Ever wondered how to make consumers eat grass?

While making consumers eat grass might be a stretch, shifting consumer mindsets toward sustainable practices is a challenge worth tackling.

At the recent Nationale Conferentie Circulair Ondernemen in Wageningen, Sandra Horlings hosted an insightful session alongside Rieks Smook from Grassa, exploring how circular ventures can benefit from Brand Activism.

Team 'Dominant Incumbents' explores how a strong narrative could convince them to collab

Drawing from Anieke Wierenga's research, "Circular Venture Building - Emerging Fundamentals," Sandra guided participants through applying brand-building principles that challenge the status quo. Three adoption barriers, each from a different stakeholder perspective, formed the base to ideate. Barriers we often come across in many circular ventures.

Key Insights from the Session:

1. Radical Standpoints:

   • Taking a bold stance can redefine narratives and highlight the outdated nature of current practices.

2. Dynamic Norm Information:

   • Leveraging evolving norms can accelerate the adoption of circular ventures, even without a predefined blueprint.

3. Consumer Engagement:

   • By fostering a new narrative, brands can inspire consumers to embrace sustainable choices, driving the circular economy forward.

"This is what all ventures should start with"

One of the participants enthusiastically concluded that all circular ventures should deep-dive into adoption barriers and explore how to best overcome these before thinking about scaling. Sandra emphasized the importance of innovation and adaptability in scaling circular ventures. The workshop is available for you. Please drop us a note if you are interested.

An impression of the event, captures by Bram van de Berg