IMPORTANCE OF SUSTAINABILITY WHEN CHOOSING A RETAILER FOR PURCHASING CONSUMER GOODS

Maloprodajno poslovanje je važan generator profita i razvoja cjelokupnog gospodarstva neke zemlje. Uspješnost maloprodaje ovisi o razini razumijevanja i posluživanja potreba vlastitih kupaca, a one se s povećanjem shvaćanja važnosti rješavanja ekoloških i društvenih problema sve više mijenjaju i usmjeravaju prema pitanjima održivosti. U skladu s time postavlja se pitanje koliko je održivost važna hrvatskim potrošačima, i trebaju li maloprodajna poduzeća promijeniti svoj pristup održivosti i implementirati je u strategiju poslovanja. Kako bi se dobio odgovor na to pitanje, provedeno je istraživanje na uzorku od 146 ispitanika. Instrument istraživanja bio je visokostrukturirani anketni upitnik koji se sastojao od 20 pitanja (s potpitanjima ukupno 54 pitanja po ispitaniku). Unutar čimbenika povezanih s donošenjem odluke o izboru trgovca na malo kod kojeg će se obaviti kupnja proizvoda široke potrošnje, ukupno je analiziran utjecaj 29 čimbenika marketinga održivosti. Glavni rezultati istraživanja ukazuju na činjenicu da u aktualno društvenopolitičkom trenutku održivost nije visoko na listi prioriteta hrvatskih potrošača.Retailing is an important profit generator and development driver of the whole economy in any country. Success of retailing depends on the level of understanding and fulfilling consumers’ needs, which are increasingly changing because of the increased level of awareness about environmental and societal problems and are becoming focused on issues of sustainability. In accordance with that, the following questions arise: what is the level of importance of sustainability for customers in Croatia and should retailing companies change their approach to sustainability and implement it in their business strategy? In order to answer those questions, research was conducted on the sample of 146 consumers, using a highly structured questionnaire that consisted of 20 questions divided into three groups (together with sub questions, there was a total of 54 questions per respondent). Of all researched factors connected with the process of selecting a preferred retailer, the impact of 29 sustainability factors was analyzed. Results of the research point out that in the current socio-economic moment, sustainability is not high on the list of priorities of Croatian consumers