When you think of Easter, what’s the first thing that comes to your mind? For Christians, the word means the resurrection of Jesus. According to crosswalk.com, this Christian tradition began in 325 A.D. as a way to remember the resurrection of Jesus from the tomb on the third day after his crucifixion. However, for many individuals, the word Easter is often associated with a bunny hopping through the woods and laying colorful eggs all around.
Easter has been considered a predominantly Christian tradition since the inception of the celebration. However, according to History.com, many historians believe that German immigrants spread the use of the rabbit as a symbol for this celebration although those associations come from pagan celebrations or beliefs.
In countries where Christianity is the prominent religion, this celebration is very personal. Yet, in the U.S., this tradition has shifted from religion to a marketing strategy that companies use in order to boost their sales within the season. Such is the case from one of the first companies that commercialize the holiday, David C. Cook Company. This large Protestant publisher from Chicago was one of the first companies that saw the profit in selling suitable decorations and inexpensive gifts, especially targeted toward religious schools where teachers would give their students small holiday mementos. This approach must have made the company a lot of profit since it began to sell more merchandise around the holiday since.
Following the success of companies like the aforementioned, Easter celebrations became what is now a marketing exploitation of a religious event. Many people, especially kids, only associate this celebration with chocolate bunnies, stuffed eggs and egg hunting – which has no religious significance to Easter and was later introduced once the holiday was established in the U.S.
The religious aspect has become a secondary theme when it comes to Easter. This is a clear example of how companies exploit all kinds of holidays to make it profitable for them, even if it’s disrespectful for those celebrating from a religious aspect. Halloween and Christmas are other examples of how companies have commercialized holidays to make a profit.
Trying to take advantage of a holiday, religious or not, is a clever way for companies to boost their sales and try to be more relevant in those seasons. Almost every single candy company releases an Easter limited edition for of their product. Reese’s, for example, releases multiple Easter-themed candies that are widely popular during this season. The Cadbury Creme Eggs are another example of these famous Easter candies that are only released during this season. The options are unlimited but the fact that they go above and beyond to exploit the holiday for their benefit says a lot about their ethics.
Although not every company tries to do this on purpose and some of them stay away from religious merchandise for a reason, that doesn’t make it any less wrong. Companies should try to draw a line that separates responsible and ethical sale strategies that take advantage of a holiday to make the public buy their products. I’m not saying that they can’t sell products at all to commemorate these holidays, but it should only be done if the companies recognize and value the holiday for what it is.
