Prioritising sustainable garment choice among high-volume fashion consumers

Purpose
Addressing the negative environment and social impacts of the fashion industry has emerged as a major societal challenge in the last century, however people continue to over-consume and over-waste textile products in the form of fashion garments. More research is required to understand how fashion consumption connects with perceptions of sustainability and sustainable action by individual consumers.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper surveys 501 Australian and New Zealand consumers, on their fashion purchasing habits, and the role of sustainability in their fashion consumption behaviour.

Findings
The study found a relationship between higher levels of garment consumption and increased focus on sustainability in fashion choices. This finding is significant, as it suggests that fashion over-consumers are still mindful of the sustainable impacts of their consumption, and are motivated toward reducing that impact, despite not reducing their volume of consumption.

Originality
The study indicates the importance of a continued focus on transparency and traceability of fashion products in Australasia, as some over-consumers use this information to make better choices in the purchase situation, as opposed to acting on a general call to reduce consumption.

Keywords
Fashion, over-consumption, labelling, sustainability