Attest releases sustainability trends report for 2022

Attest has released its sustainability trends report for 2022.

Surveying 2,000 working age US consumers, Attest questioned the respondents about the importance of sustainability in brands.

The report has found that nine in ten Americans believe climate change is happening. However, when it comes to the cause of climate change, their opinions differ.

50 percent believe it is occurring due to a combination of human activity and natural causes, 28 percent place the blame solely on humans, and 16 percent think it is only due to natural causes.

Due to the natural events that have happened over the past year, 52 percent of Americans admit that their view has changed since. Out of that number, one in ten respondents said that their view had changed completely.

Some were quoted as saying that “it’s much more obvious that this is a big problem” and “it has become a more urgent situation for me.” Due to the increased concern over climate change, 27 percent have plans to cut down on meat consumption.

The report also found that Americans respond positively to brands promoting their environmental credentials, with 42 percent of respondents saying they felt appreciative, 25 percent saying that it increased their loyalty to the brand and 16 percent feeling more confident in their purchase.

Eight in ten Americans also said that it is important for them that a company acts in an environmentally friendly way, with over half stating that it was an important matter for them. 62 percent said they would likely not purchase from a brand that had exaggerated their environmental measures.

However, 11 percent of respondents did say that brands promoting their sustainable measures makes them suspicious of it, 9 percent feel ‘sold to’, and 19 percent simply feel indifferent.

70 percent are concerned about the negative impact of throwaway products, as opposed to the 62 percent in 2019. 72 percent have also attempted to reduce their use of single-use plastic.

Attest also surveyed 500 UK consumers on the most important factors that would lead them to choose a retailer. 42 percent said that sustainability was ‘very important’, and 38 percent said that it was ‘quite important’.

However, in comparison with price and quality, sustainability ranks lower. 73 percent said that value for money was an important factor, and 64 percent ranked quality of products as a major component.

23 percent said that they shop at a retailer all the time due to sustainable practices - but a lack of choice was revealed with 33 percent saying they’d shop sustainability all the time if there were more opportunities available.

Availability is shown to be a large issue in terms of why consumers are not purchasing more sustainably - 35 percent said that they don’t buy sustainable products as there is not enough range to choose from. 34 percent said that there aren’t any products available at their local store.

Only 8 percent stated that they didn’t want to buy sustainable products, and for 40 percent of the respondents, the products are often too expensive.

Therefore, sustainability needs to be paired with classic priorities like convenience and money. 54 percent of the respondents also stated that easy access to the retailer was a principal consideration for them.

80 percent of the surveyed said that it is important for brands to have money-saving deals for sustainable items, 74 percent think that retailers should have a bigger range of options, and 60 percent said that brands need to also promote their green messages in-store.

Sustainable brands such as Hirestreet, a UK rental platform, are gaining popularity.

“According to many studies, rental and resale are projected to significantly grow their market share. In line with this, we expect that rental will become very much ‘the norm’ for many consumers, particularly for items in occasionwear, outerwear and babywear categories,” said head of partnerships at Hirestreet, Emily Wade. “We also expect to see a shift from 3rd party rental platforms to many of the world’s leading retailers offering rental direct to consumers.”

Both the UK and US surveys depict a high amount of interest in sustainable measures, with consumers open to retailers incorporating more green initiatives.