FRENCH CONSUMERS PREFER ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY SCHOOL SUPPLIES

August 23, 2021 – As students prepare to head back to the classroom, a BIC survey found that French consumers are increasingly interested in purchasing more environmentally friendly products, though it often means choosing from a smaller selection of products. The survey, conducted with OpinionWay, found that even during the COVID-19 pandemic more than 50% of shoppers are even willing to spend more on stationery products that have less of an impact on the environment, although it can sometimes be difficult to find responsible alternatives to standard products.

Other findings of the survey include:

French consumers are committed to respecting the environment, despite the COVID-19 crisis.

Consumers are also showing an increased interest in the recyclability of products and are being more conscious of their decisions to purchase new products each year. In fact, 60% of French parents plan to reuse school supplies from previous years, and 11% plan to exchange them with other families. 

Additionally, when shopping for back-to-school products, more than two thirds of consumers said that they prefer to purchase products made in France, to support the local economy.

54% of French consumers believe that BIC is the most environmentally friendly brand for school supplies.

Consumers' perception of BIC proves that our commitment to sustainable development is paying off. And to keep the momentum going, BIC’s “Writing the Future, Together” program promises to significantly improve the environmental and societal footprint of its products in a variety of ways: 

• 100% of packaging will be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025. 
• BIC aims to use 50% of recycled or alternative plastics in its products by 2030, with an intermediate target of 20% by 2025.  
• By 2025, BIC will use 100% renewable energy.  

Thomas Brette, Group Insights and Innovation Officer at BIC, says, "Many of our flagship products for the back-to-school season, such as the BIC® 4 Colors®, the BIC® Cristal® Original, the BIC Evolution pencil and our BIC Velleda slate, to name just a few, are products with environmental benefits. Additionally, 80% of the stationery supplies sold in France are manufactured in our French factories. We are constantly striving to offer consumers and our customers products that are more respectful of the environment, in order to give them access to an ever-growing choice of sustainable products. At BIC we are committed to finding innovative solutions that improve our environmental impact.” 

This study was conducted among a sample of 1,012 people, representative of the French population aged 18 and over, constituted according to the quota method, based on gender, age, socio-professional category, urban area and region of residence. The sample was interviewed online using the Cawi (Computer Assisted Web Interview) system. The interviews were conducted on May 26 and 27, 2021. OpinionWay conducted this survey in accordance with the procedures and rules of the ISO 20252 standard.

 Any publication, whether in whole or in part, must include the following full title: "OpinionWay survey for BIC" and no reproduction of the survey may be separated from this title. Click here for full survey results (in French).