Slow Fashion Trends: Are Consumers Willing to Change Their Shopping Behavior to Become More Sustainable?

Abstract

The fashion industry, despite generating great benefits in terms of trade, employment and income worldwide, is considered one of the most polluting industries due to the linearity of its production process with a high consumption of energy and raw materials as well as of waste generation. Furthermore, the short life cycles of its products, where the consumer seeks more to be fashionable than the products’ durability, contribute to this. However, this paradigm is changing due to society’s increased concern for the environment and a healthier way of life, promoting the emergence of a new concept called slow fashion, which seeks to improve the sustainability of fashion items from an environmental and ethical point of view. In this way, many companies are implementing circular economy measures in their production processes and innovating more circular products. The purpose of this work was to determine the consumer orientation toward slow fashion consumption, their perceived value and if they are willing to accept changes in their own behavior. The results confirm this new consumer orientation toward slow fashion consumption, which entails an important business transformation, fostering the innovation of new products and manufacturing systems characterized by a circular approach.