Marketing mascot against will: make cash with Greta

Greta Thunberg is a young woman with a lot of friends. You are sitting in the boardroom of VW and in the General Assembly of the United Nations. They rejoice, even if the Swede speaks to them in their conscience. They celebrate their angry appeals as if they were just very constructive feedback. But nowhere does Greta Thunberg have so many friends as in the German start-up scene.

The creators of the largest German founders fair "Bits & Pretzels" in Munich have given her a whole conference. "Impact" was the motto, and Greta Thunberg involuntarily her mascot. Even before the actual star guests such as Barack Obama and Jessica Alba were allowed to enter the stage, she appeared, black and white on the photo canvas, in her hand the famous school strike poster.

We just announced IMPACT as the new main topic of @bitsandpretzels. Let's use our curiosity, courage, and technology to solve important issues. #FoundersForFuture! Now it's up to us to startup entrepreneurs to be a legacy of our generation. # bits19 #IMPACT pic.twitter.com/o9wELEeUt9

They wanted to bring the "spirit of this girl" also to the young entrepreneurs, the organizers enthused: "It all started with a little girl!" The right analogy for the start-up world was also quickly knit: it only needs a single founder, who suddenly changed the world. How dare you? Yes, we dare!

Germany's start-up scene surfs with great enthusiasm on the green wave and you can not blame her: Your young target groups even pay attention to the CO2 balance in search engines. And young professionals are looking forward to the job interview on beehives in front of the office window. Anyone who wants to be a "Founder for Future" needs to know what that means: this demand determines the supply - and in many cases actually makes it more sustainable. This is the best way to start-ups that distribute food remnants efficiently or stretch meat with mushrooms, for the sake of the climate. Only: In the worst case, it is simply just very sophisticated marketing.

The market economy decouples form of content

In any case, the creators of the Munich Fair do not seem to have Greta at all. In fact, companies such as the Berlin-based company were trying to facilitate the online purchase of SUVs. A "Bavarian Champion" showed how to rent luxury caravans - with trailer hitch, all-wheel drive and 190 hp. A start-up also proudly presented its built in bathroom mirrors monitors, which wants to sell it to major airports.

In principle, such a dichotomy is not a problem for a start-up trade fair. The market economy is the big equalizer, it does not have to stick to principles, it does not have to fight ideological conflicts. She sells what sells. It also decouples the form from the actual content. So she has made sure that you can find 30-euro Che-Guevara poster today in some business students WG and the partisan song "Bella Ciao" at the election party of the Young Union. If you're looking for Greta Thunberg on Amazon, you'll find supporter shirts and hate hoodies right next to each other - in free shipping, delivery is free at home.

Of course, one understands that the start-up scene is jealous of the climate movement. In no time dedicated children developed logos and slogans, brand figures. Speaking of the advertising world, this is a fantastically short "customer journey": the children were just sitting quietly at the school desk, now they are full of conviction on the street. Is not it a waste that Greta has nothing to sell?

I sometimes hear that my name or image is being used for commercial purposes. I have never given consent to any company or organization to do so. Nor am I interested in such collaborations in the future. If you see any such examples please let me now.

In fact, the misunderstanding is fundamental: There are tutorials on the web that tell young founders what to look for in the Fridays for Future protests. Persistence and passion are mentioned, and every company desperately needs "a face". It's almost like demonstrating is not just any marketing strategy. The disruption that young climate activists talk about is fundamentally different: they are not just calling for alternative consumption. They demand less consumption. They not only demand innovation, they demand restrictions and prohibitions. They not only demand vegan condoms and low-carb delivery services, but a fundamental system change.

From the point of view of the climate movement, the opposite of harmful economic activity is not necessarily sustainable management - but also non-economic activity. Companies can see this approach critically, even reject it. But they should not pretend that their goals are congruent. Making money is no shame, environmentally friendly making money is certainly not. It is scandalous to take Greta Thunberg what distinguishes her: credibility and independence.

A company founder, who really wants to support this, keeps away from her best.