Faculty of Management and Economics, Gdańsk University of Technology, 80-233 Gdańsk, Poland;
olasinkiewicz@gmail.com
* Correspondence: mpop@pg.edu.pl
Abstract: This article presents an analysis of the concept of sustainable fashion from the Polish consumer’s
perspective. The aim of this research is to investigate how Polish fashion consumers approach
the concepts of sustainability, such as organic, fair-trade, and carbon emissions. Exploring
the experience of the Polish consumption context provides a richer understanding of the evolution
of fashion sustainability concepts in this and similar countries. The research methods applied comprise
the literature review, including the theoretical and empirical items, and the survey conducted
among Polish fashion consumers. According to our findings, Polish consumers declare caring more
about the general environment but do not pay attention to sustainable development in the clothing
industry. It is also worth noting that Poles, compared to those in other countries, have an unfavourable
opinion of their own nation on the approach to sustainable development in the garment industry.
Keywords: sustainable fashion; consumer behavior; garment industry; Poland
- Introduction
The global garment industry has been changing over the years in response to the
needs of society and recently also in response to environmental issues. At the beginning
of the rapid development of clothing production, the magnitude of the impact on nature
was probably not realized. Over time and with the increase in the benefits of a quick response
to the fashion needs of customers, the environment has been abandoned. Meanwhile,
today, brands face the challenge of adapting to the expectations of a new type of
consumer who has greater social awareness and perceives products not only through the
lenses of the quality or price but also of the values that they bring. Consumers’ movements
trying to persuade the garment industry to introduce the necessary changes in production
methods, materials used, or actual control of the supply chain are gaining in importance
worldwide. It may be a form of sustainable citizenship in which individuals try to assume
social responsibility and meet ecological challenges 1. However, these behaviors depend
on the consumer awareness, linked to its demographics, including, inter alia, age, ethnicity,
and income [2,3]. The fashion and notions of sustainability are socially constructed,
therefore, in order to understand reality, we need to uncover people’s behaviors in the
given context [4–6].