We're live at the World Retail Congress in Barcelona, where we're having a bit of Internet connectivity issues which need to be sorted before our Twitter feed gets going.
The first session of the conference is focused on sustainability, and interestingly, there's very little "real" content being delivered on the basic idea of making sustainability a profitable part of core business. Several retailers have spoken about the "tips and tricks" they are doing, but the basic issue is being slowly circled rather than addressed:
How much do consumers care about sustainability and how do their desires affect a retailer's core strategy?
Guy Champliss, Head of Intelligence Unit for Havas Media, opened the session with a pair of statistics that illustrate the dichotomy of consumer desires and retailer response:
48% on consumers say they would pay a 10% premium for goods produced in a socially and environmentally responsible way... but...
64% view companies' communications about this as a "marketing tool"
So maintaining the trust of the consumer is absolutely critical, and is at the heart of making sustainability profitable.
Lucy Neville-Rolfe, Corporate and Legal Affairs Director of Tesco, reinforced this view with the idea that the best way to drive sustainability is improve "green consumption" by providing incentives to consumers to change their own behavior. For example, lowering the price of LED light bulbs will drive adoption of them. So instead of looking at sustainability as a change of basic retailing, it can instead be an outcome of basic retailing principles.
Consumers will always make choices that are in their own best interest. Sustainability is no different; retailers have to work in partnership with suppliers and consumers alike to create an environment where sustainable choices are "right" for everyone.
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