Editor’s Note
This survey reveals that sustainable luxury consumers are willing to pay a significant premium—1.4 times on average—for products aligned with their values. A key insight from expert analysis is that authentic communication about the people and processes behind products is crucial for building trust in a brand’s sustainability claims.
- Sustainable luxury consumers are willing to pay an average premium of 1.4 times for sustainable products.
- In-depth interviews were conducted with four sustainable luxury consumers.
- Environmental political scientist Professor Norichika Kanie concludes: “For companies and brands to gain trust in sustainability, the ‘face’ behind the production background must be officially communicated.”
Questions regarding the acceptable price premium for sustainable consumption were asked across four categories: “Beauty,” “Fashion,” “Jewelry & Watches,” and “Travel,” and the average multiplier for each was calculated. The results showed that “luxury consumers'” acceptable spending amount for sustainable products averaged 1.4 times their current expenditure, remaining consistent regardless of category. The detailed report (paid version) includes specifics for each category.
From the analysis group, four “luxury consumers” with different residences, age groups, and main consumption items were selected. Based on dialogues with each, the actual state of their engagement with sustainability was clarified and examined.
A comparative evaluation test of advertising expression samples was conducted with the aforementioned four “luxury consumers” who have different levels of sustainability engagement and consumption styles. They were shown four poster proposals promoting the company’s actual sustainability initiatives to explore the optimal communication direction for each.
Special contribution by environmental political scientist Norichika Kanie, Professor at Keio University:
- Survey Entity: Hearst Fujingaho-sha Co., Ltd.
- Survey Method: In-house survey (Web questionnaire)
- Number of Valid Respondents: 2,361. From these, 270 individuals who were interested in sustainability and had made an expenditure of over 1 million yen at once (within the past year) were extracted. They were defined as sustainable luxury consumers and served as the analysis target for this survey.
- Survey Period: Thursday, January 16, 2025 – Sunday, January 26, 2025
