PERCEPCIÓN AMBIENTAL DE LOS RESPONSABLES DE EMPRESAS DE CALZADO

Abstract

Perceptions and beliefs among footwear industry executives are essential in the elaboration of strategies of environmentally friendly design, which eventually affect the consumer and the market in the form of product differentiation. Footwear industry executives are defined in this study as those having an important responsibility in a company, and whose decisions affect the product. From such executives the study seeks to qualitatively evaluate their vision of environmental factors during production. At the same time, the executives analyse the importance of environmental information available about products in the market. Six interviews carried out on footwear industry executives in the province of Alicante reveal some perceptions about the environment and the role of the consumer. From the results it is noted that the interviewees tend to confuse environmental concepts, and that in no case does the designer have environmental notions, and how to apply them to the product. When all is said and done, the designer believes that the consumer merely seeks a balance between quality and price, and that any environmental consideration will increase costs, something that the consumer will reject. Keywords: footwear; environmental perception; eco-label.