"I recently heard the inside story of the decision to eliminate cigarette sales from Laura Stone, the consultant who initiated the conversation. Stone remembers the moment vividly. The entire leadership team was in the room: the heads of marketing, retail, pharmacy, operations and even the soon-to-be CEO, Larry Merlo. They had just articulated and agreed on a new company purpose: to improve the health of the customer."
"Then came what she calls the paradox process, the uncomfortable work of holding your stated purpose up to the mirror and asking, "What tensions or contradictions does this expose?" That's when Stone said the words that changed the company's history, "If I let you out of this room without talking about tobacco, you'll have mud on your face. You'll be seen as hypocrites.""
CVS faced a $1.5 billion conflict between revenue and a newly defined company purpose to improve customer health. Leadership convened across marketing, retail, pharmacy, operations and the incoming CEO and formally adopted the health-centered purpose. A consultant introduced a paradox process to surface tensions between that purpose and existing business lines, directly calling out tobacco as a hypocrisy risk. Confronting that tension led leadership to stop selling tobacco products, sacrificing significant revenue to align actions with purpose. The decision translated sacrifice into greater brand authenticity and long-term brand strength.
Read at MarTech
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