Sustainability & Branding – The New Symbiosis

Less than a decade ago, the concept of sustainability was, for the most part, unknown to consumers and uninteresting to brands. There was a small niche that addressed an even smaller audience, trying to raise awareness regarding our consumption habits. However, things have changed since then. The concept of sustainability has escaped its niche confines and it has become a major deciding factor when it comes to purchasing. But what changed in the past few years?

How millennials & Gen Zers have shaped the market

Ten years ago, millennials were just beginning their financially independent lives while Gen Zers were still living their childhoods. This means that the market was still dominated by elder generations who were used to other branding values than the ones we have today. Elder generations appreciated experience, quality, and predictability. And since the eco concerns didn’t have a large platform, most brands were simply not interested in becoming more sustainable or communicating their sustainability practices to the public.

This isn’t to say that people weren’t interested in protecting the planet. It’s just that many of them weren’t even aware of the emerging problems caused by pollution and resource wasting. Climate change and global warming were not mainstream topics of discussion, but rather topics reserved for scientists and a niche of eco-passionate individuals.

However, as years passed by, two main things happened – climate change became more and more obvious and, at the same time, both millennials and Gen Zers became more and more interested in the ecological impact we have on our planet. As global warming and climate change became mainstream topics, all the eyes were turned to brands. Younger generations were demanding not only answers from big brands but also systemic changes. Just like elder generations, they too appreciated brand value, quality, and experience. But they also wanted sustainability.

Millennials and Gen Zers want to protect the planet as much as possible. They want nice things and, most importantly, they don’t want to feel guilty for their purchases. This means that they will pay attention to the brands that share their ecology concerns.

New brands, new vision

The fact that both millennials and Gen Zers are interested in sustainability practices wouldn’t have been enough to produce a big change in such a small amount of time. The other important factor that has led us to the point where sustainability is becoming a must-have brand value has to do with young brands.

Emerging brands in the past few years have shaped the market in a way that wouldn’t have been possible a decade ago. Millennials (and, lately, Gen Zers) started working, gained experience, and developed their own businesses and brands. And these brands shared the same values with their creators. By trying to do things in a better way and constantly communicating their efforts, these new brands gained more and more traction.

In a world where theoretically anyone is one click away from getting viral, new brands used social media and influencer marketing to share their beliefs with the world. And the world responded.

This is how sustainability became a core value that many buyers are looking for when choosing certain brands. In a very interesting David and Goliath move, small brands forced big brands to change not only how they communicate, but also how they do things.

This is the case with Ana Luisa who, in just three years, has managed to change the landscape of jewelry branding. Currently the fastest growing jewelry brand in the U.S., Ana Luisa has started as a sustainable brand. By using recycled materials, working with certified partners, and focusing on sustainability, Ana Luisa has proved that the jewelry industry doesn’t have to be toxic to our planet.

As of this month, Ana Luisa is the first direct-to-consumer jewelry brand to become both carbon and water neutral which predicts a very interesting future for the brand.

“Ana Luisa’s big mission from day 1 was to build a sustainability-driven brand in the jewelry industry, and we’re so excited to announce our carbon and water neutrality. This was certainly not an easy thing to do for a young brand like Ana Luisa but sustainability is at the top of our mind and we took the time needed to carefully assess our supply chain and impact. This is a big step in the right direction for us” says Alexander Langhede Andersen, Ana Luisa’s marketing manager.

“We want to continue pushing the jewelry industry towards a more sustainable future. A big focus for us is constantly accessing our production and looking for new recycled and earth-friendly materials. Our hope is that the majority of consumers in 3-5 years only want to buy from sustainable brands so that more jewelry brands will follow up, do like us and improve upon their supply chain. We can change much more if our actions push the industry to change than is possible as a sole brand in the market”, continues Alexander Langhede Andersen.

We agree with Alexander’s opinion and hope that more and more brands will take a step forward towards becoming more sustainable. After all, sustainability is not nice-to-have anymore. It is a must-have value of any responsible brand.