Now that Russia has aggressively invaded Ukraine, and the UN sanctioned the country, brands are retrieving from Russian soil. Some for the safety of their employees, others because they were forced to or couldn’t do their jobs anymore and some speak out against Putin’s Personal Pride to regain a former piece of the Soviet Union.

This is all big news in our western world. But are brands doing enough to speak up? Can’t brands do more than making statements by closing their business in this area? Big ones, sure. But what if brands used their power to speak through their created distribution funnels? Russia is doing everything to stop anyone from spreading information other than prescribed by the Kremlin. And with the withdrawal of free journalism, social media and maybe even YouTube it’s very hard for Russians to gain different angles of information. Can brands do anything to change that?

It has been done before: Nike and Black Lives Matter

A great example of a brand that really speaks out and shows us another side of our so-called civil world is Nike. Old news, but unfortunately still very relevant. In 2016, Colin Kaepernick, American football player protested on the field against police violence towards black people by kneeling instead of standing up with the national anthem. They say that was the end of his football career. But Nike understood; this was the time to start the discussion about violence against black people. A new campaign with Kaepernick as the main character was born.

A lot of people loved it, but it also gained a lot of angry reactions and people shared videos of themselves burning their Nike shoes. Nike stood out. They made a choice. And it was more than just a campaign. They merged politics and sports into one conversation. And they still are. It’s brilliantly documented in HBO’s The Day Sports Stood Still. A documentary co-produced by Nike, that started with Covid laying down all sports. But during the filming of this documentary George Floyd was killed by police violence and the Black Lives Matter movement started. This also resulted in NBA-teams refusing to play even though they could again, to make a statement. They added politics to sports. And Nike not only supports that, they made it part of their story.

Another example: Red Bull’s empowering stories

We all know Red Bull too. The energy drink with a clear proposition: Giving wings to people and ideas. Which means that it provides skills, abilities, power etc. to achieve whatever you want to. “It is an invitation as well as a request to be active, performance-oriented, alert, and to take challenges,” according to co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz. They are showing this through extreme sports and challenges. I guess many of you have seen Max Verstappen become world champion with Red Bull Racing, but that is only the tip of the iceberg of their stories.

Red Bull Media House is a production agency that produces all those stories, and these stories reach far. For example, in this recent documentary series: The Way Of The Wildcard, they follow Mira Rai, a girl from Nepal who became a trail runner. She inspires young girls from poor countries, who have no examples in their close area who tell them they can achieve more than the road they are meant to walk. That is one of the main messages in all Red Bull’s stories. If you want to achieve something, take on the challenge, and you can achieve it.

Are brands global democracies?

If you think about the power that these brands have, you realize that they can influence social issues like Nike did. And that they inspire people to go after their dreams, to stand out, like Red Bull does. Then maybe we should encourage more brands to be more outspoken. And maybe even to do more than just leave Russia.

Let’s take a few examples. How many subscribers are there in Russia to the H&M newsletter? How many Russians have downloaded the Ikea-app or the McDonalds app? How many brands have a direct, first party, connection to Russian audiences? Brands are global democracies, without geographical boundaries. The only boundaries are dictatorial and yes, that is an issue.

I don’t know how brands can speak to Russian audiences now, I think we’re way passed that now, but the point is that brands have access to people. People who choose to give them access. If you live in a democracy, you think you only get to choose once every four years, but you’re wrong. You make choices on social issues every day. By buying fair trade coffee at the supermarket, applying for jobs at companies who act on sustainable development goals, choosing a bank that does not invest in weapons etc. You give power to brands. Let’s see their stories and actions. People get to choose what they stand for, what they believe in, by identifying with the brands they wear, buy or just by following them. People can change the world. And brands have the power to fire start it.