Curious about the entrepreneurial adventure behind inspiring brands, Brand and Strategic Professional Martijn Arets decided to quit his job, hand in his lease car, ignore all uncertainties and follow his dream. For five months, he travelled more than 15,000 kilometres across Europe in a one-of-a-kind 1971 Volkswagen T2 camper van, meeting with the founders, CEOs and brand managers of 20 authentic European brands in what was to prove a unique trip: Brand Expedition. On popular demand, he has bundled the lessons and stories behind 20 appealing European brands such as Lego, Mini, Skype, The Body Shop and Adidas to create Brand Expedition, the book. More information? Check www.brand-expedition.com or send Martijn a Tweet: @martijnarets.

1. READ OUT LOUD
THE STORY BEHIND
THE BODY
SHOP
TRULY GREEN

2. BEFORE YOU START….
please look into your camera and tell
us slowly your name, city and
country… Then you can start reading
this paragraph out loud… Have fun!

3. Many companies claim to be acting in
an ethically responsible manner. All
too often, this proves to be a
marketing tool aimed at
piggy-backing on the green hype of
today. In the case of the body shop,
sustainability

4. has been in the company’s dna since
its founding at a time when other
brands had yet to discover the
concept. But how do you keep it up
during a period of tremendous
growth? One day when London is

5. covered by a blanket of snow and is
absolutely chaotic, I meet up with
Jenny Whitehorn, Brand and Values
Director for Europe, the Middle East
and Africa, in a The Body Shop store
on Oxford Street. She tells me the

6. story behind this extraordinary brand.
The main player in the history of The
Body Shop is Anita Roddick. When her
husband decided to travel across
America in 1976, she was looking for a
way to support herself and her two

7. daughters. Banking on her
entrepreneurial experience from having
run a hotel together with her husband,
Anita started The Body Shop, where she
sold ethically-responsible cosmetics
which she produced herself.

8. - END OF RECORDING-