Brands and retailers are set to be given unprecedented insight into the sustainability appeal of their
products, thanks to a new data platform developed by the team behind the Impact Score ® app.
An independent platform, Clara™ rates the sustainability credentials of 280,000 UK supermarket
products. With shoppers’ goals at its centre, Clara™ tracks how products are developing against the
14 sustainability criteria that shoppers prioritise, and is now being made available to brands, to help
create and monitor their product-sustainability roadmaps.
Products are rated using the same system as the Impact Score ® app, which has been helping shoppers
buy more sustainable products since 2018. With over 80,000 UK downloads, the consumer-friendly
app has become a reliable indicator of the exact sustainability features shoppers look for. Packaging,
animal welfare, nutrition, palm oil and responsibly sourced products are some of the most commonly
recorded shopper concerns.
A staggering 83% of Impact Score ® app users changed their mind about buying a product after seeing
its sustainability rating.
Ian Yates, Co-founder of both the Impact Score ® app and the Clara™ platform, said, “Users of Impact
Score ® consistently told us that they wanted a mechanism to get brands and retailers to improve their
products. The best way for this to happen, is to open our Clara™ ratings platform, work directly with
the brands, and help them recognise where and how they need to improve.”
“Although the cost-of-living crisis may have pushed the topic of sustainability off the news agenda
recently, shoppers are continuing to demand more information about the products they buy and their
impact on the planet.”
Even before the unprecedented temperatures this week, Kantar was predicting half of shoppers would
be Eco Actives by the end of this decade – those highly concerned about the environment and taking
action to reduce their impact. Similarly, a Nielsen study shows 69% of today’s shoppers are craving
more information to help them contribute to a better planet. But sustainability is not just the
environment, health and nutrition remain a major concern. Almost 8 in 10 shoppers are demanding
more information about the impact products have on their family’s well-being.
But they are cynical about the level of meaningful change behind sustainability promises.
“Greenwashing is a problem and shoppers are wary”, said Josh Simpson joint Co-Founder of Impact
Score ® ). “In our own survey, 64% of shoppers said they do not trust a company to publish unbiased
data about itself.” Clara™ offers the independent validation to satisfy shoppers’ expectations and
needs.
“If we can help brands develop and sell more sustainable products, which in turn helps shoppers make
simple changes that are better for their families and the planet, then we all win. And while cost is a
key consideration right now, sustainable consumerism is only going in one direction, and companies
that delay are risking their future. They can’t market themselves out of this one.”
In the future, Clara™ will include product pricing and promotional data along with shopper
purchasing activity. Further enabling brands with insights across shoppers’ intent to action journey, at
a product level.
-Ends-
About Impact Score ®
Impact Score ® rates the sustainability credentials of over 100,000 businesses, 12,000 brands
and 280,000 supermarket products
More than 80,000 eco-conscious shoppers have downloaded the free app
In 2022, Impact Score ® won an Octopus Entrepreneur Award, judged by a panel of six
parliamentarians and entrepreneurs
For further information and FAQs go to: https://impactscore.app/ and https://impactscore.app/faqs/
Download additional images from: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1K_k-
SNRQm4JI1LdYruFS_MjjgBGpWnum
Ian Yates is available for interview, which can be arranged via Ian at [email protected]