Ethical fashion: myth or future trend?

Purpose – The aim is to contribute to a better understanding of ethical fashion consumption. Even though consumers demand more ethical responsibility from companies, it is debatable if consumers would sacrifice their own personal needs to support ethically produced clothing.Design/methodology/approach – Focus groups are conducted in the UK and Germany in order to elicit consumers' beliefs and attitudes towards ethical issues in the fashion industry and its effect on purchase behaviour. Questionnaires are administrated to verify the outcome of the focus groups.Findings – The findings from this research demonstrate little evidence that ethical issues have any effect on consumers' fashion purchase behaviour. When it comes to fashion purchase, personal needs motivate consumers primarily to buy garments and take precedence over ethical issues.Research limitations/implications – Only a specific age group between 18 and 26‐years‐old is interviewed. Both research methods are undertaken in the area of Manchester, ...