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Sustainability and Transparency—Necessary Conditions for the Transition from Fast to Slow Fashion: Zara Join Life Collection’s Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Carmen Adriana Gheorghe

    (Faculty of Law, Transilvania University of Brasov, 500036 Brașov, Romania)

  • Roxana Matefi

    (Faculty of Law, Transilvania University of Brasov, 500036 Brașov, Romania)

Abstract

Starting from the concept of sustainability in fashion, the aim of our research is to analyse to what extent the Zara Join Life collection is sustainable, environmentally friendly (as advertised), and transparent, in terms of the information provided to the consumer, in order to offer Zara’s fashion consumers a set of aspects to take into account when intending to buy responsibly, such as the composition of the product, the percentage of recyclable materials used, its origin, etc. Our practical goal is to generate a gradual change in Zara consumers’ behaviour by creating a set of basic skills to transform one from a fast, superficial consumer into a slow, conscious customer with decision-making power. We analysed the Zara Join Life collection, which is advertised on the company’s website as supporting sustainability as a continuous project. The methodology consisted of a documentation-learning stage in order to reach the stages of data collection, data processing, and information organization—the methods used for the analysis of fashion consumers’ behaviours. The analysis was conducted on 40 Zara Join Life collection garments (10 women’s clothing items, 10 men’s clothing items, and 20 garments for kids, both girls and boys) sold online on Zara’s website. The collected research data were analysed and interpreted within the case study.

Suggested Citation

  • Carmen Adriana Gheorghe & Roxana Matefi, 2021. "Sustainability and Transparency—Necessary Conditions for the Transition from Fast to Slow Fashion: Zara Join Life Collection’s Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-16, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:19:p:11013-:d:649828
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Osmud Rahman & Benjamin C.M. Fung & Zhimin Chen, 2020. "Young Chinese Consumers’ Choice between Product-Related and Sustainable Cues—The Effects of Gender Differences and Consumer Innovativeness," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-23, May.
    2. Jianli Liu & Jianyao Liang & Jiannan Ding & Guangming Zhang & Xianyi Zeng & Qingbo Yang & Bo Zhu & Weidong Gao, 2021. "Microfiber pollution: an ongoing major environmental issue related to the sustainable development of textile and clothing industry," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(8), pages 11240-11256, August.
    3. Xingqiang Du, 2015. "How the Market Values Greenwashing? Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(3), pages 547-574, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Osmud Rahman & Dingtao Hu & Benjamin C. M. Fung, 2023. "A Systematic Literature Review of Fashion, Sustainability, and Consumption Using a Mixed Methods Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-37, August.
    2. Verónica Baena, 2024. "The shift from fast fashion to socially and sustainable fast fashion: The pivotal role of ethical consideration of consumer intentions to purchase Zara," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 4315-4328, September.

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