TR Consumer Forum – does sustainability drive revenue or loyalty?
The TR Consumer Forum highlighted the environment in the first panel session of Day 2 – TR Sustainability Hub: ESG Investment: Does Sustainability Drive Revenue or Loyalty? The session emphasised that the topic is no longer just a responsibility — it’s a business strategy.
The discussion considered whether ESG initiatives in travel retail deliver measurable revenue growth, strengthen customer loyalty, or both, with industry leaders sharing what works, what doesn’t, and how to turn purpose-driven action into creible results.
The four-person panel comprised: Kreol Arakulath, Executive Manager, Kreol Group; Rebekah Lees, Head of Marketing and Communications, Eco Beauty Store Association; Lara Schlüter, Director Travel Retail, Babor Beauty Group; and moderator Michael Barrett, Events and Public Relations Director, m1nd-set.
Barrett opened the session with a warning that young consumer profiles expect to see sustainability implemented as a natural part of the experience, but they don’t expect to pay for it. They are fervent on the issue and it is simply something they expect to be embedded in the experience. He shared m1nd-set data showing sustainability is now a baseline expectation among younger travellers, particularly Gen Z, with a growing share of passengers saying that they would pay up to 15% more for sustainable options, including sustainable aviation fuel. However, Barret added that the intention rarely converts into action at the till.
The greenwashing challenge
Image Credit: TRBusinesssustainability revenue
Greenwashing is a serious problem that the industry needs to take seriously.
Barrett called greenwashing the industry’s biggest credibility problem, referencing that over 90% of consumers suspect brands of overstating environmental credentials. However, 70% say transparency builds trust, making clear communication on sustainability a core need. In-store atmosphere matters too, he added, with over 80% of shoppers saying a store’s visible sustainability focus encourages them to buy sustainable products.
Further data from Barrett included the findings that 74% of travellers are expecting to see more sustainability initiatives in-store, 74% of travellers see local sourcing as important, and 65% say they will pay more for more sustainable goods. Sustainable packaging and ingredients were also raised by Barrett as additional key issues.
The price of ‘doing the right thing’
Looking back at the data raised by Barrett, Arakulath questioned the willingness of consumers to pay for additional sustainability inputs. He believes there is a “discrepancy between intention and action”. He described an “intention-action gap” happening in every product category and a price ceiling that sustainability claims cannot shift. He also questioned whether airports/landlords are adequately supporting the commercial constraints of the tender model. He added that distributors need the support of airports to drive the initiative, especially as the airports are in a much more influential position to have much more impact.
Image Credit: TRBusinesssustainability revenue
Arakulath described an “intention-action gap” running through every product category.
Lees entered the discussion by outlining the environmental scoring system, developed by the Eco Beauty Store Association, offering a single measuring system for the beauty industry and a single language/communication of it to ensure clarity and credibility. This, she said, is “creating a shared, common language across the industry”.
She went on to highlight how the credibility of this scoring can provide powerful support to the travel retail offer if communicated effectively. It can, she added, particularly support the creation of the “emotional connection” that Kate Hardcastle highlighted earlier in her keynote as the foundation of persuading the consumer to buy.
Credible sustainability
Lees emphasised that credible sustainability monitoring needs to assess a product across its whole lifecycle, from raw materials to recycling/disposal, by assessing a product across its whole life. She also raised the problem that 90% of consumers are suspicious of greenwashing, which needs to be addressed to drive consumer confidence.
Image Credit: TRBusinesssustainability revenue
Lees: credible sustainability monitoring needs to assess a product across its whole lifecycle.
On this, she also highlighted that sustainability sat below value and price on Hardcastle’s earlier presentation of her ‘Buyerarchy of Needs’ and also challenged the common suggestion that sustainability can only be achieved through higher costs. It should also emphasise a “value creation strategy”.
Schlüter said traditional customers still buy primarily for performance, but sustainability is proving decisive in attracting younger shoppers, prompting some product lines to explicitly push those credentials. On communication, she said her brand (beauty company Babor) deliberately avoids heavy sustainability messaging on-shelf, instead using QR codes that link to detailed, multi-language product information and holding itself to only making claims it can verify in full.
She agreed price sensitivity remains real despite consumers’ stated intentions and argued that travel retail exclusives need to deliver genuine value, with sustainability as a complement rather than a substitute.
Legislation is growing
Schlüter then echoed that questioning on consumers’ willingness to pay, and Babor has sustainability embedded across its operations right from its founding. “Sustainability is in our DNA,” she said, warning that companies/brands starting their sustainability journey are likely to face a cost challenge to get their sustainability initiatives up to speed.
On greenwashing, she said that Babor ensures that, to be fully credible to the consumer, any sustainability element is not only covered but also “150% addressed” to ensure any accusation of greenwashing can be refuted. She closed the session by pointing out that a range of legislation is being implemented, including extensive new measures due to be introduced by the EU in September 2026, extending measures such as ‘digital passports’ via QR codes on a wide range of product categories relevant to travel retail.
Moderator Barrett closed the session by following up on Arakulath’s assessment of the allocation of responsibility to deliver sustainability initiatives with a question to the room, asking if delegates felt airports were active enough on sustainability (interestingly, less than 50% gave a positive reaction).