Trend: Lohas

LOHAS is an acronym that stands for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability. By now, LOHAS Consumers (or Cultural Creatives) represent 30% of all adults in the US, or about 63 million consumers. They value health, the environment, social justice, personal development and sustainable living. Right now these kind of goods and services make a revenue of about $226.8 billion in the US.

In the US the term „Organic“ has been a successful marketing strategy for years. With “Organic Style” female LOHAS even have their own magazine, which shows that eco-consciousness has nothing to do with long greasy hair and weird-looking sandals. LOHAS products do not only have to be sustainable but also beautiful and functional, like the “hightouch products and services” offered by the online-store www.fairplanet.com.

Examples are disposable forks and spoons made out of corn starch or a 100% biological yoga-pillow. The products range from organic skincare to holistic relaxation, social design and ethical chic. In June, the Fairtrade Foundation, an award-winning charity that promotes coffee, chocolate and bananas, is launching a fashion label that guarantees shoppers that cotton farmers in West Africa and India get a better deal. But also top designer like Katharine Hamnett or the sportswear giant Reebok have jumped on the LOHAS-wagon.

Another very successful example is the “Prius”, Toyotas hybrid-car. The waiting-list for the environmental super-vehicle is long. Stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, Charlize Theron and Sting, climbed out of a “Prius” instead of a limousine, when entering Oscar night. Other famous LOHAS are Madonna, Daryl Hannah, and fashion-designer Donna Karan.

To understand the LOHAS marketplace, companies have to grasp the interconnection of consumer values across product categories, the greater idea of a holistic lifestyle as a global and local citizen. Business opportunities range from the development of new products and to the invention of cleaner technologies. There are chances for like-minded industries to evolve new partnerships, like green hotels have done with the eco-travel industry.

Fairplanet

Fairtrade Foundation

Toyota prius

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