A qualitative exploration of consumer perceptions of Corporate Social Responsibility and its impact on consumption. A case study of The Body Shop and L’Oreal

Abstract

This study explores qualitative consumer perceptions from Cardiff Metropolitan University students and their perceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and its impact on consumption. In addition, looking at The Body Shop & L’Oreal brands. The participants investigated showed a range of beliefs and consistencies in relation to CSR and brand choice. The author believed there was a gap in this topic due to the lack of research available on brand choice relating to CSR. Further more at a time were the UK recession is prominent it would be interesting to see how students’ purchasing decisions have been affected. There was primary research conducted for this study, two focus groups each of 6 participants were held in order to gain a perception of Cardiff Met students and their opinions and beliefs on CSR consumption of brands. By using qualitative research the author achieved a deep thematic understanding of perceptions of CSR. The content of this dissertation includes and introduction regarding the purpose of this study and a background to CSR. The literature review evaluates previous research in relation to this study and also evaluates The Body Shop and L’Oreal. The methodology discusses the reasoning behind the research, leading onto the discussion of results and findings. Finally a conclusion which outlines the main findings and recommendations for the future. The main findings from this research found the overall perception of CSR from students was positive and that being CSR conscious is an influence when making a brand choice. However although there is great desire from most to purchase a brand with a CSR initiative the availability of money may restrict this purchasing decision. In addition participants wanted to choose a brand with a CSR initiative but the main other contributing to factors to choosing a brand were importance of price, fashion conscious and following the crowd. Along with the research and supporting literature review it has been established that CSR is a necessity for a business as many consumers have CSR as an initial stimulus when choosing a brand.