Defining true green
The true green consumer, then, is not
necessarily one who will be swayed by a tighter
economy; one who understands the principles
will, at least in theory, likely be trying to
buy less anyway. That consumer will also know
that some non-green clothes are “cheaper” for
reasons ranging from the type of labor to the
processes and chemicals used in its
manufacturing.
How much consumers actually do understand,
however, remains to be seen.
“I think the idea of organic is pretty well
understood, especially over the last 12 months
or so,” Dumain says. “I think every mainstream
market has some organic component, at least here
in California. But as we get into the details,
people know enough to ask the questions. There
is a plethora of options out there that they had
no access to 10 years ago. But is their
understanding deep enough? I don’t know. It may
be just enough to ask.”
BBMG, a branding and integrated marketing
agency, performed a conscious consumer survey in
August 2007. According to the results, nearly
nine in 10 Americans say the words “conscious
consumer” describe them well. It can be trendy
to admit some concern for the environment, or to
think that doing one’s part is an essential
component of living in our increasingly global
world.
It might be easy to think that green apparel
would appeal mostly to the better off, better
educated segment of the population. But programs
from mainstream stores like Wal-Mart fly in the
face of that convention. As part of its efforts
to become greener, the company has set goals for
reducing packaging (therefore saving plastic,
transportation costs and shelf space); has
strongly educated customers on energy-efficient
compact fluorescent light bulbs; encourages its
suppliers to reduce their carbon footprints; and
offers clothing made of organic cotton and
recycled plastic.
Rather than view such moves as competition,
Dumain sees it as a great opportunity for
raising awareness overall. And considers it “a
standard for showing how much power a retailer
can have over a supplier” in terms of carrying —
or not carrying — products based on
sustainability.
“I wish department stores would do the same,”
says MacEachern.
Yolles is not concerned that his company shares
many loyal customers with Wal-Mart. Nau’s prices
are higher than typical Wal-Mart fare, though
they’re on a par with other premium green
brands. “But the reality is that it’s a very,
very big marketplace,” he says.
Supply and demand for green goods
In 2006, a global lifestyle monitor survey by
Cotton Inc. and Cotton Council International
showed that only 5 percent of consumers would
put “a lot of effort” into looking for
environmentally friendly clothing. Further, the
vast majority of consumers were more concerned
about price than anything else. Of course, as
demand for green clothing increases (as many
believe it will), the laws of supply and demand
will serve to reduce the pricing premium.
“The problem is still that it isn’t easy to
figure out what’s worth spending money on if you
don’t have a good base of knowledge,” MacEachern
says.
Nau launched its “thought kitchen” blog in 2006
in an effort to raise consumer awareness; by
early 2007, its products were available online.
All along, the premise was to create outdoor
clothing that truly blended beauty, performance
and sustainability. Innovative fabrics were
developed, as well as a “restricted substance”
list.
But the idea of consumers buying green from Nau
isn’t just about the clothes. The company also
reduced its footprint through a handful of LEED-certified
“webfronts” – small, environmentally friendly
stores that hold minimum inventory to save
space. Customers can pick up items on site, or
they can receive discounts by having the item
shipped (at no charge) to their homes.
The company also takes its role of educating the
community seriously, in part through the
transparent “grey matters” portion of its
website. Topics there include the benefits and
pitfalls of clothes made from corn, fair labor
practices and comments on global manufacturing.
Each section also includes a segment on “where
we stand.”
“This doesn’t mean that the decisions we’ve had
to make are simple ones, or that we haven’t had
to make various compromises and tradeoffs,”
Yolles says. “Obviously, this was entitled ‘grey
matters’ with intention, because some things
aren’t always black and white. But we want to be
completely transparent with the decisions we’ve
made, and to explain those decisions and why we
made them, and what the issues are with various
products.”
And that, at the base level, is what many
believe green products are all about:
responsibility.
“It’s really hard to do one without the other,
to offer these products and not be an
environmentally responsible company,” Dumain
says. “You catch yourself. … The practices start
to invade the culture, and you get to a point
where you can’t help yourself any more. You
start to understand that ignorance really is
bliss, because once you start, it doesn’t end.”
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