Anthropology at the bottom of the pyramid |
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| Authors: | Jamie Cross Alice Street |
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| Institution: | 2008–09 RAI/Leach Postdoctoral Fellow at the National University of Ireland. His current research explores the relationships between large-scale enterprise and development in the Indian economy. His email address is .;ESRC Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Sussex. Her current research focuses on relationships between health, governance and development in Papua New Guinean biomedicine. Her email address is . |
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| Abstract: | This article explores what anthropology has to say about contemporary business strategies for market expansion among poor consumers in Africa and Asia. Focusing on the activities of global consumer goods company Unilever in India, we show how anthropology can provide valuable insights into the hidden work and power relations involved in transforming an everyday commodity like soap into a composite object, what we call a 'social good', that is capable of simultaneously combating disease, tackling poverty and realizing value for shareholders. |
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