Alongside the usual stuff of life and business recently, I also beamed into an Oxford Union debate (black tie, debating chamber et al) and, randomly, stumbled upon a bit of the film Greed, starring Steve Coogan. The latter is allegedly based on a certain retail mogul.

Contrasting experiences on the surface, but for different reasons they got me thinking again about how Brand Business has got such a challenge on its hands and why Brand Retail has a unique role in shaping perceptions of business for good or ill.

The reason all this is important is that, while politicians feel they can get more votes (or at least not lose any) by giving business a good kicking and that they can extract more and more revenue from businesses even as they make it more difficult for them to operate, then everyone in business and everyone who benefits from business will suffer (which basically means all of us, because business pays for civil society and our way of life).