Sustainability is more than just a legal and ethical obligation; it can be a powerful growth strategy when used in the right way. Research from McKinsey shows that sustainable products now account for over $1 trillion in annual sales and are growing 2.7x faster than conventional products. Consumers are demanding more transparency, with 85% of people indicating they want brands to be more open about their sustainability efforts.
However, there’s an elephant in the room: while consumer demand for sustainability is loud, sales data often tells a different story. Many retailers have made significant investments in sustainability, yet they struggle to see a clear return.
This value-action gap, where consumers express interest in sustainability but don’t always follow through with purchases, remains a persistent challenge. While 65% of consumers say they want to buy from sustainable brands, only 26% actually do, and although 62% claim they’re willing to change their purchasing habits to reduce environmental impact, just 34% consistently factor environmental considerations into their decisions. This disconnect leaves brands questioning how to position their efforts effectively, especially as the risk of greenwashing continues to grow, with unsubstantiated claims eroding trust and inviting regulatory scrutiny and financial penalties.
This blog highlights six retailers addressing the say-do gap and making great progress in communicating their impact credibly, whilst driving measurable business impact.
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What They’re Doing: Selfridges is expanding its Reselfridges initiative, originally launched in 2020, into a permanent fixture across all four UK stores. This includes a 3,000 square foot circular fashion hub at its London flagship, featuring collaborations with SOJO repair, HURR rental, Vintage Threads, and We Are Cow. The Handbag Clinic will also provide leather repair services. Smaller Reselfridges hubs will be introduced in its other UK stores.
Why It Works:
By combining vintage and contemporary fashion with repair services, Selfridges makes sustainable choices convenient and aspirational, encouraging repeat visits and positive consumer habits.
→ Results/Outcomes: From successful trial collaboration with Depop to permanent fixture
Learn more
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What They’re Doing: Cult Beauty’s Cult Conscious (powered by Provenance) initiative integrates sustainability into the shopping experience by ensuring credible product claims and driving discovery for lines prioritising sustainability. Smart filters and search help customers easily identify options, making more sustainable choices accessible alongside key factors like product efficacy and quality. Cult also incentivises more sustainable purchases through rewards and loyalty incentives, using Provenance-powered data.
Why It Works:
Cult Conscious builds trust with evidence-based claims from discovery to checkout, while smart filters help customers find sustainable options without compromising on efficacy.
→ Results/Outcomes: Increased Conversion, Shopper Sentiment, and Revenue Growth
Learn more
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What They’re Doing:
In 2024, Lush introduced several charitable products under its 'Lush Giving' initiative, aligning with its commitment to sustainability and social impact. The Watermelon Slice Soap was launched to support childhood mental health services in Palestine, with 100% of the profits directed to this cause. Additionally, the Flame Fighters Soap was created to aid communities affected by wildfires, with proceeds assisting recovery efforts in regions such as Los Angeles and the Amazon. Furthermore, Lush announced plans for 'Keystone Products,' inspired by keystone species that play vital roles in their ecosystems. Each product will raise funds for projects focused on regenerating landscapes for threatened wildlife, protecting keystone species, or developing human-focused solutions, with the first launch anticipated this year. Lush commits to continuing this work, through targeted fundraising and charitable products for “particular causes that are pertinent at any given time”.
Why It Works:
Lush’s marketing strategy effectively intertwines activism and social causes, demonstrating genuine commitment to its core values, fostering trust, brand love and customer loyalty. By creating campaign-specific products, Lush provides customers with tangible opportunities to support causes they care about, whilst driving engagement of important, timely campaigns.
→ Results/Outcomes:
What They’re Doing: Wild’s Deodorant You Don't Need to Dump campaign promotes its products as better looking, better smelling, and more desirable than single-use competitors. The campaign, created by Studio Yes, combines humour and brand awareness to highlight Wild’s product range, sustainability benefits alongside product efficacy. The creative contrasts Wild’s 24-hour performance guarantee with the industry’s exaggerated ‘72-hour protection’ claims, positioning Wild as the more appealing, credible and practical choice.
Why It Works:
By blending humour with relatable scenarios like break-ups, the campaign engages audiences while reinforcing Wild’s sustainability message alongside product efficacy. The playful yet impactful approach ensures the brand’s eco-friendly credentials feel accessible and memorable.
→ Results/Outcomes: Elevating sustainable messaging through humour
Learn more here.
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What They’re Doing:
L’OCCITANE is one of several major brands taking part in the Great British Beauty Clean Up (alongside Boots and THG), a cross-industry initiative powered by the Sustainable Beauty Coalition, designed to tackle beauty’s waste problem. Alongside other key players in the industry, L’OCCITANE is promoting reuse and refill through a comprehensive 360° communication plan spanning in-store, web, social media, press, and CRM channels, as well as their established take-back and recycling schemes. The campaign, which launched on 3 March 2025, is timed to coincide with the Mother’s Day period to maximise engagement and participation.
Why It Works:
→ Results/Outcomes: Action-oriented educational campaigns across platforms to drive meaningful behaviour change
Learn more here and see other businesses involved like Boots and THG
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What They're Doing:
The Ordinary’s Slowvember challenged traditional Black Friday practices by offering a consistent 23% discount throughout November, giving customers more time for thoughtful purchasing decisions. To reinforce its commitment to mindful consumption, The Ordinary closed both online and physical stores on Black Friday. The campaign emphasised transparency, aligning with the brand’s stance against misleading promotions and fostering consumer trust.
Why It Works:
Slowvember rejected high-pressure sales tactics, appealing to consumers seeking sustainable and deliberate shopping habits. By promoting intentional purchasing and tying the campaign to its broader sustainability efforts, including responsible sourcing and waste reduction, The Ordinary reinforced its values and encouraged mindful consumption.
→ Results/Outcomes: Avoiding Sustainability Siloes and Building Trust
Learn more
Retailers that embed validated sustainability claims into their customer journey are seeing higher engagement, loyalty, and conversion rates. Brands like Selfridges, Cult Beauty, l’OCCITANE and The Ordinary show that sustainability is a commercial advantage when communicated effectively, even in the early stages of transformation.
Don’t let your sustainability progress be a missed opportunity—see how Provenance can help validate your claims and drive growth.
Alicia is a communications and growth consultant with a background in product and marketing at startups. She is passionate about sustainability and tech for good.
Provenance powers sustainability claims you can trust. The global leader in sustainability marketing technology, Provenance helps brands and retailers share credible, compelling and fact-checked social and environmental impact information at the point of sale. Provenance’s technology is already increasing conversion rates, brand value and market share for customers including Cult Beauty, Douglas, GANNI, Napolina, Arla and Unilever
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