Harnessing environmental sustainability to build green brand equity

The knowledge of and interest in environmental sustainability has increased in the past years, which has also translated into action by consumers. As consumers are more aware of sustainability, companies have to take action to satisfy their customers’ needs in order to stay relevant to the market and build positive brand equity. This literature review focuses on how to build green brand equity, defined as a whole range of impressions, conceptions, apprehensions towards a brand in the customers’ memory which is correlated to the sustainability and eco-friendly concerns. As a result, this thesis introduces five drivers of green brand equity based on relevant literature, the drivers being green brand image, green trust, green perceived quality, green perceived value and green brand awareness. This thesis suggests companies to focus on the earlier mentioned drivers to be able to build positive green brand equity. By focusing on building green brand equity and satis-fying the customers’ environmental needs, companies can also achieve monetary profits and long-term cash flows