Consumer Shopping Habits for Wellness and Environmentally ...
Consumer Shopping Habits for Wellness and Environmentally ...
Consumer Shopping Habits for Wellness and Environmentally ...
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fact, probing conversations with consumers often result in nominal guesses such as ―Well, I suppose<br />
they could recycle paper in their home office, wherever that is.‖<br />
That being said, much of the impression that consumers gather about a store relative to issues of<br />
sustainability issues relates directly to items on the shelf – if a store carries products that appear<br />
better <strong>for</strong> the environment (or, less-directly, simply ―healthier‖), then, at least in a vague sense, then<br />
the store seems like it is being ―responsible.‖ For instance, stores that carry a full (<strong>and</strong> visible)<br />
selection of natural home cleaners will be thought of as ―better‖ in an environmental sense by<br />
consumers than stores that carry only conventional br<strong>and</strong>s. Product selection is one reason why<br />
specialty retailers consistently deliver superior sustainability or responsibility impressions to<br />
consumers. Rolling out more natural products in the key categories we outline <strong>for</strong> each retail channel<br />
is perhaps the most immediately effective, sustainability-related step retailers could take. In addition,<br />
playing up specific category decision criteria that relate to sustainability or responsibility in displays<br />
<strong>and</strong>/or promotions may be quite helpful, e.g. ―not animal tested‖ <strong>for</strong> certain personal care products.<br />
Labor issues also arise frequently. Many consumers move discussion toward ―happy employees‖<br />
when sustainability issues are brought into a conversation (usually by researchers, not consumers) –<br />
in some sense, consumers assume that if store employees seem pleasant, that they are being<br />
treated well, <strong>and</strong> that the store is ―nice‖ in other respects as well, e.g. is ―nice,‖ or, rather,<br />
responsible, when it comes to caring about the environment.<br />
Store environment also impacts how consumers perceive sustainability. In many ways, the less<br />
―traditional‖ a store appears, <strong>and</strong> the more contemporary <strong>and</strong> ―high quality‖ a store looks, the more<br />
sustainable it seems. For instance, consumers are generally unlikely to rate a conventional mass<br />
retailer with bright lighting <strong>and</strong> high, utilitarian metal shelving as particularly sustainable or<br />
responsible; such a setting seems like ―retail‘s past,‖ recalling an era that came be<strong>for</strong>e the current<br />
one <strong>and</strong> its ―green‖ emphasis. Conversely, stores with contemporary lighting, flooring, shelving, et<br />
cetera appear ―with it‖ <strong>and</strong> up-to-date, <strong>and</strong> presumably participating in this new era of<br />
sustainability/responsibility. While this sounds terribly superficial, we find that such appearances<br />
consistently produce better sustainability impressions (in addition to better H+W <strong>and</strong> overall quality<br />
impressions).<br />
Health Services or Learning Features?<br />
In-store health services <strong>and</strong> learning features st<strong>and</strong> apart from one another to some degree.<br />
Where there is a strong presence of one, typically the other has a weak presence. To be certain, it<br />
would seem odd to find a flu shot booth in proximity to specialist store employees explaining the<br />
virtues of all-natural skincare regimes. Unsurprisingly, consumer opinions of the appropriateness<br />
<strong>and</strong> desirability of health services <strong>and</strong> learning features are highly dependent on the type of retailer.<br />
For the most part, there is a continuum between the two, summarized in the diagram below. At the<br />
left of the diagram, we see the channels where services are most desirable, <strong>and</strong> at the right, where<br />
learning is most desirable. Mainstream grocery stores, appearing in the middle of the chart, are<br />
faced with a balancing act.<br />
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