66 percent of respondents to a McKinsey US cohort survey (and 75 percent of millennial respondents) say they consider sustainability when making a luxury purchase (BOF, 2020a). There is increasing response to consumer demand for newer business models which tackle overconsumption, such as rental and resale (BOF, 2020a).
There has been a five-fold increase over the past two years in the number of mass market products made from sustainable materials (BOF, 2020a). In an April 2020 survey of European consumers by McKinsey, more than 60 percent of respondents said they considered the way brands promote sustainability as a factor in purchasing decisions (Kent, 2020).
“A lot of retailers see sustainability as a competitive advantage in helping them attract new consumers, building engagement and loyalty,” - Elisa Niemtzow, vice president at non-profit consultancy BSR. Nine out of 10 Generation Z consumers believe companies have a responsibility to address environmental and social issues (Kent, 2019).
Consumer Purchase Journey
Apps like Good On You and Buycott are becoming a major part of the consumer’s purchasing journey (BOF, 2020a). Fashion search engine Lyst saw a 66 percent increase in searches for sustainable fashion last year (Kent, 2019). Internet searches for “sustainable fashion” tripled between 2016 and 2019 (BOF, 2020a). “The more [of the industry that gets] on board, the more consumers expect that information [about their manufacturing process], and when they don’t find it, they question why. […] You can only hide for so long,” says Sarah Ditty, policy director at Fashion Revolution.
COVID Impact on Consumer Sentiment
Consumer mindset is not strongly tied to the fashion cycle and consumers now cite newness as one of the least important attributes when making purchases (Granskog, 2020). As a result of the COVID-19 crisis, 65 percent of respondents are planning to purchase more durable fashion items, and 71 percent are planning to keep the items they already have for longer. Additionally, 57 percent of respondents are willing to repair items to prolong usage (Granskog, 2020). Particularly among younger European consumers, there is interest in purchasing second-hand fashion items following the COVID-19 crisis (Granskog, 2020).
Comments