Konsumentbeteenden och hållbarhet. En kvalitativ studie av hur konsumentbeteenden påverkar hållbarhetsaspekterna av online försäljning av kosmetiska produkter, inklusive returer

Abstract

The ever-growing e-commerce brings many opportunities for society's consumers and businesses. Digitization has strongly contributed to these opportunities and has, among other things, facilitated the search for information and increased the range for the customer. While the opportunities are many, the increased consumption has also brought consequences. The increase in consumption contributes, among other things, to quantities of deliveries and returns as well as increased waste, all of which results in environmental destruction. The issue of sustainability is very topical today and is influenced by almost everything today. In connection with the markets changing, the consumers' behaviors and expectations also change. To create equilibrium in the market, companies must meet these expectations and constantly improve their operations. Digitization has contributed to the fact that consumers today can compare prices, products, delivery methods and much more in no time, and if the companies do not meet any of the customers' requirements, they are selected. By understanding consumer behaviors and attitudes, this can ultimately give companies the opportunity to streamline their marketing, promote sustainability and reduce waste. The cosmetics industry is a growing segment of society and constitutes a large part of today's consumption, again largely thanks to digitization. E-commerce consumption of cosmetics is increasing and has been for the past few years. Today, consumers choose to shop online much more often than in a physical store, which means that there has been a change in their behavior. The purpose of the essay is to analyze and create an understanding of how behavioral patterns of consumers affect the sustainability aspects of online sales of cosmetic products, with a focus on the return process. The essay answers questions regarding whether consumers' awareness of sustainability plays a significant role when shopping for cosmetics, whether liberal delivery and return policies affect online consumer behavior and whether these contribute to overconsumption. Furthermore, the essay examines whether there is interest in establishing a second-hand market of cosmetics to promote sustainability and reduce cosmetic waste. The purpose and questions are answered together using the theoretical framework: the purchase decision process and cognitive dissonance. The study has been carried out based on a qualitative method in the form of fourteen semi-structured interviews with female respondents aged 18–30. The results from the study show that there are several connections between the two selected theories and the respondents' answers from the interviews. It emerged that the respondents' awareness of sustainability is not a decisive factor that affects their purchasing process. The desire to act sustainably does not go in line with the respondents' actions. Furthermore, the results showed that offers such as "free delivery" and "free returns" influence consumers' purchasing behavior in several ways. In the end, it turned out that the respondent’s second-hand market and the establishment of this, but the hygiene factor was still a big dilemma for the majority.