Do consumers buy sustainable products? For years, brandmanagers have tried to understand why consumers say they intend to buysustainable products, but when it comes to buying, they don't.

Coined as the attitude-behaviour gap, after several phasesof investigations into consumer behaviour, from the theory of planned behaviourto the role of emotions in consumption, academia has somehow concluded to whatthe reason might be.

Nevertheless, so far, most brands have taken theattitude-behaviour gap as justification for not making their products moresustainable. 'They say they want them, but they don't buy.'

However, it looks like things have started to change.Either the brand managers have started to look into academic research and applysome of the findings, or, the consumers are finally getting what they werelooking for.

A recent study into U.S. consumers done by the NYU Stern'sCenter for Sustainable Business on the actual purchasing of consumer packagedgoods (CPG), combined with further data from the IRI - the biggest bar codesscanner company at retail checkout in food, drugs, and mass merchandisers - hasshown that more than 50 per cent of CPG growth between 2013 and 2018 originatedfrom sustainability-related products.

The NYU Stern's Center for Sustainable Business extensivestudy into U.S. consumers has looked into more than 71,000 SKUs and 36 productcategories, which accounted for 40 per cent of CPG dollar sales over the fiveyears.

We also reviewed which categories had the largest share ofsustainability-marketed products. Toilet tissue, facial tissue, milk, yoghurt,coffee, salty snacks, and bottled juices were among those with the highestpercentage in their category (more than 18%), while laundry care, floorcleaner, and chocolate candy had less than a 5 per cent share.

Some of the investigated categories saw tremendous growthin the demand for sustainability specific products such as sanitary napkins,laundry and other care marketed products, which were among the highest, at 150per cent.

For corporate managers and investors, these findings meanthat while consumers have begun voting with their dollars against unsustainablebrands. There is compelling evidence that consumers' tastes are changing.

On the other hand, most brands have the attitude of"Why mess with the product now if it has worked so well over the last 50years?", signalling the beginning of a new era. A conscious consumer erawhere new brands will emerge, and those failing or unwilling to adapt willperish.

Large giant companies that will thrive must accept thisconsumer shift towards sustainable values. Unilever is the best example of thenecessary transformation and how it can be accomplished.

The key is to reinvent legacy products and brands, and bring them to the side of 'sustainable living'. In fact, sustainable brands are delivering over 70 per cent of Unilever's turnover growth.

And more brands connect with consumers' conscious demands and interest by aligning their products with their values. Big brands are changing fast to more sustainable manufacturing procedures while the big brands purchase small brands that have embarked on the sustainability journey.

The conclusion is that corporate leadership can no longer give brand managers a pass when they claim that there is no demand for sustainable products.

Moreover, investors should start supporting companies in making the investments needed for the pivot towards sustainability, if they want to survive the new conscious wave that's coming. The future for CPG and especially for the apparel industry is sustainable.

This article has not been edited by Fibre2Fashion staff and is re-published with permission from thevou.com