For the Muslim world, this holy month is a time of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving as believers remember the period in which the Qu’ran was revealed to Muhammad. As Islam spreads across the Western world, however, that glimpse of the crescent moon starts off not just a period of devotion, but one for corporations to latch onto yet another religious tradition in the name of diversity, inclusivity, and profit.
Fresh Consumers
Though Ramadan dates back to Muhammad’s revelation in the 7th century AD, the rapid rise of Islam in the Western world over the last few decades presents fresh challenges to the religious tradition; in particular, the austere practices encouraged by Ramadan now clash with an often overly-materialistic consumption encouraged by capitalist imperatives. The impressive scale of a Muslim presence in and Muslims’ continuing migration to the West combined with the potential for e-commerce make the holiday most enticing for corporations. Considering that by some calculations nearly 20% of the German, French and British populations could be Muslim by 2050—with neighboring countries not far behind—it’s clear why some corporations would want to monetise the popular holiday.
The biggest brands are already capitalising. Coca-Cola, for example, released the “Breaking Differences” ad campaign in 2023 highlighting the unity of the Muslim experience during Ramadan while also encouraging partakers to “break their fast” with Coca-Cola]. That same year, McDonald’s featured the “The joy of togetherness” campaign on their blog which promoted eating at McDonald’s for iftar, the fast-breaking evening meal during Ramadan. Likewise, Nestle-owned Maggi, a brand which sells seasonings, soups, and noodles, heavily markets their products to Muslim consumers with their own recipe collection tailored to the holiday].
One can understand why food companies might advertise toward those who observe Ramadan— a central facet of the holiday is sharing an evening meal among family and friends. But other companies whose products are only loosely connected to the holiday have jumped on the gravy train, too. Ikea, the Swedish furniture manufacturer, markets its Gokvällä collection of dinnerware toward Muslims with the tagline “festive dinnerware and decoration for an iftar to remember”. Further, in 2017, the rideshare company Uber offered free lifts to iftar every weekend during Ramadan.
