Circular Economy, the future economy model for retailers Bachelor Degree Thesis

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Circular Economy, the future economy model for retailers

- A qualitative study on retailers understanding of Circular Economy and their sustainability work progress.

Bachelor Degree Thesis

Author: Johanna Håkansson, Pauline Brodersen

& Viktor Rodrigues

Supervisor: Christine Tidåsen Examiner: Clarinda Rodrigues

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Abstract

This thesis is about Circular Economy and sustainability through a retailer’s perspective. There has also been a focus on researching and trying to find out if the size of the retailer matters in a sustainability perspective and to achieve a Circular Economy. The research that has been made is done with a deductive approach and a qualitative method. Interviews have been held over a timeframe of a week in May 2020. Because of the pandemic, Covid-19, all of the interviews were held over telephone or email to ensure safety for all respondents, including the safety for the authors.

The theory chapter has been conducted through peer-reviewed articles and literature.

This chapter has then been divided into smaller parts chapters, as Circular Economy, Sustainability and Supply chain, and Triple bottom line. After the theory chapter the method in how the research have been done and why specific methods have been preferred over others. Following chapter is the empirical findings bundled together with analysis, each interview comes first separately and divided in the same way as the theory and are then compared in an analysis. The conclusion is that retailers need to continue working to become more sustainable. A way for retailers to present their work towards Circular Economy and sustainability is to be transparent and will reach consumers’ which can lead to higher reliability. There is a difference between larger and smaller retailers, it is in how the larger retailers have worked more towards incorporate Circular Economy model and sustainability in comparison to the smaller retailers.

Key words

Circular Economy; Reuse; Reduce; Recycle; Sustainability; Triple bottom line;

Corporate Social Responsibility; Supply chain; Retail

Acknowledgments

We would like to start to thank all those that have contributed to making this thesis possible. A special thank you should go to Linnaeus University and the program responsible to provide us with the opportunity to participate in the education. There is one person that we would especially like to thank and that is our supervisor

Christine Tidåsen, that have supported us and given advises in the process of writing this thesis. Also, a big thank you to the opponents during these weeks of making this

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thesis. With your help we got more creative. We would also like to think thank our families that have given us support and showed patience during our time writing this thesis. We would like to bring a special thanks to our respondents, without you we would not have been able to accomplish our thesis. There has been a privileged to get an insight in how they operate, and we wish them the best of luck in the future.

To manage this thesis in the best way possible, there has not only be taken help from these respondents above, but the authors has also worked with the course syllabus and the education syllabus. There has been conducted a gathering of material in creating a deeper understanding of retailers’ that then has been viewed critical of the relevant research and information. This thesis has been conducted with ethical, social and sustainable considerations, that fulfils the requirements for the degree project.

Kalmar, May 22nd, 2020.

________________ _______________ ______________

Johanna Håkansson Pauline Brodersen Viktor Rodrigues

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List of figures

Tables

Table 1. Disposition Table 7

Table 2. Operationalization Table 31

Figures

Figure 1. Conceptual Framework 23

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1 INTRODUCTION

The introduction chapter will bring up background of the Circular Economy,

sustainability and other important, relevant information. It will be an introduction of the core concepts of this thesis. There will be a discussion chapter that will bring to light theoretical and practical problems. Thereafter, a problem definition will be discussed. The research question and purpose will follow. Delimitations and outline will be discussed last in this chapter.

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1.1 Background

Industrialized countries with global political and financial influence are the ones that cause the most problems to the planet. For the Swedish consumption there are needed approximately four planets in order to sustain the average lifestyle (WWF, 2020). To stop this development consumers’, need to make environmentally better choices and to stop unsustainable purchases. This is because it will affect the pollution of water that in turn will affect the ecosystem in seas in a negative way.

The products consumers purchase are made from resources that are from the environment that affects animal habitats (WWF, 2020).

Because of the phenomenon that is globalization, meaning that countries and companies all over the globe are intertwined, the prevailing economy model has a huge impact on the entire population. The linear economy model is the prevalent economy model worldwide, although western countries have a larger direct impact on it. This economy model has been relevant, dating all the way back to the

industrial revolution, and is based on a take-make- dispose foundation (Esposito, Te & Soufani, 2018; Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2020). This type of economy model has an important, negative, environmental impact and that has led to the creation and introduction of other economy models that seeks to be

environmentally friendly and climate positive (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2020). Therefore, many argue that a Circular Economy model is the next big step in order to become more sustainable orientated.

The concept of Circular Economy arose from the belief of substituting manpower for energy, a concept that was, according to Stahel (2016), first introduced in a report to the European Commission over 40 years ago. The concept of Circular Economy acknowledges that efficiency is essential across the border, throughout businesses, corporations, organizations and governments, independently of their size. The Circular Economy model is striving towards redefining economic growth through

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majorly focusing on societal benefits. In order to do so the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (2020) explain that a Circular Economy is based on designing out of waste pollution, keeping products and materials in use and regenerating natural systems.

In order to implement a Circular Economy model, the 3R principles (reuse, reduce and recycle) cannot be forgotten or taken for granted. The 3R principles are, have been and will continue to be an important part of achieving a Circular Economy. The reuse principle was explained by the European Parliament in 2008 as the process where a product and other components is used again with the same function as it had in the beginning as long as said product is not seen as waste (European Union Law, 2008). Thereby extending the functional lifecycle of the product while adding an economic value to society thus maximizing its capability (Su, Heshmati, Geng & Yu, 2013; Ghisellini, Cialani & Ulgiati, 2015). The reduction principle is explained as the process of minimizing the overall input of non-renewable raw material in an

economic system that will lead to the decrease of the number of greenhouse gas emissions (Ghisellini et al., 2015). The recycle principle was also defined in 2008 by the European Parliament as a recovery process that transforms waste into products, or other materials and components that will either have the same function or a new one (European Union Law, 2008).

According to Environmental Science (2020) sustainability is very prominent in the Circular Economy, because it means that people need to cherish the natural material that exists in this world, so that the coming generations can continue a life on this planet. The word sustainability has different meaning, however, the Dictionary of Business English defines sustainability as “the idea that goods and services should be produced in ways that do not use resources that cannot be replaced and that do not damage the environment.” (Cambridge Dictionary, 2020). Sustainability is relevant because it is partly about the environment, and everything that retailers or consumers do have an effect on the environment. It is important that every person takes their individual responsibility and acts accordingly with a more sustainable lifestyle. Those who believe that sustainability is only connected to environment, need to learn that it is about environment, sociality and economics, which will in turn affect every person on this planet (Bauman, 2020). These three areas are also

included in the “Triple Bottom Line” but rephrased in other words.

The Triple Bottom Line (TBL) refers to financial, social and environmental effects (people, planet and profit or equity, economic and sustainable) (Fauzi, Svensson &

Rahman, 2010; Hussain, Rigoni & Orij, 2016; Gimenez, Sierra & Rodon, 2012). The

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TBL is a step forward from the original way for a retailer to calculate the

performance of the business (Slaper & Hall, 2011). The original way is to calculate finances to determine the success of the retailer’s business. When implementing the other two (environmental and social) is a step in the long run on how sustainability has affected the retailer’s business (Slaper & Hall, 2011). For a business to work with TBL, social corporate responsibility (CSR) will help to implement social and environmental goals in a business (Business ethics, 2020). CSR is divided into three topics economic-, social- and environmental accountability: economic profit to please different stakeholders’, environmental is about not to affect the planet with consuming the resource too much, and social is about the greater good and caring for stakeholders, increasing revenue without increasing costs (Grankvist, 2012). Both TBL and CSR are about the different stakeholders and their values and ideas on what is sustainable and moral that can make a retailer the preferable choice (Business ethics, 2020). According to Tang, Lai and Cheng (2016) and Fauzi et al. (2010) it is the stakeholders that are in focus in the social category of the TBL. There are

different stakeholders and they are: consumers, shareholders, employees and people that live in the adjacent area. In accordance with Elkington (1994) the consumers and other stakeholders that are concerned for the environment is a potential customer for the retailer. For a retailer to bring in new consumers they need to think about why consumers would want to choose this particular retailer, and in these cases to become more sustainable will help the retailer bring in more businesses.

1.2 Problem discussion

A Circular Economy would alter economic logic due to it substituting production with efficiency thus creating a closed-loop cycle in industrial ecosystems ultimately minimizing waste. An important procedure to follow and uphold is that “one should not repair what is not broken, not remanufacture what can be repaired and not recycle what can be remanufactured” (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2020). In a Circular Economy model, there are two different cycles: technical and biological.

Products and materials are recovered and restored in the technical cycles through approaches such as reusing, repairing, remanufactured and, as an ultimatum alternative, recycled. Consumption of food and biologically based materials only appear in the biological cycles accomplished with methods such as composting and anaerobic digestion (MacArthur Foundation, 2020). According to Stahel (2016) a study conducted on seven European countries found that a transition to a Circular Economy would reduce 70% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions and that it could conclude in an approximate 4% growth in the workforce.

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The problematization that retailers and other businesses in other sectors face in order for them to introduce and implement a Circular Economy model into their business is that there still is no clear-cut protocol allocated in order for retailers to know exactly how to implement a Circular Economy model into their business neither is there yet any international standardization that could facilitate the transition (Sariatli, 2017;

Circular Academy, 2020). The design, or redesign of products is an important element when it comes to Circular Economy, another important element for retailers is that the industries and manufacturers also makes the transition to a Circular

Economy. This will ultimately lead to a change in the traditional supply chain, which purpose is to balance supply and demand, something that traditionally has been managed through creating inventory by forecasting ahead of demand (Christopher, 2011). Ultimately the speed of the process of transitioning from a linear economy to a circular will depend on the accumulated knowledge and the overall engagement and willingness from every respondent (Koszewska, 2018).

For today's retailers, there are challenges with how to proceed to create

sustainability. Both retailers and governments are trying to find solutions, and a way to do that can be with Circular Economy (Korhonen, Honkasalo & Seppälä, 2018). In some businesses, the strive to be sustainable is more important than in others.

Therefore, it will be interesting to see if and how the size of a specific business can influence how important the sustainable work is as well as if there are major differences in how they affront it.

Why the strive for sustainability is considered more important for some retailers, may be because a lot of reasons, but a big part is the interest and care of the

environment and planet. The problem with sustainability is that there is no such thing as “sustainable enough”. There is neither any laws that cite how sustainable a retailer must be. Although there is an “environmental code” that in 1999 was introduced in Sweden, that includes rules that says, “be responsible”, etc. It has no clear rules, but recommendations on what to do and how to lead (Government, 2000). Hence, it is up to every business themselves to develop a sustainable plan or way of maintaining a sustainable way of leading the business.

According to Spiliakos (2018) at Harvard Business School there are two main categories that refers to a business being sustainable: the business effect on society and the environment (Spiliakos, 2018). Since being sustainable is sometimes not as profitable, it can be hard for some businesses to see the benefits of sustainability and therefore not choose this way of leading the operations (Clarifygreen, 2019). Some retailers have whole departments that work with the sustainability of the company

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and are developing strategies to become even more sustainable, while some retailers have one employee who works with it and some retailers do not have much focus on sustainability at all. The problem here is that often, depending on size of the

company have different facilities to achieve a sustainable way of leading the

company forward. There can be missing knowledge, focus and guidelines towards a mutual goal that benefits not only the company in long term, but also the society and environment.

In the last years, it has also become clear for retailers that their consumers

have higher demands regarding the retailer sustainability (Forbes, 2019). Therefore, it has become more important for retailers to show the consumers that they are sustainable. This can be done in different ways, and retailers are often trying to be creative and develop new, interesting ways of showing that they actually care about the environment and society. A lot of retailers do have a website, where the

consumers can read about what the actual company is doing to be sustainable. It is often a link that is called “sustainability”. IKEA, for example, show their consumers which objectives that they focus on and in what time it is supposed to be achieved.

The consumer can also read the whole strategy that IKEA has developed in

sustainability (IKEA, 2020). IKEA is a large retailer and not every retailer can have employees develop this kind of information for consumers, but the more information that is available for the consumer, the more reliable the company gets. This large retailer is not only promoting how sustainable they are through their website, but also in store and in their marketing. The need of reliability is very important to get

satisfied and loyal consumers, therefore it can be a problem for other retailers to compete with this kind of openness (Simplesat, 2020). Retailers may not be able to show their consumers how sustainable they are if they do not market this.

Sustainability is not a temporary challenge for a retailer that will emerge one day to disappear the next day (Idowu, Kasum & Mermod, 2014). Retailers will need to consider how to get different stakeholders needs and values to line up with the business (Henrique & Richardson, 2004). There are diffuse indicators on how to make progress and change, the retailer’s values may be different from those of the stakeholders. These may be in line for a time but can change, finding and spotting trends can also be a challenge for retailers since they need to understand different stakeholders’ and their needs and values. Retailers need to be aware and ready to compete with other retailers, to reach consumers (Elkington, 1994). To understand consumers’ needs can help with becoming competitive (Savitz, 2013). The

challenges for retailers are to listen to consumers and try to see the changes over time.

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There is a discussion about differences between retailers in different sizes and how they are working towards TBL. Research shows that small and medium size retailers have advantage in the local community because they are part of that community and have a closer relationship therein (Idowu et al., 2014). There is an interest to know if the larger and smaller retailers have the same attitude on which different stakeholders are the most important and if they differ or not. There are many different sizes of retailers that can implement CSR (Kolja, 2010). The TBL explores how retailers should work to achieve sustainability, and Elkington (1994) state that sustainability with social, environmental and financial will be a tool for retailers to become competitive instead of focusing solely on finances. There is an interest to compare between the larger retailers and the smaller ones to find out the differences and similarities between them.

1.3 Research question Main question:

How do retailers work with sustainability and Circular Economy?

Sub question:

Does the size of a business matter, regarding Circular Economy?

1.4 Purpose

The purpose of this thesis is to understand how retailers work with sustainability and the possible incorporation of a Circular Economy model. Furthermore, this thesis aims to examine if there are any differences between large businesses in comparison to small businesses regarding their views and knowledge, as well as the degree of importance they put on becoming more sustainable. Understanding how retailers work with these topics today and highlighting their work will help future retailers with the incorporation and application of the topics.

1.5 Delimitations

This study is limited to the investigation of Circular Economy in retail even though the concept may be discussed from other perspectives in order to give as good as an understanding of the term as possible. Therefore, this study will focus on retailers, with the exception of one wholesaler that will give us some information about how the supply chain may be affected due to Circular Economy. Although some

companies have international extensions, this thesis will only focus on the Swedish market. In this thesis, consumers’ behaviour and perspectives will only be discussed and accounted for from a retailer's point of view. Various terms that help establish

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another will not be discussed in depth rather give a wide perception of the other term that it is helping explain.

1.6 Disposition

Table 1. Disposition table.

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2 LITERATURE REVIEW

For the literature review chapter, it will contain the theoretical framework. The framework will be about the main concepts in Circular Economy, sustainability and triple bottom line, where each of them will be defined and explained separately.

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2.1 Circular Economy

Su et al. (2013) argue that although Circular Economy has its roots in the 1960’s ecological and environmental thoughts the concept was not properly introduced until the 1990’s in Germany. According to Andersen (2007) a Circular Economy promotes the minimization of resources and the implementation of newer and more

environmentally friendly technologies. Many current sustainability paradigms are aiming towards being more effective with less resources and materials, however Esposito et al. (2018) argue that a Circular Economy further focuses on being a recuperative system due to its focus on maximizing products life cycles, all the way from sourcing to the consumption, including the supply chain. According to Sariatli (2017) a Circular Economy could be referred to as a system that maintains a products value and lifecycle longer, before turning it into waste. The more a product is reused the more it functions as a part of a Circular Economy causing it to ultimately be less harmful for the environment. The terms Circular Economy and sustainability are obtaining relevance such as with academia and with policymakers, however, and according to Geissdoerfer, Savaget, Bocken and Hultink (2017) the relationship between the concepts is yet to be efficiently explained in literature.

As earlier mentioned, in the first chapter (1.2), the combined environmental economy models that has been brought to life during the last four decades have been

designated the name of school of thoughts and according to Weetman (2017) there are five models that more specifically have help construct the current Circular Economy model: The Performance Economy, Natural Capitalism, Industrial Ecology, Blue Economy, and Cradle to Cradle.

The Performance Economy, or Functional Service Economy focuses on selling performance, meaning services, internalizing costs and managing existing wealth (Stahel, 2008; Weetman, 2017). Stahel (2008) argue that the primary economic aspiration of the performance economy is to obtain the maximum possible use value for the largest possible amount of time while reducing the consumption of resources such as materials and energy for as long as possible. Weetman (2017) acknowledges that the preferred approach in order to achieve it is through the combination of system design, innovations in the technical and commercial area developing business

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models and extending the life cycle of the services. According to Stahel (2008) there are three prominent indicators of measuring success in a performance economy. The first one being production performance where the creation of wealth in relation to the consumption of resources is measured. The second indicator is performance

management where the creation of new available jobs in relation to the consumption of resources is measured. The third, and final, indicator is selling performance where the achievement of higher competitiveness without externalizing costs is measured.

In accordance with Kuo and Hsiao (2008) Natural Capitalism is a blueprint for a new economy that is groundbreaking and that may end up in a new industrial revolution.

Kuo and Hsiao (2008) further argue that Natural Capitalism is a framework which objective is to define and describe a process to associate institutions such as

businesses within the flow of natural cycles. Weetman (2017) explains it as a system where interests of businesses overlap with environmental interests in order for companies to simultaneously be able to improve profits while having a positive impact on the environment. The economic model that is the Natural Capitalism builds upon recognizing the relationship between human productivity and natural capital (Kuo & Hsiao, 2008). According to Ambrey, Fleming and Manning (2016) natural capital offer a multitude of services to the ecosystem that support humans in ways such as with resources and nutrition. Weetman (2017) further explains that natural capital cover natural resources as well as ecological systems that not only provide support for human life but for all living organisms. Natural Capitalism has four core principles. The first principle is to argument the productivity of natural resources. The second principle argues for the usage of materials and models that are biologically inspired by, such as closed-loop models. The third principle is to

develop business models that deliver value as a continuous service flow. The fourth, and last, principle is to continue investing in natural capital (Weetman, 2017).

The Industrial Ecology primarily focuses on product design and manufacturing processes considering businesses to be fundamental to the environmental

improvement, due to the technological qualities and expertise that they possess in order to successfully design and manufacture products and processes in an

environmentally friendly manner (Ayres & Ayres, 2002). The aim of the Industrial Ecology as defined by Bourg, Erkman & Chirac (2003) is to understand the

behaviour of societies, the intertwined processes and value chains as well as the exchange of materials and energy with the environment. Weetman (2017) further concludes that industrial ecology help businesses and aims to substitute the

utilization of resources from being implicit to explicit. Ultimately, the preservation of materials that are embedded in products is an important trait of industrial ecology.

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The Blue Economy is an economy model first introduced by Gunter Pauli in 2010 according to Bargh (2014) which is a model that focuses on nature and the intent of mimic nature in the product creation as well as processes. Weetman (2017) discussed that gravity is the main source of energy in a Blue Economy where solar energy is considered as the second renewable fuel and water the primary solvent. The Blue Economy defines wealth as diversity and argues that waste does not exist in such economy model, that any product can be used as the source of a new product.

According to Weetman (2017) a Blue Economy has two main topics: “substituting something with nothing” and “cascading nutrients and energy”.

The Cradle to Cradle concept was first introduced by William McDonough and Dr.

Michael Braungart in 2002 in their book titled Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the way we make things (Contreras-Lisperguer, Muñoz-Cerón, Aguilera & de la Casa, 2017;

Weetman, 2017). Cradle to Cradle production implies a circular model that uses materials indefinitely. Products are designed to minimize negative environmental impacts, such as pollution, during its entire life cycle. Contreras-Lisperguer et al.

(2017) argue for three main principles. The first principle is that there is no such thing that is considered to be waste. Waste is seen as resources, meaning that it can be reused or repurposed without diminishing its value. The second principle is to power with renewable energy and maximize it, solar energy. The third principle is to maximize quality through the management of water ultimately providing healthier ecosystems that will enhance sustainability. The aim of the Cradle to Cradle approach is to achieve an eco-effective economy model (Weetman, 2017).

2.1.1 Reuse

Geissdoerfer et al. (2017) describe reuse as it can slow down the use of material and is one of many building parts of a Circular Economy. According to Castellani, Sala and Mirabella (2015) reuse can lead the product cycle to become longer without having to upgrade the already used product before placing it on the market again.

Ghisellini et al. (2015) argue that in a Circular Economy reuse needs to be prioritized since it is a fundamental part in succeeding with sustainability. Castellani et al.

(2015) further argue that there are socioeconomic benefits by implementing reuse because it requires less energy, resources and labor will be achieve. Ghisellini et al.

(2015) also concluded that reuse requires less resources and it is a choice that retailers can work towards.

According to Castellani et al. (2015) to bring out awareness from consumers and local policy makers, stores need to communicate in some ways. There can be a

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communication campaign in a neighbourhood that addresses the environmental benefits that can create awareness. For consumers, there is more than the

environmental aspect, they can save money on second-hand purchases. There has also been an upswing about not all second-hand is for charity, but it has developed to a commercial sector. Machado, de Almeida, Bollick and Braganolo (2019) consider that consumers will contribute to the Circular Economy and also be a decisive factor for the development of second-hand since it is consumers that are the market and the suppliers.

2.1.2 Reduce

When researching about Circular Economy it is important to be able to differentiate the different terms and concepts associated with it, one of those, being reduce. In accordance with Goyal, Esposito & Kapoor (2018) reduce/reduction in a Circular Economy refers to the involvement undertaking the product, process, or business model innovation to replace the consumption of non-renewable raw materials by biodegradable, renewable, or recyclable resources while creating new products. Su et al. (2012) mean that reduction refers to minimizing the input of primary energy and raw materials through the improvement of production efficiency. Esposito et al.

(2017) further argue that changing from todays linear model to a Circular Economy model could lead to a reduction of new raw materials by 32% within a time span of 15 years, 53%, more than half, by 2050. Sooner than later, the introduction of a Circular Economy model will be out of necessity and not by choice considering that it provides the guidance necessary to permanently reduce the dependency on the limited natural resources.

What is also a widely discussed subject is waste management. According to Romero- Hernández and Romero (2018) the global economy produces more than one billion tons of solid waste each year, composed primarily of paper, plastics, metals, organics and other by-products. Romero-Hernández and Romero (2018) argue that yet there are not enough efforts in order to maximize the potential value of solid waste through the 3R’s and the creation of a closed-loop economy is an opportunity to maximize the use value of materials. Circular Economy principles have the potential to significantly reduce the global use of natural resources despite the ever-growing population. Ghisellini et al. (2015) argue that many countries adopting a circular economy model are mainly focusing on the waste management leaving out the other fundamental principles within Circular Economy.

Zaman and Lehmann (2013) describe waste as a symbol of inefficiency and a representation of misallocated resources and that although there has been a

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significant progress in reducing waste, it varies from city to city. Hence the

development of the zero-waste city concept. According to Hoornweg and Bhada-Tata (2012) the world’s cities generated approximately 1.3 billion tons of solid waste per year, and by 2025 it is expected to increase to 2.2 billion tons. Zaman and Lehmann (2013) argue that zero waste is about designing and managing products and

processes systematically in order to avoid and eliminate waste and to recover all resources of the waste stream, meaning that products should not transform not unnecessary or unwanted waste at any point of its life cycle.

Ghisellini et al. (2015) further argue that reduction aims to minimize the input of waste through improving the production efficiency, the so-called eco-efficiency, and consumption processes. Figge, Young and Barkemeyer (2014) means that the end goal of eco-efficiency and its strategies is to be able to absolutely reduce the environmental pressures from emissions and the resource consumption. From a company’s point of view Ma, Hu, Chen and Zhu (2014) argue that the

implementation of a Circular Economy based on eco-efficiency is to move toward a more sustainable economy. Ma et al. (2014) further discuss that reduction of waste and its environmental impacts can, in certain circumstances, result in a development of resource productivity, ultimately being able to create a competitive advantage.

Therefore, eco-efficiency should be considered as a long-term goal for sustainable development. However, Figge et al. (2014) argue that eco-efficiency reflects the output, or return created relative to the harm, or burden caused. Increased resource use is a possible outcome of increased eco-efficiency leading to a rebound effect, meaning that the additional resources used exceed the resources saved through eco- efficiency.

Aboulamer (2017) argue that other than society and the global population in general, companies will benefit from the introduction of Circular Economy and especially the introduction of waste management systems. Not only will these companies be

recognized for their contribution to a more sustainable business model but also from the monetary compensation that shareholders will retain through the increase in the value of their equity value (Aboulamer, 2017).

2.1.3 Recycle

The concept “recycle” means turning waste into resources to be able to decrease the negative effect on the environment (Ghisellini et al., 2015). Consumers are taking the climate change and the need of recycling seriously. According to Wheeler and

Glucksmann (2013) there can be seen an increase in recycling. Although, there is room to get even better at it. Recycling is just one of many parts in a Circular

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Economy. Although recycling is more circular than, for example, reuse, in the circular economy perspective (Ghisellini et al., 2015).

One example is studying the fashion industry, where there is a big increase in consumption in the last years (Vries, 2011). It is not only the consumption that is increasing, but the recycling of clothes and interest in how clothes are made from recycled materials is also increasing (Vehmas, Raudaskoski, Heikkilä, Harlin &

Mensonen, 2018). Morgan and Birtwistle (2009) conducted a study on young women between the ages of seventeen and twenty-five, and came to the conclusion that the young females do not have enough knowledge to be aware of the importance of recycling and to not consume as much fast-fashion that it is purchased today.

Therefore, it is important for retailers to market and inform especially young consumers about the consequences of consuming too much and not recycling the purchases after. The recycling level of textiles are almost 100% recyclable (Hvass, 2014).

According to Vehmas et al. (2018) textiles that are ending up as waste and not being recycled is a growing problem. Consumers are better at giving their used fashion wears to charity, but there is a problem. Not all clothes and shoes that are given to charity can be reused. Consumers need to be more aware about what to donate and what to recycle. It is a fact that the natural resources are rapidly decreasing and therefore retailers need to involve the consumers more, and make them recycle what they bought, instead of just throwing it out. Although consumers are still learning how to recycle and not every consumer does it at all, it has increased together with the consumption (Vehmas et al., 2018).

A lot more people recycle, although the most common products to recycle are not textiles, but paper, plastic, glass and cans (Thomas & Sharp, 2013). In accordance with Vehmas et al. (2018) consumers are accommodating the new circular clothing phenomenon, and what it will bring out to them. Circular clothing will make the waste of textile fibers to new clothes and consumers would throw their old textiles at waste container just like they do when they recycle other materials. Since the climate change has a big impact, the recycling has become a social pressure, some consumers claim that they feel the pressure of recycling since it became a social norm. Vehmas et al. (2018) also argue that to make consumers more aware, it should become consumers’ knowledge what the products they recycle are doing for the environment and what the impact does when not recycling.

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There are also more advantages from recycling besides the environmental and reduction of natural materials. New products can be made to a higher value at the market, this is referred to as upcycling (Paras, Curteza & Varshenya, 2019). There is the possibility that new products are being made of the same waste but has a lower value at the market after, this is referred to as down cycling.

Many retailers give the opportunity to their consumers to return the bought product when it is no longer in use for them. The retailer gets the opportunity to then either recycle the product to be able to make new products or reuse the products by, for example, selling them again (Azadivar & Ordoobadi, 2012).

2.2 Sustainability in retail & supply chain

In the concept sustainability, an important name is Brundtland and the Brundtland Report. Gro Harlem Brundtland is a Norwegian woman that was prime minister and were involved with the commission for environment and development created by FN (Grankvist, 2012). The Brundtland Report has a notification about justice between generations (Frostenson, Hasche, Helin & Prenkert, 2017). The rapport was produced mainly to confront the challenges of climate change, equity and profit (Bansal, 2002;

Bansal, Gao & Qureshi, 2014; Hart & Dowell 2011). The Brundtland report was produced from the United Nations (UN) in 1987 (Grankvist, 2012).

It is important that the economy keep on growing as it has in the last seven decades, so that unemployment does not increase, but the economy has to grow with benefits for the global aspects (Collier, 2007). Without these benefits or awareness of climate change, the world will not survive this kind of growth. This is because of climate changes as mentioned in the background chapter. To have a sustainable business there needs to be focus on three big departments, the social, the environmental and the economical (Grankvist, 2012). According to Grankvist (2012:16), a sustainable working model has a lot to do with responsibility, arguing that “it does not matter how much responsibility you take, if you do not make any money you cannot take any responsibility”. It only relocated to the ecology aspect years later. Johnson, Everard, Santillo and Robèrt (2007) estimated that there are approximately 300 definitions of sustainability and that the definition of the term has been weakened throughout the years because of the large number of definitions.

Another important definition in the finance business of sustainability is

“environmental and social governance” (ESG) it means environmental and social steering (Grankvist, 2012). It is used a lot in finance business and how business should have principles about its steering. ESG is more about minimizing risks than

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maximizing possibilities. McMichael, Butler and Folke (2003) argue that

sustainability, for human populations, means transforming the human lifestyle in order to maximize the likelihood that environmental and social conditions will continuously support security, well-being, and health. Although the term

sustainability has been around for some time, it is a very relevant and trending topic in today's society, affecting a large number of people in different fields, such as marketing and in the supply chain (Chan, He & Wang, 2012). This includes both business to business (B2B) and business to consumers (B2C) fields. A traditional supply chain is a complex system with numerous tiers of suppliers and transport links traditional supply chains aims to balance cost and demands through optimization of forward flows, whereas reverse flows are seen only as to be inconvenient. Reverse flows occur when a product is returned due to malfunctions or when the product is unwanted. Due to the eventual reverse flows, retailers are forced to adjust and adapt to support these flows (Weetman, 2017). According to Giannakis and Papadopoulos (2016) risk with the traditional supply chain include capacity constraints, dependency of suppliers and changes done to products. Weetman (2017) further argue that these supply chains are long and complex and that there is a lack of transparency due to retailers not being completely sure about all of the actors that have been involved in the supply chain.

In accordance with Weetman (2017) for retailers the supply chain will reach far beyond the sales point as well as the introduction challenges and complexity, including engaging with the end user in order to successfully maintain the product, finding ways to expand a products life cycle and engaging with partners and customers in order to exchange products. The network design of the supply chain will also change and evolve as the businesses implement the circular flow as well as transitions to another economy model (Weetman, 2017).

It has become clear to most retailers that the strive for sustainability is a must in today's society (Sun, Wu & Yang, 2018). According to Sun et al. (2018) different retailers uses different eco-systems to achieve a higher value among competitors.

The higher value comes out of consumers perspective, since consumers value a strong sustainable company in front of a non-sustainable company it is important for retailers to let their consumers know about their principles about sustainability (Grankvist, 2012). What is more important is to be humble when retailers market their sustainability, if it comes out like bragging, it has shown that it will give opposite effect to consumers. According to Grankvist (2012) it is a waste of resources if the communication about sustainability to consumers and potential consumers ends up with the perception of bragging.

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A retailer can benefit a lot from creating a sustainable value, both employees and consumers can find data about almost any company now days and therefore, it is becoming more important to create this value (Laszlo, 2003). When value is created the next step is to maintain the value, involved parties should be dedicated so that it leads to innovations in different areas that can lead to new values. These involved parties can also be called stakeholders (Galpin & Hebard, 2019). There are external stakeholders and internal stakeholders. The internal stakeholders are, for example, the management of the company and its employees. The external stakeholders consist of consumers, partners, suppliers and investors. When value is created, it is easier to achieve loyalty from the consumers, this is shown by a study made by He &

Lai (2014). The study also showed how consumers value sustainable products.

According to Hart (2007), it took companies thirty years after the Brundtland report was created to understand that companies can benefit the environment and make profit at the same time. Before the year of 2000, companies were still using risks if they tried to go sustainable, or green.

According to Schneider and Meins (2012) it is more likely for retailers to have less sustainability the larger the retailer is, however, larger retailers also have several benefits through, for example, the inclusion of larger resource and sustainability departments. This concludes that the size of the company can matter in this area.

When a company has employees that have responsibility in the sustainable area, it is important that there is an open communication to employees that do not have the same responsibility (Brønn & Brønn, 2003). This is because everyone in the company needs to understand the company’s sustainable strategies to be able to achieve the future goals. According to Brønn and Brønn (2003) it is important to focus on the management and work from there. Even though Schneider and Meins (2012) means that the size of the company matters how sustainable the company is, Elliot and Webster (2017) means that regarding size of the company, today a company must be sustainable.

People have different meanings about if the e-commerce is more or less sustainable than traditional retailers and a lot of impacts matters when arguments are held between consumers and retailers about this (Frostenson et al., 2017). It might be that environment is the most known and talked about area when it comes to e-commerce and according to Sui and Rejeski (2002), there are three effects that stand out for this area. The three effects are (1) dematerialization, meaning that literature, for example, becomes digital and have a positive effect on the environment, (2) decarbonization which is the decreased requirement of physical stores etc. that can in turn also be

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positive on the climate change and (3) demobilization which is the decrease of consumers’ needs of transportation. Some people argue against this with arguments such as, just because of the decrease of the consumers transportations, does not mean that the retailers transportations decreases (Matthews, Hendrickson & Soh, 2001).

According to Williams and Tagami (2003) there is hesitance in the packaging field, since some people argue that it is being used more materials for packaging in e- commerce than in traditional stores, this speaks for a positive sustainable aspect for traditional retailers. These are all arguments pro and con against environment, but not to forget the e-commerce affects the social part as well. To achieve a sustainable e-commerce there need to be trustworthiness and reliability between consumers and the retailers, in this case it might be easier to achieve this in traditional stores, but is an important aspect within e-commerce as well (Brown & Muchira, 2004). E- commerce and sustainability in the social area focus a lot on integrity and security.

There are both positive and negative outcomes of sustainability in e-commerce and some of them are mentioned above. Depending on who is asked, same arguments will occur in both positive and negative aspects. Frostenson et al. (2017) mention both sides of this and argue that a negative aspect is the decreased possibility of reclaims since there is a longer procedure in this matter than visit a local retailer and return the item in matter. There are many possibilities for both e-commerce and traditional retailers when it comes to choices about being more sustainable (Frostenson et al., 2017).

Some of the choices retailers can do is to choose locally produced products and influence their suppliers to work with more sustainable materials, to make value of this, not only for environment reasons, retailers can market and inform their

consumers about what they are doing for a better society. When delivering products to consumers, especially in e-commerce retailers can choose to work with delivery firms that deliver more products at the same time, instead of one product at the time (Frostenson et al., 2017). The e-commerce retailers can also choose to have “pick-up stations” where consumers can get their own orders if this ends in more sustainable.

In accordance with Graedel (2003) one third of the worlds production of plastic was used in packaging products, which can be a bad marketing for e-commerce’s.

Although most of these packaging products are used by B2B. There are different kinds of packaging, (1) primary packaging, where the packaging comes in contact with the actual product, for example. the bag that the chips comes in, (2) secondary packaging, for example, the box that the shoes are delivered in, and lastly, (3) tertiary packaging, which is the main packaging like the container the products are shipped in (Graedel, 2003). There needs to be thought about what kind of packaging is

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needed for each product. To maintain a sustainable value, like mentioned, there must be a strive to become better in this area.

To achieve sustainability, companies usually go to the TBL concept (Brønn &

Brønn, 2019). Other concepts that can be used with the same aim as sustainability is corporate social responsibility (CSR) (Galpin & Hebard, 2019). There is one thing that differ sustainability from other concepts and that is a time dimension (Grankvist, 2012). Time dimension is relevant in both consumers perspective when purchasing products and in retailers’ perspective when producing products.

2.3 Triple Bottom Line

The triple bottom line (TBL) is three different sustainable developments;

environmental-, social-, and economic problems/worries at retailers (Gimenez et al., 2012; Tang et al., 2013). These three areas are included as responsibilities in the term sustainability. A retailer that do not have a deep knowledge about sustainability and what it stands for, will only see sustainability as a distraction of time and from their main purpose and goals (Savitz, 2013). The TBL focus for retailers is to achieve economic profits when taking responsibility for the business social- and

environmental concerns (Gimenez et al., 2012).

Original bottom line is about profit (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). Economic sustainability (profit) is area in the TBL and is about how a business can maintain a healthy economy over time (Wilson, 2015). The environmental responsibilities can, for example be products made from recycled material, or responsibilities regarding the planet (Gimenez et al., 2012). According to Henriques and Richardson (2004) there are seven different sustainability revolutions that has occurred when

implementing TBL. These are market, values, transparency, life-cycle technology, partnerships, time and corporate governance. The market will expand and

competitors becoming more aggressive and competitive than they were before. The retailer will need to analyse the situations and adopt to survive in a competitive market. Henriques and Richardson (2004) argue that consumer and the financial market is already evaluating retailers TBL performance and commitments to

understand the retailers’ stand in the matter. Sustainability should flow through both economic, social and environmental concerns to bring in a competitive advantage to retailers (Elkington, 1994). In accordance with Wilson (2015) sustainable

competitive opportunities emerge for retailers that identify the sustainability as an advantage and implement different strategies to reach sustainability goals.

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Henriques and Richardson (2004) argue that the retailer can only analyse TBL over a long time and not regard the market in the short term. Short-term sustainability will sometimes cost more for stakeholder and retailer, but if a retailer is in it for the long- term, they can turn sustainability to a profitable advantage (Savitz, 2013). Glavas and Mish (2014) argue that the TBL more than the economic benefits, is difficult to change when it is not clear on how to change. The retailer should be prepared to find patterns and changes in the market and to make appropriate adjustments (Henriques

& Richardson, 2004). According to Elkington (1994) retailers should focus on sustainability by bringing in environmental conscious stakeholders and change the sole purpose from economic benefits to a sustainable TBL focus.

In accordance with Savitz (2013) retailers that are implementing TBL should start small and build themselves up. Try to understand consumers’ needs, wants and values, because they have sustainability issues, they care about and are passionate for (Savitz, 2013). Since consumers often take their values as something given, if they think about it at all (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). Values are important for a retailer since they need to know what values are important for consumers and other stakeholders. If the retailer’s values do not match the stakeholders’ or consumers’, they may choose a different retailer. According to Glaser (2006) retailers’

relationships with stakeholders will be harmed from poor performance with TBL.

This makes it important to work with all the stakeholders, and make sure the suppliers satisfy all demands and their views are in line with retailers’ (Savitz, 2013).

If a retailer already has TBL advantages they should move forward and try to bring aboard competitors to do the same with creating competitive advantages and move forward with new effective ways to work towards TBL approach (Savitz, 2013).

Retailers should build on their current skill set and do not spread themselves too thin.

If a retailer focuses on a specific effort in sustainability, they will produce a better and a more meaningful result faster. It will also be better if a retailer can make a forecasting in a way to understand where consumers are heading and try to see new opportunities. Another important stakeholder is the retailer’s employees since they can be, in the right circumstances, a great source of ideas and inspirations (Savitz, 2013).

In all the TBL aspects there will be a need to strive towards sustainability (Henriques

& Richardson, 2004). TBL is not a series of performance targets to be achieved but instead should be understood by studying different patterns that occurs in the market for retailers. Retailers should use a qualitative process of sustainable system, such as

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diversity, learning, adaptation and self-organization (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). Idowu et al. (2014) argue that only focus on economic aspect of making profit instead of CSR focus will only lead to not being concerned about social, and

environmental impacts, and how they impact on society and environment, and business strategy, and long-term profitability. According to Idowu et al. (2014) impacts in society and the role retailers take when developing their sustainability will be impacted by CSR. According to Capaldi (2005) to measure what CSR will bring to light cost and benefit advantages and the importance of asking two questions as the retailer work towards CSR. Are the CSR consistent and connected with the retailer’s other performances; and are they in line with the bottom line (economy), they will then make the shareholders’ values towards the retailer increase (Capaldi, 2005).

According to Capaldi (2005) CSR is for the long-term to serve investors values in an indirect way in both social and political aspects. Retailers must think of improving the welfare of the area they are located in and not the aspect maximizing profit (Glaser, 2006). This inclines according to Glavas and Mish (2014) that when a TBL business demonstrate that an alternative model is possible, a retailer will be free to choose their own purpose. TBL concept of sustainability have had some success to reach retailers and shareholders, to implement some of the sustainability language into their businesses (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). For TBL to become successful there is a need to integrate the physical and financial activities of a retailer

(Henriques & Richardson, 2004). To reach a sustainable approach for stakeholders, mapping out what issues and which issues are important for stakeholders will help retailers figure out which TBL approach the concerns is about and which to improve and change.

TBL will work if retailers work to change with society and environment (Fauzi et al., 2010). For a retailer to bring the message of new values to their different

stakeholders they need to become open and transparent in their operations and their impact they have on the social and environmental aspects in TBL (Henriques &

Richardson, 2004). According to Kolja (2010) retailer’s trustworthiness is affected by how transparent the business is about their CSR and their work towards a sustainable TBL. CSR will add advantages on explaining real world events, transparency with no bribery or corruption (Capaldi, 2005). This transparency is driven by new information technology for example, social media (Henriques &

Richardson 2004). Social media platforms will help a retailer to spread their

messages (Jacques, 2010). All kinds of sizes of retailers can work to implement CSR (Kolja, 2010). Small and medium sized retailers have an advantage in the local

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community they are operating in since they are locally based and is in a closer relationship with the community (Idowu et al., 2014). According to Idowu et al.

(2014) retailers that are trying to implement and work with environmental concerns can make a profit and if the retailer succeeds, they can increase consumers and their loyalty towards the retailer.

In accordance with Kolja (2010) CSR will be a tool for retailers to use to improve their reputation in the eyes of consumers. They can for example work towards recycling, reducing and reuse of products and services, this will contribute to

consumers values towards becoming more sustainable will increase and retailers can increase their profit (Idowu et al., 2014). According to Kolja (2010) it is not only retailers’ reputation towards consumers that will improve, but also retailer’s

reputation with future- and already existing employees will improve and can lead to improved job satisfaction and higher productivity. The retailers that work with CSR and the environmental issue will make an impact on resources used from nature (Idowu et al., 2014). When a retailer fails to improve TBL they risk a negative reputation that will harm their business, with decrease in market shares (Kolja, 2010). If a retailer is implementing different environmental tools, they can ensure a better position in the market. For example, different environmental tools are lifecycle assessment and costs, environmental management standards, eco-labelling, these are some of the tools that can be used (Idowu et al., 2014).

According to Henriques and Richardson (2004) partnerships implies on how to collaborate with other businesses. Retailers will have to work together with others to build up trust with consumers, a partnership is needed to work with competitors on new technology. The retailer will reach a competitive advantage against competitors when building trust with stakeholders (Wilson, 2015). CSR is a good tool retailer can use when trying to get a better competitive advantage or if they want to increase demand of the key stakeholders (Idowu et al., 2014).

Time is money, and time is short (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). With technology news about a retailer’s conducts can travel around the world in a short amount of time, this will make it important for retailers to conduct themselves. Sustainability enhances profitability and protect retailers from TBL risks (Savitz, 2013). According to Henriques and Richardson (2004) corporate governance is responsible for TBL and its following through. In accordance with Glaser (2006) when determine the relationship between organizational strategy and corporate responsibility in TBL the environmental and social responsibility are fundamental aspects between these relationships. From being exclusive to becoming inclusive and question rises on

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which stakeholders should be included in the process and decisions. With better governance, the better sustainability system can be built (Henriques & Richardson, 2004).

In a strategic decision process management must be responsible and ethical when deciding which TBL element should be present in the strategy or not (Glaser, 2006).

When trying to change CSR performance TBL should be imperative, depict a picture of reality and explain how something should be to influence top management to follow regulations and guidelines (Glaser, 2006). It will become when sustainability will be implemented into retailers’ core business and that these aspects is relevant for the market (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). According to Tang et al. (2013) retailers working towards goals for TBL will lead to better profit, healthier planet and greater benefits for stakeholders.

2.4 Conceptual framework

The conceptual framework, in this thesis, is presented as a figure made to explain the how concepts used and the relationship between them. Circular Economy is the main theme and subject of this thesis and is therefore surrounding all other subjects. When narrowing it down the next subject that is presented is sustainability and the supply chain which further will lead into the Triple Bottom Line. The research questions and the purpose of this thesis has to do with how Circular Economy works in retail, and in order to be able to answer the questions there is a need to initially understand the surrounding subjects.

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Figure 1. Conceptual framework.

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3 METHODOLOGY

For this chapter, there will be conducted a methodological framework. This chapter will present what approaches have been chosen and how the research has been conducted. Relevant considerations as well as a method criticism will also be presented in this chapter. Lastly, an explanation of what every author has done individually to contribute on this thesis will be presented.

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3.1 Deductive approach

There are different kinds of approaches that can be used in a thesis. Inductive-, abductive- and deductive approach. The inductive approach starts with the

researchers’ findings and then compare it to the already existing theory, for example, secondary research in peer-reviewed articles e.g. (Bryman, 2016). The inductive approach also makes the researcher conduct the empirical findings, such as interviews or surveys before the research. An abductive approach is a mix of both inductive- and deductive approach.

The approach that this thesis will eventuate in a deductive approach. A deductive approach includes researching on existing data/theory and then make hypothesis about what the primary data will contribute with (Bryman & Bell, 2013). A deductive research is the most appropriate one for this thesis because although the subject is very highly current today, it has been made studies of it before. The search of relevant peer-reviewed articles is what started this thesis. This approach will bring researcher to collect what is known about the subject and the theoretical approaches in the research area and to prove or disprove the hypothesis (Bryman & Bell, 2013).

When searching for information about a wide subject, is it important to narrow down the research questions, a too wide subject will make the research harder to research.

A deductive research helps in this way because it is a wide subject, existing knowledge can help the researchers to draw conclusions of logic (Ghauri &

Grønhaug, 2010). Collecting information from several peer-reviewed articles

together with discussions, other references and literature were the main method used, which also applies to a deductive approach. When searching for relevant theoretical information, keywords were “sustainability, eco, green, Circular Economy, linear economy, triple bottom line, economy and retail”. After finding secondary research in peer-reviewed articles and literature, the search for empirical material was conducted. Through searching both theoretical and empirical material the research moved along. The literature has provided insight on previous studies research results and analysis of materials has been done.

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3.2 Qualitative approach

There are also two different methods to use when writing a thesis, either the authors choose to use a quantitative- or a qualitative method. Researchers can also choose to do a mixed method, where the researchers use both methods. This type of method is not the most used, since it requires a lot more work than using one method

(Denscombe, 2014). A quantitative method is used with measures of the theory in matter (Bryman, 2016). Measures can be made in several ways, but one example is through surveys. Since a quantitative method uses measurements, there needs to be made calculations of the data perceived, for example, spread of data, mean and chi- square tests (Denscombe, 2014).

In this thesis, the authors have chosen to do a qualitative research approach to gather the research material. A qualitative method is constituted with words instead of numbers (Denscombe, 2014). A qualitative method is about the empirical material and differ from the quantitative method in the way that it is not as structured as it is in the quantitative method. The gathering will be done with questions through semi- structured interviews of five different retailers and one wholesaler in Sweden. The interviews will be semi-structured, which means that when the interviews are being held the authors have prepared an interview guide with open-ended questions (Bryman, 2016). This makes the respondents answer in their own words. The interviews were about how the retailers and wholesaler observed Circular Economy and more specific how they use and implement, sustainability, reduce, reuse, recycle and triple bottom line. Face-to-face interviews was the preferred choice, but since the pandemic, Covid-19, the safety had to come first and therefore, the interviews were held over telephone calls and email. When the interviews were made over telephone, the interview was recorded, with the approval of the respondent. This gives the interviewer the opportunity to transcribe the data, which we have done. It is

important to do the interviews at a place where no interruption is occured and where the respondent easily can hear the respondent (Denscombe, 2014).

Another matter that the authors of this thesis had in mind, were for how long the interviews were going to be. It has been proven that an interview should be at least 25 minutes long, which was easy to achieve. Almost every interview in this research were at least 25 minutes and most were 35 minutes or longer. This means that the interviews that were held over telephone had great understanding and good follow up questions. The respondent had time to think before they answered and the one who interviewed could adapt the follow up questions to the current respondent. A

qualitative method was the most appropriate method for this thesis, since the theory provides data about retailers, it made it easier to compare the empirical findings

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throughout semi-structured interviews, where the retailers (and one wholesaler) can describe their thoughts in their own words.

3.3 Research design

The research design will be about how the blueprint for collection, measurement, and data analysis of how the research was conducted (Dhawan, 2010). There is according to Bryman and Bell (2013) five different types of research design: experimental, cross-section, longitudinal, case study and comparative design. A cross section research design will be conducted in this research, since this can be used in

qualitative research with in-depth interview approach, of a small sample size, with semi-structured flexibility and open-ended questions and purpose that will build a deeper understanding for retailers’ sustainability approach (Bryman & Bell, 2013).

The cross-section research design is researching variation for different retailers to receive differentiation and variation in a timeframe and to connect patterns between different retailers. The timeframe was between 6th of May to 12th of May 2020 which made it a short timeframe. The timeframe could be longer, but since the pandemic made it more difficult for the authors to gather respondents and when enough respondents approved their participation, the interviews were scheduled immediately. It was important for the authors to hold the interviews as soon as possible, to be able to have the empirical- and analysis chapter ready in time. The experimental design is about supervising different kinds of experiments that are usually done in quantitative research. While the longitudinal study is used to study changes and effects over time, however, it will not be suitable for this research because of the given timeframe. The last one is comparative design is to make interviews with two or more cases and comparison between the cases (Bryman &

Bell, 2013).

3.3.1 Multiple case study design

A single case study design is often used in unstructured interviewing and

observations of respondents (Bryman, 2016). Since the authors of this thesis have chosen a qualitative research, with semi-structured interviews, and several

organizations, this will be called a multiple case design. There are advantages with case studies, like the details you achieve from it (Kumar, 2014). The focus is limited to the selected cases and therefore, it is more in depth when collecting information.

Disadvantages can be that it is harder to analyse the information. Multiple case studies are seen as a development of the traditional case study, where there is only one case (Bryman & Bell, 2013). A multiple case study design is mainly used to compare different cases with each other. With six different cases, the authors have the opportunity to compare the cases with each other.

Circular Economy, the future economy model for retailers Bachelor Degree Thesis