Creating a profile of the deposit refund system use in Greece and enhancing the system's efficiency

Abstract

The aim of this study is to create a profile of the Greek Deposit Refund System (DRS) users based on an examination and empirical analysis of their engagement at selected recycling points. Findings on the profile of the sustainable consumer in previous studies have been rather inconsistent. In this study, demographic characteristics and behaviors were examined. Furthermore, data was analyzed with the use of the Ascending Hierarchy Clustering (AHC) method, and five distinctive clusters of customers with common demographic characteristics and recycling behaviors were formed. The findings have practical implications for planning new business initiatives, optimizing existing ones, and enlarging the DRS user population. It considers the socio-economic backgrounds of DRS users, to increase the DRS user population, to increase recycle rates, and the overall community support for the system.