan out, Cowbucker will go back to their product and marketing strategy to hopefully revamp it so it hit the marks they missed the first time around. We expect this to be completed by week 18, 5/3/2019.

Commercialization:

Once Cowbucker has successfully entered the marketplace, we can now turn our focus on how they are going to get the product to the consumers. We’d like for this product to be sold at licensed NFL stores year round, but we suggest to push the product during late summer, through fall and winter. This product should be sold in the stadium and vendors near the stadium. It should also be sold in stores that sell other NFL merchandise in that area. This needs to be completed by week 35, 8/30/19, before the 2019 NFL season starts. 

Budget: (see appendix VI.) 

Income: $200,000

Cost of Goods Sold: $40,000, 20.2%

Payroll/Wages: $110,000, 55.6%

Licensing: $24,000, 12.1%

Rent: $3,000, 1.5%

Utilities: $1,500, .8%

Insurance: $1,500, .8%

Interest and Taxes: $5,000, 2.5%

Depreciation: $1,000, .5%

Advertisement/Promotional Tools: $10,000, 5.1%

Other: $2,000, 1.0%

Total Cost: $198,000

Total Profit: $2,000

Promotional Budget:

Promotional Budget Total: $10,000

Sweepstakes/ Superbowl Tickets: $6,000, 60.0%

Social Media: $1,000, 10.0%

B2B Discount: $2,900, 29.0%

Gift to an Athlete: $100, 1.0%

Appendix I. 

Works Cited

Statista Survey. “Would You Describe Yourself as a Fan of Professional Football (Nfl)?.” Statista – The Statistics Portal, Statista, www.statista.com/statistics/660395/nfl-fans-among-us-consumers/, Accessed 30 May 2019

Statista Survey. “Do You Follow Professional Football (Nfl)?.” Statista – The Statistics Portal, Statista, www.statista.com/statistics/660435/us-consumers-following-professional-football/, Accessed 30 May 2019

ESPN.com. “Average Television Viewership of The Nfl Regular Season from 2010 to 2018 (in Million Viewers).” Statista – The Statistics Portal, Statista, www.statista.com/statistics/289979/nfl-number-of-tv-viewers-usa/, Accessed 30 May 2019

Appendix II. 

Appendix III

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Appendix IV.

Appendix V.

ENTER FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN!Grand prize winner will receive a pair of cowbucker hats AND a pair of tickets to the Super Bowl Additional 9 winners will receive a cowbucker hat of their choice.

Appendix VI.

Is the Individual or Society Responsible for Good & Evil

The ultimate question philosophers have debated over the centuries, millennium and across cultures is whether human action is steered by human nature or nurture. Nurture is another way of saying socitals influence on us. The conclusion reached by this debate is a profound one as it creates the theoretical foundation that guides a nation’s policies. Is human action more influenced by human nature or nurture? What is the role of education?  These are the questions we pose to the two philosophers. The answers should address these two hypothetical situations: How should society deal with a murder? How should it reward a heroic citizen who saves a child from falling into a well? 

Mencius believed that human nature is good and society is responsible for corrupting it. While Xunzi believed that human nature was bad but they could still be good through conscious action. Xunzi split up humans into both their human nature (which was bad) and their conscious activity (which could help someone achieve perfection). Understanding the finer details of both Mencius and Xunzi’s philosophy is best accomplished through a debate about nature versus nature and how society should deal with the murder and heroic citizen. 

Mencius argues that we are more influenced by our nature. He believed that the purpose of education is to bring out the inner goodness already present internally. He blamed bad citizens on bad leadership and a corrupt education system. In a debate, Mencius would have likely blamed the murders actions on bad leadership. His view is that a King will lose legitimacy if their people suffer or act badly. He once told a king to, “Exercise due care over the education provided by village schools, and reinforce this by teaching them the duties proper to sons and younger brothers,” (1A.3; Lau, 6). In a debate, Mencius would likely have pushed the idea that the heroic citizen has simply acted good according to his innate nature. He in fact said that if a man saw a child falling into a well, “He would certainly be moved to compassion, not because he wanted to get in the good graces of the parents, nor yet because he disliked the cry of the child….whoever is devoid of the heart of compassion is not human, whoever is devoid of the heart of courtesy and modesty is not human, and whoever is devoid of the heart of right and wrong is not human.” (Mencius 2A.6). The murder acting in such a way is because bad influences have simply prevented him from acting good. He often used analogies to express his views. He would have argued that society simply needs to get out of the way of human’s innate goodness. Surely we can force one to act badly, but that corrupting force comes from society. He has said that, “Now in the case or water, by splashing it one can make it shoot up higher than one’s forehead, and by forcing it one can make it stay on a hill. How can that be the nature of water? It is the circumstances being what they are. That man can be made bad shows that his nature is no different from that of water in this respect,” (Mencius 6A.2). In his view, education can play a role in creating heroic citizens but it is really just bringing out what is already internally there. On the flip side it is the fault of bad educations for creating citizens such as the murder.

Xunzi similarly believed that education was important. But differed in his belief that good education is pushed top down from the ruler. Xunzi view is that wise intellectuals have used their consciousness to create powerful ritualistic principles that counteract humans’ evil tendencies. Xunzi said that,“Therefore, man must first be transformed by the instructions of a teacher and guided by ritual principals, and only then will he be able to observe the dictates of courtesy and humility, obey the forms and rules of society, and achieve order,” (Watson 161). Xunzi’s belief is elitist. He expresses the idea that commoners need transformation from morally upright leaders. For our heroic citizen Xunzi would likely point to the goodness of his leaders. He would likely advocate that we replicate the teaching the heroic citizen received. While the murder was not properly taught. The murder simply expressed his true nature. These leaders create principles to ensure people do not devolve into chaos and follow their bad nature. Instead they become good by consciously following principles. The evidence he offers for the transformative power of principals is that the, “Children born among the Han or Yue people of the south and among the Mo barbarians of the north cry with the same voice at birth, but as they grow older they follow different customs. Education causes them to differ,” (Watson 163). While both believe in education, both have different reasons for why. Mencius thinks it’s to bring out the individual’s innate goodness. Xunzi is surely extremist in his view that men without, “teachers to guide them, they will be inclined towards evil and not upright,” (Watson 167). He believes the purpose of education is to learn from Kings who create rituals that help commoners to counteract their nature of evil. 

Where does blame rest for the murderer’s actions? With the individual or with society? Xunzi would likely point out the failing of individuals. The evidence is in his remark that, “Hence, any man who follows his nature and indulges his emotions will inevitably become involved in wrangling and strife, will violate the forms and rules of society, and will end as a criminal,” (Watson 162). At the same time, he recognized societies molding power for creating the individual. He might of said that the murder is showing his bad nature. He clearly has not been shaped by the rituals of Kings. Using the analogy of wood Xunzi said that, “A warped piece of wood must wait until it has been laid against the straightening board, steamed, and forced into shape until it has been whetted on a grindstone before it can become sharp (Watson 168). While good citizens are shaped by Kings, bad citizens are either lazy or uneducated. 

The murders actions are Xunzi’s best justification for ruler control over society. He would say that the murder actions are indictive of a fundamental human flaw. He’d likely argue that humans are deeply, “evil, prejudiced and not upright, irresponsible and lacking in order.” Murders and other bad people are simply the, “reason [society] established the authority of the ruler to control it, elucidated ritual principals to transform it, set up laws and standards to control it, and meted out strict punishments to restrain it. As a result, all the world achieved order and conformed to goodness,” (Watson 19). This view holds that morality comes from the top down from rules versus bottom up among the people which Mencius believes. 

Mencius would argue that the good actions of the citizens are because he acted true to his nature. While bad outcomes are the result of poor policy from the leadership. If a king does not interrupt and bother his subjects then during, “the busy season in the fields, then there will be more grain than the people can eat,” (Book 1.A, 5). However, the ruler still must set policy to influence his people’s lives. Good policy is a requirement for a successful country. If one does not, “allow nets with too fine a mesh to be used in ponds, then there will be more fish and turtles than they can eat,” (Book 1.A, 5). A good citizen acted that way in spite of bad influences, yet Mencius concedes there is a role for governance from the top down. This is something both Xunzi and Mencius can agree on that good policies and rulers are important in establishing harmony among the people. However, Xunzi rarely criticizes or concedes that rulers can in fact be bad. Mencius on the other hand lays out the criteria by saying that, “When those who are seventy wear silk and eat meat and the masses are neither cold nor hungry, it is impossible for their prince not to be a true King.” Yet, if things go bad and, “men drop dead from starvation,” (Book 1, 6) that is the fault of the King and he is as responsible as if he killed them himself. 

Mencius believes the goodness in men lies in their human nature while it is society that corrupts. Xunzi believes men are evil and rituals created by Kings make them good. Mencius credits the individual nature of man while Xunzi credits the ruler. Xunzi believes we are reliant upon leaders because, “If man’s nature were good, we could dispense with sage kings and forget about ritual principles. But if it is evil, then we must go along with the sage kings and honor ritual principals,” (Watson 162).” Xunzi believes in nurture, while Mencius believes more in nature. In the debate about the murder, Mencius would have leveled more of his criticism at the failing of the leader. While Xunzi recognizes the importance of molding individuals, he would point out that moral principles exist and have been created by sages. The individual has just failed to learn and follow them. For the heroic citizen, Xunzi would have likely held him up as an important example of one who follows the rituals closely. While Mencius would have simply retorted that he was free from bad influences in society that might have pushed him to do bad. 

In the book Le Morte D’Arthur, written by Sir Thomas Malory, women are possessed with magical powers. Whenever they are depicted women are usually using magic for nefarious purposes against men. They often initially act pleasant and gain the men’s trust. Their powers enhance their ability to trick men. Their magic allowed them to pull Arthur’s sword out of the stone, but also deceive him with a fake replica. The men often do not find out about the women’s true intentions until after the act. The women’s true plot is often only made clear after one dramatic and revealing event. The typical encounter with a woman with special powers works in a few distinct stages. First they attract you in, then they gain your trust, which puts them in a position to exploit the men’s weaknesses. All their uses of power are usually for a bigger plot of overthrowing the current power dynamic.

Women’s use of magic starts with a lure. They start by first attracting the men to them. The women are shown as expert seducers. They know what strings to pull to push the situation to their advantage. Similarly aligned to the modern concept of the woman in the red dress at a bar. She might not have a magic wand, but she is able to seduce you because she knows the right strings to pull to get you to do what she wants. In the literature, they usually surround themselves with other objects of desire to help. Women’s relationship with men, in Le Morte D’Arthur, seems to be analogous to the relationship between fly tarps and flys. From afar, they appear to satisfy all desire but once you trust them enough to enter, or land, they have you trapped. These objects of desire attracted King Arthur enough to enter a strange ship, “richly behanged with cloth of silk… there came out twelve fair damosels [who] saluted King Arthur on their knees.. they served them all wines and meats that they could think of… for he fared never better in his life as for one supper,” Morte p 125. These trickster women seem to expertly satisfy men, so much that they let their guard down. Once the man is seduced, he’s in her trap and done for. 

Women in power play games of trickery. Just like a street peddler attracting people to what appears like a fair game, it’s really just rigged in the woman’s favor.  Women as tricksters is made clear especially by the language used to describe them as they act. The Lady of the Lake, for example, trapped Merlin, “by her subtle workings,” Morte pg 121. It is important to understand that men dominated the power dynamic in medieval times. Le Morte D’Arthur was written by Sir Thomas Malory, a man who in some respect wrote speculative sci-fi fiction that played with the idea of women in power. Malory’s fantasy of women in power was one where when women are given power, they misuse it. Since there were not many examples of women in power at the time, by his depictions of females as untrustworthy and conniving, Malory reinforces the narrative around why women are not in power. The moral thread readers learn from Malory’s book is that women and power are a dangerous combination. 

The women use the man’s trust in them to their advantage. Accolon of Gaul learned this the hard way. After he trusted women enough to board a ship and eat dinner, he awoke dramatically transported to the edge of a cliff and cried,”these damosels in this ship have betrayed us, they were devils and no women and if I may escape this misadventure, I shall destroy all where I may find these false damosels that usen enchantments,” Morte pg 127. In other words, the women betrayed the trust that the men placed in them. Accolon’s use of the word enchantment is interesting as it’s two different definitions best summarize the strategy that Malory depicts medieval women of having. The first is to put the men under great pleasure and delight. This brings them in to the awaiting trap. Once they are there, the second is to put the men in a state of being under a spell of magic. This is typically when the trick is pulled. In an age of Kings, loyalty is critical to maintaining the hierarchy of kingdoms. Accolon says the women betrayed him. Betrayal or being untrustworthy is probably the greatest stain that could be given to an individual. In Le Morte D’Arthur women in power are almost always corrupt and betray men. When Accolon said, “these were devils and not women,” Morte pg 127 he is subtly associating women possessed by the desire for power to have a devilish drive. Most medieval women were excluded from the power structure. Popular literature representing women in power in such a negative way almost certainly swayed public opinion on the issue.

The men only find out about the women’s magical conniving when it’s too late. The women are so good at deception that men such as Arthur find out after he is almost killed. On the surface level, their intentions sometimes even appear to be genuine. In reality it was all just a ploy as Arthur is told, “Morgan Le Fay sendeth here your sword… but she was false and the scabbard was counterfeit and brittle and false,” Morte pg 130. The spell these women have upon men is so strong that the men only become aware of the magic when it is dramatically revealed. For example, Accolon only found out about the women’s use of magic when he awoke at the edge of a cliff. Similarly Arthur was told only after a battle where he was severely disfigured. 

Women often use their special abilities to try to get power. They are usually disappointed or resentful by their current position on the power structure. This plays into the overall narrative that women who have aspirations only do because they want to take power from the men that hold the status quo. Morgan Le Fay’s desire to change the power dynamic led her to almost killing King Arthur. Le Fay is resentful and, “most hateth, because he is most prowess of any of her blood…. she might bring about to slay Arthur by her crafts, she would slay her husband… [making her] my queen,” Morte pg 134. Le Fay does not even need to kill Arthur herself. Her magic gives her the ability to manipulate people through simple deception. 

Medieval stories seem to focus on deception. Whoever has the best deception tactics gets power. Modern writings occasionally show how women can use their sex appeal to their advantage with men. Medieval writing, especially in Le Morte D’Arthur, take this to the extreme to where they have so much power over men through seduction and magic that they can get them to fight and kill each other. Along with their power of attraction, they are depicted as being on a power quest. A fantasy from actual medieval times where women lacked power. That power, however, is almost always used for evil. Men reading, and men in the story, are told that these women on power quests are almost always up to no good. They inexplicably say that they are not to be trusted and in one case equate them to being possessed by the devil. The women, on the other hand, are shown to use a formula to get what they want. They first start by luring the men in with their sex appeal and by surrounding themselves with objects of desire. Women at this point often gain men’s trust. With this they now have the ability to misuse it to get what they want. They then play a masterful game of trickery, for example by pitting man against man. But the women are shown to be so good at deception that the men are too late to fight against it. At this point the woman has won and often achieved her nefarious desire for power. 

Inequality is an inherent feature of civilizations and Rome was no different. At the same time, there is a constant tension between the haves and the have nots. When power or wealth imbalances grow too large, strife and social tensions break out until a new social structure emerges. Those in power, want to remain and thus will use different tactics such as comedy to reinforce class structure and violence to draw a line. 

Roman life was unequal. A few Roman citizens owned large estates and had houses in the city. On those estates and in the city, slaves captured in battle or in unlucky situations were forced to labor on farms and in homes. Slaves could become manumitted or freed but could never hold political office or become members of the Senatorial or Equestrian class. Those institutions are elitist and allowing slaves to transgress their status would degrade the self-importance they held for themselves. A slave gaining power or being smarter than a freeborn was seen as a joke. In fact, entire comedic plays tied that humorous idea into their story line. In Major Blowhard, Dextero, a slave, was seen as intelligent and cunning. He acquired the military attributes of his commander. He co-opts poses of his master where he is seen as “the intelligent, thinking slave from Athens.” But this character is seen as a satire, which in turn reinforces the interests of the dominant class. The idea of slaves being masters was so funny that it was turned into a holiday. The Festival of the Saturnalia was a reversal in hierarchy. The master would serve the slave and the slave as master. This inversion in the status hierarchy was funny. Humor theory suggests that humor results in any situation where there’s a sudden realization of how much better we are than our direct competition or when two fundamentally incompatible concepts are contrasted. 

Rome was a violent place. Institutions seeked to reinforce their power through acts of violence. As was pointed out in Seneca on Gladiators, “Fathers were allowed to expose their children. Husbands beat wives. Lower-class citizens were publicly flogged for criminal offenses. Non-citizens were crucified. Children were whipped by their teachers. And slaves could be maimed, tortured and butchered at the whim of their owners.” Those in power seeked to inflict pain on others in order to establish their authority and gain submission. Rome was a militaristic and masculine society that had gained its dominant position in the Mediterranean by being aggressive. Some viewed the gladiatorial games as an extension of this cultural zeitgeist. The games showed the power of the Roman government to deem a person to be worthless and thus force them out into the arena to face death. This hegemony led from the state served as an explicit demonstration of who is in power and who is, in fact, powerless. As we saw with the public crucifixion of 6000 slaves after the failure of the Spartacus revolt, violence reinforced order.

We have also seen those without ultimate power imitate it. Trimalchio was at one point a slave. This distinction prevents him from ever being able to hold political office. Trimalchio, in response to his ascension being blocked, throws extravagant parties. He was too good to even pick up a ball, “if a ball hit the ground, he didn’t chase it but had a slave.” Trimalchio likely didn’t enjoy being a slave, but given the chance to join the upper class he took it even if that means owning slaves himself. Those in power want to remain there while those without power or wealth will try to join their ranks. We saw though, a safety net must exist otherwise the people might start to riot and threaten to completely destroy the status quo. After some riots did break out in Rome, the government created grain distribution programs which guaranteed a steady and secure supply of calories. While Trimalchio surely displayed some real wealth, he also faked some. For instance he showed off his, “Falernian wine,” which the label said was, “bottled in the consulship of Opimius, one hundred years old.” This display of wealth was a ploy to associate him with the upper class. Yet, historians think this was outlandish and the label must have been fake as wine wouldn’t survive that long. While Trimalchio was surely upper class he was vying and competing to be seen even higher on the social hierarchy. 

Trimalchio was not the only one who aspired to a higher social class. Erotic frescos uncovered in Pompeii glorify sexual acts. These paintings were usually found in brothels. Hiring a prostitute in the city was pretty cheap, allowing men to transcend their status, whether freeborn or slave. These paintings likely also served as helping enhance men’s performance. This all served as an aspirational, if unrealistic, status symbol that men across classes aspire to. This was, however, at odds with how those women were treated. While the men were competing to mentally to ascend social levels, the women were forced to work. The distinctions among sex workers also fell on class division. As freeborn women were not prostitutes, only slaves. While men had erotic sexual fantacies the reality was that the prostitutes were stuck in dark cramped rooms at the whims of clients and their pimp owners while most of society was indifferent as the women were treated as untouchables. For context, marriage in elite classes was arranged with the goal of providing children. This led husbands to seek sex from prositites. Sex and class was balanced also in the Augustan moral legislation. It’s goal was to promote social stability but with the ultimate desire of increasing the population. With that goal in mind, rigid class distinctions that separated and banned marriage between freeborn men and freedwomen were allowed to marry. This was a shocking change in the social hierarchy. The morality and purity of political institutions was seen as the bright line, though, and marriage between freedwomen and slaves was still banned. Upholding arbitrary class distinctions was balanced with allowing a cross class fertilization of social groups. 

Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Gaius Verres embodies this axiom perfectly and eventually the people had enough and sought reform and protection. As Governor of Sicily, he used his power to enrich himself at the expense of his inhabitants. When those in power commit crimes egregious enough, they may be pushed out. Verres might not have been a unique example. He might have actually been an example of how many governors acted. In fact this trial was shocking in that a governor was actually held accountable. As Cicero states, “The opinion is that no one who has money can be convicted by the courts as they are now constituted.” As inequity in power grows large, protests by the people were able to force more oversight and in this case expel Verres. Verres used unchecked authority to run the province into the ground. Even legal citizens had no rights. Money was also extorted. All this led to anger and resentment. It built up until something triggered demands for change. Veres perhaps most vile act that likely triggered the trial was when he met Philodemus. The meeting infact was set up to rape Phiodamus’s daugter. This became evident as Verrus says, “I wonder, Philodamus, why don’t you have your daughter called in to see us.” Phiodamuis pleaded for the slaves to forget about him and instead work to save his daughter. This event symbolized the numerous systemic inequities that people were already experiencing, the rape only lit the fuse that led to systemic changes in the power balance. 

Social inequity has always existed in Rome. There were few actual distinctions that could be made to separate people into classes. Yet the Romans found arbitrary ways to separate the haves and the have nots anyways. Romans did see some slaves transcend their status such as Trimalchio. However, Trimalchio was not able to crack the ultimate glass ceiling of status by gaining power in a political class. We did see those without power throughout Rome tolerate the inequity to a certain point. When society became too unequal we saw riots and protests that resulted in new accountability for the political class such as the aftermath of Verres’s trial. That change did not come easy as the political class held onto their power with violence and comedy. We saw them assert their dominance in the brutal Roman games and in comedic tales where slaves are shown as intelligent which is seen as a funny joke. 

“I raise up my voice—not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. … We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back,” said Malala Yousafzai. The Feminist movement is defined as a movement to achieve equality between the sexes. American society was not alway unequal. In fact, before the constitution was ratified women in America had the right to vote from 1691 to 1780. Securing women’s right to vote was the foundation for major political, legal, economic and cultural advances that empowered women in America to be heard. The major phases of the feminist movement that impacted Catherine’s life was as a women gaining the right to vote, advancements in civil and workplace legal protections and gaining of reproductive rights. Catherine Oak was born in 1956. This was 36 years after women re-gained the right to vote, yet equality was still a distant dream. Her views of her future were greatly shaped by what she saw around her. There was almost no women holding power in government and women in prestigious careers like law or medicine were looked upon as a peculiar novelty. Yet, she was determined to become educated and assert her place in the world, cultural norms be damned.

Long before America was established, Native American women lived in societies that were much more egalitarian. After the constitution was ratified women lost the right to vote. Over time a narrative, reinforced by Christianity, about women as being natural subjects or property of men became ingrained in law and custom (Stanton). This development created a stark contrast between American women and women in nearby Native American tribes. Gender equality was practiced in the Haudenosaunee nation which was adjacent to New York. This contrast showed that, “Non-native women were bound by religious dogma instructing them to follow God’s edict that they be under the authority of men, with science telling them they were dumber, weaker, and naturally dependent,” (Wagner). This contrast became the inspiration for suffragists who later planned the 1848 Seneca Falls Woman’s Rights Convention.

Frederick Dougulas, an African American Abolitionist, stated that, “When the true history of the antislavery cause shall be written, women will occupy a large space in its pages, for the cause of the slave has been peculiarly women’s cause,” (Douglass). Women and slaves were both considered property. The horrors of slaves shocked the consciousness of millions of Americans into believing slavery should be ended and African Americans should be enfranchised. The same did not happen for women. While many African Americans supported women’s rights and saw the fight as parallel to their own fight, “White men split the coalition apart by offering the vote to black men first, only to limit their votes with poll taxes, impossible literacy tests, and violence,” (Stanton). Another parallel existed with immigrants. As immigration restrictions grew, a Chinese citizen Sam Sung Bo pointed out the hypocrisy of the statue of liberty welcoming immigrants when he, a man of Chinese descent, was not welcome (Lecture 6). Equally incensed, women pointed out, around the same time, the hypocritical nature of a woman representing liberty when not one woman had her own liberty in America.

Catherine came from a family of strong women. Her Grandmother Roxy was a role model because she ran a liquor business in town, was a successful stock investor and had a strong character. During the Great Depression, Roxy was the only one not fired in her bank branch. This is in spite of never attending college. Her Grandma Roxy was such a role model that Catherine said, “I think I took after her.” In college, Catherine majored in business and became fascinated with business law and thought she should go to law school. After sharing her plans, teachers and friends all remarked that she would not be respected as a woman and would be worked to death because of her low-status. She instead decided to enter the workforce. Catherine’s first job was at a national insurance firm and trained to become a marketing representative. When a permanent marketing position opened up, she quickly applied. The manager dismissed her application as he didn’t want a woman working for him. Additionally, her bosses cautioned her on the way she dressed in order to prevent male colleagues from flirting with her.  Despite this a few years later, she became, “the first Insurance Association Director in the USA. Insurance was a very male dominated industry,” Catherine remarked.

America’s constitution failed to recognize half of its citizens. But in 1920, the 19th Amendment passed recognizing a women’s right to vote. Yet it was only the first step. It took years afterward for women to navigate through society’s hierarchy to break glass ceilings, win legal protections and become a reference to younger generations of what was possible. Courageous women trail blazed paths by, “Pushing open the doors to the higher education that had excluded them, they became doctors, lawyers, professors, business owners, and ministers,” (Santon). The legal ability to enter these fields and be treated equally had been codified in the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The original bill prohibited discrimination because of race, color, religion, and national origin. Yet, at the last minute Howard Smith, a Democrat from Virginia, added the additional protected category of sex. This was seen as so funny that the US House of Representatives erupted in laughter. Smith had to reassert that he, “was serious about this thing… women have some real grievances and some real rights to be protected,” (Thomas). Adding sex to the Equal Rights Amendment freed up half the nation’s human capital for private employment. The law additionally quashed earlier laws that prevented women from working as many hours as men. Thus with the signing of the Civil Rights Act, a ban on discrimination in employment “because of sex” became codified into law.

As Catherine’s career progressed, she continually ran into chauvinistic businessmen. Catherine traveled frequently, visiting companies her firm was hired to help. One client’s first impression of her was memorable. “He said ‘How did you get in front of my desk’ when I reported for my consulting project,” Catherine recalled. While he started with low expectations, she was able to turn the situation around and became that man’s trusted advisor over her male co-consultant. A competent woman who could outperform her male colleagues was a tremendous departure from many business men’s traditional stereotypes. This uguly bias was exposed when Catherine was joining a new firm. She asked the company to send the employment contract. “We don’t have it ready,” the head of HR remarked, “but we can send you Johns since it’s for the same position.” The contract showed John was receiving a tremendously higher salary for the same exact work. “I was always the only female consultant and women consultants always made less than men,” said Catherine. Yet despite the patriarchal historical precedent of the 1970s she decided to reject the offer and search for a firm that treated both genders equally. The Equal Pay Act, passed almost a decade earlier in 1963, covers offenses such as these experienced by Catherine. It explicitly prohibits differential pay. The laws text states, “that men and women in the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work. The jobs need not be identical, but they must be substantially equal,” (Thomas). This shows that despite legal protections in Catherine’s favor, gaps in enforcement and knowledge failed to rectify her episode of discrimination.

Much of the later femminist movement took place in the courts, not the streets. Activist lawyers petitioning for more protections made up the bulk of the major victories during this time.  Despite the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, many subsequent protections took decades to appear through case law. For instance, hostile work environments were not legally protected until 1986. Some of the most important progress of the feminist movement was not just from the text of the new laws. Instead it came from case law that resulted from obscure trials which gradually extended the protections of the 1964 landmark bill. The reliance on the 1964 bill became especially acute after the failure of the Equal Rights Amendment, which would have prohibited any legal inequality, to be ratified by US States.

A few key cases, during Catherine’s career, that she may have been unaware of as they happened, can help explain the growing legal latticework of protections. Additionally, they reveal the harassment and abuses that were still permitted in the workplace. For instance, hostile work environments were recognized as a category of discrimination in Meritor Savings Bank, FSB v. Vinson (1986). In the case, a female named Vinson worked at a bank and her boss Taylor, despite being married, demanded sexual favors. When she refused sexual advances her boss told her he would, “fire you, just like I made you, I’ll break you, and if you don’t do what I say then I’ll have you killed,” (Thomas). Underpinning this case was the emergence of a new term: sexual harassment. Professor MacKinnon, in the book Sexual Harassment of Working Women, wrote that the working relationship between men and women when sex is involved is not just a personal one and instead it helps: “to perpetuate women’s subordinate place in the workplace and society,” (MacKinnon). Courts in 1976 ruled that sexual harassment, “created an artifical barrier to employment that was placed before one gender and not the other.” Catherine experienced this first hand when her married supervisor made romantic advances on her. She refused and the boss backed down; she was still promoted later on. But had to exit the firm later on due to the tension this created. Today, companies recognize the unequal power differential of a boss making a sexual advance on an employee below him or herself. Many corporations have put in policies forbidding any sexual relation with employees that are considered direct reports. This is not only unfair to the targeted victim, but also to the other unsolicited colleague who might also be vying for that advancement.

Technological advancements in the “pill” and safer abortion procedures allowed women to take control and plan their reproduction. Women having children is the biggest reason why they exit or take a break from the labor force (Stanton). This has had a significant historical effect at perpetuating unequal pay disparities.  For a long time, legal codes restricted the use of both birth control methods. One of the biggest legal advancements was Roe V. Wade. The court ruled in Roe that, “State criminal abortion laws… violate the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which protects the right to privacy, including a woman’s qualified right to terminate her pregnancy,” (US Supreme Court). Catherine said that she always felt that she was protected with contraceptives. She never took the pill because she said, “it was too strong back then with too many side effects.” But she agreed women should have the right to choose, especially if their life is threatened. Other health care technological advancements have also aided women’s family and career planning during this time period. Catherine for instance, did not have her first kid until she was 39. Racing against her own biological clock and dismayed at the still experimental egg freezing procedures she decided the time was finally right to have children.

Not all women were in favor of the actions of the feminist movement. Catherine was dismayed at calls for special privileges for women because of past discrimation. She thought, “we needed to prove it with actions and knowledge and not just expect it because we were woman.” She also took personal improvement courses to try and get ahead. But recognized that despite her personal perseverance others, “gave up.” Catherine broke multiple class ceilings in her industry. But she was also greatly aided from the removal of barriers as the result of legal challenges stemming from the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Just a few examples were, “The right to remain employed during pregnancy, the right to be a working mother… the right to be free of sexual harassment and the right to look and act like oneself,” (Thomas). These victories have surely been significant. However, women continue to face discrimnation. Modern day feminists continue to move the needle by using their right to vote to influence the nation’s laws. Female lawyers then help enforce those protections in our court system. Just like the women at the height of the feminist movement did in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

Bibliography

Douglass, Fredrick. Life and Times of Frederick Douglass. 1881.

MacKinnon, Catharine. Sexual Harassment of Working Women. 1979.

Stanton, Elizabeth C. History of Woman Suffrage. Susan B. Anthony, 1881.

Thomas, Gillian. Because of Sex. Picador, 2016.

US Supreme Court. “Roe V. Wade.” https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/usrep/usrep410/usrep410113/usrep410113.pdf.

Wagner, Sally R. The Women’s Suffrage Movement. Penguin Classics, 2019.