The newly published Global Sustainability 2024 report highlights that green packaging and delivery options concern consumers, retailers and the carrier industry alike.
According to ConsumerX research, 79% of consumers said that it was either important or very important to them that online retailers cover these as part of their delivery operations. The use of environmentally friendly packaging is of particular importance to consumers in South Africa, the UAE and Brazil where between 43% and 49% of consumers rate the issue as very important.
Even in South Korea, where consumers are less concerned by this issue, more than two-thirds of shoppers surveyed by ConsumerX said that the use of biodegradable and environmentally friendly packaging was important to them.
In fact, shoppers in South Korea are among the most likely consumers, out of the eight countries surveyed, to return a product or packaging to the company they bought it from for recycling. This behaviour is seen across other parts of the world as well, with a quarter of consumers saying they return every item to a retailer for recycling or do so most of the time. A further 28% do so sometimes.
Packaging has more of an impact on consumers than other areas of sustainable logistics since it is something they see and have to deal with. Packaging recycling has also been publicised extensively with government-led campaigns changing consumer behaviour towards recycling more through kerbside and other collection points. At the same time, brands and retailers are reducing the level of packaging used in goods and switching to more sustainable options, including refillable containers.
In the UK, The Perfume Shop received almost 8,000 fragrance bottles back from customers for recycling in the first three-quarters of 2024, an increase of 15% over the previous year. Customers are further incentivised to return bottles by the retailer’s pledge that for every bottle returned, it will pay for a tree to be planted.
Delivering sustainably
Two-thirds of shoppers are concerned about how their online orders are delivered and the impact this has on the environment. Again, shoppers in Brazil and the UAE feel strongest about this and want retailers to use carbon-neutral delivery methods such as electric vehicles.
Retailers and carriers alike are changing in accordance with these worries, understanding the importance of their fleet in their ability to reach net zero targets. For instance, DHL Group, which operates in more than 220 countries, plans to electrify 60% of its final mile delivery vehicles by 2030 and fully decarbonise its business by 2050, no mean feat considering the extent of its road and air fleet.
Meanwhile, DPD UK is on target to deliver a 46% reduction in emissions by the end of 2024, from a 2020 baseline. A third of its final-mile van fleet is now electric. For retailers that fulfil customer orders from store, bicycles offer another option for final-mile deliveries.
They are also an enabler for Q-commerce, allowing retailers to deliver goods fast and thus fulfil two of the drivers behind customers’ purchasing decisions – speed and sustainability.
Amazon is showing that a store network isn’t necessary. It is rolling out micromobility hubs to house a fleet of electric cargo bikes able to deliver thousands of packages each week to its customers. These hubs, of which there are more than 40 in British and European cities, facilitate ecargo bike and on-foot deliveries, and form part of a £300mn investment to electrify and decarbonise Amazon’s UK transportation network.
Talking about the opening of this latest hub, Connor Ashford, senior delivery station manager at Amazon in Norwich said: “Our new electric cargo bikes are part of Amazon’s commitment to reach net zero carbon emissions across our operations by 2040, ten years ahead of the Paris Agreement. This is a proud moment for our team, and great news for customers across the city who will benefit from zero-emissions deliveries to their door.”
Amazon is also addressing consumer concerns around packaging by replacing the plastic bubble lining in its envelopes with a lightweight, shockabsorbent, paper-based lining.
This is an excerpt from the Sustainability 2024 market report, which brings together the information from RetailX’s ecommerce market reports and performance-based ranking reports with consumer sentiment and behaviour data from ConsumerX to give a rounded view of the current state of sustainability communications and services in retail and ecommerce globally.
Data and analysis will cover a number of key themes to highlight trends and opportunities, while company profiles will showcase activities of individual brands and retailers of note.
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