Chicago has been notorious for machine politics, Al Capone, Rod Blagojevich, and the fictional murderess Roxy Hart of the musical “Chicago,” to name a few. Yet on July 20 it won a new title: Most Honest City in the America.
The organic tea company “Honest Tea” conducted a social experiment by setting up unsupervised pop-up stores stocked with ice cold Honest Tea and Honest Ade in 12 cities across the United States on July 19, according to its press release. A sign asked patrons to leave $1 per bottle on the honor system. The request was posted next to a transparent but securely mounted cash box. Hidden cameras allowed live video feeds of each pop up store, documenting how honest people actually were and tracking real time results for each city.
The results for the 12 cities, on a percentile scale, were Chicago 99, Boston 97, Seattle 97, Dallas 97, Atlanta 96, Philadelphia 96, Cincinnati 95, San Francisco 93, Miami 92, Washington, 91, Los Angeles 88, and New York brought up the rear with an 86.
“We weren’t surprised about the results, very encouraging. ... Most people paid the dollar even without looking at the product. Seemed like most people were willing to be honest regardless of brand. Being Honest Tea, we are frequently being asked questions about our products and this was a chance to turn the tables and ask questions of consumers. This was a fun campaign to work with, a hands on deck experience,” said Samme Menke, media relations officer at Honest Tea in a telephone interview.
The idea came from two very creative Honest Tea employees in San Francisco, the company said in a statement. The experiment involved the cities all being tested on the same day, allowing people from anywhere to witness the events unfold.
“We wanted to challenge people to think about how honest Americans are as a whole, particularly when no one is watching,” said Seth Goldman, president and CEO of Honest Tea, in a press release. “It was refreshing to see that most cities were in the 90 percent range,” Goldman added.
The Honest Teas mission statement is “To create and promote great tasting, truly healthy, organic beverages. We strive to grow our business with the same honesty and integrity we use to craft our products, with sustainability and great taste for all.”
“It’s not just about selling tea, but connecting our mission with our consumers,” said Peter Kaye, vice president of marketing at Honest Tea, in a press release.
Honest Tea will donate all of the money collected, approximately $5,000 to three nonprofit organizations, matching the funds collected to bring the total donated amount to $10,000, it announced. Share Our Strength is one of the beneficiaries. It is a national nonprofit devoted to ending childhood hunger. Another is City Year, which unites young people of all backgrounds for a year of full-time service, to help turn around high-need schools and get at-risk students back on track. The third is Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., its mission is to create a nationwide network of trails using former rail lines and connecting corridors to build healthier places for healthier people.
“We hope our donations and the poll on the Honest City website will help raise awareness for their important work,” said Goldman in a statement.
For those who wish to participate online can go to www.honestcities.com. The honest, the dishonest, and the honestly funny can be viewed on YouTube. Participants can experience the Honest Store and get a $1.00 savings coupon effective through Friday July 22.
