Empire Marketing Board facts for kids
The Empire Marketing Board (EMB) was created in May 1926. Its main goal was to encourage people in Britain to 'Buy Empire'. This meant buying products from countries that were part of the British Empire, like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and India.
The EMB was set up by Leo Amery, who was the Colonial Secretary at the time. It was meant to be a way to boost trade within the Empire without using special taxes on goods from other countries. However, it didn't last long because new trade rules, called imperial preference, came into play. The EMB was eventually closed down in 1933. During its short time, it didn't manage to greatly increase Britain's imports from the Empire.
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What Was the Empire Marketing Board?
The Empire Marketing Board had three main goals:
- To support scientific research to improve products.
- To promote economic analysis to understand markets better.
- To create publicity to encourage people to buy Empire goods.
In 1925, a group called the Imperial Economic Committee suggested creating the EMB. They wanted to spend £1 million each year to start a "national movement" to get British people to buy more from the Empire. The EMB used this money for various projects, including scientific studies and advertising campaigns.
The main idea was to help Empire countries produce better goods and sell more of them. This would make their products more competitive against goods from other parts of the world. The EMB believed that helping producers with science and market information was the best way to do this. They wanted to show producers how to grow, pack, and present their goods so that shoppers would want to buy them.
Helping with Science
A big part of the EMB's work and budget went into scientific research. They helped fund 126 projects related to agricultural (farming) and medical research. They also shared lots of information through notes, pamphlets, and surveys.
For example, in 1931, Walter Elliot explained some of the research programs. Money was given to important places like Cambridge University and the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture in Trinidad. They also funded studies on animal health in Pretoria, South Africa, and research into improving natural pastures in Aberdeen, Scotland. A large amount of money also went to the Low Temperature Research Station at Cambridge, which studied how to keep food fresh.
This scientific research was spread across the entire Empire. It covered many different areas of science and received a lot of funding until the EMB closed in 1933. The EMB also helped connect buyers with producers and studied markets to help producers sell their goods better.
Advertising Campaigns
The EMB launched many different advertising campaigns. They used posters, exhibitions, 'Empire Shopping Weeks', lectures, and radio talks. They even had their own library and showed advertisements in newspapers and on shop windows.
One of the most famous parts of the EMB was its film unit, led by John Grierson. He is often called the father of modern documentary film. His team made about 100 films. These films promoted different Empire products, like Solid Sunshine for New Zealand butter, Drifters for North Sea herring, and The Song of Ceylon for tea.
The EMB used a lot of posters with bright colors and big print to attract shoppers. These posters were often displayed in a series, like a cartoon strip, telling a story. They were put up in over 1700 places across 450 British cities and towns. The messages on the posters were sometimes aimed at men and women differently. For example, men were shown as "Empire Builders," while women were shown buying Empire food. The BBC even worked with the EMB to teach women how to use Empire products.
However, not everyone thought these campaigns were successful. Some Dominions (self-governing countries in the Empire) felt the posters didn't really help them sell more goods. For instance, New Zealand reported that the posters were "ineffective as sellers of produce." They felt the campaigns were more about showing the Dominions what Britain was doing rather than actually boosting sales.
The EMB stopped its work in September 1933. This happened because the government made budget cuts and introduced the new Imperial Preference trade system. The EMB's film unit later moved to the GPO and then became the Crown Film Unit during World War II.
Today, you can find collections of the EMB's posters at the Manchester Art Gallery and some original ones at the Victoria Falls Hotel in Zimbabwe, as well as the National Archives of Canada.
Gallery
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1882 First Frozen Lamb from New Zealand, 1880 First Butter from Australia, by R. T. Cooper, London, Dunstable and Watford, England, United Kingdom, circa 1926–1934. Color lithograph on wove paper.
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"1907 First Oranges from South Africa, 1903 First Sultanas and Currants from Australia: Buy Empire Every Day" by R.T. Cooper, London, Dunstable and Watford, England, United Kingdom, circa 1926–1934. Color lithograph on wove paper
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"The Good Shopper " by F.N., London, Dunstable and Watford, England, United Kingdom, CIRCA 1926–1934. Color lithograph on wove paper.
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From Christmas to Christmas. May Empire Trade Increase, by Austin Cooper, London, Dunstable and Watford, England, United Kingdom, circa 1926–1934. Color lithograph on wove paper
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The Produce of the Home Country Crowns the Christmas Feast, by Austin Cooper, London, Dunstable and Watford, England, United Kingdom, circa 1926–1934. Color lithograph on wove paper.
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"The Empire Christmas Pudding: A Christmas Pudding Recipe", London, England, United Kingdom. Circa 1926–1934, color lithograph on wove paper.
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See also
- Colonial goods store
