Consumer power: customers driving sustainability

There are countless reasons for companies to embrace sustainability. It is the right thing to do. Studies are showing it helps with long-term returns. Regulation is incoming requiring you do so. Now we should add: it's what consumers want. 

I've seen this in action in various settings recently. At graduate recruitment events students have expressed a desire to work somewhere with values aligning with their own. In discussions with friends it's been evident there has been a move towards those retailers and brands who have majored on their sustainability credentials.

For the fashion industry, the focus on sustainability is two-pronged. While McKinsey focus in this article on environmental and climate concerns,  the spotlight is also shining on human rights and social-related topics. Together they leave the industry facing some fairly significant questions which, as McKinsey note, require the industry to starting thinking "radically" and "embrace business model transformations to deliver sustainable outcomes". 

The article itself provides some good suggestions on where to start in relation to the environmental and climate concerns. Aside from the technical opportunities suggested as regards energy sources, there are key suggestions around the messaging brands should be promoting to consumers concerning their use (and reuse) of their purchases - after all, while 63% of buyers may have indicated that they consider a company's sustainability when making purchases, that still leaves a fair proportion of the market looking for their next £2 t-shirt... 

Such suggestions illustrate an important recurring point in the ESG space - collaboration is key to progress and a collective effort is needed, in this case to help meet worldwide targets around climate change. It seems clear that consumers have the power to drive sustainability in two ways: by demanding more from companies and through their own actions. 

As in-house teams go back to their boards and various committees on actions to suggest going forward, if looking for the internal business case on taking next steps, perhaps a twist on old adage is worth a try: 63% of customers are always right...