Purpose Although research has been conducted on logistics social responsibility (LSR) on the one hand, and sustainable consumption on the other hand, the interlinkages between LSR and sustainable consumption still lack conceptualization and empirical evidence. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to study empirically the interplay between logistics services and sustainable consumer choices. Such an analysis allows an investigation of consumer-choice-centered sustainable logistics practices to promote LSR in supply chains (SCs). Design/methodology/approach Based on expert interviews and in-depth consumer interviews, the authors conducted a three-stage qualitative, exploratory study with regard to sustainable logistics practices explicitly taking a consumer-choice-centered perspective into account. Findings As a result, consumer-choice-centered LSR categories were identified and discussed against the consumer social responsibility (ConSR) and other disciplines’ literature. In particular, consumer communication is necessary to enhance consumers’ awareness of sustainable logistics as current consumption behavior still hardly considers logistics services. Also, context- and situation-dependent SC configurations as well as financial incentives for sustainable consumption patterns promote more sustainable logistics services choices by end consumers. Practical implications Resolving certain frictions and rewarding positive behavior eases consumer’s decision making. By doing so, retailers need to support logistics service providers by stressing the benefits of more sustainable products and services as well as implementing more sustainable pricing schemes. Due to the consumer preferences, it is also important to achieve a context and situation dependent configurations to provide opportunities for more sustainable trade-offs. Originality/value The people dimension in SC management is seen as a promising field as the behavioral dynamics of consumers is rarely investigated in SC research. In this line, the study attempts to advance the theoretical underpinnings of corporate social responsibility in sustainable SCs. Therefore, this study contributes to theory by enriching the concept of LSR to include a consumer-choice-centered perspective and gives managerial as well as ethical implications on ConSR accordingly.

Die Rolle des Konsumenten bei der Mitgestaltung einer nachhaltigen Marktwirtschaft wird noch immer unterschätzt. Der Beitrag erläutert die besondere Verantwortung der Konsumenten für die Folgen ihrer Kauf- und Nutzenentscheidungen und zeigt, welchen aktiven Einfluss sie auf marktwirtschaftliche Prozesse nehmen können.

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