Generation Z willingness to pay for sustainable apparel: the influence of labelling for origin and eco-friendly material
Main Article Content
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to identify the willingness to pay (WTP) and trade-off that Vietnamese generation Z consumers could make when purchasing eco-friendly apparel. This research uses the Discrete Choice Experiment methodology to measure consumers' WTP and how consumers trade off among different attributes, including eco-friendly, origin, manufacturing technology, and materials. The results show that generation Z consumers are willing to pay for organic label products at a higher price of 21.22% and eco-friendly label items at a higher price of 37.72%. Consumers who have a higher level of corporate social responsibility (CSR) awareness and higher income are willing to pay more for organic and ecofriendly label apparel. They were least willing to purchase apparel that is made in China, while they see no difference between T-shirts made in Vietnam and in other countries except China. Consumers in the current study were more willing to purchase eco-friendly as compared to organic apparel. The findings suggest that enterprises should consider the language used when communicating with consumers. Also, consumers prefer products made in Vietnam, suggesting the promotion of domestic manufacturing through in-depth branding, product positioning, and promotions. The results also confirm that the application of CSR in enterprises is the right and necessary step to be taken for businesses to develop in a sustainable integration world.
Article Details
Keywords
Eco-friendly apparel, Discrete choice experiment, Customer behavior, Sustainability
References
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Pham, T.H. and Pham. H.Q. (2019), “Corporate social responsibility regarding education of foreign direct investment companies in Vietnam”, External Economics Review, Vol. 118, pp. 51 - 65.
Pham, T.C.A. and Tang, V.N. (2020), “Trach nhiem xa hoi cua doanh nghiep trong viec bao ve moi truong va anh huong cua no toi hanh vi cua nguoi tieu dung”, Tap chi Quan ly va Kinh te quoc te, Vol. 125, pp. 71 - 79.
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Wang, C. (2007), Consumer behavior and willingness to pay for organic products, Unpublished Thesis, San Jose State University, San Jose, CA
Banerjee, B. and McKeage, K. (1994), How green is my value: exploring the relationship between environmentalism and materialism, ACR North American Advances.
Boulstridge, E. and Carrigan, M. (2000), “Do consumers really care about corporate responsibility? Highlighting the attitude-behavior gap”, Journal of Communication Management, Vol. 4 No. 4, pp. 355 - 368.
Bui, T.L.H. (2010), “The Vietnamese consumer perception on corporate social responsibility”, Journal of International Business Research, Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 1 - 22. Casadesus-Masanell, R., Crooke, M., Reinhardt, F. and Vasishth, V. (2009), “Household willingness to pay for green goods: evidence from Patagonia’s introduction of organic cotton sportswear”, Journal of Economics and Management Strategy, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 203 - 233.
Cowan, K. and Kinley, T. (2014), “Green spirit: consumer empathies for green apparel”, International Journal of Consumer Studies, Vol. 38 No. 5, pp. 493 - 499.
DeShazo, J. and Fermo, G. (2002), “Designing choice sets for stated preference methods: the effects of complexity on choice consistency”, Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Vol. 44 No. 1, pp. 123 - 143.
Dang, T.K.T. (2017), Nghien cuu cac nhan to anh huong den su san sang mua hang may mac noi dia cua nguoi tieu dung Viet Nam o cac thanh pho, Luan an Tien si, Truong Dai hoc Kinh te Quoc dan.
Dickerson, K.G. (1987), “Relative importance of country of origin as an attribute in apparel choices”, Journal of Consumer Studies & Home Economics, Vol. 11 No. 4, pp. 333 - 343.
Ellis, J.L., McCracken, V.A. and Skuza, N. (2012), “Insights into willingness to pay for organic cotton apparel”, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, Vol. 16 No. 3, pp. 290 - 305.
Freeman, R.E. (1984), Strategic management: a stakeholder approach, Boston: Pittman.
Gam, H.J., Cao, H., Farr, C. and Kang, M. (2010), “Quest for the eco-apparel market: a study of mothers’ willingness to purchase organic cotton clothing for their children”, International Journal of Consumer Studies, Vol. 34 No. 6, pp. 648 - 656. Gilg, A., Barr, S. and Ford, N. (2005), “Green consumption or sustainable lifestyles: identifying the sustainable consumer”, Futures, Vol. 37 No. 6, pp. 481 - 506.
Heikkurinen, P., Young, C.W. and Morgan, E. (2019), “Business for sustainable change: extending eco-efficiency and eco-sufficiency strategies to consumers", Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 218, pp. 656 - 664.
Hensher, D.A., Rose, J.M. and Greene, W.H. (2005), Applied choice analysis: a primer, Cambridge University Press.
Hwang, C.G., Lee, Y. and Diddi, S. (2015), “Generation Y’s moral obligation and purchase intentions for organic, fair-trade, and recycled apparel products”, International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education, Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 97 - 107.
Joergens, C. (2006), “Ethical fashion: myth or future trend?”, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, Vol. 10 No. 3, pp. 360 - 371.
Johnson, R.M. and Orme, B.K. (1996), How many questions should you ask in choicebased conjoint studies, Paper presented at the Art Forum, Beaver Creek.
Kang, J., Lin, C. and Kim, S. (2013), “Environmentally sustainable textile and apparel consumption: the role of consumer knowledge, perceived consumer effectiveness and perceived personal relevance”, International Journal of Consumer Studies, Vol. 37 No. 4, pp. 442 - 453.
Lagarde, M. and Blaauw, D. (2009), “A review of the application and contribution of discrete choice experiments to inform human resources policy interventions”, Human Resources for Health, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 1 - 10.
Lancaster, K.J. (1966), “A new approach to consumer theory”, Journal of Political Economy, Vol. 74 No. 2, pp. 132 - 157.
Lancsar, E. and Louviere, J. (2008), “Conducting discrete choice experiments to inform healthcare decision making”, Pharmacoeconomics, Vol. 26 No. 8, pp. 661 - 677.
Laroche, M., Bergeron, J. and Barbaro-Forleo, G. (2001), “Targeting consumers who are willing to pay more for environmentally friendly products”, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 18 No. 6, pp. 503 - 520.
Li, K., Zhang, J. and Gong, J. (2014), “Wrinkle-resistant finish of foam technology for cotton fabric”, Journal of Industrial Textiles, Vol. 43 No. 4, pp. 525 - 535.
Lin, S. (2010), “A case study in Hawaii: who will pay more for organic cotton?”, International Journal of Consumer Studies, Vol. 34 No. 4, pp. 481 - 489.
Lori, R. and Delisia, M. (2017), "Consumer decision making when purchasing ecofriendly apparel", International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. 45 No. 4, pp. 404 - 418.
Louviere, J.J., Hensher, D.A. and Swait, J.D. (2000), Stated choice methods:
analysis and applications, Cambridge University Press.
Luzio, J.P.P. and Lemke, F. (2013), “Exploring green consumers’ product demands and consumption processes: the case of Portuguese green consumers”, European Business Review, Vol. 25 No. 3, pp. 281 - 300.
Mandeville, K.L., Lagarde, M. and Hanson, K. (2014), “The use of discrete choice experiments to inform health workforce policy: a systematic review”, BMC Health Services Research, Vol. 14 No. 1, pp. 367 - 381.
McFadden, D. (1986), “The choice theory approach to market research”, Marketing Science, Vol. 5 No. 4, pp. 275 - 297.
McFadden, D. and Train, K. (2000), “Mixed MNL models for discrete response”, Journal of Applied Econometrics, Vol. 15 No. 5, pp. 447 - 470.
McGoldrick, P.J. and Freestone, O.M. (2008), “Ethical product premiums: antecedents and extent of consumers’ willingness to pay”, The International Review of Retail, Distribution, and Consumer Research, Vol. 18 No. 2, pp. 185 - 201.
Meyer, A. (2001), “What’s in it for the consumers? Successfully marketing green clothes”, Business Strategy and the Environment, Vol. 10 No. 5, pp. 317 - 330.
Nguyen, T.K. and Nguyen, T.L.A. (2016), “Nghien cuu y dinh tieu dung xanh cua nguoi tieu dung tai TP. Ho Chi Minh”, Tap chi Khoa hoc Truong Dai hoc Su pham TP HCM, Vol. 47, pp. 42 - 52.
Nguyen, T.P. and Dekhili, S. (2019), Sustainable development in Vietnam: an examination of consumers’ perceptions of green products, Business Strategy and Development.
Orme, B. (1998), Sample size issues for conjoint analysis studies, Sawthooth Software Research paper Series. Squim, WA, USA: Sawthooth Software Inc.
Peterson, H.H., Hustvedt, G. and Chen, Y.J. (2012), “Consumer preferences for sustainable wool products in the USA”, Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, Vol. 30 No. 1, pp. 35 - 50.
Pham, T.H. and Pham. H.Q. (2019), “Corporate social responsibility regarding education of foreign direct investment companies in Vietnam”, External Economics Review, Vol. 118, pp. 51 - 65.
Pham, T.C.A. and Tang, V.N. (2020), “Trach nhiem xa hoi cua doanh nghiep trong viec bao ve moi truong va anh huong cua no toi hanh vi cua nguoi tieu dung”, Tap chi Quan ly va Kinh te quoc te, Vol. 125, pp. 71 - 79.
Rashid, A., Barnes, L. and Warnaby, G. (2016), “Management perspectives on country of origin”, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp. 230 - 244.
Sheth, J., Newman, B. and Gross, B. (1991), “Why we buy what we buy: a theory of consumption values”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 22 No. 2, pp. 159 - 170. Tran, T.N. and Tieu, V.T. (2020), “The impacts of consumer value and brand identification on brand loyalty and electronic word of mouth: the case of smartphone market in Ho Chi Minh City”, Journal of International Economics and Management, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp. 60 - 74
Wang, C. (2007), Consumer behavior and willingness to pay for organic products, Unpublished Thesis, San Jose State University, San Jose, CA