Journal of Consumer Marketing

Green marketing of cosmetics and toiletries in Thailand

Lalit M. Johri Kanokthip Sahasakmontri
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Lalit M. Johri Kanokthip Sahasakmontri, (1998),"Green marketing of cosmetics and toiletries in Thailand", Journal of
Consumer Marketing, Vol. 15 Iss 3 pp. 265 - 281
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 An executive summary
for managers and
Green marketing of cosmetics
executives can be found and toiletries in Thailand
at the end of this article
Lalit M. Johri
Associate Professor at the School of Management, Asian Institute of
Technology, Klong Luang, Pathumthani, Thailand
Kanokthip Sahasakmontri
Retail Network Strategic Planning Assistant, Shell Companies in
Thailand, Klongtoey, Bangkok, Thailand

Introduction
The green marketing of products and services is an important development
in the context of emerging economies in Asia. By adopting resource
conserving and environmentally-friendly strategies in all the stages of the
value chain the firms can satisfy the growing environmental concerns of
humanity. In the West, business firms face social and legal pressures to adopt
environmentally-friendly business strategies. Many corporations responded
to these pressures and adopted environmentally-friendly strategies. For
example, Earth Care in the UK built strong competitive advantage and grew
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very fast since it started its operations. Similarly Ciba Geigy, now part of
Novartis, has improved its corporate performance by adopting resource and
environment conservation programs.
Environmentally-friendly In Thailand, international companies in personal care products, detergents
attitudes and petrochemical industries have been pursuing green marketing strategies
for some time now. Recently many construction firms, refrigerator
manufacturers and processed food companies have also launched programs
to contain damage to the environment and project themselves as
environmentally-friendly companies. The Thai companies and consumers
are increasingly becoming environment conscious and many environmental
management initiatives have been launched by different segments of the
society. These cover a wide spectrum of environmentally-friendly actions
and strategies.
Major corporations, both foreign subsidiaries and local companies, are
investing in pollution-control equipment and environment-friendly
technologies. Several companies have launched advertising campaigns to
project environmentally conscious corporate images and promote products
that are less harmful to the environment. At the village level, Buddhist
monks, local grassroots NGOs and people’s organizations are involved in
mobilizing people in conservation efforts. As per the Seventh National Plan,
there is an effort to incorporate environmental education at all levels of the
education system.
The media are also playing a significant role in creating awareness and
educating people about the benefits of environment conservation to the
society. A number of musicians and popular songwriters emphasize
environmental messages in their work. They are considered one of the most
effective environmental communicators in the Thai context. In addition,
many projects and campaigns have been initiated to create public
environmental awareness in the Thai society.
In this paper we will explore the application of green marketing strategies by
two companies in the cosmetics and toiletries industry in Thailand. These
are, an international company, The Body Shop, and a local company,

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998, pp. 265-281 © MCB UNIVERSITY PRESS, 0736-3761 265
 Oriental Princess. Further, we will evaluate the impact of these strategies on
shaping the consumer attitudes and the extent of brand loyalty.

Literature review
There is a growing body of knowledge on green marketing focusing mainly
on four issues. These issues are: first, relevance of green marketing; second,
impact of green marketing on firms’ competitiveness and performance;
third, attributes considered by consumers while buying green products; and
fourth, improving effectiveness of green marketing.
Increasing awareness In the context of Asian countries, it is said that during the 1990s
corporations faced increasing environmental challenges as a result of
pressure coming from drivers of change, such as regulators, stockholders,
industry groups, competitors, voluntary charters and codes and incidents
leading to environmental degradation and resource depletion. The increasing
influences of communities on companies, the sky-rocketing cost of
complying with environmental regulations, and changing consumer attitudes
are forcing companies in Asia to become environmentally conscious (Nair,
1993). A high concern for environmental issues has been observed in triad
countries. The governments’ policies, consumer preferences and strategies
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of companies are being reshaped to be more eco-friendly (Simon, 1992).

However, in the UK it is revealed that the importance of environmental
concerns as a marketing issue has gone down because the customers are able
to see through the “green hypocrisy”. Many companies now view
environmental orientation as a long-term issue rather than a way to gain in
the short term (Bond, 1993), There is a suggestion that the recent decline in
the performance of The Body Shop in the UK is because the environmental
campaigning may be out of tune with the mood of the consumers (Lee and
Barrett, 1996). Another study on failure of ecological products has attributed
failure to the fact that firms may have misjudged product benefits in
comparison to actual needs (Wong et al., 1996).
More productive use of It has been observed that properly designed environmental standards can
materials, etc. trigger innovations that actually lower the total cost of a product or improve
its value making companies more competitive. These innovations allow
companies to use raw material, energy and labor more productively and thus
offset the costs of improving environmental impact (Porter and Linde,
1995). Case research in the UK and Germany has also indicated that
business strategies taking into account environmental concerns can lead to
building of the competitive advantage (Pujari and Wright, 1996). However,
there are doubts about the long-term sustainability of a firm’s
competitiveness built purely on the basis of a green marketing framework.
UK consumers tended to doubt the marketer’s green claims and based their
purchase decisions on their environmental consciousness as well as other
product and company attributes (Schlegelmilch et al., 1996). Another study
carried out simultaneously amongst US and Dutch customers on purchase
preferences in case of milk, deodorant and washing machines also revealed
that environmental considerations were not any more important than
common attributes such as size and price (Sriram and Forman, 1993). Poll
findings also show that a majority of US consumers are environmentally
conscious but their concerns are not brought out in their purchase decisions
(Roberts, 1996).
Several frameworks and approaches have been suggested for improving the
impact of green marketing strategies. It is suggested that companies should
build formal and informal alliances with environmental groups to improve

266 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 the credibility and give a strategic direction to their green marketing
programs (Mendleson and Polonsky, 1995).

Objectives of research
The objectives of the research are to:
• analyze the green marketing strategies of two competing firms in the
Thai market, an international and a local company;
• find out the product attributes considered important by consumers while
buying green products in the category of cosmetics and toiletries;
• evaluate the customers’ attitudes towards the products of the two case
companies; and
• assess the extent of brand loyalty exhibited by the customers towards the
products of these companies.

Methodology
Focus on two companies The dimensions of the green marketing strategies of The Body Shop and
Oriental Princess, the two case companies, were obtained by examining
internal documents and by conducting in-depth interviews with the
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managers, the sales staff and customers.

To determine product attributes considered important by consumers while
buying green products in the category of cosmetics and toiletries, we
conducted three focus groups. Each group had six discussants representing
11 females and seven males. Amongst these were nine working persons and
nine university level students.
The attitude of consumers towards the products of these two companies and
the extent of brand loyalty exhibited by them are calculated from the
quantitative data collected by administering questionnaires to a sample of
120 customers intercepted at three retail outlets each of The Body Shop and
Oriental Princess. In the case of The Body Shop, the respondents included
36 females and 24 males because the company, in addition to products for
women, also has a specific product category “Mostly Men”. In the case of
Oriental Princess, all the 60 respondents were female because the company
does not have any specific products for men.

Green marketing of cosmetics and toiletries

Interviews with the managers and sales staff and a study of the internal
documents of the two case companies revealed that there are many
opportunities and threats for green marketing of cosmetics and toiletries in
Thailand (Earth Care, 1995; Oriental Princess, 1995).

Opportunities
Since environmental problems facing the people are getting more serious
day by day, it is becoming necessary to promote environmental
consciousness. Rapid economic growth without prevention or control of
potentially environmental problems, will eventually lead to more severe and
everlasting environmental disasters. Thus the internal societal pressures and
growing compulsion within the Thai society to solve present environmental
problems will give rise to demand for environmentally-sound products and
business strategies.
There is a growing external pressure for eco-friendly products and
production methods since the World Trade Organization (WTO) started to

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 267

 impose several regulations for environmental protection and conservation
within the scope of international trade agreements. Thailand, as a member of
WTO, must seriously attend to this issue. Environmentally-friendly products
are bound to find wider market opportunities in the global context by
preventing the possibilities that other countries may use their environmental
standards as trade barriers against Thai exports. Since there are not many
companies in the cosmetics and toiletries industry in Thailand that seriously
emphasize environmental aspects, the early mover can enjoy the competitive
advantage in terms of brand recognition and image both in the domestic and
foreign markets.
Significant perceived and A market expansion is taking place as a result of this new green product
real benefits category. Products made of natural raw materials and packed in simple
recycled plastics have significant perceived and real benefits for the
customers and this is leading to the creation of a new product category. For
example, the products of The Body Shop and Oriental Princess are
distinguishable from other cosmetics in the retail outlets.

Threats
Companies allocate low priority to green marketing. At present, there are
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many severe environmental problems which need to be solved and in the

short term only few problems can be focused on. The benefits of green
marketing may not be outstanding to be clearly perceived by the customers.
The companies place more emphasis on the purchase of environmentally-
friendly technologies and equipment.
Successful activities relating to environmental protection and conservation
need effective alliances and co-operation among the public, private sector,
and government agencies. At present, there are not many lobbies against
products which tend to harm the environment. So there is not enough
pressure felt by environment-damaging products to shift to more
environmentally-friendly products.
Customers are skeptical Because of lack of awareness and understanding, not many customers are
sensitive to the potential damage to the environment caused by many
traditional products. Since results of green marketing are not obvious in the
short term, it is extremely difficult to influence the target group to become
environmentally aware. The positive impact of green marketing is not felt to
be real by many groups.
There are perceptual problems associated with refilling of products. Many
consumers do not accept refill products because they are concerned about
hygiene when refilling products.
Another threat is the lack of recycling capability in Thailand. The recycling
capability of the packaging materials is limited and the cost of recycled
paper is higher than prime paper. This discourages people from using
recycled paper.

Green marketing strategy of The Body Shop

Company background
Earth Care Co. Ltd started its first store under its worldwide name of The
Body Shop in Thailand in December 1993 as a franchise from The Body
Shop International PLC. Based on its core values, The Body Shop projects
itself as a retailer who combines natural plants and materials with modern
research findings to produce products which are not harmful to the
environment. The company is against scientific experiments on animals and

268 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 helps educate customers on how to conserve the environment. It has created
waste-treatment facilities and encourages its customers to reuse containers
by refilling products. The company sees its operation in Thailand as a
launching pad for entering other markets in south-east Asian countries.
Marketing strategy In Thailand, The Body Shop focuses only on marketing because the
subsidiary company Earth Care imports the entire product range – 2,000
product items – from the UK without modification. The company has 11
outlets in Bangkok and Pattaya which sell cosmetics, toiletries, perfumes,
and accessories, i.e. bags, pencils, T-shirts, caps, combs, etc. for women and
men. Most products are made largely from natural extracts, with the least
amount of chemicals.
In Thailand, the annual turnover of the company is 200 million baht, out of
which 70 per cent comes from sales of toiletries and 30 per cent from
cosmetics. The company focuses mainly on younger generation, female and
male students and office workers with high school and upwards education
and income above 10,000 baht per month. It believes that consuming
environmentally-friendly products is one way by which the younger
generation reflect their images of being environmentally and socially aware.
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Competitors
At the product category level the company has two competitors, namely Red
Earth – an international company, and Oriental Princess – a local company
from Thailand. The indirect competitors include Marks & Spencer, Crabtree
& Evelyn, and Estee Lauder.

Policies and practices

The Body Shop follows green marketing approach in its business policies
and practices. The company’s fundamental values include concerns about
environmental conditions, interests in and respect for human rights and
resistance to experiments on animals for product development. The
company’s business and trading relationships are based on these core values.
All employees are trained for ten days to two weeks about company’s values
and products. The Body Shop seeks to generate profit together with
discharging social and environmental responsibilities.
At the business practices level, special emphasis is paid to reduce electricity
and water consumption in the office and retail outlets. The company
encourages maximum utilization of paper by using both sides of paper and
reusing the waste paper for gift-set decoration. To reduce environmental
pollution caused by vehicles, the company has set up an efficient route plan.
At present, only one pick-up is used for transporting products to all the
stores in Bangkok.

Product and packaging

Quality of product and The company offers high quality products based on natural extracts and
minimal packaging are ingredients and with minimal use of chemicals which can be harmful to
prime concerns human lives. Quality is a primary concern. Once a product reaches the shop
shelf the company underlines its value with simple, straightforward
packaging and a hype-free presentation. The company uses minimal
amounts of packaging. Thus, customers know they are not paying extra for a
fancy wrapper or a big advertising campaign. All packaging is made of
recycled materials, such as paper and plastic. The packaging is limited only
to its usefulness and the company ensures that packaging material is durable,
easy to clean and suitable for recycling several times. However the products

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 269

 of the company have not been adapted to suit the preferences of Thai
customers. Some customers feel that the fragrance is too strong and
packaging looks “unfashionable”. Some customers have complained about
allergic reactions from the company’s products.
Policy of The Body Shop At present the company does not source raw materials in Thailand but R&D
teams from the UK have been exploring possibilities for sourcing a number
of natural products such as makrood, kamin, dawk som poi in Chiang Rai
Province in the north. The Body Shop has a worldwide policy to help in
improving the quality of life of its suppliers in developing countries. The
company points out the reasons for not producing products locally, including
in Thailand, because it wants its suppliers to have strong ecological
credentials, as well as safe, healthy work environments for labor, and no
physical coercion of any kind, especially in the use of child labor.

Price
Prices of cosmetics and toiletries products are higher than chemical-based
products. However, for products that have high public relations potential,
such as shirts, bags, notebooks, etc., their prices are marked at low level,
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since they can be seen easily by the public, thus they indirectly help promote
The Body Shop products and its environmental campaigns. The customers
can get a refill, or return their bottles for recycling, at a price discount. Every
time customers make use of the refilling service, their cards are stamped and
they get a special discount. After the sixth time, they are able to choose one
bottle (60ml) of any product free of charge. The card is valid for one year.
Many customers feel that the products are too expensive and the discounts
are too little.

Promotion
Product advertising Product advertising is completely prohibited. The company uses
prohibited advertisements for environmental campaigns only. In order to provide
product information to customers, brochures/leaflets are provided in retail
outlets and a quarterly newsletter is sent directly to 8,000 member
customers. The main reason for using newsletters is to give customers the
feeling of individual attention and care. The company uses recycled paper to
produce promotional leaflets and brochures. In order to encourage customers
to make use of the refilling service, a big poster is displayed in front of every
outlet. Occasionally the company organizes discount sales. There is a plan to
use electronic media like the Internet to communicate with customers to
reduce paper usage in producing brochures and leaflets.

Retail
At the outlets there is an emphasis on providing both an environmentally-
friendly and relaxed atmosphere. Employees are trained to be friendly and
sincere to customers. The Body Shop outlets are well liked by customers
because of innovative layout and no aggressive selling. The department
stores also like to have The Body Shop outlets because they can attract lot of
potential customers. To improve the service at outlets, the company has
regular training programs for retail staff. Some customers feel that there are
not enough outlets and some outlets are too small, often crowded and give
unsatisfactory service. For serving corporate customers the company makes
direct sales.

270 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 Consumer research
The Body Shop does not have any regular research programs in Thailand
because all the products are imported from the UK. However, to answer
consumer complaints, the company has a hotline service for customers. The
company takes prompt action on any complaint it receives from the
customers.

Public relations
Focus on the young To promote the concept of recycling and refilling, the company distributes
brochures and leaflets and, from time to time, it also runs special campaigns
at the outlets. The outlets also display the posters and distribute leaflets on
worldwide campaigns undertaken by Body Shop International. At present,
the company is focusing on teenagers who are going to start working for the
first time in their lives. It offers a free-of-charge advisory service on writing
a résumé, job applications, dressing and face make-up.
The company has established links with a number of NGOs in Thailand for
societal and environmental programs. However, many customers are
uncertain about the corporate environmental programs and practices of the
company.
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Challenges faced
Lack of short- and long- As a subsidiary of a foreign company, the company faces many challenges in
term plans Thailand. The procedures set by Food and Drug Administration (Thailand),
for the approval of product formulae take a very long time. The company
faces bureaucratic delays in receiving incoming shipments from its
manufacturing plants.
The company also feels that the government’s environmental policy is not
clear. There are no specific short-term and long-term plans for improving
and restoring the environment in Thailand. The governmental role in the
environmental programs is not adequately known to the public and as a
result, the sensitiveness about green products is very low.
Further, because of the worldwide no-advertisement policy, the company
products are misconstrued as trendy, fashionable products rather than as
essentially green products. The word-of-mouth promotion is slow and time-
consuming.

Green marketing strategy of OP Natural Products Co. Ltd

Company background
OP Natural Products Co. Ltd (Oriental Princess), is one of the six companies
operating under the SSUP Group and was established in April 1990. The
company was launched as the market opportunity for natural products was
growing and Thailand produces a variety of natural products used in
cosmetics at a low cost.
Oriental Princess benefits The low cost of raw material and low labor cost has lent a competitive edge
from low cost of to Oriental Princess and it exports products to many countries that include
materials Australia, Portugal, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Taiwan, Germany,
and Korea. The company is very proud to use the “Made in Thailand” label
on its products. The company has won many awards from national and
international bodies for the quality of its products and for the societal and
environmental support programs it has sponsored in Thailand.
All Oriental Princess products are manufactured from natural extracts. There
are four product lines: namely, products for hair, face, body, and others, e.g.

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 271

 pottery and sponges. The company’s main customers are female students and
office workers with higher level education and in the age group of 18 to 45
years, with monthly income above 10,000 baht.
The company has designed many environment-related school level programs
to arouse the conscience of young students in Thailand. The company
focuses mainly on individual customers. It puts less emphasis on corporate
customers. The company seeks to improve the quality of life and health of all
categories of its customers.

Competitors
No direct competitor in In Thailand, in the natural extract-based toiletries category, Oriental Princess
Thailand has more than a 50 percent market share. The overall value of this market
segment was around 500-600 million baht in 1994 and is growing at an
annual rate of 10 percent. Its early entry into the Thai market and a much
wider network of retail outlets is one of the reasons for its success. There is
no direct competitor in Thailand that sells exactly the same product lines as
Oriental Princess. However, companies such as The Body Shop and Red
Earth market comparable products at the category level. Smaller competitors
are foreign brands, mostly from England, such as St Andrew and Woods of
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Windsor. However, these brands are not very successful in the Thai market.
Their market share is less than 10 percent.

Policies and practices

The cornerstones of the green marketing strategy of the company are called
the 4-Rs. These are:
• Recycle – the company collects all types of packaging for recycling.
Recycled paper is used to make paper bags, envelopes, etc.
• Refill – all outlets provide product refill service.
• Reuse – the company encourages reuse of promotional material.
• Reduce – by reduction, the company has eliminated all unnecessary
packaging. In the company office, environmentally-friendly practices
such as energy conservation, efficient use of stationery, sharing of
computers and transportation facilities have been established.

Research and development

Company uses local In their R&D set up, the company has retained many consultants and
labor and materials academics from universities in Thailand. The company has established
experimental herb gardens to teach villagers how to cultivate herbs. The
company plans to buy back the garden produce from the farmers. At present,
most of raw materials are bought from herb gardens under the royal Thai
projects.

Product and packaging

All the products of Oriental Princess are green products and contain a higher
percentage of natural extracts than those of their competitors. In case of other
brands, some products do not have any natural extracts as ingredients.
Packaging is made of recycled materials and the company collects bottles
and paper to recycle at recycling factories. Since Oriental Princess products
are made in Thailand with an eye on domestic customers, they are more
suitable to local taste, preference and climate compared to foreign brands.
However, The Body Shop has the advantage in terms of being “Made in UK”
since some Thai consumers still prefer brands which are made in England.

272 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 Price
Final product cheaper Most of the raw materials used by the company are available in Thailand,
and it has its own production plant and distribution system, thus the overall
cost of the product is less than that of foreign brands. Consequently, the
price of final products is cheaper when compared with those of The Body
Shop and Red Earth. However, some customers feel that the prices are
higher as compared to traditional chemical-based cosmetics and toiletries.

Promotion
Oriental Princess depends mainly on direct mail to promote its products and
environmental campaigns. More than 100,000 members receive information
through leaflets and a quarterly magazine printed mainly on recycled paper.
The company also promotes its activities through other magazines and
newspapers. The company depends a lot on its loyal customers and a
positive word of mouth. It undertakes joint promotion with other companies
and sponsors promotional programs at universities on special occasions.
However, the company does not do much direct sales. As part of sales
promotion activities, the company gives free samples and if customers at the
time of buying products return the packaging, they receive garbage
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separation bags. The company promotes sales through a refill scheme with a
small discount on the actual price of the refilled products.

Retail
The company’s products are sold through 49 nationwide outlets. Many
outlets in department stores do not have appropriate locations on the
cosmetics floor, and they are set up on the same floor as other ordinary
toiletries products such as towels and linen. With new department stores
opening each year and the retailing space becoming more expensive, the
company finds it difficult to allocate resources. Most customers find the
company outlets neat and attractive with a relaxing atmosphere. Some
customers find that the sales persons at the outlets are a bit too involved.
They would rather be left alone while shopping at company outlets.

Consumer research
At Oriental Princess consumer research is conducted by both in-house teams
and external agencies. New ideas for implementing the green marketing
strategy come from both the top management and employees. Since
employees or beauty assistants are closer to customers, they receive the
feedback and suggestions directly from the customers. All ideas are screened
and the ones that are feasible implemented. This two-way communication
process helps the company in improving its products and maximizing
customer satisfaction.

Public relations
Educational programs The company sponsors many national and international programs to build
awareness about environment conservation and recycling. These programs
have been designed to exchange knowledge and ideas for preserving the
environment with young people from other countries, encourage primary
schools to keep clean, conserve energy, avoid use of toxic substances, and be
creative on environmental issues. The company has educational programs to
educate the public about the importance of garbage separation in their own
houses.
Recently, the company sponsored a story-writing competition on
environmental issues in the schools. The award-winning stories are used for

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 273

 devising television shows. The company has a strong commitment to these
national and international programs because the annual budget for
supporting various environmental programs is allocated regardless of the
profits or losses of the company.

Challenges faced
Lack of co-operation As a local company with less experience as compared to international
competitors, Oriental Princess faces many challenges. The recycling
industry in Thailand is not fully developed therefore the cost of recycled
paper and plastic is higher than prime materials. The company faces lack of
co-operation from other agencies, such as media in promoting environmental
awareness amongst the public. There are few companies who are willing to
co-operate in sponsoring environmental projects. The company faces
difficulties in influencing the public about environmental problems and
building environmental awareness because most of them perceive it as a
long-term problem without any immediate impact. In green marketing of
products, sometimes new customers keep away from the retail outlets
because they assume that green products are more expensive than ordinary
products.
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Focus group and survey findings

Attributes considered
From the three focus group discussions, we found that customers while
buying green cosmetics and toiletries give due attention to 11 main attributes
that include nine basic and two green attributes. The basic attributes are
regardless of whether the customers are buying green or chemical-based
cosmetics.
Preferences of Thai As shown in Table I, we find that Thai female customers prefer sweet
female customers fragrance and light colors. They are concerned about the product safety.
Since the majority of customers belong to the educated middle class, they
expect the products to deliver benefits and should not be too expensive. The
customers look for attractive packaging. They consider outlet atmosphere
important because many customers spend a considerable time browsing
through the merchandise on display and like to pre-test. They appreciate a
relaxing atmosphere and friendly sales staff in the outlets. The middle class
Thai customers in general are very brand conscious and consider brand
image important and it acts as a surrogate for the credentials of the company.
The two main green attributes considered important by Thai customers are
“ingredients” and “not tested on animals”. At the time of buying green
cosmetics and toiletries, the customers look at the product ingredients very

Basic attributes Green attributes

Product fragrance Ingredients

Product color Not tested on animals
Safe for skin
Product performance
Good value for money
Packaging
Outlet atmosphere
Opportunity to pre-test
Brand image

Table I. Attributes influencing purchase decisions

274 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 carefully and ask questions if they are not familiar with the natural
ingredients. Similarly the “not tested on animals” attribute is admired and
appreciated by many Thai people because they follow the tenets of
Buddhism which preaches non-violence and is against destruction of any
form of life.

Attitude towards brands

Fishbein’s model The data collected during the consumer survey were treated to calculate the
consumers’ overall attitudes using Fishbein’s model for measurement of
attitude[1].
The importance of attributes, the belief scores for each attribute and the
attitude scores towards the products of The Body Shop and Oriental Princess
are shown in Tables II and III respectively.

The Body Shop users

All users (60) Female users (34) Male users (26)
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Importance Belief Importance Belief Importance Belief

Attribute of attribute score of attribute score of attribute score

Product
fragrance 3.92 3.93 4.06 3.81 3.71 4.12
Product color 2.83 3.90 2.81 4.03 2.88 3.70
Product
performance 4.50 4.22 4.64 4.28 4.29 4.12
Brand name 3.27 4.28 3.25 4.25 3.29 4.33
Good value
for money 3.97 4.05 4.00 4.17 3.92 3.88
Safe for skin 4.62 4.40 4.64 4.50 4.58 4.25
Opportunity
to pre-test 3.52 4.07 3.67 4.25 3.29 3.79
Outlet
atmosphere 3.83 4.42 3.83 4.50 3.83 4.29
Packaging 3.73 4.25 3.64 4.25 3.88 4.25
Ingredients 4.13 4.47 4.28 4.56 3.92 4.33
Not tested
on animals 3.73 4.28 3.81 4.22 3.63 4.38

Attitude
score (A) 177.35 181.80 170.82

Notes:
Scale for measuring importance of attribute:
1 = not at all important, through
5 = highly important
Scale for measuring belief score:
1 = strongly disagree; 2 = disagree; 3 = neutral; 4 = agree; 5 = strongly agree

Table II. Customers’ attitudes toward The Body Shop

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 275

 Oriental Princess users (60)
Attribute Importance of attribute Belief score

Product fragrance 4.03 4.02

Product color 2.63 3.47
Product performance 4.67 4.27
Brand name 3.15 3.85
Good value for money 4.20 3.97
Safe for skin 4.73 4.35
Opportunity to pre-test 3.37 3.88
Outlet atmosphere 3.92 4.03
Packaging 3.95 4.15
Ingredients 4.37 4.35
Not tested on animals 3.37 3.80

Attitude score 171.68

Notes:
Scale for measuring importance of attribute: 1 = not at all important, through
5 = highly important
Scale for measuring belief score: 1 = strongly disagree; 2 = disagree; 3 = neutral;
4 = agree; 5 = strongly agree
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Table III Customers’ attitudes toward Oriental Princess

The Body Shop

Customers’ attitudes Attributes that are considered important (score ≥ 4) by all respondents in
compared their purchase decision of buying green cosmetics and toiletries are:
(1) Safe for skin.
(2) 2nd Product performance.
(3) 3rd Ingredients.

Attributes “product fragrance” and “good value for money” are also
considered important by female respondents.
All respondents agree that The Body Shop can provide benefits in respect of
all attributes that are important to them. The top five attributes which meet
their expectations most are:
(1) Natural extracts ingredients.
(2) Outlet atmosphere.
(3) Safe for skin.
(4), (5) Brand image and Not tested on animals.

The overall attitude score is 177.35 out of a maximum of 210.25 (belief

scores for all attributes = 5). We regard this score as representative of a
favorable attitude towards The Body Shop products.

Oriental Princess
Five attributes are regarded as important (score ≥ 4), by respondents in their
purchasing decisions. These are:

276 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 (1) Safe for skin.
(2) Product performance.
(3) Ingredients.
(4) Good value for money.
(5) Product fragrance.

Top five attributes All respondents agree that Oriental Princess can provide benefits in respect
of all attributes that are important to them. The top five attributes which
meet their expectations most are:
(1), (2) Safe for skin and natural extracts as ingredients.
(3) Product performance.
(4) Packaging.
(5) Outlet atmosphere.
The overall attitude score is 171.68 out of a maximum of 211.92 (belief
scores for all attributes = 5). We regard this score as representative of a
favorable attitude towards Oriental Princess.
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Brand loyalty
The respondents’ data on history of brand of green cosmetics and toiletries
purchased on last three occasions were arranged to determine the pattern of
brand loyalty. The following classification was used:
• A – Bought brand “X” on last three occasions.
• B – Bought brand “X” on last two occasions but a different brand
before that.
• C – Bought brand “X” again on last occasion, a different brand on
last but one occasion and brand “X” on last but two.
• D – Bought brand “X” on last occasion only and different brands
before that.
Brand loyalty Based on this classification the brand loyalty patterns for The Body Shop
and Oriental Princess were determined and are shown in Tables IV and V
respectively. Only 53 per cent of the respondents in the case of The Body
Shop are brand loyal, the others have been switching brands. The incidence
of loyalty is higher amongst the male respondents. In the case of Oriental
Princess, 65 per cent of the respondents are brand loyal.

All (60) Female (36) Male (24)

Purchasing No. of No. of No. of
behaviors respondents % respondents % respondents %

A 32 53 18 50 14 58
B 8 13 6 17 2 8
C 7 12 4 11 3 13
D 13 22 8 22 5 21
Total 60 100 36 100 24 100

Table IV. Brand loyalty exhibited for The Body Shop

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 277

 All respondents
Purchasing behaviors No. of respondents %

A 39 65
B 7 12
C 5 8
D 9 15
Total 60 100

Table V. Brand loyalty exhibited for Oriental Princess

The reasons for high brand loyalty in the case of the two companies are:
first, there are only two leading brands to choose from. Second, both the
companies offer incentives to their members and hence maintain steady
relations with their customers. Third, there is a big difference in color and
fragrances of the products of the two companies and customers do not like to
substitute the products of two brands. Fourth, many customers buy specific
brands because of ingredients, which tend to differ between the two leading
brands. Besides, Oriental Princess offers good value for money and enjoys a
higher brand loyalty as compared to The Body Shop.
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Conclusions
From the two case studies, focus group discussions and consumer survey we
come to five conclusions:
Opportunities and (1) Though in introductory stage, green marketing in Thailand is
threats characterized by many opportunities and threats. The sensitization of
Thai people about environmental problems is beginning to drive the
market for environmentally-friendly products. Many companies, foreign
and national, have adopted programs to deploy technologies and market
products that minimize the extent of environmental damage. On the
threat side, communication and lack of co-ordination amongst various
constituents of the society are responsible for a less than enthusiastic
response towards environmental issues. The recycling infrastructure in
the country is inadequate and the cost of recycled material is higher than
prime material.
(2) The Body Shop and Oriental Princess have adopted a wide range of
policies and practices as part of green marketing of cosmetics and
toiletries in Thailand. Although the former is experiencing problems in
its UK operations, the company has extended its internationally
successful strategy in Thailand and has done well in a short period of
time. Many customers think that the company needs to adapt its
products to local conditions in terms of color and fragrance. They also
feel that prices are high, and are not fully able to comprehend the
corporate support activities the company has launched to save the
environment on a global basis.
Oriental Princess the (3) Oriental Princess using local raw materials and only natural ingredients
better performer in is performing better than The Body Shop. The company has priced its
Thailand products keeping in mind the middle class income characteristics of the
Thai consumers. The company has established a wide network of
outlets. It is helping farmers to cultivate herbs required in the
manufacturing of cosmetics and toiletries. Enjoying lower costs of raw
materials and labor the company has been exporting products to several
countries in Europe and Asia. The company has launched many
environmental projects at school level. However, the Thai customers do

278 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 not really understand fully the corporate actions of the company in
preserving the environment in Thailand.
(4) Thai customers base their purchase decisions for green cosmetics and
toiletries on many basic attributes such as “good value for money”,
“product performance”, “safe for skin” etc., because they may be
committed to buy green products but are not willing to compromise on
critical aspects such as price and safety. The two environmental attributes
they regard important are “ingredients” and “not tested on animals”.
(5) The consumer response to the green marketing strategies of The Body
Shop and Oriental Princess has been encouraging, as borne out by the
belief scores for various attributes, favorable consumer attitudes and
high incidence of brand loyalty. The increasing number of consumer
membership of the two companies also supports this conclusion.

Note
1. Fishbein’s model for measurement of attitude
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where
i = attribute or product characteristic
j = brand
Aj = the consumer’s attitude score for brand j
Ii = the importance weight given to attribute i by this consumer
Bij = the consumer’s belief as to the extent to which a satisfactory level of attribute i is
offered by brand j

References
Bond, C. (1993), “Green shoots”, Promotions & Incentives, (UK), September, pp. 63-5.
Earth Care (1995), Environmental Marketing Award 1995, Chulalongkorn University &
Marketing Association of Thailand, Bangkok.
Lee, J. and Barrett, P. (1996), “Body in need of reshaping”, Marketing (UK), April, p. 10.
Mendleson, N. and Polonsky, M.J. (1995), “Using strategic alliances to develop credible green
marketing”, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 12 No. 2 , pp. 4-18.
Nair, C. (1993), “New environmental trends and the challenge to industry in Asia”, TEI
Quarterly Environment Journal, October-December, pp. 12-23.
Oriental Princess (1995), Viceroy Environmental Envoy Project, OP Natural Products Co. Ltd,
Bangkok.
Porter, M.E. and Linde, C. (1995), “Green and competitive: ending the stalemate”, Harvard
Business Review, September-October, pp. 120-34.
Pujari, D. and Wright, G. (1996), “Developing environmentally conscious product strategies: a
qualitative study of selected companies in Germany and Britain”, Marketing Intelligence &
Planning, Vol. 14 No. 1, pp. 19-28.
Roberts, J. A. (1996), “Green consumers in the 1990s: profile and implications for
advertising”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 36 No. 3, pp. 217-31.
Schlegelmilch, B.B., Bohlen, G.M. and Diamantopoulos, A. (1996), “The link between green
purchasing decisions and measures of environmental consciousness”, European Journal
of Marketing, Vol. 30 No. 5, p. 35 onwards.
Simon, F.L. (1992), “Marketing green products in the Triad”, Columbia Journal of World
Business, Vol. 27 No. 3-4, pp. 268-85.
Sriram, V. and Forman, A.M. (1993), “The relative importance of products’ environmental
attributes”, International Marketing Review, Vol. 10 No. 3, pp. 51-70.
Wong, V., Turner, W. and Stoneman, P. (1996), “Marketing strategies and market prospects for
environmentally-friendly consumer products”, British Journal of Management, Vol. 7 No. 3,
pp. 263-82.

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 279

 This summary has been Executive summary and implications for managers and
provided to allow executives
managers and executives
a rapid appreciation of “Green” marketing is a long-term branding issue not a tactical concern
the content of this In the West “green” marketing has become a staple of corporate
article. Those with a positioning. At the same time firms have exploited environmentally-friendly
particular interest in the messages for short-term marketing gains. The result of the “exploitation”
topic covered may then has been a growing cynicism among the public about environmental claims.
read the article in toto to The sponsorship efforts of Shell UK and BP illustrate how firms seen, in the
take advantage of the round, as polluters are using the environment and environmental campaigns
more comprehensive to mollify public opinion about their extractive and polluting activities.
description of the
research undertaken and In developing countries the picture is very different. Many emerging
its results to get the full economies – and especially those in east Asia – have criticised the attitudes
benefit of the material of Western countries towards environmental issues. At the recent Kyoto
present Earth Summit, developing countries complained that the West (and
particularly Europe) was using “green” issues to place anti-competitive
constraints on emerging economies. Again the desirable aim of international
environmental action seemed lost among concerns about free trade and
protectionism.
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Despite these concerns the rate at which developing countries such as

Thailand adopt environmentally-friendly attitudes to economic growth and
protection exceeds the same process in the West. From the emergence of
environmentalism in the 1960s, the West has taken 30 years to get to the
current position – a situation that many still see as inadequate to cope with
international environmental problems such as global warming. The fact that
Johri and Sahasakmontri can write about “green” marketing in Thailand
suggests that, already, the Thai people are aware of environmental
challenges and willing to respond to popular appeals based on “green”
issues.
Reading Johri and Sahasakmontri’s work, I’m struck by two crucial issues:
the extent to which “green” issues are a long-term matter for firms and the
changes in consumer attitudes towards the environment.

“Green” marketing: long term or short term?

In recent years some firms have, as I’ve noted, exploited popular concerns
about environmental issues. Positioning a product, brand or company as
“environmentally-friendly” provided a means of differentiation in many
markets. And, for crowded, mature markets, the “green” message provided a
new way to compete without losing premium pricing advantages.
Johri and Sahasakmontri note that the initial dominance of marketing in the
“greening” of business has now ended. Not only have consumers become
inured to “green” messages, but many no longer trust the commitment of the
businesses promoting themselves as environmentally-responsible.
Today the corporate focus has shifted towards purchasing policies,
corporate public relations and waste minimization. If there are marketing
benefits they come from real actions taken by firms to reduce their
environmental impact.
In the examples here we see how the success of Body Shop International has
encouraged other, competitive organizations to adopt similar marketing
tactics. In some cases these tactics are just that – there is little or no action
to reposition the whole firm. At the same time other businesses (and Oriental

280 JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998

 Princess provides a good example) have adopted the same “green”
positioning.
The question for cosmetics firms is whether to compete head-to-head with
The Body Shop or to sustain an “non-green” positioning regardless of the
actual policies of the firm. There is no reason why a firm shouldn’t sell
natural cosmetics without taking the “environmental campaigning” position
typified by The Body Shop. The demand for natural products doesn’t
necessarily mean that the firm should take an active stance against animal
testing or the destruction of the rain forests. Nor should such a “traditional”
positioning mean that a firm has to have purchasing or manufacturing
systems unfriendly to the environment.

Do consumers respond to “green” marketing appeals?

We know that most consumers in the West – and many among the middle
class in developing countries – express concerns about environmental
issues. Many of these consumers have taken personal steps to reduce their
personal impact on the environment (recycling, reuse, etc.). However,
consumers now see responding to environmental challenges as a matter that
is beyond individual action and choices requiring national and international
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government actions.
We also know that many consumers will not pay a price or time premium for
the sake of environmental responsibility despite a positive attitude to
environmental issues. While the “green” policies and marketing of the two
firms studied here do have an impact on consumer attitudes to the brands,
issues such as price, product effectiveness and “traditional” branding still
matter. A firm cannot expect to succeed purely as a result of a “green”
positioning.
In the cosmetics market, The Body Shop has secured such an “ownership”
of the “green” positioning that other firms taking the same stance run the
risk of being seen as copy-cat in adopting the same approach. Oriental
Princess has succeeded in copying this strategy but the addition of a proud
“Made in Thailand” positioning provides a different position and additional
rationale for patronage.

The future of “green” marketing

The realization that consumers do like “green” messages – so long as
they’re substantial – provides the basis for future “green” marketing
strategies. At the same time the challenge for businesses lies in
incorporating environmentally-friendly attitudes into their corporate
policies rather than seeking to promote on the basis of “green” products
alone. As Johri and Sahasakmontri point out “...many companies now see
environmental orientation as a long-term issue rather than a way to gain in
the short term”.
Environmental responsibility is now seen as an important measure of
business effectiveness. Firms with good records on the environment are seen
as well-managed and committed to the long term. Just as consumers have
switched to individual “green” actions rather than “green” purchasing
behaviour, firms should look to changing their corporate stance to embrace
sustainability to reflect good management and a long-term outlook.
(A précis of the article “Green marketing of cosmetics and toiletries in
Thailand.” Supplied by Marketing Consultants for MCB University Press)

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER MARKETING, VOL. 15 NO. 3 1998 281

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