The “Sustainability 2015” survey recently conducted and published by defacto research & consulting GmbH, Erlangen, and the magazine “absatzwirtschaft”, Düsseldorf, casts a look at the current commitment of companies in Germany to ecological, social and economic sustainability as perceived by consumers. It compares these perceptions to consumer expectations. In a nutshell, consumers believe that almost all companies could make greater progress in this field - and it appears that they will have to. The survey covering 100 individual brands across ten sectors examined how committed consumers think selected product and company brands are with respect to sustainability (Sustainability Engagement Index SEI). In the fashion field, Trigema, Birkenstock, Vertbaudet, Bogner and Jack Wolfskin were considered the leading brands for sustainability. These results were then compared with the consumers’ expectations with regard to the companies’ future commitment to sustainability (Sustainability Potential Index SPI). Depending on the brand, the results provide valuable indications of how and where companies can improve. Interestingly, 54 per cent of consumers said that sustainability should become an integral part of entire businesses rather than just finding expression in a separate product line.

A relatively high number of consumers commented they would be prepared to pay more (on average 6.7 per cent more) for sustainable products. In the fashion sector, consumers said they would even be happy to pay up to 8.3 per cent more. The initiators behind the survey illustrated in ten steps how companies can pave the way for a new sustainability strategy.