How to speak ‘sustainable fashion’: four consumer personas and five criteria for sustainable fashion communication

ABSTRACT The hazardous impact of the fashion industry has prompted institutions, manufacturers, and brands to provide more sustainable conditions. However, many consumers have little of knowledge about sustainable fashion products and procedures. This study provides findings on fashion consumers’ informational needs on sustainability, and strategies for communicating sustainable fashion product information. The data comes from six focus group meetings and two conference workshops. The findings indicate that consumers generally think of sustainability in fashion as related to five criteria: material and procedure, environmental impact, animal welfare, human welfare, and product care. Furthermore, the findings underscore four related but distinct consumer personas (named by the researchers: romantic optimists, egocentrics, confused Alecs, and gloomies) based on their informational needs, motivation to increase sustainability literacy, and sustainability-related behaviour in fashion. These personas and criteria can be utilised to segment consumers and tailor communication and marketing strategies to enhance fashion consumers’ sustainable behaviour.