Exploring consumer perception and acceptance of recycled merchandise under five-sense design

In an era advocating cradle-to-cradle designs, resource recycling should involve not only waste sorting but also remanufacturing practices to produce products made of recycled wastes. However, consumers nowadays no longer demand products that are only visually appealing. Therefore, adding different sensory elements to product designs has emerged as a new design approach. With a focus on applying designs for all five senses to recycled merchandise, this study investigated the level of importance consumers attach to the types and five sensory applications of recycled merchandise and subsequently analyzed the factors involved to identify the possibility of developing recycled merchandise. Regarding research methods, literature analysis was performed to collate information relevant to recycled merchandise and designs for all five senses. Expert interview method was employed to gather expert opinions across different disciplines. Questionnaire survey was used to further understand how consumers perceive products that are remanufactured using design elements for all five senses. The study results revealed that (1) most consumers held a positive attitude toward design of recycled products using five senses; (2) more communication channels can be created between recycled merchandise and consumers; (3) consumers preferred recycled merchandise of pragmatic value and paid closer attention to the sensory element of touch; and (4) recycled merchandise can be made more sophisticated and less vulgar to draw the attention of consumers. After consumer preference for recycled merchandise is determined, this information can serve as a reference for selling these products in a way that propels consumers to spread positive word-of-mouth and be more willing to purchase recycled merchandise.