Narrowing the gap between consumer purchasing intention and behaviour through ecolabelling: a challenge for eco-entrepreneurism

Abstract

Purpose: The gap between the self-declarations of buyers as responsible consumers and the purchase of sustainable products means that consumer knowledge needs to be examined in depth, to guide the initiatives of eco-entrepreneurs towards sectors and demands that will make them viable and to advance responsible production and consumption – Objective 12: Sustainable Development 2030. The purpose of this study is to analyse the profile of consumers in relation to the purchase of ecolabelled products and to establish relations between purchasing decisions with environmental, social and ethical factors.

Design/methodology/approach: Multiple correspondence analysis is applied to the results of a questionnaire administered to a sample of 407 consumers resident in Spain. Information is gathered on environmental, social and economic concerns and the importance consumers attach to certain product attributes such as ecolabels, price and quality.

Findings: Consumers concerned over environmental, social and economic questions attached greater importance to information on ecolabels, principally within the textile, and drugstore sectors, followed by electrical and electronic appliances and the food sector. These consumers selected ecolabelled products with a good quality–price relationship.

Originality/value: The academic and business value of this research is its focus on the attributes of sustainable products so that eco-entrepreneurs may advance initiatives that are at once viable and sustainable, motivating consumers with concerns over environmental, social and economic issues.