Brand-y sour

It’s a cynical move when private companies in Cyprus play the charity card to increase sales.

One particular market “leader” in baby food products has a long-standing tradition, now in its 7th year, of donating 1,000 euro to the parents of the first New Year baby born in Cyprus.  With the obligatory photo shoot of a grinning suit handing over a cheque to a grateful post-natal mum in front of a big company sign, just in case we forget who the daddy is. 

Guess which brand of baby food that mum is buying for the next year.  The company will recover their 1,000 euro toot sweet.  One of their products is on one popular shopping website at US$292.94 for 3 tins (about 215 euro).  Ouch, get me an epidural. 

Footsteps chooses not to name this company as we think it’s already had enough publicity as it is, but it’s easily searchable if anyone can be bothered.  One Cyprus newspaper today devoted a lengthy three-quarter page article to the company’s illustrious achievements, awards, educational projects, scientific studies, blah blah .... Not even the front page splash got that much word space.  And the paper did it all for free too?  How generous of them in these cash-strapped times.  Or did the company's media manager pay a substantial "donation" for a flattering feature article – otherwise known as an advertorial – in which case the ed. should have made that clear.  We wouldn’t want to think our press shows market bias, would we? 

sick as a parrot I didn't get free advertising

Why is the first baby of January so special?  It's not, it's just a pawn to embed in the public consciousness the company’s nice guy image for the year ahead.  What about the poor tot who straggles in at 00:00 on the 31st, the unlucky slow coach.  Do you still “win” if the birth is induced after midnight or is that cheating?  What about C-sections?  Their timing can be pre-arranged. What happens if there are two or more “firsts” – babies born in different hospitals at exactly the same time – do the nice company men toss a coin, or shell out two grand or more, one to each family?  Are maternity wards on New Year’s Eve, err, heaving with competitive parents, urging their unborn babies to get on with it and pop?  Must be a scream.

We are not casting aspersions on the qualitative standards or success claims of this company.  After all, any brand needs some kind of winning formula (ahem) in order to get the edge over their competitors.  But trying to buy off consumers (and the press) with a thinly veiled kindness stunt, pur-leeze.  Almost as bad as politicians kissing babies.   

the health minister said:  "it hurts"

The retail prices of pharmaceutical products in Cyprus are the 6th most expensive in Europe, Peter Stevenson tells us.  Despite this, Cypriot pharmacies’ profits remain low.  There are too many of them.  In the south, there are 486 pharmacies for a tiny population of about 839,000 (2011 census), i.e. every pharmacy has an average customer pool of about 1,700 people.  Microscopic compared to other European countries, e.g. Denmark, where there are 17,000 customers per pharmacy.  No wonder this country’s broke. 

When is health minister Dr. Petros Petrides going to pull his finger out and start regulating the pharma industry in Cyprus?  He’s been in office since March last year - plenty of time to go into labour. 

Jelly babies. 

And all their works they do for to be seen of men.  For they make their phylacteries broad and enlarge their fringes.  

– Gospel of St. Matthew 23:5 (DR)