of sustainable products may require a higher initial capital costs, the changes in operations usually result in lower long-term costs. From a marketer perspective, increasing sales volume and achieving savings by cutting production costs of sustainable products may be the solutions to reduce the total customer cost. Rent/Lease pricing The principle of renting or leasing pricing strategy is that the right to use the product is transferred for a specified period (hours or days for renting and years for leasing) from the seller to the buyer, but no transfer of title occurs. There is no legal process by which ownership of a piece of property changes from the seller to the buyer. At the end of the specified period the vendor takes the product back for reuse or recycling. The advantages of this approach are that the customer doesn’t have to bear the capital purchase costs and that the product's efficiency is increased. A trade-off exists between capital costs, self-esteem attached to product ownership, rental and transaction costs. Strategic aspects According to Belz (2005) we have observed since the beginning of the 21st century that the classical market structure has changed. The consumer goods market is characterized by "polarization", which means that the middle price and quality segment decreased, while the lower price segment and the upper quality segment grow in significance and in market shares. In the past, the middle segment was most of the market share and today, a large low price segment and a growing premium quality segment on top characterize markets such as cars, furniture and food. It will therefore be difficult for the products and brands that are positioned in the middle segment to survive in the market whereas those that are positioned in the upper or lower segment should be likely to succeed. Companies present on the lower segment such as IKEA and H&M compete on costs and aim at price-sensitive consumers, which are socio-ecological passives. Even if they may assume social and ecological responsibility along the whole supply chain and produce sustainable products, their main aim is not so much socio-ecological differentiation, but rather maintaining their brand image and corporate reputation. Purchase costs Purchase costs are the part of total customer cost which is a substantial part of the consumer's purchasing decisions. Other cost elements that are not as explicit as purchase costs are commonly weighed less important, although they may contribute significant