Core values can be the differentiating force behind successful businesses, especially in industries like organics, skincare, and clean beauty where ethical sourcing and transparency are expected. I've noticed that companies that define and stick to bold and up-front core values can better navigate challenges and build long-lasting relationships with customers and create a worthy working environment for employees. It's because they are wishy-washy about what they stand for, and they attract consumers who are seeking exactly what they offer.

How to Define Your Core Values

It’s essential for all brands—especially those producing cosmetics, chocolate, or organic clothing—to identify the most authentic values that reflect their commitment to sustainability, community, and ethical business practices. Salt producers, for example, can integrate values that focus on reducing environmental impact and promoting fair labor practices. Skincare companies can espouse values that clearly empower young girls toward higher education and/or prosperous careers.

Defining your company’s core values can be a bit tricky. Do you go general and wide, using vague terms such as performance-driven? Or do you niche down and become very specific, using terms such as slow or rebellious? Do you alienate some of your team, customers or even investors with values that they might not agree with? Or do you hold true to your North Star?

For instance, if you value feminism and women’s equity, do you make this one of your company’s core values or do you focus on other values such as “honesty” or “integrity”? I ask this question because not everyone feels women should be accorded equal pay or equal seats in the board room. This is obvious when we look around the board rooms of America and find that women only make up roughly 30% of board directorships (the representation of women varies by industry, with sectors like utilities showing higher percentages of women on boards (34%), while financial services lag behind with about 27%​ NJ Business & Industry).

So in the process of defining your company’s core values, you might alienate or frustrate a business partner, vendor, investor, supplier, or even an employee if you give feminism or women’s equity prime real estate on your core values page of your website, or especially if you integrate women’s equity into your vision and business plan.

Clarity in Values

Of course, the way to deal with this is to be clear from the very beginning about what your business stands for and why your company exists to avoid changes or surprises along the way. That way people know early on. But what about when new issues come up and your company needs to evidence support or opposition? Take for example the issue of abortion. Perhaps access to abortion and women’s reproductive rights have nothing to do with your product, but your employees are requesting time off to travel several hundreds of miles to access abortion care because your headquarters are in Florida. Do you address this “under the table” and give them leave and paid time off, thinking you can tackle this issue case-by-case? Or do you face it head on and make abortion access a prominent value for your entire company and prioritize this in your strategy and business plan?

Other polarizing yet essential issues could be childcare, adoption (not just an HR policy), religion, LGBTQIA rights, bathroom access, vegan ingredients, use of coal-fired power plants in your electricity supply, ingredients that are absolutely cruelty free, and more. In the organic market, the percentage of organic ingredients can be a sticking point for customers seeking holistic products and practices. Does one organic ingredient suffice? Or should the whole product be certified organic? And what about fair trade? Where are the farms the ingredients come from? How are the farmers treated? Organic is a great starting point but it doesn’t cover everything or all issues. How will your company address the other issues as they come up? My answer is: it comes down to inherently knowing and advocating for your core values.

It’s important to have a general idea of your company’s values, of course, but for specifics you’ll need to have a transparent corporate culture where ideas can flow freely and people feel safe and comfortable presenting their thoughts and needs to leadership on a regular basis.

Values-Driven Decision Making

When your core values are clearly expressed and understood by everyone, it becomes much easier and more straightforward to identify your brand and market your product. It also becomes easier to make decisions because your framework for “yes or no” answers has a strong platform underneath it. Without such values, each employee or executive could make decisions that go against the leadership’s North Star and take the company off-course.

By using core values to inform every decision, from sourcing ingredients to marketing strategies, businesses in the CPG space can differentiate themselves (both positively and negatively, so be CLEAR with your partners and team about your direction). Every company from herbalists, to large-scale producers of organic baby products, to organic ice cream makers should use clear values as their core foundation to ensure consistency in decision-making that leads to clarity, employee satisfaction, and customer loyalty.