2011844: Cooperative Movement in Northern England
Notes for educators: Cooperatives were set up in
opposition to companies who monopolised a market and
conspired to provide basic commodities at high prices to
maximise their own profits. Consumer cooperatives are
a different way of doing business – consumers join the
cooperative, buy products from the cooperative and share
in the profits of the cooperative.
19 th Century: Arts and Crafts Movement
Notes for educators: This design led movement was a
reaction against mass consumption and the soulless man-
made goods produced in the industrial revolution. It is only
one of many movements throughout history that have
offered a critique of consumer society.
1913: First Henry Ford Model T Automobiles
Notes for educators: Henry Ford was the pioneer of mass
production. The factory management model he developed
for producing cars has been used in the manufacture of
goods across the globe. Ford realised that in order to
increase the market for his cars, it was to his advantage to
pay his workers a high wage so that they could consume
Ford cars. We are now in a post–Ford era where most
companies out-source their manufacture to countries
where wages are low.
1930: Great Depression
Notes for educators: In the great depression, the stock
market crashed, the volume of trade reduced and there
were massive job losses. Causes of the great depression
are disputed but the general agreement is that a crisis in
consumer confidence meant people stopped spending,
which led to a downturn in economic growth. In light of
the great depression, consumption came to be seen by
economists and politicians alike as essential for healthy
economic growth.
1947: First round of GATT
Notes for educators: The General Agreement of Tariffs
and Trade (GATT) led to the establishment of the World
Trade Organisation (WTO) in 1995, which covers service
sector and intellectual property rights in addition to trade.
International trade takes place within the legal framework
established by the WTO. Power within this organisation lies
with industrialised countries.
1950s to 1980s: Cold War
Notes for educators: In the post Second World War
era, two political and economic systems emerged. In the
simplest terms these could be described as communism,
where the state decides people’s needs and provides
accordingly; and capitalism, where the market is left to
provide for people’s needs.1950s: Sales of Volkswagen Soar after Helmut Krone’s
Advertising Campaign
Notes for educators: The advertising campaign ‘Think Small’
embodied a modern creative approach to advertising.1950s onwards: Move ‘Downtown’: out-of-town
Shopping Centres
Notes for educators: Shopping complexes and malls
started to spring up in the USA, which in some towns and
cities led to the destruction of local shops and services.
These vast shopping centres were later called ‘cathedrals to
consumerism’ by postmodern writers.1950s: Post-war Keynesianism
Notes for educators: Keynesian economics was adopted by
the British government. It promotes a mixed economy, in
which both the state and the private sector are considered
to play an important role. This approach to economics
differs from laissez-faire economic liberalism, which
advocates that markets and the private sector operate best
without state intervention.1950s: Modernisation Theory
Notes for educators: Influenced by writers such as Singer,
modernisation theory was the idea that, in order to
develop, countries should industrialise, mechanise and
urbanise. The goal of development was to become like
the North. Institutions like the World Bank supported this
idea by providing financial backing for large-scale modern
development projects.1970s onwards: Increasing
Power of Multinational Companies
Notes for educators: The global power base shifted so that
the economic power of transnational corporations became
greater than many nations. By the end of the 20th century,
just 200 corporations accounted for a quarter of the
global economy.IntEractIVE actIVItIEs