Today’s global economy includes four billion people at the lowest level of the world’s economic pyramid. SC Johnson is a leader among those companies that have begun developing business models that target these consumers. The result is economic value for the corporation — through new capabilities, sales and profit growth, and lasting value for the consumers — through products, services and other opportunities for a better quality of life. This is what’s known as “base of the pyramid strategy,” and it’s something SC Johnson has been doing for years.

In 2004, we took our base of the pyramid efforts to the next level, as a key supporter in the development and promotion of a formal Base of the Pyramid Protocol™. The protocol is a collaborative venture between Cornell University, the University of North Carolina, the University of Michigan, The World Resources Institute and The Johnson Foundation. It is supported financially by SC Johnson, DuPont, Hewlett-Packard and Tetra Pak.

Following the protocol, which provides a step-by-step process, multinational corporations can identify and develop sustainable new products and businesses in partnership with base of the pyramid consumers. This results in lasting value that stems from a deep understanding of the consumers’ needs, perspectives and capabilities.

Like our partners in this effort, through the Base of the Pyramid Protocol™, SC Johnson aims to continue finding and implementing base of the pyramid opportunities to generate local development and wealth while creating new capabilities and markets for our business.

The Base of the Pyramid Protocol™ is a trademark of Enterprise for a Sustainable World.