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Storytelling and Sustainability Reporting: An Exploratory Study of Leading US Retailers

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  • Peter Jones
  • Daphne Comfort

Abstract

Stories, in one form or another, are probably as old as the human race, but in recent years, businesses have increasingly come to recognise the importance of storytelling. The aim of this paper is to offer an exploratory review of storytelling within the sustainability reports published by the leading US retail companies. The paper begins with an outline of the characteristics of storytelling within the corporate world, reviews the ways storytelling is employed in some of the major US retailers’ most recent sustainability reports and offers some reflections on current approaches to storytelling in sustainability reporting within the retail sector of the economy. The paper identifies a number of storytelling formats, including photographs, cameo case studies, impact stories and video clips, used by the leading US retailers. However while such stories often have a strong human impact and can strike emotive chords, the authors would argue that stories can be, at least partly, misleading in that they do not necessarily fully reflect a retailer’s sustainability record.

Suggested Citation

  • Peter Jones & Daphne Comfort, 2018. "Storytelling and Sustainability Reporting: An Exploratory Study of Leading US Retailers," Athens Journal of Business & Economics, Athens Institute for Education and Research (ATINER), vol. 4(2), pages 147-162, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:ate:journl:ajbev4i2-2
    DOI: 10.30958/ajbe.4.2.2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. World Commission on Environment and Development,, 1987. "Our Common Future," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780192820808.
    2. Gilliam, David A. & Zablah, Alex R., 2013. "Storytelling during retail sales encounters," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 20(5), pages 488-494.
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    Cited by:

    1. N. Nurlaela Arief & Melia Famiola & Andika Putra Pratama & Prameshwara Anggahegari & Aghnia Nadhira Aliya Putri, 2022. "Sustainability Communication through Bio-Based Experiential Learning," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-17, April.

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