A qualitative study on consumer perceptions of a South African coffee shop’s biodegradable consumables

Abstract

There has been an increase in the number of individuals who prefer to purchase goods and consumables that are biodegradable and environmentally friendly. This is due to the rise of environmental issues caused by conventional plastics. Environmentally friendly packaging can change how consumers perceive certain goods and can influence their purchasing decisions (Beuthner, Herbes & Ramme, 2018). This research paper is therefore aimed at finding out how consumers perceive biodegradable takeaway cups and straws from a South African coffee shop in Camps Bay. The research made use of a qualitative approach with open-ended questions in a questionnaire. A qualitative approach and open-ended questions allowed for the researcher to gain an in-depth understanding of the participants and their perceptions. The participants included nine (9) individuals who purchase from a South African coffee shop in Camps Bay. Inductive thematic coding was used as this allowed for the researcher to identify codes that emerged from the data. The main findings of the research were that consumers’ purchasing decisions are influenced by the implementation of biodegradable consumables with consumers preferring to purchase from an environmentally conscious store. Consumer perceptions of the biodegradable consumables were however favourable even though some of the consumables were of substandard quality.