A recent report by The Boston Consulting Group, “Capturing the Green Advantage for Consumer Companies,” surveyed the green consumer purchasing habits of 9,000 shoppers across nine countries.
One section of the report showed that consumers vary their green purchases by product category (see Exhibit 6 in the report). While 14% have bought green before, but are not buying it now and 28% are buying green sometimes, 50% have never bought green. Only 8% of survey participants buy green systematically. As a result, ‘Textiles and clothing’ was listed as the third lowest category.
The report also states the need for companies to keep potential consumers informed with green credentials. These days, what’s in a credential anyway? The report showed that almost survey participants “reported being confused when shopping for green products and uncertain about exactly what being green means, what benefits it provides, and how to tell if a product is green” (18).
The full report is available in PDF here and is worth a read if you are interested in green/ing consumer habits.
Mary has a PhD in Sociology from University of Edinburgh, researching responsible fashion and transnational labour rights activism in the wake of the Rana Plaza building collapse in Bangladesh.
Thanks for providing a link to the BCG publication, Mary. I anticipate that this document will be useful for my current research on greenwashing, consumer purchasing choices, and the increasing demand for credible (i.e. not misleading) communication about the “green” merits of so-called eco-friendly products.
Thanks again!