Consumer and Citizen Perspectives on Sustainability in Last-mile Deliveries

Virva Tuomala, Anna Aminoff, Britta Gammelgaard

Research output: Contribution to conferenceConference abstract for conferenceResearchpeer-review

Abstract

Purpose: Consumers are a central stakeholder in last-mile deliveries (LMD), particularly with the increases in online ordering. However, consumers’ perspectives are not represented much in research regarding LMDs in urban areas. Therefore, this paper examines consumers’ perceptions regarding choices made for LMDs, sustainability (or lack) thereof and how increased deliveries impact urban space.
Design/methodology/approach: The data was collected through six qualitative focus groups of international university students. Wooclap tool was used to collect the students’ views on four different themes of urban LMDs. Discussions were recorded, transcribed and analysed through coding.
Findings: The results show that there is interest in sustainable options in LMDs, but consumers feel they are not given enough information to make informed choices. Convenience of deliveries, i.e. speed and price, as well as the option to choose a delivery time and/or location were considered important. The students were from four different universities in Canada, China, Denmark, and Finland, so where they were based influenced their responses.
Research limitations/implications (if applicable): This study was made with a predominantly young demographic. A similar study with a different age group may yield different results, so we hope to expand the study with additional data.
Originality: Consumer perspectives, choices, and demands have significant influence on choices companies make. The consequences of increased LMDs on urban space, particularly from a citizen point of view are rare and we explore this in the paper.
Original languageEnglish
Publication date2023
Publication statusPublished - 2023
EventThe 35th NOFOMA Conference 2023: Annual Nordic Logistics Research Network Conference - Helsinki – Espoo, Finland
Duration: 14 Jun 202316 Jun 2023
Conference number: 35
https://blogs.aalto.fi/nofoma2023/

Conference

ConferenceThe 35th NOFOMA Conference 2023
Number35
Country/TerritoryFinland
CityHelsinki – Espoo
Period14/06/202316/06/2023
Internet address

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