COMPETITIVENESS AND FINANCIAL RELATIONS IN THE GREEK BOTTLED WATER MANUFACTURING FIRMS

The bottled water sector in Greece exhibits particular characteristics. After a downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, investments are being made and strategic partnerships are developing, aiming both to increase their competitiveness and to choose the proper strategy for their development. On the other hand, competitiveness is a concept widely used and for that reason has occupied the literature a lot (Fischer & Schornberg, 2007). As a result, it holds great importance to identify and assess the factors that affect competitiveness, performing as a tool for the choice of the proper strategy (Chikán, Czakó, Kiss-Dobronyi, & Losonci, 2022). Of the two main ways for the competitiveness estimation, one with Michael Porter's diamond and the other one with the use of financial indexes, the second one was selected for this paper. All the Greek bottled water manufacturing firms which published their annual balance sheets for the 2016–2020 period were studied and used for the creation of variables. Several economic parameters are studied to determine competitiveness, where market share and profitability account for the most. According to the results, profits, sales, and loans contribute significantly to competitiveness, playing a major role in the determination of strategies that specific firms may follow. © 2022 The Authors.

COVID-19: Asia Pacific sees drop in bottled water sales

Speed read Bottled water sales fell during lockdowns in the Asia Pacific Sales began to rise again after COVID-19 restrictions eased Plastic pollution from bottled water is a growing concern [MANILA] Measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 caused a decline in the sales of bottled water across the Asia Pacific region during 2020, according to a study by the global market research firm, Euromonitor International. The region has historically accounted for the largest share of bottled water sales, driven by rising health and wellness awareness and a lack of access to safe water, Euromonitor said in a report. [The] presence of diseases other than COVID-19 will be counted as comorbidity that will complicate the health of the persons with COVID-19,” he told SciDev.Net. [...]the early 1990s Filipinos relied on drinking water from the tap but that changed as consumers started to observe deteriorating water quality, Magtibay said.

Bottled water sales rose globally as pandemic took hold

Speed read Bottled water consumption rose in many poor countries during COVID-19 lockdowns Lack of access to safe drinking water a factor in the shift to bottles But countries reliant on tourism saw a decline in sales Families in some of the poorest parts of the world turned to buying bottled water as the pandemic sent countries into lockdown, with larger chunks of incomes being spent on drinking water, SciDev.Net analysis shows. Bottled water consumption has increased in the past two years as the number of production companies has increased, while outbreaks of the waterborne disease cholera, as well as COVID-19, have driven the need for safe drinking water. The extent to which communities trust their public or private water suppliers is one factor in the rise or fall of bottled water sales, say analysts.

SANBWA applauds plastics industry for commitment to recycling

AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT : South Africa's plastic recycling industry was severely challenged but delivered figures that are to be applauded. This is the opinion of South African National Bottled Water Association (SANBWA) CEO, Charlotte Metcalf, who listed the major challenges as ongoing load-shedding, water shortages and high labour costs and, of course, adapting to COVID regulations within the workplace (many recyclers were unable to operate at full capacity for several months due to social distancing norms). As a result, according to the latest figures (2020) released by the umbrella body representing the local plastics industry - Plastics SA, 461 500 tons of plastic waste were collected for recycling, of which 312 600 tons were successfully recycled back into raw materials

Determinants of Intention to Purchase Bottled Water Based on Business Online Strategy in China: The Role of Perceived Risk in the Theory of Planned Behavior.

With the development of the network economy, especially the promotion and popularization of mobile networks, traditional offline businesses are further integrated with online businesses, promoting the development of business online strategies. However, with the growth of enterprises' business, their negative externalities on the environment have gradually become prominent, further affecting sustainable consumption. The relationships between businesses, the environment, and consumption have become the focus of attention. China's fast-growing bottled water companies face similar challenges. The pollution that occurs due to bottled water packaging poses great threats to consumers. Hence, this study extended the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) by integrating three risk aspects, namely, water pollution risk perception (WPRP), non-degradable package pollution risk perception (NPPRP), and false information risk perception (FIRP), to examine the consumers' perceptions toward these risk aspects before purchasing bottled water online. This study employed a cross-sectional approach to collect data from online consumers via a survey method. A total of 401 valid samples were collected and then analyzed via a structural equation model using the AMOS statistical package. The results showed that attitude (AT), subjective norm (SN), and perceived behavior control (PBC) toward online bottled water purchase had significant and positive effects on the consumers' purchase intentions (PIs). However, under the influence of risk perception, the consumers' attitudes, SNs and PBC became suppressed by WPRP, and SN became suppressed due to the impact of FIRP. Furthermore, the negative impacts of NPPRP and FIRP on PI were partially mediated by AT, SN and PBC. Meanwhile, WPRP imposed the most significant direct effect on PI. The study results will help businesses to develop better online strategies to reduce the risk perception of bottled water and provide theoretical value and practical guidance for realizing sustainable consumption.