September Monthly Briefing:
The Subscription-based Economy: From Ownership to Access
Our views on what matters |
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While at the start of the year many of us will have been familiar with an entertainment subscription for the likes of Netflix – and recent surveys now show that one in five homes in the UK and the US has a retail subscription – the growth of subscription-based models across other sectors has been accelerated during Covid-19. Food boxes, personal grooming and fashion retailers are leading the way.
In theory, the transition from an ownership model to a sharing-based one is supposed to be good for the planet, as it maximises resource efficiency and minimises waste. For clothing retailers such as Selfridges, the move to rental and resell models are circular business space initiatives that support their ambition of achieving net-zero carbon by 2050.
But as our lead story asks, is this shift to a subscription economy delivering sustainability benefits? High street retailers such as Pret a Manger have recently turned to daily coffee subscriptions, in a desperate bid to win back customers and footfall. But there are unforeseen environmental costs, such as excess packaging, as well as criticism for encouraging overconsumption. And as we’re still at a stage of only tentatively touching elbows, the impact of Covid-19 is hindering even the clothing industry as a service model, which was anticipated to double in size by 2025.
Unfortunately, examples of real sustainability offers, such as Ikea’s furniture rental, remain an outlier. There’s a huge opportunity for business to make their subscription models deliver against their sustainability commitments. |
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| | | The pandemic is boosting the shift to a subscription economy – but is this shift delivering sustainability benefits? Exploring how the subscription model has been impacted by Covid, driving up sales through changed consumer habits, but not yet delivering on sustainability. Read More |
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| | Global subscription economy outperforms during lockdown How the extended time at home has changed consumer habits, with food boxes, wine and grooming leading the way. Read More |
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| | High street food retailers Pret and Leon bank on daily coffee subscriptions
With city centres relatively deserted as office workers continue to work from home, both Pret a Manger and Leon are offering coffee subscriptions to drive footfall.
Read More |
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| | Selfridges joins other global fashion brands by jumping into clothing rental Allowing customers to hire 100 items for up to 20 days at a time is part of the retailer’s circular business initiatives to achieve net-zero carbon ambition. Read More |
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| | Science-Based vs Net-Zero Targets: How to meet stakeholder demands for climate ambition? Understanding the right strategy for your organisation will ensure your target is keeping pace, as the climate agenda moves at an ever-quickening pace. In this webinar we will help you to understand the options available, and highlight potential pitfalls. Register here |
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| | Materiality 2020 - time to hit the reset button (APAC)? 2020 has been a year of seismic events that have fundamentally changed the business landscape. In this webinar we will cover: how the events of 2020 are shaping the environmental, social and governance (ESG) landscape, the changing views and expectations of key stakeholders, and how business is responding. Register here |
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| | Lesson from Covid-19: Creating real change As the world emerges from lockdown, while simultaneously entering a period of unprecedented economic and social uncertainty, this paper outlines a roadmap of three key actions that businesses need to take, to ensure that their contribution creates a recovery that breeds trust and loyalty in an authentic way, where all stakeholders benefit. Download Here |
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| | Interview with Avery Dennison's CEO
This week our Regional Director for North America, Abby Davinson, interviewed Michael Colarossi CEO at Avery Dennison for Transform USA to talk about their approach to circularity in light of recent consumer shifts. Watch Here |
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