At the centre of the Who Cares, Who Does? study is our Eco Segmentation, where we have divided the global population into three unique consumer groups. Let’s see how the groups have changed over the last three years.
Despite the pandemic and the economic challenges, engagement with the environment and sustainability issues are still growing. Our bespoke segmentation identifies three consumer groups, Eco Actives, Eco Considerers and Eco Dismissers.
The latter were the biggest group in 2019 but are now in a minority both globally and in Latam. 2020 and 2021 saw growth in both Eco Actives and Eco Considerers globally but in 2021 Latam saw a slight fall following the strong gains of 2020.
Shoppers who are highly concerned about the environment and are making the most of actions to reduce their waste. They feel an intrinsic responsibility to be more sustainable, follow the topic more actively, and are more aware of their potential impact on the planet.
They are worried about the environment and plastic waste, at similar levels to Eco Actives. But they are closer to Eco Dismissers in how they act, not taking many actions to reduce their waste. Their most significant barriers are convenience and price.
Shoppers who have little or no interest in the environment and take no steps to reduce waste. The topic rarely features amongst friends and family, and they lack awareness of environmental concerns. They do not think they make a difference.
Once again, however, the picture is not uniform across Latam. Eco Actives are at their highest in Chile at 31% in 2021, compared to 8% in Brazil, with Peru and Ecuador also among the sceptics. Mexico, Costa Rica and Colombia are other markets recording mid to late teen numbers.
What we have seen in Mexico, Costa Rica and Peru is a step change in the number of Eco Considerers in 2020 (and a sharp decline in the number of Eco Dismissers), with the bulk of that gain retained in 2021.
Our prediction is that Eco Actives will only continue to grow. Globally we think that they will represent more than half the population by 2029 and hit 56% in the next decade. That growth will be mirrored at a lower level across Latam, where Eco Actives are expected to account for 43% of the population by 2031.
As the population, attitudes and priorities shift, those brands that currently under-perform with Eco Actives face a big loss of share and value. Winning favour with sustainable shoppers takes time, brands need to act now, if they are to thrive in the years to come.
Commitment to change is extending to all groups. Eco Activism is becoming democratized across the socio-economic spectrum. The profile of Latam Eco Actives has been shifting since we started assessing the area in 2019 with the age profile becoming steadily younger with each year. A quarter of Eco Actives are now aged 34 years or less, while nearly a third are in households of one to two people.
It’s easy to buy more expensive products produced in sympathy with the planet when your budget is not tight.Many consumers in Latam, however, struggle to get by and for them, no matter how much they care, it can be more challenging to take concrete actions.
This is a region with 13% unemployment in 2021, four times the global average, while average inflation is 7%, also significantly higher than in many markets.
Despite these challenges – and the impact of the Covid pandemic – many do still care. The number of Latam respondents declaring that the sustainability is “more or much more” important is 62%, well above the global figure of 49%.
This is a huge difference considering the fact that only 3% of Latam shoppers declare a lack of financial restrictions in their current situation and the fact that 26% think their income is insufficient to cover their current expenses.
