Importance of ethics and sustainability in the fashion industry: an abstract

It is widely acknowledged that ethical consumption is increasing and ethical fashion is now in “high demand” (Bray et al. 2011; Domeisen 2006; Manchiraju and Sadachar 2014). However, it is also argued that, although consumers are able to form opinions based on ethical issues, their purchasing behaviour may not match their claimed intentions (Bray et al. 2011; Joergens 2006). This should therefore have a severe attenuating effect on the market penetration of ethical fashion, unless the purchasing decisions are really made because of other factors, which could be determined in a subsequent study, if appropriate. This apparent conflict is one of the driving forces for the current study. Whilst some researchers state that there is a growing awareness amongst consumers of ethical and sustainable issues, others claim that there is a lack of knowledge and a “disconnect” amongst consumers. If this lack of awareness were a more accurate reflection of the situation, it could explain the relatively small effect of ethics and sustainability on purchasing behaviour. Therefore, this study intends to investigate consumer attitudes, by the level of commitment shown by the sample of UK consumers, to pay a premium for ethical and sustainable fashion