Exploring the potential of social media influencers in the

Exploring the potential of social media influencers in the customer journey in the process of sustainable fashion

consumption

Fleur Rake | 960830679120

MSc Thesis

MSc Management, Economics and Consumer Studies

Wageningen University & Research

Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Ir. Laurens Klerkx (CPT

I

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to pay my special regards to my supervisor Prof. Dr. Ir. Laurens Klerkx for taking

care of me and my thesis after a rough start without a supervisor. He dove into the world of fashion

and social media influencers in order to fully understand the topic. His constructive feedback gave

me the motivation and energy to take my thesis to a higher level. In times of setbacks, his kind

words helped me to continue working and stay motivated for my thesis during the whole period.

Next, I would like to thank dr. Kim Poldner for giving me inspiration for the subject of this thesis

and my interest in the sustainability perspective of the fashion industry. I appreciate the effort she

took to bring young women, passionate about circular fashion, together in her co-working group

in order to learn, and gain inspiration, from each other.

Lastly, I want to thank my two roommates and best friends Noortje and Sophie for hearing all

about my thesis struggles and always finding a way to cheer me up and making me end up laughing

about it.

II

SUMMARY

This research aims to shine light on the following research question: How do consumers go through

different phases in the process of sustainable fashion consumption, and what is the current and

potential role of social media influencers in this journey?

An exploratory study was conducted aiming to give in depth information and the semi-structured

interviews offered room for further elaboration on a different topic. In total, 13 Dutch females in

the age group 21 – 25 were targeted through personal connections and through social media,

including channels such as Instagram & Facebook.

The outcomes of this research show that interviewees were allocated to different phases in the

customer journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption. The customer journey in this

research consists of five phases. A minority of the interviewees were located in the first two phases;

the ‘no attention’ and ‘attention’ phase. Interviewees were largely concentrated in the middle

phases of the journey; the ‘interest’ and ‘desire’ phase and a small number of interviewees reached

the last phase; the ‘action’ phase. Several barriers described in literature were identified by

interviewees in this research in different phases of the customer journey. Also, a new barrier was

identified, namely a lack of skills to assess the validity of knowledge or information.

The current role of social media influencers (SMIs) in the lives of the interviewees was mainly for

inspiration in fashion styles as well as for entertainment purposes. Potential roles for SMIs to help

overcome the barriers in sustainable fashion consumption include: being role models in sustainable

fashion consumption, taking role as a reminder by frequent posting about the topic, providing

information on sustainable fashion and its availability, and using their position as trendsetters in

order to make sustainable fashion trendy and create early adaptors within their reach.

For sustainable fashion brands it is key to understand the different barriers that consumers

experience in the journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption along with the phases

these barriers occur in. It is highly recommended to approach the barriers as a package rather than

individually. Finally, it is important to find a congruent brand-SMI fit, taking the credibility of the

SMI into account.

Keywords: Social media influencers (SMIs), sustainable fashion, customer journey, barriers

III

TABLE OF CONTENT

Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................................................. I

Summary .............................................................................................................................................................. II

Table of content ................................................................................................................................................. III

List of Figures ...................................................................................................................................................... V

List of Tables ....................................................................................................................................................... V

1 Introduction and problem statement ........................................................................................................ 1

1.1 The fast fashion industry ...................................................................................................................... 1

1.2 Sustainable fashion .............................................................................................................................. 3

1.3 Sustainable fashion consumption ........................................................................................................ 3

1.4 Social media marketing ....................................................................................................................... 4

1.5 Social media influencers ...................................................................................................................... 4

1.6 Influencer marketing ............................................................................................................................ 5

1.7 Research question ................................................................................................................................ 6 1.7.1 Sub-research questions .................................................................................................................... 6

2 Theoretical framework ............................................................................................................................... 7

2.1 The customer journey .......................................................................................................................... 7

2.2 Barriers in sustainable fashion consumption ...................................................................................... 9

2.3 Social media influencers .................................................................................................................... 12 2.3.1 Celebrity (or influencer) endorsement .......................................................................................... 12

2.3.1.1 Identification ........................................................................................................................ 12 2.3.1.2 Credibility ............................................................................................................................ 13

2.3.2 Para-Social Interaction (PSI) ........................................................................................................ 13

2.4 Influencers interventions ................................................................................................................... 14

3 Methodology .............................................................................................................................................. 16

3.1 Respondents ....................................................................................................................................... 16

3.2 Sampling and recruitment ................................................................................................................. 16

3.3 The interview ..................................................................................................................................... 16

3.4 Methods of analysis ........................................................................................................................... 17

4 Results ........................................................................................................................................................ 18

4.1 The customer journey ........................................................................................................................ 18

IV

4.1.1 The ‘no attention’ phase ................................................................................................................ 18 4.1.1.1 From ‘no attention’ to ‘attention’ phase .............................................................................. 19

4.1.2 The ‘attention’ phase ..................................................................................................................... 19 4.1.2.1 From ‘attention’ to ‘interest’ phase ...................................................................................... 20

4.1.3 The ‘interest’ phase ....................................................................................................................... 20 4.1.3.1 From ‘interest’ to ‘desire’ phase .......................................................................................... 22

4.1.4 The ‘desire’ phase ......................................................................................................................... 23 4.1.4.1 From ‘desire’ to ‘action’ phase ............................................................................................ 24

4.1.5 The ‘action’ phase ......................................................................................................................... 24

4.2 The influence of social media influencers ......................................................................................... 26 4.2.1 Inspiration in clothing ................................................................................................................... 26 4.2.2 Credibility of SMIs ....................................................................................................................... 27 4.2.3 Identification with SMIs ............................................................................................................... 27 4.2.4 Relationships with SMIs ............................................................................................................... 28

5 Discussion .................................................................................................................................................. 30

5.1 The customer journey ........................................................................................................................ 30

5.2 Barriers .............................................................................................................................................. 30 5.2.1 The lack of skills to assess the validity of information ................................................................. 31

5.3 Potential role of SMIs ........................................................................................................................ 32 5.3.1 The ‘no attention’ phase ................................................................................................................ 32

5.3.1.1 SMIs as rolemodels .............................................................................................................. 32 5.3.2 The ‘attention’ phase ..................................................................................................................... 32

5.3.2.1 The mere exposure effect ..................................................................................................... 32 5.3.3 The ‘interest’ phase ....................................................................................................................... 33

5.3.3.1 Learning without consuming time or making an effort ....................................................... 33 5.3.3.2 Price is not a measure for sustainability .............................................................................. 33

5.3.4 The ‘desire’ phase ......................................................................................................................... 34 5.3.4.1 SMIs as trendsetters ............................................................................................................. 34 5.3.4.2 SMIs as information sources ................................................................................................ 34

5.3.5 SMIs need to be credible ............................................................................................................... 34 5.3.6 Research limitations and future research ...................................................................................... 35

6 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 37

6.1 All the barriers in one package ......................................................................................................... 37

6.2 Credibility .......................................................................................................................................... 37

6.3 In a perfect world… ........................................................................................................................... 38

7 References .................................................................................................................................................. 39

8 Appendices ................................................................................................................................................. 48

8.1 Appendix I – Informed consent .......................................................................................................... 48

8.2 Appendix II – The Interviewguide (Dutch) ........................................................................................ 49

V

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: The customer journey ....................................................................................................... 8

Figure 2: Theoretical framework ................................................................................................... 15

Figure 3: Theoretical framework with potential SMIs interventions ............................................. 29

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Main barriers in sustainable clothing consumption and suggested interventions according to prior research ............................................................................................................................. 10

Table 2: Clarification of labels ...................................................................................................... 18

Table 3: Overview of the customer journey phases and barriers ................................................... 25

1

1 INTRODUCTION AND PROBLEM STATEMENT

1.1 THE FAST FASHION INDUSTRY

Fast fashion, a concept that has emerged over the last forty years, when the boundaries of the

fashion industry started to expand (Djelic & Ainamo, 1999). A change in dynamics was seen

among the rising number of fashion seasons. Years ago, we knew only two fashion seasons;

summer and winter season. Today, Zara produces over 20 collections a year and the process

from designing the garment to retailing the garment takes approximately five weeks. Online

retailers even know how to do this faster. Missguided launches over 1,000 new products every

month (Nguyen, 2020).

The development to mass production, changes in the supply chain and towering consumers’

desires force retailers to produce apparel with the trendiest designs for the lowest costs (Doyle,

Moore, & Morgan, 2006). These developments, paired with marketing, design and capital

investments are driving forces for the competitiveness in this industry (Sinha, 2001).

Meanwhile, fast fashion retailers develop and sell apparel with the purpose of wearing it less

than ten times (Birtwistle & Moore, 2007). Due to this low-quality apparel and the faster trend

cycles, the global consumption of clothes has increased tremendously (Fletcher, 2014), almost

reaching 80 billion apparel items a year (Universiteit van Nederland & Poldner, 2019).

The production of clothes in developing countries has become a more frequent choice because

of low labor costs, lower working standards and smoother environmental regulations

(Allwood, Laursen, Malvido de Rodriguez, & Bocken, 2006). When illustrating the process

from cotton to tangible clothing, it is not surprising that this is an environmental disaster: the

cotton could be grown and harvested in India, dyed and spun in China, sewed in Bangladesh

and then shipped to Europe to be sold in one of its many fashion stores and warehouses

(Universiteit van Nederland & Poldner, 2019).

Additional problems occur in the waste stream of the fashion industry. The majority of clothing

and textile waste in the production process is dumped in the environment rather than recycled

or re-used, causing a large pollution problem (Allwood, Laursen, Malvido de Rodrigues &

Bocken, 2006). The waste stream of the fashion industry at the consumers’ end is equally as

harmful: despite the fact that almost all the fashion textiles are completely recyclable, the vast

2

majority of all the textiles (85%) end up in landfills (Weber, Lynes, & Young, 2016). Other

environmental issues caused by the fast fashion industry are greenhouse gas emissions, soils

degradation and rainforest destruction (Sustain Your Style, n.d.). Altogether, the fast fashion

industry is responsible for approximately 10% of the total CO2 emissions (Universiteit van

Nederland & Poldner, 2019), putting it in second place of the most polluting industries in the

world (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017).

With all this in mind, why do we continue purchasing more fashion more frequently? As

Maslow classified in his hierarchy of human needs, clothing is a basic need (Maslow, 1943).

Ones’ choice in clothing is related to esteem (Maslow, 1943) and a need for identity (Max-

Neef, 2017). Across many product categories, and especially applicable to the fashion industry,

a human desire to create an identity and to express meanings about oneself plays a large role

in the consumption process (Berger & Heath, 2007). Fast fashion, the rapid manufacturing and

retailing of apparel, and its limited availability in stores extract a loss aversion and encourages

purchasing (Byun & Sternquist, 2012). When considering recent calculations, the global

fashion market will continue to grow to a value of 1.5 trillion USD in 2020, showing an

increase of 200 billion USD over five years (O’Connell, 2020).

Even though some expect the fast fashion industry to continue growing, others say that we are

approaching a ‘tipping point’ of the fashion industry (Bhattarai, 2019). Forever 21, one of the

largest brands in the fast fashion industry, declared bankruptcy in September 2019. This

indicates the start of a new era. It is ironic that the target audience (Generation Y and Z) of

Forever 21 continue to mature and become increasingly conscious with regard to the

environment, making them rethink fast fashion (Nguyen, 2020). Even though this change

makes fast fashion brands revise their business model, industry insiders say that this movement

is still in an early stage (Nguyen, 2020). As Elisabeth Cline, author of the book ‘Overdressed:

The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion’ writes, the mindset of consumers might have

been changed, however, the alternatives, suggesting sustainable alternatives, are still minimal

(Cline, 2013).

3

1.2 SUSTAINABLE FASHION

Sustainability is an economic, social and environmental ideal that emerged in the 1970s

(Caradonna, 2014). ‘Sustainable consumption’ made its entrance in international policy when

it was adopted by nearly 200 heads of state during the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. They agreed

that overconsumption was a direct cause of unsustainability, which was a scoop (Seyfang,

2005). Consumers are increasingly showing their concern with values of ethical consumerism

(Carrington, Neville, & Whitwell, 2010), meaning they are concerned with environmental,

health-related and social issues in addition to animal welfare (Wiederhold & Martinez, 2018).

Due to this global attention for sustainability and ethics, many industries, including the fashion

industry have given a response by offering sustainable and ethical options in their product lines

(McNeill & Moore, 2015). Furthermore, new fashion-initiatives have occurred which

encourage sustainable fashion by creating opportunities to collective consumption, thereby

creating another form of sustainable consumption. An example of a collective consumption

initiative is MUD jeans, a service to lease jeans (MUD Jeans, n.d.), or United Wardrobe, an

online service aiming to create a social, safe and interactive marketplace for secondhand

fashion (United Wardrobe, n.d.). A large number of fashion producers is willing to adapt their

unsustainable and unethical industry. However, this will only be feasible in the long run when

this improvement in the sustainability of fashion goes hand-in-hand with the consumer

demands (McNeill & Moore, 2015).

1.3 SUSTAINABLE FASHION CONSUMPTION

Over the last four decades, consumers have become increasingly environmentally conscious.

This consciousness is caused by several factors such as media coverage, an increasing

awareness for environmental issues, a change in legalization and the rise of pressure groups

(Kalafatis, Pollard, East, & Tsogas, 1999). An increasing number of consumers tend to be

motivated by sustainable consumption. Their intention to purchase sustainable goods is mainly

influenced by personal values, internal ethics and moral norms (Auger, Burke, Devinney, &

Louviere, 2003). However, empirical research suggests that an actual change in sustainable

purchase behavior stays behind (Bonini & Oppenheim, 2008; Carrington et al., 2010).

Focusing on sustainable fashion consumption, barriers to blame are a lack of concern, a

negative perception towards sustainable fashion, as well as a lack of financial and temporal

4

resources. The understanding of and the response to these barriers are important since

consumers can have a major impact on the improvement of apparel sustainability (Claudio,

2007).

1.4 SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

Parallel with the developments in the fashion industry, developments in digital communication

networks have taken place. The use of social media has exploded over the last decade. The

amount of people using social media worldwide increased in ten years from 0.97 billion to

2.82 billion users (Statista, 2019). Over the years, social media developed itself into a powerful

tool used in several fields such as politics and media, including marketing. Social media have

reached a point where involving them in your marketing strategy has become indispensable

(De Vries & Carlson, 2014). According to eMarketer, a digital market research company, a

major milestone was reached in the world of marketing in the beginning of 2019. For the first

time, expenditures on digital marketing in the United States exceeded the spending on

traditional marketing (eMarketer Editors, 2019). This milestone is not expected to deviate in

other Western countries.

1.5 SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS

The use of social media is free and accessible for everyone who has a working internet

connection and a device to use the platform on. It has become a matter of minutes to create a

profile on these platforms and get started by uploading content, in the form of photos and

videos with supporting descriptions. The content uploaded by an individual is called ‘User

Generated Content’ (UGC). Some users have a higher reach and likeability by sharing online

content such as stories, ideas, opinions, feelings and emotions (Chau & Xu, 2012). These users

could be considered as opinion leaders, also called ‘social media influencers’ (SMIs). Most

SMIs have gathered a coherent audience and are specialized in a particular topic such as

nutrition, sports, fashion, beauty, or lifestyle (Klassen et al., 2018; Raggatt et al., 2018). By

being paid for showing or evaluating a certain product or service within their reach, a new way

of marketing has emerged, called ‘influencer marketing’ (De Veirman, Cauberghe, & Hudders,

2017).

5

1.6 INFLUENCER MARKETING

Previous studies have given insights into the effects of advertising through celebrity

endorsement (e.g. Amos, Holmes, & Strutton, 2008). However, there are arguments which

suggest that the effects of celebrities and influencers are not similar (e.g. Schouten, Janssen,

& Verspaget, 2019; Lou & Yuan, 2019). In contrast to traditional celebrities, SMIs are seen as

ordinary people who have become online celebrities (Lou & Yuan, 2019). Due to their

influence, marketers have seized this opportunity to engage in a collaborative partnership with

a particular SMI that suits and represents their brand (Lou & Yuan, 2019). Marketing through

SMIs is considered to be more authentic (Stefanone, Lackaff, & Rosen, 2010) and organic. By

selecting the right SMI, the content is targeted towards the right potential customers (Lou &

Yuan, 2019). Social media marketing has grown significantly over the last several years and

has proven to be more effective and efficient compared to traditional advertisements

(Welbourne & Grant, 2015; Varkaris & Neuhofer, 2017).

Although previous research covers the influence of social media influencers and their role in

marketing, there is limited research focused on the potential of SMIs in the sustainable fashion

consumption. What does the customer journey look like, which barriers play a role in the

process of sustainable fashion consumption and how can these barriers be overcome? This

research aims to investigate the customer journey and the corresponding barriers in the process

of sustainable fashion consumption and to explore the potential role of SMIs in this journey.

6

1.7 RESEARCH QUESTION

How do consumers go through different phases in the process of sustainable fashion

consumption, and what is the current and potential role of social media influencers in this

journey?

1.7.1 SUB-RESEARCH QUESTIONS - How do consumers go through different phases in the journey in the process of

sustainable fashion consumption?

- Which barriers are identified in the different phases in the customer journey in the

process of sustainable fashion consumption?

- What is the current role of social media influencers in fashion consumption and how

could this be related to the identified barriers in sustainable fashion consumption?

7

2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

The theoretical framework aims to provide an overview of prior research, starting with the

customer journey. Secondly, familiar barriers in sustainable fashion consumption will be

summarized. Lastly, the influence of social media influencers will be explained according to

different theories.

2.1 THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY

Consumers, defined as individual actors in a market, who purchase goods or services, show

various behavioral patterns during the purchase and disposal of these goods and services. This

journey of consumption is captured in the customer journey. Prior research on the customer

journey show slight differences in the subdivision of certain phases however the overall idea

is comparable. In their research on the effect of influencers on the consumer decision process

of fashion goods, Sudha & Sheena (2017) handled the following customer journey. It is a

circular and ongoing process, arranged in the following order:

- Attention for the product/service.

- Interest in the product/service

- Desire for the product/service

- Action – the purchase of the product/service

- Use of the product/service

- Opinion about the product/service

- Talk with others about the product/service

Figure 1 is based on the framework used by Sudha & Sheena (2017) and aims to visualize the

customer journey that is relevant for this research. An extra phase, the ‘no attention’ phase,

was added to indicate the position of consumers not having yet entered the customer journey

in the process of sustainable fashion consumption.

For marketing purposes, it is key for companies to identify what the customer journey of their

potential consumers looks like. After learning more about the customer journey, it is important

to decide in which phase of the customer journey a company wants its brands’ touchpoints

with the potential customer to be; or in other words, in which phase they want to come in

contact with the customer (Fauser, Wiedenhofer and Lorenz, 2011).

8

Results of a study by Fauser, Wiedenhofer and Lorenz (2011) focusing on the customer

journey and touchpoints through social media, shows that social media compared to other

forms on the social web such as Wiki’s, blogs and microblogs, are suitable and influential for

the brands’ touchpoints in all phases of the customer journey. In their research, they

recommend conducting further research on the customer journey and brands’ touchpoints from

the consumers’ perspective through social media.

More recent research by Sudha and Sheena (2017) gives insights in the customer journey and

the touchpoints of brands, bloggers and celebrities in the fashion industry. As this research

indicates, the ‘zone of influence’ (the grey oval in Figure 1) of these fashion brands, -celebrities

and -bloggers can be found in the ‘attention’, ‘interest’, ‘desire’ and ‘talk’ phase. The ‘action’

phase, the ‘use’ phase and the ‘opinion’ phase occur without the potential influence of these

opinion leaders in the fashion branch. Even though the ‘talk’ phase is included in the ‘zone of

influence’ (Sudha and Sheena, 2017), this phase, together with the ‘use’ and ‘opinion’ phase,

is not taken into account for the current research (see white boxes). The grey boxes, as

highlighted in Figure 1, show all the phases that are taken into account for this research. The

‘action’ phase is the phase where a sustainable fashion items are purchased, and acts as the

final phase in the customer journey in this research.

Figure 1: The customer journey

9

Results in the research by Sudha and Sheena (2017) show that all forms of influence (brands,

bloggers and celebrities) are comparable in the different phases within the ‘zone of influence’

in the customer journey. For the current research, it is assumed that social media influencers

(SMIs) also show no deviation in influence among these different phases.

The insights on the customer journey above lead to the first sub-question within this research:

How do consumers go through different phases in the journey in the process of sustainable

fashion consumption?

2.2 BARRIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FASHION CONSUMPTION

Consumers come across different barriers when in the process of sustainable fashion

consumption. For being able to assign different barriers to different phases of the customer

journey, it is relevant to first do research aiming to fully understand the barriers that play a role

for the consumer. A literature review was conducted and resulted in the following.

In her research, Kim Y. Hiller Connell (2010) identified several barriers in sustainable fashion

purchase behavior. Environmentally significant behaviors are the outcome of either internal or

external factors (Stern and Oskamp, 1987). Therefore, Hiller Connell (2010) divided the

barriers into two types: internal barriers and external barriers. Unique and individual factors,

including beliefs, knowledge and personal attitudes, relate to internal factors or barriers, whilst

external factors relate to a more macro level, with forces and barriers unrelated to the

individual, but coming from other stakeholders (Hiller Connell, 2010).

Table 1 provides an overview of the main barriers playing a role in the consumption of

sustainable fashion which have been found in literature. Research partly gave suggested

interventions with certain barriers, as indicated in the table. The barriers were evaluated and

selected with the aim of the current research in mind; only internal barriers were considered,

since these can be tackled from a consumers’ perspective. External barriers on the other hand,

do not fit research purposes, because they cannot be tackled from a consumers’ perspective.

10

Table 1: Main barriers in sustainable clothing consumption and suggested interventions according to prior research

BARRIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FASHION CONSUMPTION

Lack of awareness/habit

- “Lack of concern for the environment among consumers” (Stephens, 1985; Shim, 1995; Hustvedt and Dickson, 2009)

- Lack of awareness (McNeill and Moore, 2015)

Lack of knowledge

- “Limited knowledge about clothing consumption’s impact on the environment” (Stephens, 1985; Kim and Damhorst, 1998)

- “Lack of knowledge or miscomprehension about the environmental effects of production and different fibers” (Hiller Connell, 2010)

- “Consumer uncertainty about knowledge, evaluation and choice” (Hassan et al., 2012)

Suggested interventions:

- “Better information about the sustainable clothing and their availability” (Markkula and Moisander, 2012)

- “Compulsory eco-labelling and improved design and marketing to meet consumers’ needs” (Hiller Connell, 2010)

- “Influencers do not only have the power to directly influence the purchase decisions of a large audience, but their followers also judge them to be reliable information sources” (De Veirman, Cauberghe, and Hudders, 2017; Djafarova and Rushworth, 2017).

Negative perception

- “Negative attitudes towards sustainable clothing” (based on Hustvedt and Dickson, 2009) - “Negative perception of sustainable clothing as less stylish/less well-fitting and less comfortable”

(Hiller Connell, 2010) - “An adverse attitude towards circular clothing” (Harris et al., 2015)

Social pressures

- “Overconsumption is driven by social pressures perpetuated by the fashion industry and in the media” (Harris et al., 2015)

- “Perceived lack of social acceptability” (McNeill and Moore, 2015).

Suggested intervention:

- “Finding ways of making re-wearing and repairing clothes socially acceptable and achievable” (Harris et al., 2015)

- “Social marketing campaigns designed to challenge and shift social norms” (e.g. by involving opinion formers or highlighting the value of investing in clothes) (Harris et al., 2015)

- “The former would be consistent with the role of the media and celebrities in shaping attitudes towards socially and environmentally sustainable clothing” (Birtwistle and Moore, 2006) “and in providing ethical information” (Carrigan and Attala, 2001)

Limited availability (style and fit)

- “Limited availability of sustainable clothing outlets” (Hiller Connell, 2010)

11

- “Restricted styles (lack of business wear and footwear), size and fit” (Hiller Connell, 2010) - “Limited choice of pro-environmental products” (Bly, Gwozdz, & Reisch, 2015)


- “Normalising the design of sustainable clothing and making it easier for consumers to buy it” (Harris et al., 2015)

- “These findings reinforce the need for eco-fashion to include formalwear” (Harris et al., 2015) - “Designers’ and buyers’ misconceptions about sustainable clothing also need to be addressed” (Harris

et al., 2015)

Limited time & effort and price

- “Price of sustainable clothing” (Hustvedt and Dickson, 2009 and Hines and Swinker, 1996) - “Lack of financial resources to buy more expensive sustainable clothing” (Hiller Connell, 2010) - “Price and time-limited availability of items” (McNeil and Moore, 2015) - “Perceived time and effort” (Lipsey, 1977 and Ellen, 1994)


- “Interventions are needed to reduce consumers’ focus on cost, accentuating other benefits that increase the value of clothes, such as with branded clothing” (Harris et al., 2015)

- “Sustainable consumption is often time rather than money intensive” (Bly et al., 2015)

Poor prestation

- “Poor prestation of clothing in second-hand shops” (Hiller Connell, 2010)

Additional barriers

- “Motivation” (Lipsey, 1977) - “Values” (based on Axelrod, 1994; Grunert and Juhl, 1995; Blake, 2001) - “Locus of control” (Tanner, 1977) - “Lack of infrastructure” (Lipsey, 1977). - “Social expectations regarding conventions of dress for different profession” (Hiller Connell, 2010) - “Structural conditions that facilitate or impede sustainable behavior” (Bly et al., 2015) - “Deeply embedded social and cultural norms that tacitly dictate behavior” (Thøgersen, 2010; Hines

et al., 1986)

The table above (Table 1) creates an overall picture of the barriers that play a role in the process

to the purchase of sustainable clothing. These barriers are likely to play out in different phases

of the customer journey. However, from the literature there is no clear indication to which

phases these barriers correspond. It could be expected that some barriers are particularly

related to one phase, while others might also influence more than one phase in the customer

journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption. To find out which barriers play a

role in the different phases in sustainable fashion consumption, the following sub-question was

formulated:

Which barriers are identified in the different phases in the customer journey in the process of


12

2.3 SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS An abundance of research focusing on celebrity endorsement has been conducted over the past

several years. However, social media influencers (SMIs) are not traditional celebrities (Abidin,

2016). In comparison to tradition celebrities, that gained fame due to a professional talent,

SMIs gained recognition by successfully branding themselves on social media as experts

within a particular domain through the creation of content (Khamis, Ang & Welling, 2017).

Although their content looks less professional than a traditional advertisement, it achieves a

higher likability. SMIs have a direct influence on the purchase decision of their audience. This

audience also sees them as trustworthy sources of information (De Veirman et al., 2017;

Djafarova and Rushworth, 2017). As Sokolova and Kefi (2019) mentioned in their research,

more knowledge about persuasiveness is needed in order to really understand the social media

influencers’ phenomenon.

There are different theories which help explain the success and influence of social media

influencers. These theories and concepts are investigated in order to understand the influence

of SMIs.

2.3.1 CELEBRITY (OR INFLUENCER) ENDORSEMENT

Previous research on celebrity endorsement identified two factors that influence the

effectiveness of endorsement, namely identification with the endorser and the perceived

credibility of the endorser (Schouten et al., 2019). Its suggested that both processes play an

important role in influencer endorsement.

2.3.1.1 IDENTIFICATION

The identification with a celebrity or an influencer is shaped by both actual and perceived

similarity with that person. This also entails the degree to which one wishes to be identified

with that person, called wishful identification, or the degree to which one identifies or

perceives common aspects with another person (Hoffner and Buchanan, 2005). Attractive

communicators are able to influence an audience through the process of identification, making

people feel similar or want to be similar to a certain communicator (Kelman, 1958). Looking

at Generation Y and Z, following their favorite celebrities or influencers, they take over certain

13

characteristics, personalities or lifestyles in order to be comparable to these celebrities or

influencers (Sokolova & Kefi, 2019).

2.3.1.2 CREDIBILITY

Credibility is defined as the extent to which a communicator is trustworthy and reliable

concerning the expertise of the information source (Rogers & Bhomwik, 1970; Hovland, Janis

& Kelley, 1953). When a communicator is perceived as credible, this influences the processing

of the content that has been communicated, changing the attitudes and beliefs of the audience

(Hovland et al., 1953). Research shows that credibility of communication through a medium

such as social media, influences the selective involvement of the audience (Metzger, Flanagin,

Eyal, Lemus, & Mccann, 2003) and that the media they perceive to be credible, gain more

attention. When individuals are likely to use that medium for information seeking, they

perceive that medium as more credible than other media (Johnson & Kaye, 1998). Credibility

in new media has a quite different meaning compared to traditional media (Metzger &

Flanagin, 2013); new media lacks a quality control authority or online evaluation, but has a

collective authority through an audience of users controlling and judging information.

2.3.2 PARA-SOCIAL INTERACTION (PSI)

When a person has the illusion of being close and intimate to a celebrity, influencer or another

well-known person, this relationship is called a Para-Social Interaction (PSI) (Dibble,

Hartmann & Rosaen, 2015). This relationship is self-established, and the other person is not

aware of the existence (Kelman, 1958). Literature reported that Para-Social Interaction is a

determinant of purchase intention (Lee and Watkins, 2016).

Due to previous research (Lee and Watkins, 2016; Chapple and Cownie, 2017; Coliander and

Dahlén, 2011; Djafarova and Rushworth, 2017), it is safe to say that SMIs are able to influence

ones’ intention to purchase fashion items. Therefore, SMIs seem really suitable for the

stimulation of sustainable fashion purchases.

14

2.4 INFLUENCERS INTERVENTIONS

SMIs can have different motives within the content they post, and what they want their

followers to see or what message they want to give them. For many SMIs, it is their job being

content creators. This job comes with financial compensations for collaborations and

campaigns with companies and brands. For SMIs, these collaborations and campaigns are a

consideration between whether these collaborations or campaigns suit their image and the

financial compensation they will gain with it. The role of SMIs in potential interventions to

overcome the barriers in the process of sustainable fashion consumption, could either be from

personal motives and values, or could come from a sustainable brand reaching out to an SMI

for a collaboration or campaign.

The latter part of the theoretical framework gave insights into the theories behind the influence

of SMIs. This part led to the last sub question:

What is the current role of social media influencers in fashion consumption and how could

this be related to the identified barriers in sustainable fashion consumption?

Figure 2 gives an overview of the theoretical framework given above and shows how the

concepts are related. It consists of the relevant phases in the customer journey and the potential

barriers in the consumption of sustainable fashion that are expected to occur in different phases

in the customer journey. Lastly, the potential influence of SMIs that may help overcome these

barriers is shown between the barriers and the different phases.

15

Figure 2: Theoretical framework

16

3 METHODOLOGY

To determine whether social media influencers have a potential influence in the customer

journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption, an exploratory study in the form of

interviews was conducted. This form gives in depth information and the semi-structured

format offered room for further elaboration on a certain topic.

3.1 RESPONDENTS

Social media are used among all age groups, but especially among the younger generations

(Gottfried and Shearer, 2016). This research will focus on women, from Generation Y or Z

(18 – 25 years). It is important that these women are active on social media for lifestyle and

fashion purposes and it is necessary that they are familiar with SMIs. A total of 13 participants

was interviewed, until a point of saturation was reached.

3.2 SAMPLING AND RECRUITMENT

These women were targeted through personal connections and through social media, such as

Instagram & Facebook. After verifying that the interviewees met the requirements, an

appointment for a face-to-face meeting was made.

3.3 THE INTERVIEW

The aim was to create an overall and in-depth view in the process of purchasing sustainable

fashion and the main barriers consumers come across. The influence of SMIs was discussed,

and the way they could potentially have an influence on actual sustainable purchase behavior.

A semi-structured interview was performed in order to gain insights in the three parts this study

consists of. Before the interview, an informed consent was signed by the interviewee agreeing

on the use of the retrieved data for research purposes (Appendix I).

The first part of this study focused on the customer journey of (sustainable) fashion.

Interviewees were asked what they perceive as important, and what they focus on when

purchasing fashion items. The interviewer led the conversation slowly to sustainability and

ethics, in order to find out to what extent this plays a role in the consumers decision making

process. Following up on this topic of sustainability and ethics, the interviewees were asked

openly if they experienced any barriers in the purchase of sustainable fashion, and if so, which

17

barriers they experienced. Previous research on barriers in the process to sustainable fashion

consumption, to be found in the theoretical framework of this research, acted as useful handles

within this topic.

The next part of the interview focused on finding out the influence of social media influencers

on the interviewees. Existing theories on this research were applied in order to generate an idea

of the current influence of social media influencers on the interviewee and check their

familiarity with SMIs and their influence on the interviewees.

The last part of the interview served as the part where the topics sustainable fashion and social

media influencers were combined. The interviewees were asked to think about the influence

of SMIs on themselves, and for possible interventions or ideas on how SMIs could reduce the

barriers they experience in process to sustainable fashion consumption. Imagining the

interventions and ideas they propose, this was applied to the customer journey to see what

potential influence these suggested interventions by SMIs could have.

Appendix II gives an overview of the topics discussed during the research and was used as

interview guide.

3.4 METHODS OF ANALYSIS

After the data-collection, a first step was familiarization of the data, by using the recordings in

order to transcribe the interview. The transcripts were a literate form of the recordings. A next

step was the coding of the interviews, doing this on a CAQDAS (Computer-Assisted

Qualitative Data Analysis) manner, with the program MAXQDA2020 in specific. The data

was largely coded in a deductive way, linking to the prior research in the theoretical

framework. In addition, there was room for novel input, that was coded in an inductive manner.

18

4 RESULTS

Outcomes of the interviews were intended to shine light on the customer journey in the process

of sustainable fashion consumption and to explore the potential of social media influencers in

this journey. The interviews allocated interviewees to different phases in the customer journey

in the process of sustainable fashion consumption. The following section (Section 4.1) gives

insights in the different phases in the customer journey and the barriers that play a role in each

of these phases. Section 4.2 elaborates on the influence of social media influencers. Table 2

clarifies the labels that are used to indicate the number of interviewees.

Table 2: Clarification of labels

LABEL NUMBER OF INTERVIEWEES

All 13 interviewees

Most 8-12 interviewees

Some 4-7 interviewees

A few 1-3 interviewees

None 0 interviewees


The customer journey in this research consists of five different phases. Barriers that play a role

in sustainable fashion consumption are assigned to different phases. The five phases and the

corresponding barriers will be discussed in the following sections.

4.1.1 THE ‘NO ATTENTION’ PHASE

In this research, some interviewees indicated that they do not pay attention to sustainable

fashion. This means that the interviewees are in a phase before entering the customer journey.

However, immediately after stating that they have no attention for sustainable clothes, almost

all of these interviewees invalidated their statement with mentioning that they are aware that

they should be more conscious about sustainable clothing. As interviewee 6 tells:

19

‘To be honest, I am not aware of that [sustainability in fashion]. I would want to be aware,

but I can tell that I am not.’

– Interviewee 6, Pos. 10

This citation indicates a lack of awareness as a barrier in entering the customer journey, paired

with a certain tension. While initially these interviewees would fit in the ‘no attention’ phase,

most of them also indicated to have a certain awareness for, or interest in, sustainable fashion.

The quote above also indicates an aspired position, a position further in the customer journey

where interviewees strive to be. It is safe to say that interviewees in this phase are confused

and experience difficulties in their position in the customer journey.

4.1.1.1 FROM ‘NO ATTENTION’ TO ‘ATTENTION’ PHASE

A few interviewees mentioned that they entered the customer journey and gained awareness

for sustainable fashion by others. Their mother, friend and family acted as role models for

these interviewees to create awareness. As interviewee 5 says:

‘I am aware of sustainable fashion because of a friend that makes sustainable clothes. She

made me aware of sustainability in fashion, because before that, I wasn’t aware.’


Their role models are the reason that these interviewees came in contact with sustainable

fashion or gained inspiration, where they before did not have this. This implies that role models

can have an important role for people to enter the first phase of the customer journey, where

they become aware of sustainable fashion.

4.1.2 THE ‘ATTENTION’ PHASE

A few interviewees indicated that they are aware of sustainable fashion, but they do not

purchase it, or even look at it, because it is not part of their routine. These interviewees entered

the customer journey but are still in the first phase. As interviewee 13 mentioned:

20

‘I want to take it [sustainable fashion] into account when I am shopping, but I keep forgetting

about it…’


This indicates that this interviewee is aware of the barrier, and that she is willing to make it

part of her routine, or make it habit, to have interest in sustainable fashion or eventually

purchase it. The interviewee says that she keeps forgetting about it when she is in a situation

of consumption. It is assumed that when a person has an actual interest in sustainable fashion

consumption, that this is then part of their purchase process. When one keeps forgetting about

taking sustainability of apparel into account in the consumption process, this does not indicate

a real interest in the topic, but rather an attention for its existence.

4.1.2.1 FROM ‘ATTENTION’ TO ‘INTEREST’ PHASE

This same interviewee continued her sentence with an indication that she wants to change her

habit or routine, and get the attention for sustainable fashion in her system:

‘…Then sometimes after my purchase I think about it [sustainable fashion] again. I would

want to get it into my system somehow’.


The interviewee wishes there were a way to get the consideration of sustainable fashion in her

system. She seemed to be referring to reminders that help her grow interest in sustainability in

fashion and make her consider sustainability during fashion consumption.

4.1.3 THE ‘INTEREST’ PHASE

As mentioned in section 4.1.1, tensions were found between the ‘no attention’ and ‘interest’

phase. Where interviewees initially indicated they do not have attention for sustainable

fashion, they at the same time showed interest in sustainable fashion, and even an aspired

position at a further phase in the customer journey. Most of the interviewees in this research

showed interest in sustainable fashion, however, some barriers prevented them from the

transition to an actual desire.

21

Most interviewees identified a lack of knowledge as a major barrier in this phase. Two different

perspectives on a ‘lack of knowledge’ became clear. The first perspective descended from a

lack of information on topics such as characteristics of fabrics or the supply chain. The other

perspective was the lack of knowledge on the availability of ethical clothes. Interviewees

indicated that, if they are willing to purchase sustainable fashion, they do not know where to

go in order to purchase it. Interviewee 6 describes her lack of knowledge on sustainable

fashion:

‘… I just don’t know enough about it [sustainable fashion]. I know that the Primark is not

very ethical, so I don’t purchase there anymore. But for most clothes and stores, I am not

sure whether they are sustainable or not. Not good enough at least.’


Paired with discussing the lack of knowledge as a barrier, interviewees broached the barrier of

time and effort. Interviewees indicated they know where or how to find information on

sustainability in fashion, but also mentioned that they do not take the time or effort to look for

it. This is illustrated with the following statement:

‘I think I know how to localize it [information on sustainable fashion], but I simply do not

take time to look for it’.


This lack of time and effort distinguishes a clear barrier between the ‘interest’ phase and the

‘desire’ phase, since it is assumed that when interviewees really have a desire for sustainable

fashion, they would want to spend time and effort on finding information or learning more

about it. That element of passion is missing in the ‘interest’ phase.

A barrier that came with difficulties in the distinction of the ‘interest’ phase and the ‘desire’

phase, is the most dominant barrier that was identified; a lack of financial resources, or in other

words: the price of sustainable fashion. Most of the interviewees indicated that the price of

sustainable fashion is the main reason for not purchasing it, but it did not become clear where

exactly in the customer journey this barrier plays a role; it is either in the ‘interest’ phase or in

the ‘desire’ phase. However, the fact that it played a role is firmly indicated by interviewee 13:

22

‘Price is the main reason that I do not purchase sustainable fashion.’

– Interviewee 13, Pos 18

The barrier indicates that sustainable fashion is more expensive then ‘regular’ fashion and goes

hand in hand with the assumption interviewees made: the more expensive apparel is, the more

sustainable it automatically is. This is demonstrated in the following quote by interviewee 2:

‘I think I purchased sustainable fashion because I bought it at warehouses, or A-brands such

as Scotch & Soda.’


This interviewee made it clear that referring to A-brands or warehouses, meant referring to the

more expensive clothes compared to regular fast fashion. This quote illustrates that the

interviewee assumes she purchased sustainable apparel, because these clothes were more

expensive.

4.1.3.1 FROM ‘INTEREST’ TO ‘DESIRE’ PHASE

According to some interviewees, the enrichment of knowledge, especially without it taking

too much time or effort, is an effective factor in order to reach a next phase in the customer

journey. This enrichment of knowledge could be achieved by giving practical tips or facts on

sustainability in the clothing industry, or the availability of sustainable fashion. Relating this

to the social media platform Instagram, interviewees named the ‘tagging’ of ethical brands in

pictures or captions on the platform, an effective way of getting acquainted with sustainable

brands. As interviewee 11 explained:

‘When there are short captions added to the photos including what [sustainable] stores are

nice, that would work for me. In that way I can scroll in a passive way.’


Interviewee 11 indicates that scrolling through a timeline on social media is something that

does not require a lot of effort. The use of social media is something that people already do.

Therefore, it is assumed that taking a little more time to read a certain post about sustainable

23

fashion on social media, does not require new or time-consuming actions for acquiring

knowledge on sustainability in fashion.

4.1.4 THE ‘DESIRE’ PHASE

As previously mentioned, the boundary between the ‘interest’ phase and the ‘desire’ phase

turned out to be vague for the barrier of ‘price’. This barrier was extensively described in the

‘interest’ phase (section 4.1).Nonetheless, a barrier that clearly shows its place in the ‘desire’

phase, is the lack of skills to assess the quality or validity of information.

During the interviews, it was remarkable that some interviewees that obtain knowledge on

sustainable fashion, and therefore already passed the ‘interest’ phase, mentioned that they often

question the validity of their information on sustainability within fashion. These interviewees

were aware of the fact that they could be misled by claims of companies or brands. For one

interviewee, this was based on a past experience:

‘H&M has a ‘Conscious’ line. They say that they are sustainable, but on television, I saw

that the product line is not as sustainable as they claim. In my opinion, this makes it really

difficult to know whether something is sustainable or not.’


The lack of skills to assess the validity of information on sustainability within fashion is in the

way of purchase. It comes with insecurity in the actual purchase phase, since consumers are

confused and never know for sure whether they purchase something sustainable, even if they

are led by invalid claims.

Another barrier that came to light in this phase, was the lack of availability within sustainable

clothes. This is related to two different perspectives. The first perspective is style, as

interviewee 13 explains. She experiences difficulties in finding sustainable fashion that also

suits her style:

‘You have a much smaller market when it comes to sustainable clothing, so it is much harder

to find something that suits your style.’


24

Another perspective on availability is the fit of clothing. Some interviewees indicated that they

experienced difficulties with finding the right fit in sustainable clothing. Interviewee 8 gives

an example on jeans:

‘Take for example jeans, with my long legs. I always need the ‘tall collection’, and you

simply don’t have that sustainably, but especially in fast fashion chains like TopShop. I

resigned myself to that, I wear those pants until they fall apart. Yes, okay, not very

sustainable, but I can't find that anywhere else.’


Both perspectives on the availability barrier indicate that interviewees wished to purchase

sustainable fashion and that they overcame all the previous barriers. The only thing that holds

them back from purchasing sustainable fashion is the availability of clothing within their fit or

style.

4.1.4.1 FROM ‘DESIRE’ TO ‘ACTION’ PHASE

Interviewees indicated that what is holding them back, is that they cannot seem to find their

own style in a sustainable way. What might help them, is gaining inspiration on how to style

sustainable clothes in a trendy way that fits their style.

‘What could work for me, I mostly like sustainable fashion less, is when I see an influencer

with the [sustainable] clothes styled in a nice way. I will probably like it more then’.


The quote above illustrates that gaining inspiration on how to style or wear sustainable fashion

could help interviewees with styling or wearing sustainable fashion themselves. They could

learn how to make it part of their own style and be inspired to purchase it.

4.1.5 THE ‘ACTION’ PHASE

Only a few interviewees made it to the last phase of the customer journey, but for most of the

interviewees, the customer journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption was not

complemented. The interviewees that were assigned to the ‘action’ phase, indicated to have a

25

lot of knowledge on sustainable fashion and agreed that it takes time to learn about it and find

the right information.

‘I read a lot. It is very time consuming, but I think it is very interesting. It keeps me busy.

Mostly, I see or hear things about it [sustainability in the fashion industry] and then I look

for more information.’


The ‘action’ phase is the final phase of the customer journey used in this research. The

interviewees in this phase have gone through all the phases in the customer journey; they are

aware of sustainable fashion, have an interest and a desire for sustainable fashion and also

purchase sustainable fashion. Coming to this phase where the purchase already occurred, there

are no barriers to name and also no potential interventions by SMIs, because this phase is

outside of the ‘zone of influence’ as previously discussed (Sudha and Sheena, 2017).

The table below (Table 3) gives an overview of the different phases in the customer journey

that interviewees experienced, the barriers they came along for each of the phases and possible

solutions or interventions that were discussed, in order to move to a next phase in the customer

journey.

Table 3: Overview of the customer journey phases and barriers

PHASE IN THE

CUSTOMER JOURNEY BARRIERS

WHAT WOULD BE NEEDED IN

ORDER TO OVERCOME THIS

BARRIER?

‘No attention’ phase - Lack of awareness - Role models

‘Attention’ phase - Lack of habit and routine - Reminders of sustainable fashion

‘Interest’ phase

- Lack of knowledge (on

information and

availability)

o Time & effort

- The enrichment of knowledge

o Not time consuming or

too much effort

26

- Price*

‘Desire’ phase

- Price*

- Lack of skills to assess

the knowledge or

information*

- Limited availability

(style and fit)

- Give inspiration, show how to

style

‘Action’ phase - -

*For these barriers, potential interventions or solutions were not discussed by interviewees.

4.2 THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS

The aim of this research was to investigate the barriers in sustainable fashion and to link these

to a potential role of social media influencers in the interventions of these barriers that play a

role in the process of sustainable fashion consumption. The remaining part of the interview

was dedicated to finding out more about the current and potential role of social media

influencers.

4.2.1 INSPIRATION IN CLOTHING

All interviewees linked social media influencers in the context of fashion to the platform

Instagram. A few interviewees linked the influencers to YouTube as well, suggesting vlogs or

haul-videos. Most interviewees explained that they follow social media influencers for

inspiration in clothing and/or lifestyle. A few interviewees mentioned that they actively follow

SMIs with the purpose of purchasing clothes. This becomes clear from the following saying

by interviewee 1:

‘I usually look at what influencers are wearing. When they post a link to the clothes they’re

wearing, I often click to see where the clothes are from and where I can buy it’


Only a few interviewees mentioned that they follow certain SMIs for fun and entertainment

purposes, and not intentionally for inspiration in clothing. The SMIs that were followed with

the purpose of entertainment were not necessarily fashion SMIs.

27

4.2.2 CREDIBILITY OF SMIS

Different factors turned out to play a role in the influence of social media influencers. Firstly,

most interviewees named credibility as an important characteristic. This is mostly linked to

sponsorships or partnerships that SMIs work with. An influencer has a certain style, or certain

values that they try to convey, and it is important that these match the companies and brands

that influencers collaborate with, otherwise it is not credible. As interviewee 3 explains:

‘Sometimes I get sick and tired of certain influencers, when I notice that they do it ‘all for the

money’. For example, a collaboration with NAK-D [a fast fashion brand]. These influencers

receive boxes full of clothes and say that all items are amazing. But secretly they don’t think

it’s that beautiful. That is just annoying.’


A related factor is reality, which turned out to be important as well, in contrast to the ‘perfect

picture’ that many SMIs share. Therefore, SMIs that open up on personal issues or show the

reality behind the ‘picture’ are perceived more credible and real. Interviewee 7 gives a

clarifying example of a credible SMI due to sharing reality:

‘The people I follow are in my opinion very credible, because they share real stories. One

influencer suffers from an anxiety disorder, and she tells about that. I think that is very real.’


4.2.3 IDENTIFICATION WITH SMIS

Most interviewees said not to identify themselves with SMIs. They clearly see the difference

between themselves and the social media influencer, and realize that for the SMIs, it is

probably their job while that is not the case for themselves. Most interviewees, however, follow

SMIs for the inspiration in clothing. Interviewee 11 explains with the following to what extent

she compares herself to SMIs:

28

‘Of course I think ‘wow, she’s skinny!’ and she has a cute dog and a handsome boyfriend.

And of course I think that she has a nice life, but to what extent I compare myself with it…? I

don’t think I do, I don’t compare myself to her. I am not interested in what she does, and I

don’t want to be her. She is taking pictures of herself the whole day...’


4.2.4 RELATIONSHIPS WITH SMIS

Striking was that some interviewees had the feeling they knew the SMI in real life. They were

aware of the fact that this is not really the case, and even indicated to be sounding silly.

However, by following these SMIs and seeing and learning a lot about them, this made them

feel a special bond. This is illustrated by the following quote:

‘I have the feeling that I know her [SMI]. That is weird, because I have the feeling that I am

friends with her, but she has no idea who I am […] Of course this is real nonsense’.


The quote above describes a special relationship between the interviewee and the SMI. It is a

relationship where feelings of friendships are felt, but only on one side of the relationship.

This relationship indicates great opportunities for the potential role of SMIs in overcoming

the barriers in the journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption.

29

*For this barrier, a potential role for SMIs is not given or described. This is explained in Section 5.2.1.

Figure 3: Theoretical framework with potential SMIs interventions

30

5 DISCUSSION

The research questions this research aims to answer are the following:

How do consumers go through different phases in the process of sustainable fashion

consumption, and what is the current and potential role of social media influencers in this

journey?

Sub-research questions:

- How do consumers go through different phases in the journey in the process of


- Which barriers are identified in the different phases in the customer journey in the

process of sustainable fashion consumption?

- What is the current role of social media influencers in fashion consumption and how

could this be related to the identified barriers in sustainable fashion consumption?


This following section will discuss the general findings of this research. Scientists foresee a

change in the fast fashion industry, in which Generation Y and Z are starting to become more

conscious concerning the environment (Nguyen, 2020). This research indicated that most of

its’ interviewees, all part of Generation Y and Z, indeed show awareness concerning

sustainable fashion. However, only a few of the interviewees complemented the customer

journey by reaching the action (purchase) phase in the customer journey in the process of

sustainable fashion consumption. Most interviewees were located in the ‘interest’ or the

‘desire’ phase. The reason that not all interviewees complemented the customer journey was

because most interviewees experienced certain barriers that were in the way of sustainable

fashion consumption.

5.2 BARRIERS

The barriers standing in the way of sustainable fashion consumption found in this research

largely correspond with barriers that were found in previous research (see Table 1). The

following list gives an overview of these corresponding barriers:

31

- The lack of awareness/habit and routine

- The lack of knowledge (on information and availability)

- Time and effort

- The lack of financial resources (price)

- The lack of availability (fit and style)

Three barriers that were found in prior research but did not come to light in this research were

a negative perception concerning sustainable fashion, social pressures and a poor prestation of

sustainable fashion.

Where previous research largely did not explicitly assign the barriers to particular phases in

the customer journey, this research did give insights into the phases where the barriers played

a role. Findings show a clear distribution of the barriers over the different phases in the

customer journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption (see Figure 3). Some

barriers play a role in an early phase of the customer journey while others play a role in a phase

closer to actual purchase (the ‘action’ phase).

5.2.1 THE LACK OF SKILLS TO ASSESS THE VALIDITY OF INFORMATION

This research shines light on a novel barrier, namely the lack of skills to assess the quality or

validity of information. Interviewees experienced this barrier when having information of

which they assume is valid was proven to be wrong. This leads to a general distrust in the

validity of information among the interviewees.

This barrier is indicative for the post-truth era we live in. Several societal trends have

contributed to the emerge of this post-truth age, under which the rapid changes in the media

world (Lewandowsky, Ecker, & Cook, 2017). This era full of fake news and millions of

(online) information sources, makes it hard to judge the validity of information. For

information about sustainability which is incomplete or false and used by organizations to

create an environmentally responsible public image, the term ‘greenwashing’ is invoked

(Furlow, 2010). People are aware that there is a chance that things they read concerning

sustainability are not true or could even be in the direction of greenwashing. The lack of skills

to assess the validity of information makes it difficult to rely on the information.

32

5.3 POTENTIAL ROLE OF SMIS

This following section will address the potential interventions to overcome the barriers

indicated by interviewees. These potential interventions will be linked to a potential role of

social media influencers, which will be discussed per phase in the customer journey.

5.3.1 THE ‘NO ATTENTION’ PHASE

5.3.1.1 SMIS AS ROLEMODELS

The main barrier that was found before the first phase of the customer journey, in the ‘no

attention’ phase, was a lack of awareness for sustainable fashion. For this phase, role models

were suggested as a way to get people into the first phase within the customer journey. This

suggestion was based on experiences with role models among interviewees, that made an

impact in the form of a mother, family member or friend. However, considering their influence

and impact, SMIs could also be suitable as role models for sustainable fashion. In this phase

of the journey, the role of an SMI could namely be to raise awareness. This could potentially

be achieved by showing the importance of sustainable fashion, or by talking about it within

their reach. By doing so, this could help set the first step for people to start creating awareness

for sustainable fashion.

5.3.2 THE ‘ATTENTION’ PHASE

5.3.2.1 THE MERE EXPOSURE EFFECT

In the ‘attention’ phase, the first phase in the customer journey, interviewees indicated they

keep forgetting about the sustainability aspect or that it is not in their routine. In order to

overcome this barrier, the interviewees implied that something or someone reminding them

about sustainability in fashion could help them to get it in their routine or to make it more a

habit. Social media influencers could perfectly fulfill the role of a reminder to sustainable

fashion, by posting about the topic on their channels. It is expected to even have an

unconscious influence, explained by the mere exposure effect. This effect refers to the repeated

exposure of stimuli that lead to a more positive evaluation than the evaluation of new stimuli

(Bornstein & D’agostino, 1992). In other words, people tend to prefer or rate a familiar

product, service or idea over a novel product, service or idea they see. By constantly being

33

exposed to sustainable fashion on social media, in posts of SMIs, people get constant reminders

of the existence of sustainable fashion and may potentially also develop a higher preference

towards sustainable fashion.

5.3.3 THE ‘INTEREST’ PHASE

5.3.3.1 LEARNING WITHOUT CONSUMING TIME OR MAKING AN EFFORT

A barrier that came to light in the ‘interest’ phase of the customer journey was the lack of

knowledge. This barrier seems solvable by consulting information sources in order to read and

learn more about the topic. However, the primary barrier that stands in the way of overcoming

the lack of knowledge was the lack of time and effort.

A way that was suggested in order to gain the knowledge on sustainable fashion, was that SMIs

could start giving tips and facts on their channels. Reading these on social media, woven into

a graphic or in a caption for example, is not time consuming. Furthermore, when following the

influencers delivering these facts and tips, they automatically end up in ones’ digital timeline.

Examples among the interviewees show that clear and understandable information makes it

easy for consumers to act accordingly.

5.3.3.2 PRICE IS NOT A MEASURE FOR SUSTAINABILITY

A dominant barrier was the lack of financial resources, or in other words; the price of

sustainable fashion, that could not be assigned to one particular phase in the customer journey.

Interviewees made it clear that this barrier plays a dominant role in the journey, however,

results did not give clarity whether this barrier plays a role in the ‘interest’ phase as well as the

‘desire’ phase. One thing that did become clear, was that this barrier was the most dominant

of all barriers and weighed the heaviest.

The interviews made it clear that the barrier concerning price of sustainable fashion was

accompanied with an invalid assumption. Many interviewees assumed that sustainable fashion

comes with a higher price. However, Bly et al. (2015) argue that sustainable fashion is more

time consuming rather than monetarily intensive. Also, a paradox is interwoven where

interviewees automatically believe that more expensive clothes are more sustainable. This

34

indicates a bigger debate concerning the tension between price and the ethicality of clothes,

playing an important role for peoples’ imaging.

Even though SMIs do not have the power to change prices of sustainable fashion items, it

could be relevant when SMIs point out the misunderstanding concerning price of apparel.

When they mention that price is not necessarily a measure for the sustainability of apparel,

they withhold people from purchasing expensive apparel without it being sustainable.

5.3.4 THE ‘DESIRE’ PHASE

5.3.4.1 SMIS AS TRENDSETTERS

One of the main barriers in the ‘desire’ phase was the lack of availability of clothes that meet

a certain fit or suit a certain style. For the latter, it is not a surprise that SMIs have perfect role

to overcome this barrier. SMIs are the early adopters of fashion trends or even start them and

use their influence to spread it across to their target audience. By showing their target audience

how to style sustainable fashion in a fashionable manner, it is not unlikely that they set new

sustainable fashion trends.

5.3.4.2 SMIS AS INFORMATION SOURCES

The second main barrier in this phase was the lack of skills to assess the validity of information.

For SMIs in an era like this one, it almost seems impossible to reach this point of trust in the

validity of their content where their information is assumed to be true. It might help to support

information with facts of ‘reliable’ sources but this also requires some trust from their

followers. Even then, it is still likely that SMIs will never be seen as reliable sources for the

people experiencing this barrier. Therefore, it is recommended not to focus on a potential

intervention by SMIs for lowering this particular barrier.

5.3.5 SMIS NEED TO BE CREDIBLE

It is worth mentioning that most of the interviewees gave one particular condition that was

necessary for all the potential interventions by SMIs to be effective, namely credibility. The

concern, care or effort SMIs put in the interventions in sustainable clothes will only be

effective when this is in line with their values, believes and (purchase) behavior. This means

that when an SMI is promoting sustainable clothes one day and the other day purchases bags

35

full of fast fashion, this is not perceived credible and will therefore not be bought by their

target audience.

5.3.6 RESEARCH LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH

The aim of this research was to explore the potential of social media influencers in the customer

journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption, focusing on the barriers that people

come along in the customer journey. Prior research has given insights into several barriers in

sustainable fashion consumption that were also identified in this research. However, these

barriers were not previously linked to phases in the customer journey before. Due to the

exploratory nature of this research, causal relationships were not directly implied. Results of

this research give insights in the aim that was established beforehand, resulting in this research

having a high internal validity. Due to a relatively specific pool of interviewees; Dutch

females, aged 21 – 25 with an interest in fashion and relatively active on social media,

outcomes of this research are not generalizable for the larger population of fashion consumers.

Therefore, the external validity of this research is considered to be relatively low.

The theoretical model in this research acted as guideline throughout the process of sustainable

fashion consumption. Most consumers have not gone through a full customer journey in the

process of sustainable fashion consumption. Therefore, the use of the model was mainly a way

to reflect on the process. Nevertheless, the customer journey was a useful way to give insights

in different barriers in sustainable fashion consumption and the phases where they occur most

frequently.

Future research might focus on a wider range of interviewees including more interviewees that

complement the full customer journey in the process of sustainable fashion consumption, so

therefore are in the ‘action’ phase. Moreover, involving the remaining part of the customer

journey, as researched by Sudha & Sheena (2017), namely the ‘use’, ‘opinion’ and ‘talk’ phase

might be considered in order to create an overall picture of the journey after purchase in the

process of sustainable fashion consumption.

This research only involved one researcher that designed the interview guide, interviewed the

respondents and assigned the interviewees and barriers to a particular phase in the customer

36

journey in an interpretative manner. Therefore, a researcher bias could have played a role

throughout this research.

37

6 CONCLUSION

Social media influencers have been seen as very influential on decisions in Generation Y and

Z on the purchase of fashion. However, the influence of social media on sustainable fashion is

something that is not explicitly seen these days. This research shows the potential of using the

influence of social media influencers in potentially making changes in the demand side of

fashion industry. This research resulted in a couple of main conclusions, that relate to the

barriers in sustainable fashion consumption, the customer journey and the role of social media

influencers.

6.1 ALL THE BARRIERS IN ONE PACKAGE

Different barriers in the process of sustainable fashion consumption play a role. This research

gave insights in the different phases of the customer journey where these barriers played a role

in. The barriers found in this research come in a package. This means that addressing the

barriers individually, or addressing particular phases only, is not an optimal solution. It is

important to address all the barriers and taking all the phases in the customer journey into

account, when aiming to stimulate sustainable fashion consumption.

For companies in the sustainable fashion industry, this means that they need to be aware of all

the barriers that play a role in the customer journey in the process of sustainable fashion, and

the phases they occur in when they are targeting their audience.

6.2 CREDIBILITY

This research showed that credibility among SMIs plays an important role, and that it is a

required condition for SMIs to have an influence. Relating this to the influencer marketing of

sustainable fashion, these activities need to be corresponding with norms, values, and past

behavior of this SMI.

Therefore, when companies or brands are in search of SMIs to collaborate with their brand, it

is crucial that they choose the right SMIs. It is highly recommended to look at previous

behavior and the status of these SMIs in order to decide whether these norms and values fit

your brand. For SMIs it is key to consider this same collaboration. Mismatches in the

38

congruence between an SMI and a company or brand impact the credibility of both parties

(Kamins and Gupta, 1994).

6.3 IN A PERFECT WORLD…

In a perfect world, the creation of a social media influencer that Generation Y and Z identify

with and that has a real passion for purchasing sustainable fashion, could be helpful in the

process of sustainable fashion consumption. This SMI has a comparable lifestyle and financial

status, gives tips and facts about sustainability in fashion on his/her channels. He or she shows

how to style sustainable fashion in a trendy way, as an inspiration to his/her followers and is

seen as credible amongst her audience. Unfortunately, it takes more to be a successful and

appreciated SMIs; being credible and having a good sense of style may not be enough.

Although conducting more research on social media influencers and their true effect on

sustainable clothing purchase may be interesting, this research has already shown it could be

a promising strategy to further expanded sustainable fashion marketing.

39

7 REFERENCES

Abidin, C. (2016). Visibility labour: Engaging with Influencers’ fashion brands and #OOTD advertorial campaigns on Instagram. Media International Australia, 161(1), 86–100. DOI: 10.1177/1329878X16665177

Amos, C., Holmes, G., & Strutton, D. (2008). Exploring the relationship between celebrity endorser effects and advertising effectiveness. International Journal of Advertising, 27(2), 209–234. DOI: 10.1080/02650487.2008.11073052

Allwood, J. M., Laursen, S. E., Malvido de Rodriguez, C., & Bocken, N. M. P. (2006). Well Dressed? The Present and Future Sustainability of Clothing and Textiles in the United Kingdom. Cambridge, UK: University of Cambridge Institute for Manufacturing. Retrieved from www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/sustainability/projects/mass/UK_textiles.pdf

Auger, P., Burke, P., Devinney, T. M., & Louviere, J. J. (2003). What Will Consumers Pay for Social Product Features? Journal of Business Ethics, 42(3), 281–304. DOI: 10.1023/A:1022212816261

Axelrod, L.J. (1994) Balancing personal needs with environmental preservation: identifying the values that guide decisions in ecological dilemmas, Journal of Social Issues, 50, 85-104.

Bhattarai , A. (2019, October 3). ‘A tipping point in fast fashion’: Forever 21’s bankruptcy signals the shifting priorities of young shoppers. Retrieved 17 February 2020, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/gdpr-consent/?next_url=https%3a%2f%2fwww.washingtonpost.com%2fbusiness%2f2019%2f10%2f03%2ftipping-point-fast-fashion-forever-s-bankruptcy-signals-shifting-priorities-young-shoppers%2f

Berger, J., & Heath, C. (2007). Where Consumers Diverge from Others: Identity Signaling and Product Domains. Journal of Consumer Research, 34(2), 121–134. DOI: 10.1086/519142

Birtwistle, G., & Moore, C. M. (2007). Fashion clothing – where does it all end up? International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 35(3), 210–216. DOI: 10.1108/09590550710735068

Blake, D.E. (2001) Contextual effects of environmental attitudes and behaviors, Environment and Behavior, 33, 708-725.

Bly, S., Gwozdz, W., & Reisch, L. A. (2015). Exit from the high street: An exploratory study of sustainable fashion consumption pioneers. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 39(2), 125–135. DOI: 10.1111/ijcs.12159

40

Bonini, S., & Oppenheim, J. (2008). Cultivating the green consumer. Stanford Social Innovation Review, 6(4), 56–61. Retrieved from https://ssir.org/articles/entry/cultivating_the_green_consumer#

Bornstein, R. F., & D'agostino, P. R. (1992). Stimulus recognition and the mere exposure effect. Journal of personality and social psychology, 63(4), 545.

Byun, S.-E., & Sternquist, B. (2012). Here Today, Gone Tomorrow: Consumer Reactions to Perceived Limited Availability. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 20(2), 223–234. DOI: 10.2753/MTP1069-6679200207

Caradonna, J. L. (2014). Sustainability: A History. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.

Carrigan, M. and Attala, A. (2001) The myth of the ethical consumer - do ethics mater in purhcase behaviour? Journal of Consumer Marketing, 18(7), 560-577.

Carrington, M. J., Neville, B. A., & Whitwell, G. J. (2010). Why Ethical Consumers Don’t Walk Their Talk: Towards a Framework for Understanding the Gap Between the Ethical Purchase Intentions and Actual Buying Behaviour of Ethically Minded Consumers. Journal of Business Ethics, 97(1), 139–158. DOI: 10.1007/s10551-010-0501-

Chau, M., Xu, J., 2012. Business intelligence in blogs: understanding consumer interactions and communities. Management Inf. Systels Q. 36 (4), 1189–1216.

Chapple, C., & Cownie, F. (2017). An investigation into viewers’ trust in and response towards disclosed paid-for-endorsements by Youtube lifestyle vloggers. Journal of Promotional Communications, 5(2), 110-136.

Chowdhury, A. (2016). Social Media Today. The Financial Express

Claudio, L. (2007). Waste Couture: Environmental Impact of the Clothing Industry. Environmental Health Perspectives, 115(9). DOI: 10.1289/ehp.115-a449

Cline, E. L. (2013). Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion. London, United Kingdom: Penguin Putnam Inc.

Colliander, J., & Dahlén, M. (2011). Following the Fashionable Friend: The Power of Social Media. Journal of Advertising Research, 51(1), 313–320. DOI: 10.2501/jar-51-1-313-320

De Veirman, M., Cauberghe, V., Hudders, L., 2017. Marketing through instagram influencers: the impact of number of followers and product divergence on brand attitude. Int. J. Advert. 36 (5), 798–828.

41

De Vries, N.J., Carlson, J., 2014. Examining the drivers and brand performance implications of customer engagement with brands in the social media environment.

Dibble, J. L., Hartmann, T., & Rosaen, S. F. (2015). Parasocial Interaction and Parasocial Relationship: Conceptual Clarification and a Critical Assessment of Measures. Human Communication Research, 42(1), 21–44. DOI: 10.1111/hcre.1206

Djafarova, E., & Rushworth, C. (2017). Exploring the credibility of online celebrities’ Instagram profiles in influencing the purchase decisions of young female users. Computers in Human Behavior, 68, 1–7. DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2016.11.009

Djelic, M.-L., & Ainamo, A. (1999). The Coevolution of New Organizational Forms in the Fashion Industry: A Historical and Comparative Study of France, Italy, and the United States. Organization Science, 10(5), 622–637. DOI: 10.1287/orsc.10.5.622

Doyle, S. A., Moore, C. M., & Morgan, L. (2006). Supplier management in fast moving fashion retailing. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 10(3), 272–281. DOI: 10.1108/13612020610679268

Ellen MacArthur Foundation. (2017). A new textiles economy: Redesigning fashion’s future. Retrieved from http://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/publications

Ellen, P.S. (1994) Do we know what we need to know? Objective and subjective knowledge effects on pro-ecological behaviors, Journal of Business Research, 30, 43-52.

eMarketer Editors. (2019, February 19). US Digital Ad Spending Will Surpass Traditional in 2019. Retrieved 10 October 2019, from https://www.emarketer.com/content/us-digital-ad-spending-will-surpass-traditional-in-2019

Fauser, S. G., Wiedenhofer, J., & Lorenz, M. (2011). Touchpoint social web”: an explorative study about using the social web for influencing high involvement purchase decisions. Problems and Perspectives in Management, 9(1), 39-45.

Fletcher, K. (2014). Sustainable Fashion and Textiles. Design Journeys. DOI: 10.4324/9781315857930

Furlow, N. E. (2010). Greenwashing in the new millennium. The Journal of Applied Business and Economics, 10(6), 22.

Gass, R. H., & Seiter, J. S. (2013). Persuasion, Social Influence, and Compliance Gaining. New York, USA: Pearson.

Giffin, K. (1967). The contribution of studies of source credibility to a theory of interpersonal trust in the communication process. Psychological Bulletin, 68(2), 104–120. DOI: 10.1037/h0024833

42

Gottfried, J., & Shearer, E. (2016, May 26). News Use Across Social Media Platforms 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2019, from https://www.journalism.org/2016/05/26/news-use-across-social-media-platforms-2016/

Goworek, H., Fisher, T., Woodward, S. and Hiller, A. (2012) The sustainable clothing market: an evaluation of potential strategies for UK retailers. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 40(12), 935-955.

Grunert, S. and Juhl, H.J. (1995) Values, environmental attitudes, and buying of organic foods, Journal of Economic Psychology, 16, 39-62.

Harris, F., Roby, H., & Dibb, S. (2015). Sustainable clothing: challenges, barriers and interventions for encouraging more sustainable consumer behaviour. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 40(3), 309–318. DOI: 10.1111/ijcs.12257

Hassan, L., Shaw, D., Shiu, E., Walsh, G., & Parry, S. (2013). Uncertainty in ethical consumer choice: A conceptual model. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 12(3), 182–193. DOI: 10.1002/cb.1409

Henninger, C. E., Alevizou, P. J., & Oates, C. J. (2016). What is sustainable fashion? Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 20(4), 400–416. DOI: 10.1108/JFMM-07-2015-0052

Hiller Connell, K. Y. H. (2010). Internal and external barriers to eco-conscious apparel acquisition. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 34(3), 279–286. DOI: 10.1111/j.1470-6431.2010.00865.x

Hines, J.D. and Swinker, M.E. (1996) Consumers' willingness to purchase apparel produced from recycled fibers, Journal of Family and Consumer Sciences, 88, 41-44.

Hoffner, C., and M. Buchanan. 2005. Young adults’ wishful identification with television charac- ters: the role of perceived similarity and character attributes. Media Psychology 7, no. 4: 325–51.

Hollebeek, L. D., Glynn, M. S., & Brodie, R. J. (2014). Consumer Brand Engagement in Social Media: Conceptualization, Scale Development and Validation. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 28(2), 149–165. DOI: 10.1016/j.intmar.2013.12.002

Holmlund, M., Hagman, A. and Polsa, P. (2011) An exploration of how mature women buy clothing: empirical insights and a model. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 15(1), 108-122.

Hovland, C. I., Janis, I. L., & Kelley, H. H. (1953). Communication and Persuasion: Psychological Studies of Opinion Change. American Sociological Review, 19(3), 355. DOI: 10.2307/2087772

43

Hustvedt, G. and Dickson, M.A. (2009) Consumer likelihood of purchasing organic cotton apparel: influence of attitudes and self-identity, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 13, 49-65.

Iwanow, H., McEachern, M.G. and Jeffrey, A. (2005) The influence of ethical trading policies on consumer apparel purchase decisions. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 33(5), 371-387.

Johnson, T. J., & Kaye, B. K. (1998). Cruising is Believing?: Comparing Internet and Traditional Sources on Media Credibility Measures. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 75(2), 325–340. DOI: 10.1177/10776990980750020

Kalafatis, S. P., Pollard, M., East, R., & Tsogas, M. H. (1999). Green marketing and Ajzen’s theory of planned behaviour: a cross‐market examination. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 16(5), 441–460. DOI: 10.1108/0736376991028955

Kamins, M., & Gupta, K. (1994). Congruence between spokesperson and product type: A matchup hypothesis perspective. Psychology & Marketing, 11(6), 569-586. DOI: 10. 1002/mar.4220110605

Kelman, H. C. (1958). Compliance, identification, and internalization three processes of attitude change. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 2(1), 51–60. DOI: 10.1177/002200275800200106

Khamis, S., Ang, L., & Welling, R. (2016). Self-branding, ‘micro-celebrity’ and the rise of Social Media Influencers. Celebrity Studies, 8(2), 191–208. DOI: 10.1080/19392397.2016.1218292

Kim, H.-S., & Damhorst, M. L. (1998). Environmental Concern and Apparel Consumption. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 16(3), 126–133. DOI: 10.1177/0887302X9801600303

Klassen, K. M., Borleis, E. S., Brennan, L., Reid, M., McCaffrey, T. A., & Lim, M. S. (2018). What People “Like”: Analysis of Social Media Strategies Used by Food Industry Brands, Lifestyle Brands, and Health Promotion Organizations on Facebook and Instagram. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 20(6), e10227. DOI: 10.2196/10227

Kurtin, K. S., O’Brien, N., Roy, D., & Dam, L. (2018). The Development of Parasocial Relationships on YouTube. The Journal of Social Media in Society, 7(1). Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/1713/da74f55ec2edef19225b6db96e4dbeaf7201.pdf

Lee, J. E., & Watkins, B. (2016). YouTube vloggers’ influence on consumer luxury brand perceptions and intentions. Journal of Business Research, 69(12), 5753–5760. DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2016.04.171

44

Lewandowsky, S., Ecker, U. K. H., & Cook, J. (2017). Beyond Misinformation: Understanding and Coping with the “Post-Truth” Era. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 6(4), 353–369. DOI: 10.1016/j.jarmac.2017.07.008

Lipsey, M.W. (1977) The personal antecedents and consequences of ecologically responsible behavior: a review, JSAS Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology, 7, 70-71.

Lou, C., & Yuan, S. (2019). Influencer Marketing: How Message Value and Credibility Affect Consumer Trust of Branded Content on Social Media. Journal of Interactive Advertising, 19(1), 58–73. DOI: 10.1080/15252019.2018.1533501

Markkula, A. and Moisander, J. (2012) Discursive confusion over sustainablae consumption: a discursive perspective on the perplexity of marketplace knowledge. Journal of Consumer Policy, 35, 105-125.

Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological review, 50(4), 370. DOI: 10.1037/h0054346

Max-Neef, M. (2017). Development and human needs. Development Ethics, 169–186. DOI: 10.4324/9781315258003-14

McNeill, L., & Moore, R. (2015). Sustainable fashion consumption and the fast fashion conundrum: fashionable consumers and attitudes to sustainability in clothing choice. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 39(3), 212–222. DOI: 10.1111/ijcs.12169

Metzger, M. J., & Flanagin, A. J. (2013). Credibility and trust of information in online environments: The use of cognitive heuristics. Journal of Pragmatics, 59, 210–220. DOI: 10.1016/j.pragma.2013.07.012

Metzger, M. J., Flanagin, A. J., Eyal, K., Lemus, D. R., & Mccann, R. M. (2003). Credibility for the 21st Century: Integrating Perspectives on Source, Message, and Media Credibility in the Contemporary Media Environment. Annals of the International Communication Association, 27(1), 293–335. DOI: 10.1080/23808985.2003.11679029

Mosler, H.-J., 2006. Better be convincing or better be stylish? A theory based multi-agent simulation to explain minority influence in groups via arguments or via peripheral cues. J. Artif. Soc. Social. Simul. 9 (3), 4.

MUD Jeans. (z.d.). Lease A Jeans | MUD Jeans. Retrieved 3 October 2019, from https://mudjeans.eu/lease-a-jeans/?lang=nl\

Nguyen, T. (2020, February 3). Fast fashion, explained. Retrieved 17 February 2020, from https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2020/2/3/21080364/fast-fashion-h-and-m-zara

45

O’Connell, L. (2020, January 21). Apparel Market Worldwide. Retrieved 17 February 2020, from https://www.statista.com/topics/5091/apparel-market-worldwide

Park, E.J., Kim, E.Y. & Forney, J.C. (2006), A structural model of fashion‐oriented impulse buying behavior. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, Vol. 10 No. 4, pp. 433-446. DOI: 10.1108/13612020610701965

Petty, R.E., & Cacioppo, J. T. (1986). The Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 123–205. DOI: 10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60214-2

Petty, R.E., Wegener, D.T., 1998. Matching versus mismatching attitude functions: implications for scrutiny of persuasive messages. Personal. Social. Psychol. Bull. 24 (3), 227–240

Raggatt, M., Wright, C. J. C., Carrotte, E., Jenkinson, R., Mulgrew, K., Prichard, I., & Lim, M. S. C. (2018). “I aspire to look and feel healthy like the posts convey”: engagement with fitness inspiration on social media and perceptions of its influence on health and wellbeing. BMC Public Health, 18(1). DOI: 10.1186/s12889-018-5930-7

Rogers, E. M., & Bhowmik, D. K. (1970). Homophily-Heterophily: Relational Concepts for Communication Research. Public Opinion Quarterly, 34(4), 523. DOI: 10.1086/267838

Schouten, A. P., Janssen, L., & Verspaget, M. (2019). Celebrity vs. Influencer endorsements in advertising: the role of identification, credibility, and Product-Endorser fit. International Journal of Advertising, 1–24. DOI: 10.1080/02650487.2019.1634898

Seyfang, G. (2005). Shopping for Sustainability: Can Sustainable Consumption Promote Ecological Citizenship? Environmental Politics, 14(2), 290–306. DOI: 10.1080/09644010500055209

Shao, G., 2009. Understanding the appeal of user-generated media: a uses and gratification perspective. Internet Res. 19 (1), 7–25

Shim, S. (1995) Environmentalism and consumers' clothing disposal patterns: an exploratory study, Clothing Textiles Research Journal, 13, 38-49.

Sinha, P. (2001). The mechanics of fashion. Fashion marketing: Contemporary issues (pp. 185-209). Routledge

Sokolova, K., & Kefi, H. (2019). Instagram and YouTube bloggers promote it, why should I buy? How credibility and parasocial interaction influence purchase intentions. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2019.01.011

46

Stephens, S.H. (1985) Attitudes toward socially responsible consumption: development and validation of a scale and investigation of relationships to clothing acquisition and discard behaviors. Unpublished Dissertation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA.

Stern, P.C. & Oskamp, S. (1987) Managing scarce environmental resources. Handbook of Environmental Psychology, 1044–1088. Wiley, New York.

Sudha, M., & Sheena, K. (2017). Impact of influencers in consumer decision process: the fashion industry. SCMS Journal of Indian Management, 14(3), 14-30.

Statista. (2019). Number of social network users worldwide from 2010 to 2021 (in billions) | Statistic. Retrieved October 9, 2019, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/278414/number-of-worldwide-social-network-users/

Stefanone, M. A., Lackaff, D., & Rosen, D. (2010). The Relationship between Traditional Mass Media and “Social Media”: Reality Television as a Model for Social Network Site Behavior. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 54(3), 508–525. DOI: 10.1080/08838151.2010.498851

Sustain Your Style. (n.d.). Fashion's Environmental Impact. Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://www.sustainyourstyle.org/old-environmental-impacts/

Tanner, C. (1999) Constraints on environmental behavior, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 19, 145-157.

Thøgersen, J. (2010) Pro-environmental consumption. In: Consumer Behaviour: A Nordic Perspective (ed. By K. Ekstrom), pp. 95-116. Studentlitteratur AB, Lund.

United Wardrobe. (n.d.). About Us | United Wardrobe. Retrieved 3 October 2019, from https://unitedwardrobe.recruitee.com/?source=website_about

Universiteit van Nederland, & Poldner, K. A. (2019, September 26). ‘Mode is, na olie, de meest vervuilende industrie ter wereld’. Retrieved 17 February 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEfqvXq50yk&t=193s

Varkaris, E., & Neuhofer, B. (2017). The influence of social media on the consumers’ hotel decision journey. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 8(1), 101–118. DOI: 10.1108/jhtt-09-2016-0058

Weber, S., Lynes, J., & Young, S. B. (2016). Fashion interest as a driver for consumer textile waste management: reuse, recycle or disposal. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 41(2), 207–215. DOI: 10.1111/ijcs.12328

47

Welbourne, D. J., & Grant, W. J. (2015). Science communication on YouTube: Factors that affect channel and video popularity. Public Understanding of Science, 25(6), 706–718. DOI: 10.1177/0963662515572068

Wiederhold, M., & Martinez, L. F. (2018). Ethical consumer behaviour in Germany: The attitude-behaviour gap in the green apparel industry. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 42(4), 419–429. DOI: 10.1111/ijcs.12435

48

8 APPENDICES

8.1 APPENDIX I – INFORMED CONSENT

Naam:

Leeftijd:

Woonplaats:

Nader te noemen de geïnterviewde verklaart als volgt:

De geïnterviewde verleent aan Wageningen University & Research het recht om door Fleur

Rake, in het kader van haar scriptie voor de master Management, Economics & Consumer

Studies, dit interview op te nemen. Deze opnames zullen uitsluitend voor de doeleinden van

dit onderzoek worden gebruikt. Uw antwoorden op de vragen zullen nimmer op

persoonsniveau gerapporteerd worden en volstrekt anoniem worden behandeld. Persoonlijke

gegevens zullen worden verwijderd na het onderzoek. De geïnterviewde verklaart dat het doel

van dit project hem/haar volkomen duidelijk is en dat zijn/haar deelname vrijwillig is.

…………………….…………………………………………………..

te [plaats: ] op [datum: - - ].

49

8.2 APPENDIX II – THE INTERVIEWGUIDE (DUTCH) 1. Barriers in sustainable fashion consumption

- Waar hou je rekening mee in het kopen van kleding? Wat is belangrijk voor jou?

- In hoeverre vind jij duurzaamheid een belangrijk aspect?

- Kan je uitleggen waarom dit wel/(nog) niet meespeelt?

- Waarom koop jij wel/niet duurzame kleding? (doelen op barrières)

o En zijn geld/tijd/kennis dan ook een ding? (lijst van mogelijke barrières

achter de hand)

o Vind je dat alle kleding te vinden is in duurzame variant? Heb je daar moeite

mee? à Eg. stylish

2. Influencers (role of) – welke fases beïnvloeden ze?

- Welke influencers volg je?

- Wat voor invloed hebben deze influencers op jou (denk je)?

- Identity: In hoeverre vergelijk jij je met deze influencers?

- Credibility: Vind je die influencers geloofwaardig?

- Para-Social Interaction: Voel je op een bepaalde manier dichterbij zo’n

influencers door hem/haar te volgen?

- Para-Social Interaction: In hoeverre heb je het gevoel dat jij hem/haar kent?

3. Link Barriers & Influencers

- Je hebt dus net al aangegeven dat je … en …. als barrières ervaart in het kopen van

duurzame kleding. Denkende aan de invloed van influencers, waar we het net over

hebben gehad. Hoe denk je dat zij jou zouden kunnen helpen met deze barrières

wegnemen of verminderen? (linken aan barrières; informatie geven, laten zien dat het

cool kan zijn of goedkoop kan zijn, merkjes taggen etc.)

- En als dat wat we net besproken hebben zou gebeuren/je zou het zien, wat zou dat voor

jou doen? (doelen op customer journey)

- Attention: … je aandacht zou hebben voor een duurzaam kledingstuk door het

te zien voor een influencer? (Ja/nee/waarom? Evt. doorvragen)

50

- Interest: … en zou dat echt interesse bij jou kunnen opwekken?

(Ja/nee/waarom? Evt. doorvragen)

- Desire: … En hoe zit dat dan? Heb je wel eens dat zoiets in je achterhoofd blijft,

of dat je er nog wel eens aan terug denkt? (Ja/nee/waarom? Evt. doorvragen)

- Action: …En denk je dat je hierdoor daadwerkelijk een ethisch kledingstuk zou

kopen? (Ja/nee/waarom? Evt. doorvragen)

Exploring the potential of social media influencers in the

Documents

Transcript of Exploring the potential of social media influencers in the