36 SUSTAINABILITY
distribution. Companies like Amazon are rethinking last-mile delivery through initiatives that use unmanned aerial vehicles to deliver packages within a 10-mile radius of fulfillment centres. Such technology offers the prospect of energy-efficient local delivery, without the pollution and congestion that is typically associated with road transport.
Consumer use
The majority of the water footprint of personal care products comes during the consumer-use phase. Add in the amount of energy necessary for heating water before application, which results in additional CO2
emissions, and
products can be the source of alarming environmental impact when consumed. Part of the issue is being mitigated
through the design of innovative products such as those that require less water during use, and as a result of initiatives that seek to educate consumers about water conservation. However, an emerging- opportunity lies in interacting directly with consumers through technology, which has enormous potential for raising consumer awareness and recruiting end-users to take part in sustainability efforts. Such technology can educate consumers while also providing valuable data to companies on consumer preferences. The groundswell in consumer- technology has the prospect of transforming consumer-use by connecting personal care regimes to technology- enabled devices. Smart homes could monitor water usage and help users to make informed decisions regarding consumption. Companies could convey personal cost savings associated with responsible water usage, while raising consumer-awareness about global water quality and scarcity. Such communication could be positioned as a way to offer consumers additional value, and be attuned to fulfil different levels of customer curiosity. Coupled with machine learning, these systems could determine whether a consumer is acting sustainably and direct companies to offer promotions to encourage responsible behaviour. Connected-packaging, which could be a simple QR code on a product’s label, could lead to greater ingredient-transparency through digital-content linking to an ingredients database and a full-breakdown of a product’s environmental impact. Ingredient shortages, often triggered when trendy raw materials cause global shortages, could be flagged for consumers while apps offer brand-agnostic product
PERSONAL CARE EUROPE
alternatives based on a user’s profile. Those interested in learning about their products would have the opportunity to do so, while less-interested customers would be spared from being overburdened with information. Connected-packaging could also be an opportunity to raise consumer-awareness on proper disposal once the product is used to discourage littering. The focus of such efforts would be not only on shaping the opinions of the adults who purchase personal care products, but also on younger digital-natives, ensuring that responsible habits are acquired at an early age and carried forward into adulthood.
End-of-Life
The consumption of natural resources is rising at an alarming rate as economies develop, resulting in an unsustainable global competition for finite reserves. Society must find ways to use resources in a more productive and less environmentally- impactful manner.
During the end-of-life stage, personal
care companies can play an important role in better managing resources by adopting sustainable strategies for post-consumer use packaging. The past few years have seen a renewed interest to find solutions as consumer-awareness of the environmental impact of packaging has surged, especially among young, informed consumers. M.A.C is a good example of a firm that has embraced the circular-economy while burnishing its sustainability bona fides. Through its “Back to M.A.C” incentivised return programme, the company facilitates post-consumer recycling by offering customers a free lipstick after they have returned six package containers. Returned
containers are then transformed into new packaging. While recycling is commendable, most
current processes require considerable energy and the quality of the recovered material is lower than virgin material. A more environmentally-friendly alternative might be to offer reusable-options, whereby associated cost savings can be transferred to consumers. However a company
approaches end-of-life, educating customers on how to responsibly use and dispose of packaging is fundamental to the success of sustainability efforts.
The future rewards prescient leaders
Conventional wisdom suggests that sustainability is a trade-off between economic-efficiency and social- responsibility. This zero-sum perspective positions the dimensions of sustainability as constraints; limitations to be adhered to when necessary, and avoided when possible. This need not be the case. From a strategic perspective, sustainability can be powerful, and those who embrace it beyond compliance can garner advantage. Sustainability can be the catalyst to motivate a search for new products, services, and markets. Opportunities to differentiate products from those of competitors exist, but more importantly, sustainability has the potential to help shift companies away from commodity offerings and toward more fertile ground. Markets will increasingly reward sustainable companies with investment, while punishing others. Firms that embrace a purpose beyond the bottom-line will be better able to attract customers than their more transactional counterparts, and have the opportunity to turn them into throngs of fanatically-loyal allies. Such firms will also be able to better capitalise on the initiative, imagination, and passion of its workforce, especially among the younger generations who seek rewards beyond a paycheck. Economists see a new wave of innovation coming, one that has sustainability at its core. These changes will compel companies to redesign around environmental and social needs. Innovative new business models are already being forged by an army of startups, purpose- built to compete sustainably, and reinforced by courageous incumbents that look to upend the existing order and leapfrog less agile players. The future belongs to those that prepare for the coming opportunities and risks, and establish a basis for long- term success.
PC April 2020
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170 |
Page 171 |
Page 172 |
Page 173 |
Page 174 |
Page 175 |
Page 176 |
Page 177 |
Page 178 |
Page 179 |
Page 180 |
Page 181 |
Page 182 |
Page 183 |
Page 184 |
Page 185 |
Page 186 |
Page 187 |
Page 188 |
Page 189 |
Page 190 |
Page 191 |
Page 192 |
Page 193 |
Page 194 |
Page 195 |
Page 196
