‘Green’ products topic for retailers
Posted on Wednesday, February 27, 2008
ROGERS — Consumers say they want more environmentally friendly products but they don’t want to spend more, representatives of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and its suppliers were told Tuesday at a retailing seminar.
Shoppers surveyed by Leo J. Shapiro & Associates LLC, a Chicago-based research firm, also indicated they are wary of some companies’ environmental claims, said Arturo Angel, Shapiro’s research director.
“Consumers are skeptical about companies jumping on the green bandwagon,” Angel told those gathered at the Embassy Suites. The seminar, Best Practices in Sustainability, was one in a series sponsored by the trade publication Retailing Today.
Shapiro’s research, based on a telephone survey of more than 800 consumers across the nation, found that nearly two-thirds had bought a product in the past year designed to save energy or protect the environment. Energy-efficient light bulbs topped the list at 49 percent.
Beyond that and some recycling, Angel said, “consumers are currently not doing much, but they’re looking to do more.” Several watchdog groups are monitoring companies’ environmental claims, he said, and company brands could be in jeopardy if those claims don’t hold up under scrutiny.
“The stakes are very high,” he said.
JoAnn Hines of Kennesaw, Ga., advised companies to proceed cautiously as they seek to reduce the size and volume of product packages. Protecting the consumer must remain the top priority, she said.
An industry group, the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, is just beginning to establish universal standards for the business, she said. Before going too far, Hines said, companies should ask themselves, “Does your consumer really care ?” Wal-Mart has begun implementing a packaging scorecard for its suppliers, aimed at reducing waste destined for landfills and squeezing more products onto trucks to reduce transportation costs.
Tim Craig, editor of Re- tailing Today, said companies throughout the industry have stepped up their energy conservation efforts, with some building new stores to the U. S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification standards. Some are adding solar panels to their rooftops for supplemental power, he said. “The speed at which this has accelerated, taken off, in retailing is incredible,” he said.
To contact this reporter spainter@arkansasonline. com
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