While news headlines across the globe continue to be dominated by the spread of coronavirus and the impact it is having on people’s lives, consumer concerns about sustainability remain very much front of mind.
Indeed our research suggests strongly that the global pandemic has intensified concern about the environment and sustainability more broadly.
COVID-19 and the massive disruption it has caused has unquestionably caused many of us to re-evaluate different aspects of our lives. We find in our recent research that 74% of shoppers find that lockdowns have made them realise that they can live in a more sustainable way. Furthermore, 61% say that environment and sustainability are more important to them now than it was before the outbreak of COVID-19. Younger shoppers are particularly likely to hold this view, with 68% agreeing.
We suspect the pace of change will accelerate over the next few years, not only because of the shifting shopper mindsets, but as a result of big businesses re-evaluating their strategies, from consumer goods companies and retailers to heavy industry and oil giants.