This study examines consumer reactions to sustainable ventures that fail to deliver the promised social impact, introducing mission failure as a unique form of organizational shortfall. Grounded in Expectancy Violations Theory, the research differentiates mission failure from Corporate Social Irresponsibility by focusing on instances where ventures’ actions contradict their stated missions, potentially provoking stronger consumer backlash. Through a scenario-based experiment with participants in Germany and Mexico (N = 571), the study explores consumer responses to social, environmental, and product-focused ventures, measuring changes in purchase intention and word-of-mouth. Results indicate that social mission-focused ventures face heightened consumer punishment when failing to meet their social impact promises. Mexican compared to German consumers react more negatively to mission failure. This research contributes to sustainable entrepreneurship and mission drift literature, identifying mission failure as a critical risk factor and emphasizing the role of cultural differences in and considering consumer reactions to unmet impact expectations.
