7 in 10 respondents embrace ethical shopping in India

Mumbai: Shopping with a conscience is taking off in India, with over seven in ten respondents buying items that are either based on fair trade principles or are environmentally friendly. The latest survey from MasterCard Worldwide also shows how 66 percent of the respondents purchase certain items because a percentage of the sale is donated to a good cause.

The survey was conducted via online interviews in the fourth quarter of 2009 and involved 3,500 consumers from 13 markets across Asia/Pacific and Africa. Around 81 percent of the respondents in India also indicated that they will go out of their way to purchase gifts that are environmentally friendly as well as pay more for such items, followed by 76 percent of respondents indicating purchasing products based on fair trade principles.

In India, both female and male respondents embrace the same ethos and principles when making purchases across the key indicators surveyed. Environmentally and socially responsible merchants are a big draw for shoppers with 91 percent of the respondents in India more or somewhat likely to make a purchase.

Amongst those surveyed, retail outlet was found to be the preferred point of purchase with over 70 percent of the respondents in India, compared to online channel when it comes to responsible gift purchases. However, for respondents who stated that they make their purchases online, about 74 percent agreed that there are more choices online for environmentally friendly items or products based on fair trade principles. About half of the respondents stated that for very specific causes that they want to support, they check out cause related website for products.