According to YouGov data from 2020, 91% of French people consider it important to reduce waste. Faced with this collective awareness, a trend is emerging in the retail sector: zero waste. The objective is then to reduce its waste production not only to save money, but also to reduce its ecological impact. New practices are accompanying this dynamic: buying products in bulk, refusing packaging, designing your own products… For the retail giants, this trend highlights new, greener and more responsible development opportunities.
Zero waste, a new way of life for consumers
While browsing social networks, it is not uncommon to see consumer and brand posts with the hashtag #zerodechet or #zerowaste. Whether it is a new technique for do your laundry yourself or a new business to get products without packaging, advice and tips are popping up online.
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Dynvibe, the consumer observatory on social networks, explains that this zero waste trend results not only from the democratization of organic products and the desire to consume better quality products, as well as from the “slow life” phenomenon. It consists of questioning one’s lifestyle and reassessing one’s priorities, in particular by taking into account the protection of the planet’s resources. This means not only being a consumer, but also an actor in a real anti-waste movement.
It should therefore be said that zero waste goes beyond the mere status of a fad and is part of a real revolution in the way of consumption. From now on, transparency and responsible engagement are required: according to a European study on consumption in 2020-2021 carried out by Oney and OpinionWay, 90% of consumers expect brands to engage and help them to consume better.
The giants take the turn of zero waste
Faced with these rapidly changing consumption patterns, large retail companies must provide major and sustainable solutions in order to become responsible players in the world of tomorrow. This offers them new opportunities: reaching a new audience, entering a new booming market … However, this does not only mean offering zero waste products, but also reviewing its entire production chain and its methods. of distribution.
An initiative taken in 2019 by more than 25 distribution giants with Loop. Initially launched as an e-commerce platform, its concept is innovative: major brands such as Carrefour, Coca-Cola and Danone offer products there in returnable, recyclable and reusable packaging. They are then delivered to the customer’s home and the deposit is refunded when he returned the packaging, which was collected from him or brought back to the store.
However, the offer has been reduced to physical stores and no longer exists in e-commerce. Behind this change, a goal: ” develop a larger product range with partners and soon offer an enhanced “zero waste” experience »Explained Carrefour in a press release. By the end of 2025, the brand wants to reach 500 stores offering reuse and deposit, as well as 1,000 products with reusable packaging.
To review their model and gradually take the turn of zero waste, some giants decide instead to surround themselves with start-ups or innovative SMEs. Cdiscount, for example, has adopted connected packaging from LivingPackets as well as reusable packages from Hipli. The goal is to offer a longer lifespan to the packages.
Same dynamic at Amazon. ” We try to optimize the containers. Machine learning and a packaging algorithm make it possible to offer a packaging template adapted to the product », Explains to LSA Toufik Meddour responsible for the sustainable development of the American company’s distribution centers for Europe. He also informs that for five years, Amazon has been working on a complete redefinition of packaging processes. This is important when we know that for 92% of consumers surveyed by Ipsos in February 2021, the packaging of the packages received must use the right amount of materials.
It should therefore be said that the trend of zero waste is gradually and lastingly settling, both in the retail sector and in society itself. In turn, companies are gradually making the changes necessary to integrate this growing market and attract new consumers.