## Sustainability in Consumer Products: A Closer Look at Generational Preferences

**_Sustainability preferences are evolving._**  
**_So are your consumers._**  
**_Are you ready?_**

---

# Who Is Highlight

Highlight's product intelligence platform helps brands of all sizes–  
from the Fortune 100 to the earliest disruptive brands–innovate,  
test, launch, and renovate products in categories including food and  
beverage, beauty and personal care, home care, supplements,  
apparel, durables, child and baby, pet care, and more.

Highlight’s end-to-end solution streamlines and delivers everything  
from recruit to logistics to data set. Quickly field concept tests and  
in-home usage tests (IHUTs) and see results as they come in–  
usually within a few days of launch.

Highlight’s community of testers are highly engaged, diverse, and  
articulate so that you get the reliable quantitative and qualitative  
data you need to act with confidence–with the option for photo,  
video, and even in-depth interviews.

Highlight’s customers (brands like Nestlé, P&G, and Georgia Pacific)  
have tested concepts, products in early development, blind-tested  
products against the competition, benchmarked in-market products  
for category insight and more.

Highlight’s Series A funding was led by Acre Venture Partners and  
HearstLab, with participation from Ingeborg Investments, GS  
Futures, and 10+ powerhouse angels.

“Highlight’s mission is to help brands build better products for both  
people and the planet,” said CEO and founder Dana Kim. “With  
easier, faster access to high-quality product-level consumer  
insights, brands can understand what sustainability attributes  
matter, how to best communicate those attributes, drive positive  
perception, repeat purchase, and realize the ROI of more  
sustainable product development.”

---

### The Challenge

Companies across sectors and nations are faced with the challenge  
of building sustainably, but most product development and  
consumer insights teams lack clarity about the “right” way to  
accomplish this for their business and customers. In what ways  
should companies transform their products and supply chains that  
will facilitate sustainable production and consumption while still  
providing consumers compelling purchase drivers?

*“How do we make sustainability*  
*synonymous with things that people care*  
*about—quality, taste, value—and do it in*  
*a way that people can afford? If we can*  
*crack this nut, this is one of the biggest*  
*opportunities for impact we have.*

Sam Kass, Partner at Acre Venture  
Partners and Senior Policy Advisor  
for Nutrition to President Obama

96%

According to KPMG and the BBC,  
96% of the largest 250  
companies worldwide self-report sustainability measures,  
but so far, there is no globally  
agreed upon set of standards  
and frameworks to vet and  
measure these reports.

---

### The Methodology

From September to October 2023, Highlight fielded a nationwide  
survey across 1976 consumers in the US.

Ages of respondents ranged from 18 to 71 with an average age of 42.  
We defined generations as follows: Gen Z (age 18-26 at the time of  
data collection), Millennials (27-42), Gen X (43-58), and Baby  
Boomers (59-77).

Respondents were each sent one of the following physical  
products, and were then asked a series of sustainability-related  
questions rooted in that product experience: Boxer Briefs,  
Postpartum Disposable Underwear, Seamless Panties, Facial Serum,  
Tinted SPF Product, Plant-based Milk, Ground Coffee, Dish  
Detergent, Water Bottle, Gazpacho, Veggie Dip, Bread Bites,  
Shampoo & Conditioner, Laundry Product, Acne Cleanser, Adult,  
Wipes, Cat Food, Snack Bar, Kettle Chips, Cheese Snacks, Popcorn.

We anchored in McKinsey-defined Sustainability Claim Categories,  
to tease out what matters: animal welfare (“cage free”, “cruelty  
free”, “not tested on animals”); environmental sustainability  
(“compostable”, “eco-friendly”); organic positioning (an indication of  
organic certification); plant-based (“plant based”, “vegan”); social  
responsibility (“fair wage”, “ethical”); sustainable packaging (“plastic  
free”, “biodegradable”).

---

#### Younger shoppers want to make better decisions for the planet

**Gen Z and Millennials state they are more likely to  
aallwwaayyssseek out and purchase products that are  
labeled or marketed as sustainable or eco-friendly.**

17%

**Gen Z**

15%

**Millennials**

10%

**Gen X**

11%

**Boomer**

Percent by generation that answered “Yes always”

*“Sustainable products are a*  
*plus, but not an all-time*  
*make-or-break to if I*  
purchase an item or not.”*

- He/him, Age 24, Gen Z

*“Sustainability is super*  
*important, but it can be hard to*  
*regularly buy products that fit*  
*that criteria when a lot of them*  
tend to be more expensive.”*

- She/her, Age 22, Gen Z

While younger generations may be more likely to recognize the  
importance of sustainability in product design, the majority still  
perceive the challenges of making sustainable purchase decisions  
every time.

---

# Gen Z shoppers especially want to make better purchase decisions

**Even so, 76% of Gen Z shoppers say they have  
switched or stopped purchasing a product due  
to sustainability concerns, compared to just  
over half of Boomers.**

| Category | Percent that answered “Yes once or twice” and “Yes, multiple times” (%) |
| --- | --- |
| Gen Z | 76 |
| Millennial | 71 |
| Gen X | 64 |
| Boomer | 58 |
|
**Have you ever switched brands or stopped purchasing a product due to sustainability concerns?**

*“Sustainability in and of itself is*  
*no longer a differentiator, it’s just*  
*an expectation that it’s woven into*  
*how businesses operate.”*

- Taylor Anderson, Sr Dir of  
Global Insights Capabilities at  
Colgate-Palmolive

---

**But, most consumers are undereducated**

##### Only 12% of all consumers describe themselves as “very knowledgeable” about sustainable practices.

*How knowledgeable do you consider yourself about sustainable*  
*practices and their impact on the environment?*

| Category | Percent by generation that answered “Very Knowledgable” (%) |
| --- | --- |
| Gen Z | 12 |
| Millennial | 15 |
| Gen X | 9 |
| Boomer | 11 |
|
When broken down by generation, however, we see that Millennials  
and Gen Z report greater knowledge than either Gen X or Boomers.

*“I like when products have an*  
*explanation of what they do [for*  
sustainability]. It gives you a little*  
education and makes you feel*  
*that you made a smart purchase.”*

- She/her, Age 41, Millennial

*I would like to preserve*  
*forests and oceans but I*  
*really don't know anything*  
*about being ecologically*  
friendly.”*

- She/her, Age 63, Boomer

---

#### Gen Z shoppers are willing to pay more for “green” products

You don’t have to be knowledgeable about sustainable practices to  
care about how your purchases impact the planet.

##### Almost a quarter of Gen Z shoppers say they always pay more for products that are environmentally friendly or sustainable.

*Do you pay more for products that are environmentally friendly or*  
sustainable?*

| Category | Yes, always (%) | Sometimes, depending on the product (%) | No, not at all (%) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| unlabelled 1 | 11 | 64 | 24 |
|  
**What Boomers say**
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| unlabelled 1 | 22 | 68 | 10 |
|  
##### Compared to Boomers, twice as many Gen Z say they always pay more for sustainable products.

---

#### How will Gen Z sustainable shopping behaviors evolve?

We spoke to journalist and youth consumer analyst **CCaasseeyy LLeewwiiss**  
about the trends we saw emerging in this data. Casey is a former  
editor at Teen Vogue, MTV, and New York Magazine. Her following  
numbers in the hundreds of thousands across Instagram, TikTok,  
and her Substack “After School”, and her work spans publications  
like **ThheeNNeewwYoYorkrkTiTmimese,**  
**TThheeWWaallllSSttrreeeettJJoouurrnnaall**, her most recent  
viral piece forTThheeCCuutt, and more. Here’s what she had to say.

#

*“Whereas older consumers have learned over*  
time that they should favor green products*  
over conventional, yyoouunngg ccoonnssuummeerrss ddoonn''tt*  
**_tthhiinnkk ttwwiiccee_**–*when budgets allow, at least.*

*Based on my research, the biggest factor*  
holding young people back from not shopping*  
entirely eco-friendly is pprriiccee. This tension*

*explains how Gen Z can care deeply about the environment and also*  
*shop fast-fashion brands. The good news is that GGeenn ZZ hhaavvee oonnlyy*  
*ssccrraattcchheedd tthhee ssuurrffaaccee ooff tthheeiirreeaarrnnininggppootteennttiaial* **_l,_** *so as they climb the*  
ladder in the workplace, they'll continue to spend on sustainability.*

*Unlike a decade ago, when there were fewer sustainable options and*  
*those available were more expensive, many consumer categories now*  
have**_ssuussttaaiinnaabbllee_** *ooppttiioonns aatt aa* **_vvaarriieettyy_** *ooff pprriicceeppooiinnttss..*

*As this data shows, Gen Z won't hesitate to jump to another brand*  
*that better suits their needs. It's not that brand loyalty is dead, but*  
young consumers are constantly exploring, and iifftthheeyyffinindd*  
*sssoommeetthhiinngg tthhaatt''ss mmoorree vvaalluuee*--*aalligignneedd,,tthheeyy'l'lllbbuuyyiti.t.”*

---

#### When it comes to sustainability, some products and categories are more important than others

**An overwhelming majority of shoppers across**  
generations say they are willing to pay more for  
sustainable products “sometimes, depending  
on the product.”

*Do you pay more for products that are environmentally friendly or*  
sustainable?*

| Category | No, not at all (%) | Sometimes, depending on the product (%) | Yes always (%) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Gen Z | 11 | 66 | 21 |
| Millennial | 16 | 63 | 14 |
| Gen X | 18 | 64 | 10 |
| Boomer | 23 | 60 | 10 |
|
*“Regular purchases matter*  
*the most to me, because a*  
*small change on a daily*  
*basis can have a large*  
*impact over time.”*

- She/her, Age 33, Millennial

*“Food would be my number one*  
*choice. When food is grown*  
*more sustainably it should have*  
*more nutrients and keep the soil*  
*healthy for continued growth.”*

- She/her, Age 62, Boomer

---

#### Consumers say sustainability matters most when purchasing food and personal care products, with a heavy focus on plastics and packaging

In an open-ended question, we asked respondents: “Is there a  
specific product/category where sustainability matters more?”  
Then, we counted the number of times certain words or  
synonymous words appeared in responses.

| Category | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Food(s) | 216 |
| Plastic(s) | 107 |
| Packaging | 92 |
| Personal care Beauty / skin | 85 |
| Household / Cleaning | 73 |
| Clothing / fashion | 51 |
| Pet | 6 |
|
*Respondents using the same word or a synonym multiple times in*  
their response were counted as one instance in order to achieve a  
unique count.*

*“I think it's important to try and be more sustainable with*  
*everything we use or consume.” - He/him, Age 32, Millennial*

---

#### That’s what consumers say. But what do they do?

When asked what products mattered to them when it comes to  
sustainability, respondents most often mentioned food, plastic, and  
other packaging concerns.

With products in front of them, however, answers shifted–a  
common dynamic known as **the “say/do gap”**.

*How important is sustainability to you when purchasing a product in*  
the [X] category on a scale from 1 to 10?*

| Category | How important is sustainability to you when purchasing a product in the [X] category on a scale from 1 to 10? |
| --- | --- |
| Apparel & Durables | 7.2 |
| Personal Care | 6.9 |
| Pet Care | 6.5 |
| Beverage | 6.3 |
| Cleaning | 6.3 |
| Food | 5.9 |
|
With the physical product in hand, consumers expressed different  
priorities when it comes to sustainable product attributes. Apparel  
rose to the top, and food actually scored lowest.

This discrepancy highlights the importance of conducting research  
in context, to ensure consumers are reacting to your specific  
products, and giving you targeted sustainability perceptions rooted  
in your actual product experience.

---

### Key Takeaways

#### 1. Bake sustainability questions into your product research

The best way to understand what matters most to your target  
consumers and go to market with confidence is with insights  
gathered in context, specific to your category, product, and audience.  
When you incorporate sustainability questions into your product  
tests, you can build the data arsenal you need to win on shelf.

#### 2. Segmentation is key

Understand the nuances of your consumer base so that you can  
innovate and market products for the right people at the right time.  
As Taylor Anderson, Senior Director of Global Insights Capabilities  
for Colgate-Palmolive said: “For brands that span across wide  
swaths of people, you need to have the ability to tailor your  
communications as appropriate, when and where these people come  
into contact with your brands.”

#### 3. Invest in foresight

Don't be the last one on the bandwagon. Understand what’s working,  
unmet needs, and identify early signals for what consumers are  
interested in to anticipate future trends.

#### 4. Win big with early adopters

Listen to the consumers who care the most and tease out their  
most critical, passionate feedback to judge whether your products  
have passed their high sustainability bar.

---

# Ensure your sustainability investments land with Highlight

Beyond generational nuances, the demographics of your consumer  
base are changing. The US is more diverse—especially among  
younger generations—than ever before. According to the  
Brookings Institution, nearly four out of 10 Americans identify  
with a race or ethnic group other than white. As America’s  
demographics evolve, so do our cultural preferences, needs, and  
expectations.