Creating the slow fashion consumer How powerful do you feel? English Summary Final Thesis For MADE-BY By Marieke Wiering January June 2015
Background Dear reader, this document is an English summary of the final thesis research report for MADE- BY, written by Marieke Wiering, 4 th year student at the Visual Art & Design Management, School of Arts in Utrecht (HKU). The start of the final thesis began out of the realization of something really remarkable in the fashion industry. There is something going on in the fashion industry that concerns me: easy buyers of fast fashion. These days, lots of people are not conscious anymore about what they are buying. I would like to play a part in raising awareness and changing this way of buying and selling clothes. There are still too many consumers without awareness of the clothes they buy. In this final thesis and de final outcome, I want to take the chance to be a small part of the slow fashion movement. In my opinion, sustainable fashion must aspire to become the norm not the exception This would require a re- examination of the principles and processes of producing, designing and selling clothes. I think consumers can be a great influence for a positive change, once they are made aware of the issue. Therefore, the main topic of my final thesis is consumer engagement within the sustainable fashion industry. 2
Research method After deciding the main topic, the following step was the main question for the research report. Therefor the implementation of the result for MADE- By was important. The main question which came out of the brainstorming was: "Which innovative consumer service could be a potential added value for fashion labels, whereby the consumption of sustainable fashion be the centre and is also useful for MADE - BY? This main question will lead to an innovative consumer service. To develop this service and answer the main question it is necessary to first answer the following sub- questions: 1. What are the main developments regarding sustainable fashion? 2. Which areas of the sustainable fashion are most important? 3. In which way can the consumer become more aware of the production process of clothing? 4. What is the opinion of experts in consumer involvement in ethical fashion? 5. What plays the most important role for the consumers, the environment or the social aspect? 6. What services and campaigns already exist for raising consumer awareness regarding sustainable fashion? I will obtain answers to the sub questions through research, interviews and a consumer s survey. My research was guided by the methodology developed by Joseph Maxwell in the book, Qualitative Research Design: An Interactive Approach (2005). Unlike linear research methods that take a step- by- step approach, Maxwell s Interactive Model for Research Design suggests continuous reflection on the research process and results. This thesis is a qualitative study, relying on information and data gathered from a wide range of methods. This model allows for the synthesis of the data to feed back into the research process to be further assessed for validity. As more information is gathered and analyzed, this method has the flexibility to adapt the research design as well as the scope, purpose, research questions, conceptual framework, and methods as needed. The research was divided in 5 phases, within different reflection moments. 3
Reflection Theory The desk- research is divided in three sorts of subjects: Sustainable fashion in general, the environmental & the social side of the fabrics and consumer engagement. Sustainable fashion overall Fashion is interpreted and defined different for each individual, depending on the culture. People have an instinct to dress; with clothing people can reflect and communicate their ideas regarding society (Fletcher, 2008) Everyone has a connection to the fashion, even if you're not aware of it, because everyone wears clothes. In the past 200 years, there have been many changes in the fashion industry, this is partly brought about by the industrial revolution, by the innovations of machines, such as weaving and sewing machines and the standardization of sizes in clothes. Partly because of these changes reasons, the production and consumption of clothing has never been as high as now, 2015. Due to the high production, the prices become lower and the consumption grows and grows a reaction on that is clothing is seen as a disposable product. The natural sources for the fabrics, the environment in the production countries, the textile workers have to suffer for this, you could call this the dark- side of fashion. Luckily, there is a counter- reaction to this dark side; you could call this the bright side, the sustainable fashion. The first omens of sustainable fashion came from the hippies in the seventies; this was a kind of anti- fashion movement. In the nineties there started a more commercial sustainable movement, when brands like Patagonia started with sustainable collections. Another good example is the queen of green says Katherine Hamnett. In the recent years, there is a new aspect in the fashion industry, which integrated innovation for respect for the environment and the makers of the clothes: slow fashion. (Fletchter 2008). Slow fashion can be seen as clothes of good quality which last longer, and which are mostly local and fair made. Due to the local production it has a shorter and more transparent supply chain. Fabrics Each garment starts with the material where it is made out of Mother Earth provides these materials. When there is more demand for natural sources than Mother Earth can give, we have to search for alternatives. Cotton is one of the world's most important natural fibers. Cotton is grown in more than 100 countries, India produces more than one third of the cotton in the world. Cotton, however, is not the easiest plant to grow; It is very sensitive to insects and bacteria. Therefore, the farmers use a lot of chemicals. Which has a bad influence on the environment and the surrounding of the people. Cotton also needs a lot of water to grow, 22 % of the water in the world is used by irrigation of cotton. The cultivation of cotton is bad for people and planet, there are some good alternatives to solve this problem. An example of this is BIO- cotton for example or lyocell, hemp and bamboo. The natural raw fiber is transported to weaving, spun into yarn and woven into fabric. These fabrics have to be bleached, washed and dyed. In the last step the fabrics get a treatment with chemicals which causes the fabric not to wrinkle or shrink. The fabrics are from that point ready to be transformed into a garment. The textile- and clothing sector provides employment to about 60 million people, according to International Labour Organization (ILO). In Bangladesh, for example there are 3.5 millions employed people in this industry; the export of clothing is 78 % of total exports. Low wages, poor working conditions, child labour and the use of toxic substances are the main components where human rights violations in emerges. The majority of these workers live below the poverty level. 4
Create Consumers engagement After the fabrics are turned into garments, they are transported to the Western countries to be sold in the stores. The choice and responsibility now lies with the consumer. Today, consumers can choose from numerous styles of clothing. The only choice that rests them is what fits them and what they can afford. The variety of choice often comes down to price; the clothes should be affordable. The labels entice consumers with beautiful shop windows, low prices and the conversation between the staff and the consumer is focused on selling as much as possible. The main goal of the big fashion retailers is selling as much as possible. From the purchases the consumers do, they bring in the money and influence the supply chain of the brands. There is a great lack of clarity of sustainability; there are various used terms for sustainability, fair- trade, milieu and animal friendly, environmentally and biologically. This lack of clarity has several reasons; there is no umbrella organization that controls and managed all the hallmarks. In the media there is a huge inconsistency in the way the term sustainability is being used. Therefor the effectiveness of sustainability strategy is low, by the lack of such clarity and who is responsible. The research of Motivaction 1 shows that consumers can be divided in five different groups in case of interpretation of sustainability. These groups are called: five shades of green. When you know in which category your target group falls your sustainable strategy can be more efficient. The management of the fashion brands must understand what the thought is of their consumer, if they want to understand the thoughts and actions of consumers and influence these thoughts. Thoughts arise in the cognitive unconscious; this term refers to the mental processes that are outside the conscious. 95% of our cognition reference in the subconscious. Before you are aware of a choice, the areas in the brains linked to choices are already activated, and the decision has already happened before it was taken. Memories play a major role in the subconscious. The view on what we think of the present and what we still know about the past and what we propose in the future this will be affected by the memories. Memories can be implicit or explicit. Memories are not based on words, but on visuals. One of the key components that emerge in the book of Zaltman tells the stories and listens to marketing. To attract the attention it is not the 'sustainability' that is most important, but the story behind the product. Strategies as authenticity, craftsmanship, community - feeling, local involvement or storytelling are used. Examples are: put the consumer in touch with the source, or use an appealing role model, like G - Star Raw for the Oceans did with Pharrell Williams. Convince consumers to change their behaviour is an important part of the sustainability agenda and the main goal in this research report. 1 Motivaction: http://www.motivaction.nl 5
New business models Besides finding alternatives for natural sources, there are a lot of innovative developments to chance from a linear supply chain to a closed loop system. The old clothes are reversed and of the old fibers are woven into new fabrics. This recycling concept you see more and more. There are also new design systems developed, like the one of Hasmik Matevosyan 2, in this system you involve the consumers in the design process. In this way, there will be no over production and garments that will be thrown away. This new design system consists 5 phases: Explore, Visualize, Reflect, Create and Communicate. The design system requires an investment in research and development, safety and welfare of partners. In the end it will safe the cost of the unsold clothes and discounts are no longer needed. "Sharing is caring" this phenomenon is reflected in various industries. As the housing and car markets: Airbnb, car2go, DriveNow, Snappcar. Anno 2015 it is not longer necessary to have everything all yourself, products are shared. Also inside the garment industry is here to see a new business model back: the clothing library. In the past year, two opened in the Netherlands in Amsterdam and Utrecht. In other European cities, this concept had been around longer. Last but defiantly not least is transparency. Transparency is something what every brand should integrate, due to the rapid spread of information through social media and the Internet brands should be aware of this. MVO Netherlands recognizes three forms of transparency: a source of innovation, better business and accountability. When it comes to sources of innovation the stakeholders are involved in the decision- making dilemmas. This demonstrates that the organization sees that the other view as very important. Being clear about certain considerations. Transparency can be used here as a marketing tool. The second: Better business to customers, investors and suppliers recognize the sustainability policy of an organization. Customers or suppliers can therefore consciously choose a product or service. The third is accountability; accountability will be rendered to the society about the impact of the organization on the environment, people and economy. Who is proud of his business is transparent about it, according to the survey of MVO Netherlands. 2 Hasmik Matevosyan: Book Paradigm Shift into Fashion. 6
Reflection interviews After the analyse of the theory the next step in the research was the interviews with seven experts. The experts I did an interview with were: 1. Carlotta Cataldi. http://slowfashionforward.org (ENG) 2. Marieke Eyskoot. http://www.talkingdress.nl (NL) 3. Hasmik Matevosyan. http://hasmikmatevosyan.com/home/ (NL) 4. Wickie Meier. http://www.esmodberlinmaster.de (ENG) 5. Jeannette Ooink. http://www.awearness- fashion.nl (ENG) 6. Willa Stoutenbeek. http://wgreen.org (NL) 7. Friederike Von Wedel. http://www.esmodberlinmaster.de (ENG) The main theme, which emerges in every interview, is the image of sustainable fashion. This image is not correct anymore and might be defined the cause of the problem. The old traditional image of sustainable fashion is no longer appropriate. The idea that ethically produced clothing is often more expensive, does not always have to be true. The word sustainability must not be used anymore. Every expert indicates that this is not the proper definition for the innovative, beautiful and high- quality clothing. It needs to be a standard. The need of the customer is of great importance, because a customer does not buy something because it is durable, a customer buys something first of all because he or she likes it. Sustainability may also be absolutely sexy and attractive but this is not the image of sustainability. This image must be repositioned so that it is attractive for every target group. On the other hand there is a big lack of knowledge by consumers and retailers. Consumers often have the idea that clothes are produced in the same way as cookies, that they just rolling of an assembly line in the factories. The idea that a garment has passed through many human hands is not the case. The human aspect is lacking and therefore also the appreciation and the relationship that the consumers has with their garments. Besides the missing knowledge of the production many consumers also do not know how to wash or recycle the garments in the best ways. The human aspect is more important than the environmental aspect, according to the interviews. To influence the consumers this can be done the best in a positive way, do not make the consumers feel guilty. Do not say what the consumers are doing wrong, but rather what they can contribute. With a view to the future, fashion labels should focus on offering new services and consider new business- models. 7
Reflection consumers After the perspective of the experts it is time for the perspective of the consumers. The target group of my final- thesis was: Dutch women of 40 + to 60. I send out a survey by email and had 20 full surveys back. The survey highlights were: It is clearly the consumer puts the social aspect first; they find it very important that the sewers and textile workers work in good conditions and get a good salary. When the story about the production process is told, the attention should go to the people behind the garments. That will makes the most impact on consumers. Consumers are not aware of the impact they can have on the fashion brands. For the consumer it must be clear that they can have more responsibility and use their voice with the choice they have. Consumers should ask more and wake up. Mind map of consumers about sustainable fashion: 8
Already existing services The sustainable fashion gets more attention in the media and the consumer is gradually aware. This is partly due to the rapid access to information. The subject is relevant to write about for the media. In addition, NGOs such as Greenpeace, Clean Clothes Campaign and Solidaridad are very active in spreading news about the social- - and environmental abuses in the garment production. Li Edelkoort has described in her last manifesto, "The Ethics of the production of clothing comes more to the forefront of the media debate and takes a prominent place in the press, radio and television. Whether this is a positive effect, there are divided opinions on "the manifesto of Li Edelkoort. The fashion brands are criticized by the media and hence by the consumer, while there are many campaigners who criticize the fashion brands. Here are some examples: DETOX CATWALK Greenpeace is a big campaigner, they focus among other things on the detox improvement of fashion brands. With the campaign Detox Catwalk, Greenpeace rated the affiliated labels on their detox policies. In the past three years, hundreds of thousands activists, fashionistas, bloggers and consumers reunited for a fashion industry without pollution. Through the power of the large group, for example, social media have 18 brands joined the Detox Catwalk in 2012. This means that they want to improve themselves in the use of toxic substances. Three years have passed and in March 2015 the labels were judged in three categories: Leaders, Greenwashers and Losers. The leaders where in Adidas group stands at the top, have a good schedule and will lead to a toxic- free future with concrete actions. The Greenwashers, Nike and LiLning pretend as greener labels. They use sustainability as a marketing tool. The losers do not take responsibility for the toxic substances they use and there is no obvious improvement. Examples of the losers are: Armani, Dolce & Gabanna, Bestseller and PVH. (Source: http: //www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns / detox / fashion / detox - catwalk /) People care when they know Fashion Revolution Day on 24 April this year in Berlin has held a very interesting action. At Alexanderplatz was standing a turquoise machine, with the text: T - shirt 2 euros. That's what consumers want, right? Cheap clothes, but what if you know the circumstances under which the T - shirt is made? When there is 2 euros in the machine was thrown, there started a movie with the working conditions of its creators. At the end of the movie was asked: Do you want the T- shirt buy or want to donate these 2 euro? Nine out of ten people chose to donate. The last words of the film were: "people care when they know, help us to remind the world. Share this the fashion to start revolution ". (Source: http://www.thegoodbuy.com/blogs/recent- - updates / 19,210,327 - people - care - when - They - know) Green carpet Challenge The green carpet Challenge (GCC) is created to retrieve the focus on the red carpet focus sustainability by the celebrities. There is collaboration with high- quality designers, such as Gucci and Stella McCartney. These designers design some outfits from durable material especially for the red carpet. In this way there will be also asked attention for this issue showbiz. (Source: http://greencarpetchallenge.tumblr.com) 9
The Rag_Bag The Norwegian label Uniforms for dedicated asks its customers quite emphatically to recycle. When you do a purchase you will get a recyclable bag. "Buy something new, donate something old" is the slogan for this campaign. The bag can also be ordered online without making a purchase. (Source: http://www.theragbag.se) Rapanui, is a small eco - label from the UK. This label shows in a very beautiful way the steps that are taken during the production process. This is done by using a QR - code. The consumer can see exactly where the product comes from. Additionally Rapanui asks consumers purchase through their website reduce and resolve reuse and recycling of clothing. (Source: https://rapanuiclothing.com) The label doesn t tell the whole story Canadian Fair Trade Network and ReThink communcations have developed a new campaign: "The label does not tell the whole story." This campaign is designed to raise awareness, to make people think and to take action on the misunderstandings in the clothing production. The garments shown here with the long labels, tell stories of factory workers from Bangladesh and Cambodia. Each label shows that the garment 100% cotton, but that's not the whole story. Then there follows a story who made the garment and in which conditions: "Made in Cambodia by Behnly, nine years old. He gets up at 5am every morning to make his way to the garment factory where he works. "It will be dark when he arrives and dark when he leaves. He dresses lightly because The temperature in the room he works Reaches 30 degrees. "The dust in the room fills his nose and mouth. He will make less than a dollar for a day spent slowly suffocating. A mask would cost the company at cents. "What was the effect? To learn more about this campaign, the researcher contacted the developers. Sean McHugh (sean@cftn.ca) and the Albane Germon (albane@rethinkcanada.com). The impact of the campaign was bigger than expected and all reactions were positive: "Our website traffic went up to 10- fold, we also added about 25% to our likes on Facebook, The buzz around the campaign was pretty big in Canada and abroad. " (Source: http://cftn.ca/campaigns/label- - doesnt- - tell- - whole- - story ) 10
Conclusion After all the diverse input from different perspectives, in the conclusion everything comes together. There came out several interesting things to conclude: The word sustainability is a boring word and not positive in the way it is used in the fashion industry. When fashion labels want to promote their sustainable policy they should not use this word. Business models to turn the consumer behaviour towards sustainability are a relatively new concept. Within these new models is not so much to sell more products or services; it's more about building a bond and trust in the brand. The essential challenge for behavioural change business models is to find a way to maintain sales growth while building a relationship with the consumer. The clothing brand Patagonia has experimented with behavioural marketing in recent years, by encouraging consumers to buy less and repair more. Creating awareness starts with sharing knowledge. This is evident is shown in the campaign "people care when they know" at Fashion Revolution Day in Berlin. When the productions process will be shown there will follow more trust in a brand. The new consumer service can provide added value for fashion labels when it is transparent, useful, offering an extra service, the human aspect to the forefront and will be positively shown. Consumers must be involved and have a say in the service. In addition, the word sustainability should be avoided in the permanent service. On the basis of cognitive dissonance consumers can be convinced to actually change its behaviour. For MADE- BY it might be interesting to offer more in- store- staff workshops. For brand this could be useful because the staff in stores are representative for the brands. Why the government does not do the same with electronic cars? If you buy a sustainable produced garment you do not have to pay taxes, so price wise it will be also interesting for consumers. MADE- BY could have a mediating role in this. 11
What could fashion brands offer according a more sustainable strategy and consumers engagement? - Live- streaming from the factories where the clothes are made, this will bring more transparency and will bring the source closer to your consumer. - Offer extra service to repair and bring back old clothes. - Give clear introductions how to wash clothes so their clothes can lost longer. - Be transparent also to your own employees, share knowledge with your own employees. Instructions how to do the laundry Clothes may lost longer Extra service: Repair & take back old garments for recycling Transparency Live- streaming in shops from the factories 12