Overview of the Green Clean Market

What it Means to Be Green• A product’s or company’s greenness is more often than not a perception

of it’s sustainability and non-toxicity.– Sustainability is the ability to meet today’s wants and needs without damaging

future wants and needs.• It is not enough to simply be non-toxic, but a manufacturer must also account for

how they:• Source their inputs

– Are we depleting a resource? Are we using toxic/harmful substances?

• Treat their employees– Are we, or any of our partners, guilty of human rights violations by ANY standards?

• Limit waste, or even eliminate waste– What can we do with our byproducts? Can they be useful in other ways?

• Reinvest in the societies and environments in which they operate– Is world a better place for our being here?

russell davies:

This page is OK, but a bit boring, I think you should have started with the next page…

russell davies:

This page is OK, but a bit boring, I think you should have started with the next page…

Consumers• “Although more than a decade’s worth of survey’s , focus

groups, and studies indicate consumers’ willingness to ‘buy green,’consumers’ actual purchasing patterns do not reflect their words.”

• More interested in products that work than products that are good for the environment– Phillips sold more compact fluorescent light bulbs when they were

marketed as long lasting than as good for the environment.

– Toyota sold the Prius Hybrid not on it’s reduced emissions, but it’s ability to save gas and the owner’s money.

russell davies:

…because this page is great. Actual data that tells an interesting story about a real problem we’ll have to overcome. This is a great place to start this conversation.

russell davies:

…because this page is great. Actual data that tells an interesting story about a real problem we’ll have to overcome. This is a great place to start this conversation.

Entering the Green Market• Consumers are more willing to purchase green products if this attribute is

bundled with other features.• Jim Makower, founder of GreenBiz.com and Clean Edge, Inc. advises

marketers to use the following criteria when positioning a green product:– Price environmentally sound products comparably to conventional ones.– Link environmental innovations to other benefits, like quality and durability.– Brand green product lines with names that emphasize non-environmental

benefits.

• The green-factor of a product should be an added bonus feature for a product which at it’s core simply works really well.

russell davies:

Using other brands/examples is great. Very few client companies want to be the first to do something. They want to learn from other people. And quoting someone else lends authority to your argument.

russell davies:

Using other brands/examples is great. Very few client companies want to be the first to do something. They want to learn from other people. And quoting someone else lends authority to your argument.

Major Competitors• Citra-Solv

– Products that are just as good or better than national brands and safe for the environment– Available online or through mainstream retailers

• Ecover– Effective and sustainable solutions for people’s hygienic needs– Sold in Whole Foods, Wild Oats, and other natural grocers

• Melaleuca– Home, health, beauty, and financial products with a focus on personal holistic “wellness”– Mail order/online only with a membership aspect

• Method– Non-toxic products in well designed packages– Sold mainly at Target stores

• Mrs. Meyers Clean Day– “Uncomplicated products for a clean and happy home”– Sold through high end grocers, independent hardware retailers, and online

• Planet– “Environmentally friendly household products that work”– Sold through traditional and high end grocers mostly in the Western United States, and online

• Seventh Generation– A brand that outsources production and markets the resulting products under the SG label– Sold through Whole Foods, expanding to WalMart

• Shaklee Get Clean– “Safe, powerful, green, smart” home, health, and beauty products– Distribute through a network of independent salespeople. Like Amway, but environmentally friendly.

Threats

• Green/Non-toxic cleaning product sector maintains limited shelf space among traditional retailers which is becoming evermore crowded by new entrants

• As larger, more traditional consumer packaged goods companies recognize the long term and fiscal benefits of sustainability they will make their way into the sector with new dedicated brands or green/non-toxic versions of already established brands– These new brands will have more channel marketing clout

and larger marketing budget that their small independent counterparts

• Unilever, Dow Chemical only two examples of companies starting to make sustainable business decisions

russell davies:

This makes sense. But it’s a bit long-winded.

russell davies:

This makes sense. But it’s a bit long-winded.

Opportunities• Make cleaning green an easy, affordable, and EFFECTIVE alternative

to traditional cleaning products• Small business and large franchises are becoming more

environmentally friendly as a business and marketing tactic– Franchises like Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf integrate green and sustainable

practices as their marketing plan and would probably be open to cleaning their cafes with green products and having green sanitary supplies in their lavatories

– Supply to professional cleaning and supply companies and help these entrenched businesses add a premium non-toxic option to the repertoire.

• Establish brand history and authenticity in the consumer market early before the major CPG firms seriously enter the market

• Partner with retailers to assist them in their green branding efforts in exchange for more prominent shelf space

• Distribution will be key. So if traditional retailers fail, find non-traditional grassroots retailers.

– Consumer to consumer via the Mary Kay method– Wellness retailers and services

• Yoga studios, health food stores, holistic medical clinics, local farmers markets

russell davies:

Lots of good ideas here but it feels like a slightly miscellaneous list. I’d have liked to have seen it tied together in a bigger theme or something. It doesn’t quite feel like a concluding page. You’re not leaving them with a powerful last

thought.

russell davies:

Lots of good ideas here but it feels like a slightly miscellaneous list. I’d have liked to have seen it tied together in a bigger theme or something. It doesn’t quite feel like a concluding page. You’re not leaving them with a powerful last

thought.

Sources

• ApartmentTherapy.com• BusinessWeek, “Beyond the Green Corporation” January 29,

2007• CNN.com, “Businesses See Green in Going Green” December

21, 2006• CNN.Money.com, “The Green Machine” July 31, 2006• GreenBiz.com• New York Times Magazine, “Consumed: Method” February 29,

2004• TreeHugger.com• World Changing, edited by Alex Steffen 2006• WolrdChanging.org

russell davies:

Great page. Sources! (though I’d prefer to see them as footnotes)

russell davies:

Great page. Sources! (though I’d prefer to see them as footnotes)