Marketing and sustainability in the 21st Century

Philip Kitchen (1, 2)

1 ICN Business School
2 CEREFIGE - Centre Européen de Recherche en Economie Financière et Gestion des Entreprises

One of the most appreciated and yet at times - most vilified - topics in the 21st century and especially as we enter the third decade, are ongoing marketing activity by organisations of all types, and that of sustainability in terms of businesses and national and global environments. These can be seen from multitudinous perspectives and all cannot be discussed fully here except in summary form. We will commence by considering marketing in the broadest sense. What is known about the topic? It is a vibrant active force in all markets and nations. It is widely embraced by businesses and other organisations and apparently deeply rooted, in fact, integral at all business levels. It is contemporaneous and deeply relevant. It is an artefact of the 20th century and despite kudos and criticisms, legitimized everywhere by widespread adoption, usage and publicity. This said, there is no generally extant acceptable theory of marketing available at this time. If such a theory existed, it would likely rest or rely on three foundation principles: - A sound understanding of the dynamics of served markets - Critical examination of opportunities for competitive advantage and implementation of marketing strategies - Inside a marketplace/space that is global in form, structure and ubiquity … to be continued

Domaines: Sciences de l'Homme et Société

Philip Kitchen. Marketing and sustainability in the 21st Century. Sinergie. Italian Journal of Management, 2020, 38 (1), pp.21-30. ⟨10.7433/s111.2020.03⟩. ⟨hal-03011217⟩