How sustainable is Swiss e-commerce – online retailer survey 2021

The Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts has conducted a survey on sustainability in Swiss online retail on behalf of Swiss Post for the second consecutive time. What are the greatest changes compared to the previous year in terms of products, packaging and shipping? Which channels are used for communicating sustainable activities?

The Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts once again explored sustainability in Swiss e-commerce from the perspective of providers in the 2021 online retailer survey. 248 companies took part in the quantitative online survey this year.

Sustainability is relevant, but not usually a priority

For the online retailers surveyed, the three most important issues in their business are growth (56%), process automation and optimization (47%) and marketplace presence (39%). 30% consider sustainability in terms of products, packaging and logistics to be one of the most important issues. By contrast, dealing with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic plays a less significant role (21%).

Sustainability as part of corporate responsibility and an opportunity to gain a competitive edge

For the online retailers surveyed, sustainability primarily means assuming corporate responsibility (83%), but two-thirds also see it as an opportunity to gain a competitive edge, while 6 out of 10 online retailers view sustainability as a customer requirement. Only 23% regard legal guidelines and provisions as a driver of sustainability.

Room for improvement in terms of highlighting sustainable products and raising their profile

The results of this year’s online retailer survey confirm that online retailers place greater emphasis on social than environmental aspects when selecting their product range. 77% of the companies surveyed indicated that social aspects (e.g. fair working conditions in production) are just as important as product costs. For 59%, environmental aspects (e.g. conserving resources or avoiding CO₂ emissions) are equally important as costs. The labelling of sustainable products with markings remains at a relatively low level (17% vs. 14% in the previous year). The provision of selection filters for sustainable products or sustainability aspects of products is still relatively uncommon (13% vs. 11% in the previous year). While over half (54%) of online retailers include information about sustainability aspects of their products in product descriptions, they could do more to help eco-aware online shoppers to find sustainable products at an earlier stage in the customer journey by highlighting products and using selection filters.

Less plastic used for packaging in Swiss online retail

Packaging not only contributes to the sustainability performance of online shops, but also has an impact on the customer experience of end customers. Similar to the previous year’s level, around three-quarters of online retailers said they use size-optimized packaging. This saves resources on the use of materials, reduces the transport and storage capacity required and ultimately means customers are not left wondering why there’s so much empty space in packaging. As regards packaging material, the greatest difference compared to the previous year is the proportion of online retailers who manage without plastic. Whereas in 2020, 30% didn’t use plastic for outer packaging and 34% avoided it for filler materials, in 2021 the figures for retailers who’ve gone plastic-free now stand at 40% for outer packaging and 39% for filler materials. In a similar picture to the previous year, half of online retailers use recycled materials for packaging (54%) and filling (48%). A quarter rely on reusable packaging to enable multiple usage and to conserve resources.

Carbon-neutral shipping increasingly an option

Most of the shipping options provided are in line with the previous year’s level. Just under half of the companies surveyed provide a click & collect service for pick-up from their own branches and almost 4 out of 10 online retailers enable sub-orders to be combined in one delivery, reducing the number of delivery journeys. Locally tailored logistics solutions, such as cycle delivery services in combination with the train or transport via e-cargo bikes, remain less common shipping options (13%). The provision of carbon-neutral shipping (without a surcharge) has seen the greatest growth – from 15 percent in the previous year to 26 percent in 2021. Overall, just under 3 out of 10 online retailers provide a carbon-neutral shipping option.

Retailers primarily use their own channels for information and communication about sustainability – with little proactive promotion

Online retailers can use a wide array of channels to communicate sustainability-related activities. This year’s online retailer survey reveals that companies mainly use their own digital channels for this purpose. Sustainability activities are predominantly communicated via retailers’ own websites (69%), their own newsletter (59%), social media (58%) and the online shop (57%). Proactive promotion of sustainability is much less common – e.g. only 20% via digital advertising or 5% via external advertising.

Discover all the results now

Due to the current situation, Connecta Bern will again be held as a digital event in 2021. Connecta is renowned for shining a light on the diverse nature of digitization, and this year will be no different, with content presented across the three formats of Connecta Blog, Connecta TV and Connecta Talk. Find out more here: www.swisspost.ch/connecta.