Due to the pandemic, how to shop sustainably has become a major concern with the increased demand for online shopping. There is a great debate on what is more sustainable, online shopping or in-store shopping. However, the best way to know how to shop sustainably is by taking into account several factors such as the distance traveled, the number of purchased articles, shipments, what happens to returned items, and more.
This recent study by Deloitte, concludes that if people bought the same amount of products, online shopping would have 60% more negative environmental impact than store shopping. Additionally, stores generate 5 times more jobs than online shopping. However, we are leaning more towards online shopping every day, and sometimes there is no other option.
Therefore, if you are interested in learning how to shop sustainably online, you can reduce your carbon footprint by implementing the next suggestions.
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Ethical and eco-friendly brands
We usually forget one of the most important factors on how to shop sustainably because we only think about the last stages of the process like packaging and traveled distances. We need to make an effort and prioritize choosing ethical and eco-friendly brands because most of the environmental impact is attributed to the material sourcing and the production process. Following this mindset can seem a little more overwhelming than just looking in the search bar for classic shipping companies, but here are some tips that may help you.
It is crucial to know a brand’s values as well as how ethical they are. The only way to know a brand is by investigating them. Do they share their material sourcing? Do they pay the right price to manufacturers and offer fair working conditions? Are they working on accomplishing the 17 sustainable development goals? You can find most of the information on their website. If they don’t publish it, you can check out NGOs’ databases where they list some of the best and worst brands.
New is not always the go-to
When you think about buying something, do you ever think first about asking if a friend can lend it to you or maybe purchase second-hand products? These alternatives can definitely reduce your carbon footprint. If you are tired of wearing the same clothes, you can even trade them with your friends.
Additionally, there are many online thrift stores where you can find better quality clothes than buying a fast fashion t-shirt that will end up in the trash in three months. Let’s not forget about the rental revolution that consists of companies renting clothes, furniture, toys, and even construction tools like electric drills.
Just one order, please
Ordering all the products you need at the same time can make a difference. Sometimes, depending on the company, they’ll be able to ship them all together in fewer boxes. This also reduces the number of trips to your address. So if you don’t urgently need a product, try to plan your purchases by filling your cart and only making one order.
The impact of urgent shipments
When you select fast delivery options and you even pay more for it, most of the time it means that more vehicles will be asked to leave without taking advantage of their maximum capacity. Consequently, the number of vehicles and trips required increases and so do CO2 emissions. Try to make an effort to choose a standard delivery option so that the company will analyze when it will be more convenient to ship your package.
What happens to returned items
According to Deloitte’s study, 40% of online purchases are returned and only 20% of them are items that are damaged. Have you ever wondered what happens to returned items? The biggest concern is not only that the most common destination for damaged items are landfills, but that some products in perfect condition may end there as well.
Optoro, a company specialized in returned items logistics, reports that in 2020 more than 5.8 billion lbs of landfill waste were created just from returned items. That is equivalent to 414,286 of the heaviest adult male elephants.
Sometimes the cost of shipping a returned item exceeds the gain, so it is cheaper to throw it away instead of even checking if the product is in good condition. What happens to returned items depends on the company you bought them from. You can always check their return policy and see if they explain what happens to returned items.
Some companies resell them on liquidation websites, and other products that are in perfect conditions or damaged are recycled. Nevertheless, we know that we don’t have the capacity of recycling everything and that the rates of this are indeed very low. Others are not even transparent as to what they do with their products which is a red flag.
Other companies let their customers keep the product and they ship a replacement. However, the major problem is that if the product is actually damaged and the customer doesn’t know how to fix it or it can’t even be fixed, that product will end up in the landfill anyway and probably won’t even be recycled or upcycled.
So what can you do about returned items?
This may sound a little different from what you are used to, but until companies improve their logistics and strategy to manage returned items, what you can do is try to sell what you bought before the return time expires. If you don’t achieve this, you can return it. This mostly applies to products that you changed your mind about once they arrived or even clothes that don’t fit you but are in perfect condition.
You can also prioritize companies that are very transparent with their returned items policy and that they fix, donate, resell, repurpose or recycle the products.
Not sure about your purchase? Try this instead
I suffer when buying clothes online. I don’t enjoy it and I am old-fashioned because I like to try them all at least twice. Some of you may feel the same and may have even ordered the same t-shirt in different sizes so you can choose the best fit. The major environmental problem about this is that the other t-shirts that you return will have the destiny I mentioned above. Some people even order different colors of the same item. The best eco-friendly solution to this is definitely to shop in-stores the products that you are not completely sure about. However, if this is not an option for you, you can always try to follow the size charts carefully and buy from brands that you already know.
I bought my graduation dress online and this was a huge risk because if it didn’t fit I wouldn’t have time to return it and ask for another size. Nevertheless, I was crazy enough to do this. I spent a lot of time taking my measurements and following the size charts. Really, a lot of time. However, I think that one of the things that helped me the most was that I had an old dress from that store and that I could compare the sizes to better.
Sustainable packaging
Single-use packaging waste is a never-ending concern in sustainability and the circular economy. How to shop sustainably online becomes a nightmare with all the non-recyclable bubble wrap and boxes inside of boxes. According to Deloitte’s study, online shopping packaging generates 5 times more GHG emissions than in-store shopping.
More and more companies are offering sustainable packaging or options where they reuse their boxes. If you have the opportunity of buying from these companies or paying a little more for them, you are letting the company know that this concerns you and that they should continue to offer better sustainable options.
This study by McKinsey and Company is not exclusive to online shopping but shows that 35-36% of US consumers would buy sustainably packaged products if they were available and better labeled. Additionally, 52% of them said that if the packages didn’t cost more, they would buy them. This shows that people are interested but require better prices and clear options. If more people demand this, maybe this can push more companies to follow the same steps.
Sustainable delivery options
Buying from local producers can be a great option because some brands use bike delivery to send their products. Of course, local products are not always the best option and it completely depends on their values and ethical work as I mentioned above. In the case of local food production, you can learn in this article when it is better to buy locally and when it is not.
Let me know in the comments if you found this article helpful and if you know any other tips on how to shop sustainably. Are you team online shopping or mall shopping?
You may also like: “How to Choose the Best Eco Friendly Makeup”
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