Ecommerce companies are starting to consider how a circular economy can reduce their carbon footprint as well as help consumers do the same.
There are slight challenges associated with circular models; for example, changing overall business operations to become a more environmentally friendly company is a notable task, and end-users need to unlearn ingrained consumption habits to become more sustainable. Overall, it's a lot to consider. However, these are challenges that technology can help organizations and businesses address.
Online purchasing/e-commerce provides environmental benefits such as faster purchase-to-delivery, fewer carbon emissions, paperless transactions, and more, but increasing and adding supplemental technology on top of "green" purchasing cycles can even further these benefits.
There's a lot of work to be done on the e-commerce side, but there is strong consumer interest in purchasing circular products. A recent study by Footprint found that over 63% of consumers are willing to pay more for products and services if they are eco-friendly, and 77% are more likely to buy products if they're packaged sustainably.
Once a plan is created, digital solutions will be able to help e-commerce companies operate more sustainably throughout their transition to a circular model.