A Proposed Study of Singapore Consumers and the Cosmetics Industry

Introduction

Background of Study

As ecological concerns have grown world-wide in the past decades, more and more firms are producing ecologically sound products—or are at least marketing their products as ecologically sound. The marketing of products on the basis of such principles can be called ‘eco-marketing.’  It differs significantly from traditional marketing because of the shift in emphasis away from strictly economic attributes to more environmental ones. The question remains, however, as to how effective and important such ‘eco-marketing’ issues have.

Nearly 20 years ago, a preliminary study was made of ecological awareness in Singapore (Shamdasani et al., 1993). In that study, although ecological awareness was only beginning to make an impact globally, Singapore was already demonstrating signs of individual and national awareness of ecological issues. A “green” consumer was defined as one who “adopts environmentally-friendly [sic] behaviors and/or purchases green products over the standard alternatives” (Shamdasani et al., 1993). One key result of this study was a set of characteristics that were linked with environmental awareness. In these results, green consumers tended to have more favorable attitudes toward the environment; to be more willing to make personal sacrifices in comfort; to be more willing to adopt environmentally friendly behaviors; to believe that the environmental crisis is important and immediate; to believe that individual consumers can make a difference; to believe that environmental protection is everyone’s responsibility (i.e., not leaving it to government, business, scientists, or environmentalists only); to be open-minded about accepting green products and behaviors. They also tend to be more cosmopolitan and more socially integrated (Ibid.).

Almost two decades after that pioneering study, a 2011 study commissioned by the German organization Siemens AG and performed by the Independent Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) concluded that of 22 major Asian cities, Singapore was the most environmentally aware city in Asia (Siemens, 2011).  Singapore City was cited specifically for its “ambitious environmental target” as well as its efficiency in executing them. The study reviewed eight specific categories: energy and CO₂ use; land use and buildings; transportation; waste; water; sanitation; air quality; and environmental governance (Ibid.).  Of the twenty-two cities studied, only Singapore City was rated as “well above average” in its ecologically friendly attributes; further, it excelled in all eight categories (Ibid.).  The study attributed Singapore’s high ranking was attributed to governmental policies aimed at  making urban environments more ecologically sound.  With that said, it is unclear how much individual Singapore residents pay attention to ecological concerns when making their purchasing decisions, nor what types of marketing efforts are best suited to reflect those consumer attitudes.

Focusing in on the cosmetic industry, the world-wide market for eco-friendly cosmetics in 2010 was estimated to be approximately $10 billion, with the majority of the growth in the U.S. and European markets (Whittaker, Engimann & Sambrook, 2009). One result of this growing market trend is a confusion of  ‘eco-labels’ that mean specific things and that are not well defined for consumers.  Table 1, for example, defines some of the common eco-labels and defines what each means. While the various labels have similar requirements for certification (i.e., authorization to use that label on cosmetic products), there are differences as noted in the table.

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