Communication as a Part of Identity of Sustainable Subjects in Fashion

Abstract

Sustainability and corporate social responsibility have today become key assets of many successful businesses and corporations. Despite constantly growing environmental awareness, we are still facing the issue of overconsumption in both the textile and fashion industries. This is mainly due to improper marketing communication of sustainable subjects or a rather low level of consumers’ awareness of sustainability issues. The main objective of the research is, through the opinions of selected authors and their studies, to compare the results of our own research focusing on Generations Y and Z and dealing with marketing communication of sustainable fashion. As part of the above objective, we attempt to propose the general trend in marketing communication of sustainable subjects. In order to reach this objective, we use the method of description and comparison of opinions of various authors, the analysis of the research questionnaire into the impact of marketing communication of sustainable fashion houses on consumers from Generations Y and Z and its comparison with previous research for the last three years. Thanks to the results of the research, we could observe that tools, media or forms of marketing communication of sustainable fashion producers have certainly changed. The research also provides answers to some of our questions in relation to the general interest of consumers in fashion sustainability, price as a decisive factor in the purchase of sustainable goods and the need for proper education in the field of sustainable fashion or any corresponding forms of marketing communication of sustainable subjects.

How to Communicate Sustainability: From the Corporate Web to E-Commerce. The Case of the Fashion Industry

“…(iii) Social networks allow conversations to be generated between companies and companies, companies and organizations, companies and users, organizations and users, and users and users. Conversations regarding environmental and social issues have increased and, therefore, so has everything relating to sustainability and CSR from a broader perspective [8,[68][69][70]. (iv) The technology and development of image and video permit the development of a more interactive kind of communication, with graphics, videos and illustrations that facilitate the understanding of the messages [71,72].…”

“…In fact, some websites use the word "sustainability" as a title or key word to identify this section on the web. On this website, or in this section, they usually present sustainability organizational models, governance tools, sustainability or CSR, conduct and ethics codes, certifications and sustainability partnerships [5,6,8].…”

“…This type of practice is already a reality at some fashion companies, such as H&M or Zara. Kusá and Urmínová [8] state, in this regard, that: "Environmental marketing communication has now become an inseparable part of consciousness in the field of sustainability and the fashion industry. Through their sustainable communication, companies try to reach as many people as possible.…”

“…Sustainability communication aimed at consumers performs an educational function that promotes changes in the fashion industry. Moorhouse and Moorhouse [86] state that consumers still continue to believe that communication efforts in this area are insufficient [8] and how this makes consumers want to change their attitude towards a specific brand that respects the environment [8,87]. Kusa asked consumers how they preferred to obtain communications regarding sustainable fashion, and they indicated social media, articles on the Internet and influencers as the preferred channels.…”

“…This research aims to study the communication process relating to the sustainable strategy at companies, ranging from the corporate website to e-commerce, in order to propose improvements for communication relating to sustainability, a business dimension that has become increasingly important in the eyes of society [7][8][9]. and creative, and the other more industrial [14].…”