Green (Cosmetics) Is the New Black: A Tale of Two Countries

Increased awareness for social and environmental welfare has created a desire for greener and ethical lifestyle, inducing a change in consumer behaviour towards greener product preferences. Despite consumers’ increasing demand towards green cosmetics, limited research has been conducted to investigate consumers’ attitude and intention toward green cosmetics. Applying the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), this research aims to examine the factors that influence the consumers’ attitude and purchase intention towards green cosmetics across two socio-economically different markets – Australia and South Africa. The research will also investigate the moderating role of consumers’ environmental knowledge on the relationship between attitude and purchase intention. This study will adopt a quantitative methodology and sampling frame of female consumers who have been identified as the most potential consumers for green cosmetics. The findings of this research will contribute to a better understanding of the green consumption behavior from both academic and managerial perspectives.