Do you sell sustainable and ethical cloting through online marketplaces like Zalando? Then it's good to be aware of the so-called 'attitude-behaviour gap'. Many consumers indicate that they want to make sustainable and ethical choices in fashion. Yet in practice, we see that very few of these consumers actually consistently choose sustainable and ethical clothing. This 'gap' between what people think and what they actually do is discussed in Zalando's 'Attitude-Behaviour Gap-rapport’.
In this article, we summarize the main findings of this report. We discuss what exactly the attitude-behaviour gap is, what it means for sellers of sustainable and ethical clothing, and how to bridge this 'gap'.
Do you want to know more about selling on Zalando or do you want to discuss the possibilities for you brand? Click on the arrow below and get in touch with one of our specialists!
The attitude-behaviour gap also referred to as the value-action gap or the intention-behaviour gap, refers to the "gap" that occurs when an individual's values or attitudes do not (completely) match his or her behaviour.
We also see this gap when it comes to purchasing fashion. More and more consumers are aware of the importance of sustainable clothing. Especially younger shoppers (millennials and generation Z) indicate that they consider sustainability important when buying clothes. And although we see this reflected in the popularity of brands that profile themselves as 'sustainable', there is still a skewed ratio between the percentage of consumers who say they care about sustainability and the percentage of consumers who actually store sustainably.
We see the same when it comes to the importance of ethical clothing. Although consumers indicate that they want good working conditions for the people who make their clothes, we do not always see this reflected in their buying behaviour.
Zalando's 'Attitude-Behaviour Gap report' examines consumers' attitudes and behaviours toward sustainable and ethical fashion. The study identified 12 elements that play a role in consumers' attitudes towards sustainability, ethical responsibility, and fashion:
Based on these 12 elements, surveys were conducted among 2500 people in the UK, Sweden, Italy, France, and Germany. The participants were 50% gen Z (between 18 and 24 years old) and 50% millennials (between 25 and 35 years old). Half of the participants were male, the other half female. There was also a lot of variation in education level and income between the participants.
The surveys asked two questions for each of these 12 elements:
Now that you know what the attitude-behaviour gap means, it won't surprise you that the study found that the answers to the first and second questions show a distinction between what people say they think is important and their behaviour.
Yet the gap between attitude and behaviour was not the same for all elements. Sometimes the gap was small. For example, when it came to product quality, 58% of participants said they thought sustainable quality was important (the clothes should last a long time) and 52% of participants, therefore, take this into account when they buy clothes.
Other times, the gap was actually very wide. For example, about 60% of respondents indicated that they find transparency about sustainability important, while only 20% actively seek sustainability information during the purchasing process. About 53% of the participants indicated that they thought an ethical labor policy was important, while only 23% actually investigate the policy.
Also, some 60% of participants indicated that they value second-hand clothing and repairing broken clothing. Yet only 23% of the participants repair their own clothing and only 25% of the participants actually buy secondhand.
The study also revealed seven key themes in consumer behaviour:
Do you sell sustainable and ethical clothing? Then you may have a tendency to take these results very negatively. Consumers indicate that they find sustainability and ethical responsibility important, but ultimately do not act upon them, which is perhaps your conclusion.
Still, you don't have to shut down your business right away. Don't forget that the research also shows that consumers do consider sustainability and ethical responsibility very important when buying clothing. In other words, the values of these consumers actually fit your company and your product very well.
The problem lies in the implementation: consumers have to make various efforts to find out how sustainable their clothes are and what the working conditions are of the people working on their clothes. Zalando's research shows that consumers expect the industry to help them make these efforts. More than half of the participants said they think it is important that brands, online platforms, and sellers take the pressure off them, by taking measures towards sustainability.
In addition, more than half of the consumers themselves want to feel like they can influence the sustainability of fashion. In other words, to bridge the attitude-behaviour gap, you need to work with your customer.
As a salesperson, it is therefore important to help consumers bridge the attitude-behaviour gap.
As a result of the research and several conversations with their sales partners, Zalando gives the following 10 recommendations:
Do you want more information about selling sustainable and ethical clothing through Zalando? Then also read our article about the Zalando Sustainability Label. Or contact us for more information.