Does Green Fashion RetailingMake Consumers MoreEco-friendl.docx

Does Green Fashion Retailing
Make Consumers More
Eco-friendly? The Influence of
Green Fashion Products and
Campaigns on Green
Consciousness and Behavior
Namhee Lee
1
, Yun Jung Choi
1
,
Chorong Youn
1
, and Yuri Lee
1
Abstract
This study focuses on fashion retailers’ as the gatekeepers’ role
of encouraging eco-friendly con-
sumption culture, that is, consumption of green products. The
purpose of this study is to propose
and test a green retailing effect model involving different
persuasion routes among green private
brand (PB), green marketing campaigns, green consciousness
and behavior, and to explore the mod-
erating effect of marketing communication involvement (MCI).
The research shows that perception
of green PBs has positive impact on consumers’ green behavior.

Perception of green campaigns has a
significant influence on consumers’ green consciousness and
indirect impact on consumers’ green
behavior. The relationship between consumers’ perception of
green campaign and green conscious-
ness is stronger in the low MCI group. The model is helpful in
understanding the positive impact of
fashion retailers’ green retailing activities on green
consumption culture. The result also provides
strategic guidelines for retailers about their sustainable retail
activities.
Keywords
green retailing, green consciousness, green behavior
Global retailers’ eco-friendly policies and investments in their
implementation demonstrate that
green retailing is no longer an option, but an essential part of
the business model. Green retailing
refers to retailing products with environmental benefits
(hereafter, green products; Lai, Cheng, &
Tang, 2010). The green concept is related to the ecological
dimension of sustainable development,
which consists of its sociocultural, ecological, and economic
subdimensions. Among these, the
1 Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
Corresponding Author:
Yun Jung Choi, Seoul National University, 1 Gwanang-no,
Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151742, Republic of Korea

Email: [email protected]
Clothing and Textiles
Research Journal
30(1) 67-82
ª The Author(s) 2012
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ecological dimension has drawn the most attention (Elkington,
1997). As consumers’ awareness of
environment increases along with the global demand for green
products, major global retailers create
labels claiming environmental benefits, or green labels, (e.g.,
Green Collections of Gap and Carbon-
Neutral Lingerie of M&S) and indexes to evaluate ‘‘greenness’’
of suppliers and/or products for
practicing sustainability (e.g., Sustainability Index of Wal-Mart
and the Eco Index
TM
of The U.S.
Outdoor Industry Association). Such policies of retailers who

have a large number of employees and
stores across the globe inspire other retailers to jump onto the
bandwagon of green retailing.
The ultimate goal of green retailing is to benefit the
environment. With this in view, this study
focuses on the unique role of retailers in green retailing.
Retailers can change consumers’ conscious-
ness and behavior by directly interacting with them. Recently,
the retailers started drawing renewed
attention as gatekeepers who can lead a good consumption
culture (Solomon & Rabolt, 2004),
including consumers’ eco-friendly behavior. As retailers
encourage consumption of green products
and discourage consumption of nongreen products through
green retailing, they directly influence
consumer behavior. Accordingly, the question, ‘‘Is green
retailing truly beneficial to the environ-
ment?’’ may be replaced by ‘‘Do consumers practice
consumption of green products because of
green retailing?’’
Green consciousness and green behavior refer to environmental
concern and belief, and con-
sumption of green products, respectively (Kim & Damhorst,
1998). Although some studies claim

to focus on the consumer attitude toward corporate
environmental activities (Creyer & Ross,
2004; Ogle, Hyllegard, & Dunbar, 2004), they hardly carried
out analytical work on the relationship
between consumers’ green consciousness and green behavior as
a result of green retailing. This
study focuses on retailers’ social role—the gatekeeper’s role—
that can encourage the eco-
friendly consumption culture of individuals to verify whether
green retailing actually influences
consumer practice of green consciousness-and-behavior.
Considering that the retailers’ social role
is performed through a persuasion process, the Elaboration
Likelihood Model or ELM (Petty &
Cacioppo, 1986) was adopted to describe the way in which
consumers’ perception of green retailing
is determined by the type of retailing mix. This study provides
important implications to both aca-
demia and industry. Academically, the study associates green
corporate activities with consumers’
green consciousness-and-behavior, a major topic in
sustainability studies, by showing green activ-
ities of corporations result in convincing consumers of green
consciousness and behavior. Indust-

rially, the study can motivate corporations to voluntarily
undertake green activities with the
belief that retailers can be the ones who lead the consumption
culture.
Literature Review
Green Retailer and Green Retail Mix
The concept of sustainability was born out of the warning that
the ecosystem is irreplaceable. It has
been discussed globally by governments, nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs), and corporations
since the Rio Earth Summit of 1992 referred the issue to the
United Nations Conference on environ-
ment and development. According to Elkington’s (1997) triple-
bottom-line of sustainability, sus-
tainable corporate management consists in environmental
protection, social responsibility, and
economic profitability. Among these, environmental protection
has drawn the most attention. When
corporations respond passively to their environmental
responsibilities, consumers show strong neg-
ative responses. Therefore, companies have been trying to strike
a long-term balance between envi-
ronmental protection and economic growth (Berry & Rondinelli,

1998).
Among different eco-friendly activities, green retailing is what
most retailers seem to follow
enthusiastically for fulfilling their environmental
responsibilities (Lai et al., 2010). Green retailing
comprises two parts: green product sales and eco-friendliness of
other activity mixes. Green product
68 Clothing and Textiles Research Journal 30(1)
sales include selling organic and wellness-related products.
Management of other mixes contributes
to symbiosis with the surroundings with regard to nonproduct
management, including retail supply
chain, customer-facing initiatives, and facilities management
(Yudelson, 2009).
Among various green retail mixes, the focus here is on the
green products and promotion. Stern
and Ander (2008) assert that selling green products is the most
important activity to become a suc-
cessful green retailer, besides communicating greenness with
consumers and communities as an

alarm to awaken retailers’ consciousness of the environment.
Other studies point out that green prod-
ucts and green promotions directly influence consumers’
behavior and consciousness and are hence
important green retail mixes to green consumers (Birgelen,
Semeijn, & Keicher, 2009; Jonas & Roo-
sen, 2005; Moore, 1995). Given the importance of green
products and their promotion to consumers,
we intend to position our theory in the fashion retail context in
an effort to contribute, via empirical
insight, to the understanding of green retailing and the
prevalence of attention toward the important
role of fashion retailers in the area of environment protection.
Green Retailer as a Gatekeeper
Retailers assume the role of gatekeepers because there has been
a change in their roles over time.
Traditionally, a retailer is considered a mere distributor and is,
therefore, regarded as a seller of prod-
ucts. However, modern retailers not only deliver products and
services but also respond to consu-
mers’ demands and actively influence their preference and
behavior (Lai et al., 2010). By
excluding certain products from the market or by expanding

distribution of certain products, retailers
can encourage consumption of eco-friendly products (Hansen &
Skytte, 1998). Also, they can edu-
cate consumers by delivering relevant information about green
consumption culture and the means
to nurture that culture (Wirthgen, 2005). Bestseller, one of the
leading fashion retailers in Denmark,
is a good example of a retailer acting as a gatekeeper.
Bestseller, besides developing eco-friendly
logistics center and organic product collection, tries to give its
customers an opportunity to buy a
wide range of environment-friendly products (‘‘Bestseller
launches organic . . .,’’ 2007).
For retailers to play the role of gatekeeper, it is important that
they manage products and infor-
mation (Wirthgen, 2005). While developing a retailer-
gatekeeper model for an environment-friendly
food industry, Wirthgen (2005) demonstrates how retailers, as
gatekeepers, coordinate producer
cooperation and control the flows of products and information
between the food industry and its con-
sumers. In acting as gatekeepers, retailers selectively deliver
eco-friendly products and relevant
information to consumers, which results in increasing the

consumers’ demand for high quality foods.
Therefore, managing green products and green campaigns is
important for green retailers to fulfill
their roles. As product sales and campaigns have both direct and
indirect impact on consumer con-
sciousness and behavior, a green retailer may serve as a catalyst
for consumption of green products.
This impact is manifested in the form of different attitudes and
behaviors depending on how the con-
sumers perceive green retail activities (Swait & Sweeney,
2000). Therefore, green retailing by fash-
ion retailers may have strong influence on inducing
consumption of green products if consumers
perceive high values from the retailers’ activities. Based on the
Wirthgen (2005)’s model, this study
reconstructs a ‘‘green fashion retailer’s gatekeeper-model
(Figure 1),’’ which explains how a retailer
filters products and information through green product and
campaign management and induces
green consciousness-and-behavior.
Green Consciousness-and-Behavior
Green consciousness is environmental concern and belief, and
green behavior is consuming green

products (Kim & Damhorst, 1998). While many studies claim
that individuals with green conscious-
ness are more likely to engage in environmentally responsible
consumption (Birgelen et al., 2009),
Lee et al. 69
some recent studies report a weak relationship between green
consciousness and green behavior
(Hughner, McDonagh, Prothero, Shultz, & Stanton, 2007). That
explains why the impact of green
retailing on consumers’ behavior should be examined from
different perspectives of green con-
sciousness and green behavior. For example, Kim and Damhorst
(1998) find that the influence of
environmental concerns on environmentally responsible
behavior is, in general, different from that
on environmentally responsible apparel consumption behavior.
From this, one can expect to find
interesting relationships between green consciousness and green
behavior of fashion products con-
sumers and the influence of green retailing activities on them.

Hypotheses
Influence of Green Fashion Products on Green Behavior
Albino, Balice, and Dangelico (2009) define a green product as
a product devised to minimize envi-
ronmental damage throughout its lifecycle. According to Pujari
et al. (2003) , green products play a
key role in the sustainable growth of companies and economies.
These definitions focus mostly on
the manufacturing processes of green products. Therefore, this
study establishes a fashion retailer’s
green private brand (PB) as an equivalent concept of
manufacturers’ green products to examine their
relationships with consumers. A green PB is an eco-friendly
brand, which labels proprietary prod-
ucts of a retailer and thus a combination of green products and a
PB.
Green PBs provide retailers with competitive advantages such
as differentiation and consumer
loyalty (Jonas & Roosen, 2005). Most green PBs concentrate on
organic products and fast-
moving consumer goods, but recently, they started expanding
their territories to beauty, health, and
fashion products (Berges-Sennou, Bontems, & Requillart,

2004). The availability and development
of natural fabrics and new materials, such as ‘‘green cotton’’ or
‘‘environmentally nonhazardous’’
material, has become more significant for fashion retailers
(Moore, 1995). Other than the increasing
importance of green fashion PBs in the market, there is little
academic evidence to analyze and guide
the trend.
As regards nonfashion products such as organic food PBs,
satisfaction or perceived positive qual-
ity of green products has greater impact on behavioral variables
including purchase intention than on
consumers’ belief or opinions (De Pelsmacker & Janssens,
2007; Straughan & Roberts, 1999). The
direct impact of consumer’s evaluation of green products on
consumer behavior is attributed partly
Stage 2.
Retailer’s Filtering
Stage 1.
Supplying of Fashion
Products & Information
Stage 3.
Consumers’ Perception &
Green Consumption Culture

Consumers
Green
Product
Green
Campaign
Suppliers
Green Retailer
as
Gatekeeper
Figure 1. Green fashion retailer’s gatekeeper-model. Source:
Adapted from Retailer’s gatekeeper-model
(Wirthgen, 2005).
to the physicality of products. Smith and Swinyard (1983) argue
that in a promotional situation,
direct product trial has a greater influence than advertising on
consumers’ attitude, because the tan-
gibility of products dilutes educational aspects of green
retailing. By purchasing and using products,
consumers accumulate product experiences (Sproles, 1979).

That is, heuristic accumulations are
built by experiences, not by communication via persuasive
media, such as services or education.
Thus, selecting green products can make a behavioral change by
consumers’ product experiences,
rather than consumers’ eco-friendly consciousness. The effect
of green PBs on consumers’ green
behaviors can refer to the peripheral route of ELM in terms of
the direct path between a message
and a behavioral response. Without much cognitive elaboration
of the message, the experience with
the topic can directly persuade consumers to choose a product.
Accordingly, among green retailing activities, a hypothetical
path can be established in that green
product perception of the consumers, which directly impacts
green behavior without the mediation
of green consciousness. As green product-related activities of
fashion retailers have meaningful
direct impact on the formation of behavioral attitude toward
consumption of green products, the fol-
lowing hypothesis is propounded:
Hypothesis 1: Consumers’ positive (or negative) perception of
Green PB has positive (or nega-

tive) direct impact on consumers’ green behavior.
Influence of Green Fashion Campaigns on Green Consciousness
and Green Behavior
Green campaign is one of the green promotion activities which
focus on the environmental aspects
of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Green promotion
requires a careful consideration of public
policy processes and environmental concerns to persuade
consumers effectively (Prakash, 2002).
Green promotions, as a tool of CSR activities, improve
corporate image, induce product and service
purchases, and change consumers’ eco-friendly attitude
(Birgelen et al., 2009; Brown & Dacin,
1997). As the green campaigns do not appear to have any
commercial purpose, they can motivate
the consumers to participate, and thereby serve as effective
tools to persuade consumers. Even
so, not many studies were carried out on fashion retailers’ green
campaign activities and consumer
behavior.
The impact of consumers’ perceptions of the enlightenment of
green campaigns on their con-
sumption of green products is processed through a mechanism
similar to the impact of environmen-

tal education on receivers. Although the message senders are
different, one a retailer and the other a
public agency, their purpose is the same—convincing message
receivers. In marketing, persuasion is
a process through which communication is delivered to change
beliefs or attitudes in the intended
way (Solomon, 2009). When message receivers, namely the
consumers, perceive the eco-friendly
messages of the campaigns, they have more positive thoughts
than negative ones, because of this
attitudinal changes may occur as the message intends (Bator &
Cialdini, 2000; Kim, Forney, &
Arnold, 1997). This means that receivers’ attitudinal changes
are caused by processing cognitive
responses.
The consumers’ persuasion process of such green campaigns is
explained by the central route of
the ELM. The ELM includes both the peripheral and the central
routes to persuasion, depending on
the receiver’s motivation and the ability to interpret the
message. Persuasion through messages
affects consumers through their cognitive interpretation of the
messages. Bator and Cialdini

(2000) suggest that the influence of public communication
campaign be structured through the cen-
tral route of the ELM. Simmons and Widmar (1990) also find
that environmental education has lit-
tle, if any, direct impact on consumers’ eco-friendly behavior,
but has indirect impact through
changes in their eco-friendly consciousness. According to the
foregoing discussions, green cam-
paigns are expected to persuade consumers through the central
route of the ELM. A persuasion
Lee et al. 71
model is established such that consumers’ perception of green
campaigns will influence changes in
their eco-friendly consciousness, and the changed consciousness
will, in turn, influence their eco-
friendly consumption. In other words, consumers’ perception of
green campaigns will reinforce their
green behavior by the mediation of green consciousness. The
following hypothesis is based on this
premise:

Hypothesis 2: Consumers’ positive (or negative) perception of
Green campaign has positive (or
negative) direct impact on consumers’ green consciousness.
Although several studies propose a weak relationship between
green consciousness and green beha-
vior (Hughner et al., 2007), most studies continue to identify
the significant positive relationship
between eco-friendly concern and behavior (Arbuthnot, 1977;
Kallgren & Wood, 1986; Simmons
& Widmar, 1990). The concept of weak relationship between
green consciousness and green beha-
vior stems from the fact that environmental goods are similar to
public goods, unlike other consumer
goods. For a clear understanding of the effects of green
retailing, one needs to establish the nature of
relationship between consciousness and behavior by
experimental evidence. If the relationship is
found to be positive, it is significant to prove the indirect
impact of green campaigns on consumers’
behavior. Accordingly, the following hypothesis is proposed:
Hypothesis 3: Consumers’ green consciousness has positive
direct impact on consumers’ green
behavior.

Moderating Effect of Communication Involvement
It is evident that communication plays an important role in
consumers’ understanding of corporate
activities (Keller, 2003). However, not all consumers respond
the same way to marketing commu-
nications; some may readily feel arousal and interest, and show
emotional attachment and favorable
behavior, while others may feel little arousal or interest and
thereby show no change in their attitude
or behavior. Such difference in response depends on conditions
of involvement, communication
sources, and differentiation of alternatives (Ray et al., 1973). In
particular, involvement serves as
an important variable in communication process (Petty,
Cacioppo, & Goldman, 1981). The relation-
ship between communication effect and involvement is found in
the research of Krugman (1965)
who considers that the information process can vary depending
on advertising involvement. Based
on Krugman’s definition, communication involvement is
defined as the interests of general commu-
nication activities of cooperation. Many studies find that
communication effect (level of persuasion)

varies according to the level of communication involvement
(Aldoory, 2001; Petty et al., 1981).
Therefore, it is expected that the communication effect of green
fashion retailing on green con-
sciousness and behavior may differ according to consumers’
communication involvement. As the
influence of communication on decision-making process differs,
depending on the communication
tool, it is also expected that the constrained effects of
communication involvement may differ
depending on the medium: by products and by campaign.
Picker-Baker and Ozaki (2008) show that
consumers’ response to eco-friendly products varies according
to the impact of communication.
Similarly, Berens, Van Riel, and Van Bruggen (2005) analyze to
what extent the involvement in
communication about products with CSR would influence
product purchase behavior. Accordingly,
the following hypothesis is proposed:
Hypothesis 4: Impact of green PB on consumers’ green behavior
varies with consumers’ commu-
nication involvement.

Muehling, Laczniak, and Stoltman (1991) contend that the
relationships between consumers’ per-
ception of advertising and the claims of their acceptance (or
rejection) of message are moderated
by advertising message involvement. Petty, Cacioppo, and
Schumann (1983) report that the impact
of corporations’ message on consumers’ attitude gets stronger
in low involvement condition than in
high involvement condition. Therefore, the impact of
consumers’ perception of green campaign on
the acceptance of green consciousness varies depending on
communication involvement.
Hypothesis 5: Impact of green campaign on consumers’ green
consciousness varies with consu-
mers’ communication involvement.
Methodology
Data for this study were collected from 200 Koreans (100
females and 100 males), aged 20–49, by an
online research agent, Embrain, Inc., that has 1.5 million online
panels and unique online systems.

Of those respondents, 31.5% were in their twenties, 36.0% in
thirties, and 32.5% in forties; about
60% of them were married. To verify whether the value
conceived by consumers of green fashion
retailing can promote their green consciousness and green
behavior, two representative green fash-
ion retailing scenarios—green PB and green campaign—were
provided by the online survey
(Appendix A).
Scenario Development
To adopt an empirical approach, eco-friendly policies of Korean
fashion retailers were collected,
modified to fit into the framework of this study and adopted to
the scenarios. All the scenarios were
developed hypothetically in the form of news articles about
fashion retailers. The green PB scenario
was drafted as a news article that emphasizes eco-friendly
product lifecycles of ‘‘Eco-Smile,’’ an
eco-friendly PB of a fashion retailer. This retailer planned to
increase the number of PB items from
212 as of 2009 year-end to 300 by 2010 year-end. The green
campaign scenario was drafted as a
news article that introduces environmental education programs,
such as ‘‘Environmental Camp for

Children’’ and ‘‘Green Ladies and Gentlemen Campaign’’ for
adults, run by a fashion retailer. A
manipulation check for greenness of the corporation in the
scenario was done using a 7-point
Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7
(strongly agree). Both scenarios were per-
ceived to contain green contents (Green PB, M ¼ 5.37, SD ¼
1.17; Green Campaign, M ¼ 5.36,
SD ¼ 1.17).
Measures
The questionnaire consisted of three questions about consumers’
perception of green retailing (i.e.,
green PB and campaign scenarios), three about green
consciousness, three about green behavior
intention, three about communication involvement, and six
about demographic characteristics (sex,
age, education, occupation, monthly family income, and marital
status). Except for the demographic
characteristics, all other items were measured using 7-point
Likert-type scale ranging from 1
(strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Consumers’ perception
of green PB and green campaign
was measured by utilizing the items of Fisher and Price (1991),
green consciousness by the items of

Gill, Crosby, and Taylor (1986), and green behavior by the
items of Haytko and Matulich (2008). To
identify the effect of green retailing suggested by, regarding
consumers’ communication involve-
ment, the respondents were given sufficient time to read and
think about each scenario before
answering the questions. Their green consciousness and green
behavior intentions were measured
based on the assumption that they had actually experienced the
contents described in the news
articles.
Lee et al. 73
Results
Measurement Model
To verify the validity of four constructs (perception of green
PB, green campaign, green conscious-
ness, and green behavior), by conducting confirmatory factor
analysis (see Table 1), AMOS
18.0 was used. This model’s Normed w2 is 1.40, root mean

square error of approximation
(RMSEA) ¼ .05, goodness-of-fit index (GFI) ¼ .95, adjusted
GFI (AGFI) ¼ .91, and compara-
tive fit index (CFI) ¼ .97, all the values being acceptable
overall (Schumacker & Lomax,
2004). As suggested by Fornell and Larcker (1981) and Hair,
Black, Babin, Anderson, and
Tatham (2010), the model’s convergent validity and
discriminant validity were tested. Factor
loadings are within the range of .86–.93, the lower limit being
more than the recommended
minimum value by over 0.5. All the estimates of construct
reliability are also above the recom-
mended value of 0.7. The variance extracted from each
construct ranges from .69 to .80, which
is higher than the recommended value of 0.5. average variance
extracted (AVE) of constructs
and the square of correlation coefficient between those two
constructs were calculated and
compared; the square of correlation between constructs of all
combinations is between .33 and
.66, which is lower than AVE with a range of .69–.80 (see Table
2). Four constructs were found
to be independent of each other, proving the discriminant
validity. As for composite reliability,
the range is .84–.90, which is higher than the recommended

value of 0.7. The model’s validity
was thus verified and therefore, it was decided to use that model
in the analysis.
Table 1. CFA Measurement Model Results
Construct Loadings Cronbach’s a CR AVE
Perception of Green PB I’m satisfied with this activity .88 .91
.88 .77
This activity is the one that I want .89
To participate in this activity was well
worth it
.86
Perception of Green Campaign I’m satisfied with this activity
.88 .92 .90 .80
This activity is the one that I want .88
To participate in this activity was well
worth it
.92
Green Consciousness I think that we should support
manufacturers making eco-friendly
products
.93 .90 .90 .77
I think that there must be more retailers
selling eco-friendly products
.91

I think that we should buy non-Freon
gas products in the purchase of spray
.79
Green Behavior I would check whether products have
an eco-label
.90 .86 .84 .69
I would buy reusable packaging
products, when there are similar
products
.86
If I found that the product I used to buy
often could harm the environment, I
would change to another product
.72
Model Fit w2 (df) ¼ 67.07(48), w2 /df ¼ 1.40
(n ¼ 200) GFI ¼ .95, AGFI ¼ .91, CFI ¼ .99, NFI ¼.97, RMR
¼ .03, RMSEA ¼ .05
Note. AVE ¼ average variance extracted; CR ¼ construct
reliability; GFI ¼ goodness-of-fit index; AGFI ¼ adjusted
goodness-
of-fit index; NFI ¼ normed fit index; RMSEA ¼ root mean
square error of approximation; RMR ¼ root mean square
residual.

Structural Model
After identifying a reasonably well-fitting measurement model,
the hypothesized structural model
was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). Figure 2
shows the model fit indices and stan-
dardized estimated structural paths. The proposed structural
model fits very well as the values of all
fit indices are above the recommended values. The hypothesized
effects are all significant. To iden-
tify the robustness of the model, we compared the additional
nested model (i.e., rival model) that
included the direct path from perception of green PB to green
consciousness. Compared with the
research model, most of the fit indices for the nested model
remain unchanged for the whole sample.
The normed w2 differs by only one decimal place (from 1.37 to
1.50). The additional path is not sta-
tistically significant. Compared with the alternative model, the
research model is preferred.
Hypothesis 1 is supported because perception of green PBs is
found to have positive direct impact

on green behavior. On the other hand, perception of green
campaigns is found to have indirect
impact on green behavior, mediated by green consciousness.
Therefore, Hypotheses 2 and 3 are sup-
ported. This is the reflection of the educational aspect of green
campaigns. From previous study it
can be seen that environmental education effect on consumer
behavior is mediated by consumer
Table 2. AVE and Squared Correlation Between Constructs
AVE
Squared correlation
1 2 3
1. Perception of green PB .77
2. Perception of green campaign .80 .55
3. Green consciousness .77 .34 .37
4. Green behavior .69 .34 .33 .66
Note. AVE ¼ average variance extracted.
χ2(df) χ2/df GFI AGFI CFI NFI RMSEA
74.74(50) 1.50 .94 .91 .99 .96 .05
Note: **p<0.01 ***p<0.001
Satisfaction
Expectation
Satisfaction

Expectation
Value
Perception
of Green
PB
.18**
Perception
of Green
CampaignValue
y4
y5
y1
y2
y3
Green
Consciousness
y6
Green
Behavior
Intention

.63***
.72***
Figure 2. Tested model and structural equation modeling (SEM)
results.
Lee et al. 75
consciousness (Simmons & Widmar, 1990). And, it is clear that
the effect of green retailing varies
according to the activities.
Moderating Effect
To test the moderating effect of marketing communication
involvement (MCI) on the relationship
between green fashion retailing activities and green
consumption, multigroup analysis by AMOS
18.0 was used. A summated score of three 7-point Likert-type
items was used to divide whole sam-
ple into two groups—high MCI group (127 respondents who
answered more than 4 points) and low
MCI group (73 respondents who answered with 4 points or
less). First, the measurement invariance

between the high and low involvement groups was tested by
multigroup confirmatory factor analysis
(CFA) (Table 3). The research model was found to fulfill the
condition of metric invariance (i.e.,
measurement weight invariance). Generally, metric invariance is
relevant to establishing relation-
ships among constructs, which is generally needed in
moderation tests for structural relationship
differences (Hair, Black, Babin, Anderson, & Tatham, 2010).
After identifying measurement invariance, tests were conducted
by multigroup SEM to verify
whether the difference between the structural models of the low
and high involvement groups was
statistically significant, and to identify whether MCI moderates
the influence of consumers’ percep-
tion of green retailing activities on their green consumption.
First, to examine the moderating effect
of MCI on the relationship between perception of green PB and
green behavior, multigroup SEM
was conducted twice between the model that assumes all
theoretical paths are totally free (the con-
ceptual model of this study, totally free (TF) model) and the
model (constrained model) that assumes

the path to be verified by their moderating effects (i.e.,
perception of green PB à green behavior) is
the same in both high and low involvement groups. Chi square
difference tests show no statistically
significant difference between the Chi square statics (Dw2 ¼
2.6, Ddf ¼ 1) of different models. In
other words, no moderating effect of MCI was identified on the
relationship between consumers’
perception of green PBs and green behavior. Therefore,
Hypothesis 4 was not supported.
Next, it was verified how MCI affects the relationship between
consumers’ perception of green
campaign and green consciousness (Table 4). According to the
result of Chi-square difference static,
the model fit of TF model, whose theoretical paths from
consumers’ perception of green campaigns
to green consciousness are assumed to be different between the
high and low involvement groups,
improved significantly as compared with that of the constrained
model (Dw2 ¼ 5.2, Ddf ¼ 1, p < .05).
In other words, the MCI moderating effect was identified by the
observation that the positive influ-
ence of consumers’ perception of green campaigns on green
consciousness differs depending on the
level of communication involvement. By comparing the path
coefficients from consumers’ percep-

tion of green campaigns on green consciousness by group, it
was found that the low involvement
group delivered .82, against .47 delivered by the high
involvement group. This indicates that the
impact of retailers’ green campaigns on consumers’ eco-friendly
consciousness is greater in low
Table 3. Measurement Invariance Test Result
Model fit measures
Model differences
w2 df p RMSEA CFI Dw2 (Ddf)
Configural invariance 116.17 96 .08 .03 .99 —
Metric invariance 125.84 104 .07 .03 .99 9.67 (8)
Scalar invariance 146.49 114 .02 .04 .98 20.65 (10)*
Factor covariance invariance 164.26 126 .01 .04 .98 17.77 (12)*
Note. CFI ¼ comparative fit index; RMSEA ¼ root mean square
error of approximation. *p <.05.
involvement groups than high involvement group. Similarly,
Schuhwerk and Lefkoff-Hagius (1995)

report that positive relationships between consumers’ evaluation
of eco-friendly messages and their
attitude toward products become stronger in low involvement
groups. Accordingly, Hypothesis 5 is
supported.
Conclusions
This study is designed to understand the positive impact of
fashion retailers’ green retailing activities
on green consciousness and green behavior, based on the
persuasion theory. Analysis of the relation-
ship between green retailing activities and green consciousness
and green behavior reveals that the
more favorable are the consumers’ perceptions of retailers’
green products and green campaign
activities, the greener are their consciousness and behavior.
This underlines the importance of retai-
lers’ voluntary participation in promoting a green consumption
culture in society. Kotzab, Munch,
de Faultrier, and Teller (2011) also emphasizes the crucial role
of global leading retailers in spread-
ing the green consumption culture. Retailers should assume
greater responsibility in spreading eco-
friendly consumption awareness in society and in carrying out

green marketing activities.
This study validates the assumption that different green
retailing activities would affect consumer
attitudes through different persuasion effect processes. Based
on the ELM theory, the consumer per-
suasion process can be approached through the central route and
persuasion through peripheral
route. Stimuli, based on consumers’ intuitions and experiences,
seem to have direct impact on beha-
vioral changes, more through the peripheral route than through
a cognitive process. This study
empirically verified the theoretical path through which, among
green retailing activities, higher val-
ues perceived by consumers about products have a more
positive impact on encouraging consumers’
eco-friendly behavior. On the other hand, highly enlightening
green campaigns, in a similar context
to environmental education, persuade consumers through the
central route that affects their con-
sciousness first and then their behavior, involving a cognitive
attitudinal change process.
The cumulative empirical evidence, gathered by verifying
different persuasion routes of green
retailing activities about central and peripheral routes, provides

strategic guidelines to retailers about
the effect of their activities. For example, the retailers for
whom economic performance such as rev-
enue growth is a priority may focus on developing green
products and PBs. Because consumer beha-
vior is more directly connected to the sales performance of
companies in terms of purchasing than is
green consciousness. On the other hand, the retailers for whom
long-term relationships with
Table 4. Testing for Marketing Communication Involvement
(MCI) as a Moderator in the Relationship
Between Green Consumption and Green Consciousness
(Multigroup Structural Equation Modeling [SEM] Test
Results)
Model characteristic
Unconstrained group model
(totally free for each group)
Constrained group model
(GP !; GC equal across groups)
Model
differences
Model fit
w2 123.89 139.06 5.17
df 100 101 1
CFI .99 .98 —
RMSEA .04 .04 —

Path estimate
(PGC, GP)
.82 (low MCI)***,.47 (high MCI)*** .58 (combined)***
Note. CFI ¼ comparative fit index; GC ¼ green consciousness;
GP ¼ perception of green campaign; RMSEA ¼ root mean
square error of approximation.
*** p < .001.
Lee et al. 77
consumers is a priority for long-term business growth may learn
from this study that they should
maintain green activities such as green campaigns. As their eco-
friendly attitude improves, the con-
sumers may turn develop a favorable attitude toward green
retailers, and ultimately could better
business performance of the retailers.
This study successfully identifies the positive impact of the
fashion retailer’s role as a gatekeeper,
which provides a sound basis to policy makers for investment in
environmental regulation or an
encouragement strategy for the corporate sector. Most previous

environmental policies pertaining
to retailers, such as regulation on carbon dioxide emissions or
the treatment of waste, are somewhat
passive or defensive strategies in nature. Instead, the policy
makers may consider encouraging retai-
lers to execute green retailing strategies more actively by means
of their retail mix, directly affecting
consumers’ green consciousness. The policy makers may focus
on developing various initiatives for
retailers to perceive their social role as green gatekeepers rather
than a mere seller taking advantage
of sales profits. Endowing rewards such as benefits in taxation
or holding special workshops to
enlighten retail managers about their gatekeeper’s role could be
a possible initiative.
This study also shows that the positive influences of green
retailing activities on green conscious-
ness and green behavior vary depending on the type of retailing
activity and MCI. The analysis of
MCI moderating effects reveals no significant difference
between MCI groups in the relationship
between perception of green PBs and their green behavior.
However, the relationship between con-
sumers’ perceptions of green campaign and green consciousness

becomes stronger in the low invol-
vement group. Consumers with high MCIs do not tend to change
their attitudes until they are
affected by several communication clues and green campaigns,
while those with low MCIs tend
to change with a single peripheral clue (Solomon, 2009).
Therefore, in utilizing green communica-
tion strategies, retailers may consider providing only a few
focused messages to low MCI involve-
ment groups, but diverse green communication activities to high
involvement groups. Focused green
communications by retailers can have great impact on the
people with low MCI. Besides, they have
meaningful implications to policy makers in terms of targeting
and planning their programs. For
example, their primary target audience should be those with low
MCI, because the effect of green
campaigns becomes stronger with the low MCI group. To
enlighten the people with low MCI about
green consciousness, policy makers may focus on a seminar or a
promotion event with a simple and
clear message, rather than with detailed information.
This study focuses on only two persuasion routes of green
retailing, but it may be worthwhile to

identify and examine more persuasion routes for marketing
different marketing mixes, such as price,
promotion, place, and product, by combining existing
persuasion theories. Each phase of the
extended process of the ELM, such as attention, comprehension,
elaboration, integration and endur-
ing attitude changes, may be considered separately. In addition,
messages related to both products
and nonproducts should be studied. This study focuses on how
corporate retailing activities influ-
ence consumers’ green consciousness and green behavior. It
will be meaningful if further studies
are carried out to quantify the difference in consumers’ green
consciousness and green behavior
before and after experiencing green retailing activities by
focusing on the eco-friendly changes in
consumers’ consumption behavior. In addition, more situational
and contextual variables may have
to be considered in the overall persuasion process of eco-
friendly activities. For example, this study
measured only consumers’ perceptions of green retailing
activities, but further studies may examine
how consumers’ (or information receivers’) characteristics such
as how their previous experience

and familiarity with information affects the overall persuasion
process.
Appendix A
1. Green PB Scenario: Fashion retailer A is encouraging people
to consume green products through
green private brand (PB) management. A proprietary PB is
owned and developed by a retailer.
Retailer A is operating 212 green PB items as of the 2009 year-
end and planning to expand the
portfolio to 300 items by the end of 2010. Its green PB products
are labeled ‘‘Eco-Smile’’ and the
lifecycles of all products from manufacturing to distribution are
‘‘environmentally friendly.’’ Retai-
ler A uses organic materials or natural fabrics such as bamboo
1
and corn, then adopts eco-friendly
dyeing processes in order to minimize damage and hazards to
the environment and to consumers.

In addition, it tries to reduce CO2 emissions and energy
consumption by decreasing transportation
distances (80% of suppliers located less than one and a half
hour’s drive away from a distribution
center) and frequencies (transporting large quantities at one
time by heavy duty trucks).
2. Green Campaign Scenario: Fashion retailer A is encouraging
consumers to perceive and participate
in green movements through active green campaigns. It has
hosted an ‘‘Environment Camp for
Children’’ since 2000, having educated more than 2,500
children so far. Children participating in
this camp have experienced a variety of programs such as
reforming clothes that they do not wear
anymore, publishing newspapers about green movements of A’s
retail stores after visiting them, and
touring organic cotton t-shirt factories. Along with children’s
programs, A is also expanding its
adult education program, ‘‘Green ladies and gentlemen’’ since
2005. This campaign provides adults
with eco-friendly guidelines about purchase, consumption, and
disposition through ‘‘Green
classes,’’ and anyone who takes the class is granted a green
mileage card in which he or she accu-

mulates green mileage of 10% of green label product purchase.
This mileage can be used as a cash
equivalent in any of A’s store when he or she shops there.
Appendix A: Note
1. We used the examples of bamboo and corn as eco-friendly
fibers or materials in this study. Within the Korean
apparel market, bamboo and corn have been recognized as eco-
friendly materials, by focusing on the source of
cellulose fibers extracted from bamboo and corn
(http://m.outdoornews.co.kr/articleView.html?
idxno¼3684&menu¼3). Although bamboo fibers have been
under scrutiny in the United States as the U.S. Fed-
eral Trade Commission has warned the extensive and harmful
chemical processes that bamboo fibers may be
required during the fiber production stage
(http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt160.shtm),
in
Korea, these concerns have rarely been raised in the public and
the most retailers and fashion magazines still
advertise bamboo fibers as eco-friendly options
(http://www.montbell.co.kr/montbell/html/04_pr/01_report_
list.asp?mode¼view&idx¼901). Therefore, we have used
bamboo as an example of eco-friendly materials in
this study to assess Korean consumers’ perception of green PB.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with
respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of
this article.
Funding
The authors disclosed receipt of the financial support for the
research, authorship, and/or publication of this
article: This research was funded by Asian Institute for Energy,
Environment, & Sustainability at Seoul
National University, Korea.
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Bios
Namhee Lee received her Master’s degree in Human Ecology
from Seoul National University. She works as a
fashion consultant of Korean Color and Fashion Trend Center in
Korea. Her research interests include Green
retailing and CSR.
Lee et al. 81
Yun Jung Choi received her Bachelor’s degree, Master’s and
Ph.D in Human Ecology from Seoul National
University. Her research has been appeared in cross cultural
studies and country image. Research interests
include Industry competitiveness and luxury brand marketing.
Chorong Youn received her Bachelor’s degree, Master’s and
Ph.D in Human Ecology from Seoul National
University. Dr. Youn’s research interests include Fashion
retailing and CSR.

Yuri Lee, PhD, is an associate professor in the Department of
Clothing and Textiles at Seoul National Univer-
sity, Korea. The areas of her research interests include global
sourcing strategies and supply chain management
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country image and fashion products, and retail
channel diversification.
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European Management Journal 32 (2014) 837–849
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
European Management Journal
j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w . e l s e v i e r . c o m / l o c
a t e / e m j
Sustainable supply chain management in the fast fashion

industry: An analysis of corporate reports
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2014.02.001
0263-2373/� 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +90 232 4115333; fax: +90 232
3745474.
E-mail addresses: [email protected], [email protected] (D.
Turker).
Duygu Turker a,⇑ , Ceren Altuntas b
a Business Administration, Faculty of Administration and
Economics Sciences, Yasar University, Selcuk Yasar Kampusu,
Universite Caddesi, Agacli Yol, No. 35–37 Bornova,
Izmir 35100, Turkey
b Sea and Port Management, Vocational School, Yasar
University, Selcuk Yasar Kampusu, Universite Caddesi, Agacli
Yol, No. 35–37 Bornova, Izmir 35100, Turkey
a r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Received 30 August 2013
Accepted 12 February 2014
Available online 14 April 2014
Handling Editor: Tsan-Ming Choi
Keywords:
Sustainability
Supply chain management
Fast fashion industry
Sustainability reports
a b s t r a c t
In recent decades, the fast fashion industry has been
characterized by widespread operations across both
developing and developed countries. Due to the economic,
social and environmental problems in devel-
oping countries, companies increasingly focus on sustainability

and try to ensure the same quality and
standards in working and production conditions throughout their
supply chains. Although the tension
in the exchange of resources between developing and developed
countries lies at the heart of current sus-
tainability activities, what these companies are actually doing to
manage their supply chain has not yet
been explored in depth in the literature. Drawing on the
theoretical framework of Seuring and Müller
(2008), the current study attempts to fill this void by
conceptually mapping the current situation of sus-
tainable supply chain management (SSCM) in the fast fashion
industry by analysing reports from 9 com-
panies that use the same reporting guidelines. The results of the
study reveal that these companies focus
significantly on supplier compliance with their code of conduct,
employing further monitoring and audit-
ing activities to prevent production problems in developing
countries, improve overall supply chain per-
formance and set sustainability criteria for their suppliers.
� 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Introduction
As a result of the extended supply chains in modern business
operations, sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) has
started to attract increasing attention from both scholars and
prac-
titioners in recent years. The attention of practitioners has been
raised by a change in focus from corporate sustainability to
specific
layers of the supply chain due to pressures imposed by interna-
tional and local regulations, non-governmental organizations
(NGOs), customers and competitors (Amaeshi, Osuji, &
Nnodim,
2008; Welford, 2005; Welford & Frost, 2006). These

developments
in the business world have in turn triggered scholarly attention
for
theory building (e.g. Carter & Rogers, 2008; Seuring & Müller,
2008), metric development (e.g. Hassini, Surti, & Searcy,
2012),
case analysis (e.g. Pagell & Wu, 2009) and surveys (e.g. Bowen,
Cousins, Lamming, & Faruk, 2001). New research efforts are
being
developed on individual or all the integrated dimensions of
SSCM,
namely economy, environment and society, which together are
also called the triple bottom line (Kleindorfer, Singhal, & Van
Wassenhove, 2005). Integration of these dimensions would be
highly valuable as the existing literature regarding SSCM is
rather
uni-dimensional, with an intense focus on the environment
(Seuring & Müller, 2008). Existing conceptualization and
framing
efforts have led to different definitions of SSCM and different
implications for scholarly research in various fields.
The concept of SSCM is usually defined by evaluating the com-
ponents of its integrated structure. Within its general
framework,
SSCM includes supply chain management (SCM) and
sustainability.
Therefore, it can be defined as ‘‘the management of material,
infor-
mation and capital flows as well as cooperation among
companies
along the supply chain while taking goals from all three dimen-
sions of sustainable development . . . into account which are de-
rived from customer and stakeholder requirements’’ (Seuring &
Müller, 2008: 1700). SSCM can also be considered as the
integra-

tion of corporate sustainability into SCM whereby the key
dimen-
sions of corporate sustainability are combined with SCM
characteristics (Ahi & Searcy, 2013). However, regardless of
the
generic definition accepted, SSCM implications vary depending
on the structure of the specific supply chain that they belong to.
Sustainability requirements of, for example, a steel supply chain
could be totally different than the supply chain for children’s
toys
or fast fashion clothing. Therefore, a sectorial snapshot is
required
for the proposition of further applications in leading supply
chains
http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1016/j.emj.2014.0
2.001&domain=pdf
mailto:[email protected]
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/02632373
http://www.elsevier.com/locate/emj
838 D. Turker, C. Altuntas / European Management Journal 32
(2014) 837–849
or for spreading sector-specific practices to competing supply
chains. This article attempts to provide such effort snapshot for
the fast fashion clothing industry.
The fast fashion industry owes its special features and structure
to its requirements for shortened lead-times, faster inventory
turn-
overs and high order fulfilment rates for customer demand at its
peak points (Barnes & Lea-Greenwood, 2006). The industry has

a
highly competitive structure that not only puts pressure on
costs,
but also the ability to offer the ‘‘newest’’ possible trend to the
customers (Christopher et al., 2004). Therefore, it requires a
high
degree of responsiveness combined with a certain level of effi-
ciency. This responsiveness to demand is satisfied through the
adoption of supply chain strategies like just-in-time sourcing
(Bruce, Daly, & Towers, 2004), quick response systems (Fernie
&
Azuma, 2004; MacCarthy & Jayarathne, 2010) and agile SCM
(Bruce
et al., 2004). However, in order to become and stay responsive,
various ethical (Barnes & Lea-Greenwood, 2006), employment
(De Brito, Carbone, & Blanquart, 2008) and environmental
issues
(Saicheua, Knox, & Cooper, 2012) are being disregarded, which
is
creating an unsustainable sectoral structure. Some previous
studies
have focused on sustainability in fashion or clothing supply
chains
(e.g. Armstrong & LeHew, 2011; De Brito et al., 2008;
Nagurney &
Yu, 2012). However, to the best of the authors knowledge, no
existing study has combined the generic conceptualization
efforts
of SSCM with real life applications in fast fashion supply
chains.
To investigate claims about unsustainability in fast fashion sup-
ply chains, this study conducted a content analysis of the
sustain-
ability reports of fast fashion companies to analyse their SSCM
implications using the theoretical framework derived from

Seuring
and Müller (2008). The study sample was chosen from
companies
operating in the textile and apparel sector in Europe whose sus-
tainability reports are prepared in accordance with the
guidelines
of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). The study tries to
explore
and measure the leniency of the overall practical implications in
this industry with reference to the dimensions of the theoretical
model. In doing so, it contributes to the literature by combining
theory with practice through evidence derived from real fast
fash-
ion supply chains.
The first section presents a theoretical review of the fast fashion
industry, its supply chain strategies, and prominent practices.
This
section ends by introducing the study’s theoretical framework.
The
following section explains the methodological steps followed to
conduct the study before the findings are presented in relation
to
the study’s proposed framework. The article ends with a
discussion
of the implications of the study, with some conclusions for both
practitioners and scholars.
Literature review
Fast fashion supply chains and sustainability issues
Current organizational changes in the fashion industry started
approximately 30 years ago when the traditional luxury fashion
industry’s long-established stable structure was challenged by
sev-
eral environmental changes, particularly globalisation, changes

in
its customer base, and the entrance of competitors into
previously
protected markets (Djelic & Ainamo, 1999). Until then, the
fashion
industry had followed a fixed calendar of trade fairs and shows
presenting the forthcoming season’s trends (Birtwistle,
Siddiqui,
& Fiorito, 2003). This made it possible to forecast demand as
long
as a year before the time of consumption based on previous
sales
data (Guercini, 2001). Under the impact of specific factors, this
stable situation has evolved towards a new model called ‘‘quick
fashion’’ (Guercini, 2001), ‘‘street fashion’’ or fast fashion
Doeringer
and Crean (2006).
Fast fashion is characterized by the transformation of trendy
design into articles that can be bought by the masses (Sull &
Turconi, 2008). This industry aims to attract customers into
stores
as frequently as possible in order to increase the frequency that
they purchase fashionable styles (Barnes & Lea-Greenwood,
2006). This is achieved through low cost and low price apparel
that remains on the shelves for a shorter period of time than
the traditional clothing industry (Bhardwaj & Fairhurst, 2010).
This leads to shortened market cycles, more seasons and several
organizational buying requirements, such as highly flexible
man-
ufacturing and design capabilities, blending trendy clothing raw
material and supplies, at very short lead times (Barnes &
Lea-Greenwood, 2006).
As consumers of clothing industry products became more fash-
ion-conscious (Bailey, 2001), the simple standardized designs
pro-

duced for the masses were rendered useless, leading to the
elimination of mass production in the fashion industry and a
change in fashion supply chain structures (Doyle, Moore, &
Morgan, 2006). Until the 1980s, the fashion supply chains had
been
strongly protected by large retail stores to competition out of
the
markets (Barnes & Lea-Greenwood, 2006). However, they then
started to be replaced by buyer oriented, strategically linked,
highly responsive, low cost supply chains with shorter lead
times
(Tyler, Heeley, & Bhamra, 2006). Such structural changes were
achieved through the utilization of just-in-time strategies, agile
supply chain structures (Bruce et al., 2004) and information
driven
strategies, such as quick-response systems monitoring real-time
data at sales points, and responding quickly to current market
information (Christopher et al., 2004). Bruce and Daly (2006)
argue
that even established supplier-buyer relations in the fast fashion
industry should have a short-response nature in order to apply
both lean and agile supply chain strategies, while their internal
functions should be integrated in order to expedite a smooth
buy-
ing process. However, these changing circumstances and new
ways
of doing business in the fast fashion industry have had negative
impacts on both environment and society. In order to respond to
these increasing environmental and social problems, fast
fashion
companies have started to adopt sustainable strategies and
practices.
One of the most important factors stimulating the rise of sus-
tainable practices in fast fashion supply chains has been
globaliza-

tion of both sourcing and distribution. According to MacCarthy
and
Jayarathne (2010), in the last 30 years, textiles manufacturing
has
shifted significantly to less developed countries. For example,
42
percent of the EU27’s clothing imports were supplied by China
in
2012, with Bangladesh and Turkey accounting for a further 13%
each (EC, 2013). The list of countries exporting textiles to
Europe
is interesting for the wide range of locations of the top ten
import
partners. Although the EU’s overall textile imports are
dominated
by faraway countries, there are also close trade partners
support-
ing the changing pace in the industry. However, even companies
like Marks & Spencer and Zara, which used to depend on
domestic
sourcing, have expanded their sourcing strategies to countries
such
as China, India, Bangladesh, Morocco or Turkey to find
manufactur-
ers that can comply with new flexibility and design
requirements
(Tokatli, 2008; Tokatli, Wrigley, & Kızılgün, 2008).
The globalization of the industry has affected supply chains in
two different dimensions. Firstly, the relocation of
manufacturing
sites had a negative impact on traditional European industries
like
spinning and weaving, resulting in unemployment for European
textiles and clothing industry workers (De Brito et al., 2008;
Taplin,

2006). Although companies in Western countries still own
major
fashion retailers and the brands (MacCarthy & Jayarathne,
2010),
the number of workers in these countries employed in the sector
has declined according to EURATEX (2013) statistics: for
example,
– it declined by 3% from 2011 to 2012.
D. Turker, C. Altuntas / European Management Journal 32
(2014) 837–849 839
The second important impact of the extended fashion supply
chain is the heavy environmental burden it imposes from in-
creased transportation mileage. This is exacerbated by the time
pressure on fast fashion industry orders, which means that the
majority of shipments are delivered by air, significantly
increasing
CO2 emissions (Saicheua et al., 2012).
Apart the impact of globalization, the nature of the industry
itself
imposes further environmental and social burdens. Production
pro-
cesses in the textiles industry use chemicals and non-renewable
natural resources that harm the environment (De Brito et al.,
2008). Increased time pressures on the order cycles of the fast
fashion industry result in employee abuse and other unethical
working practices at manufacturing sites (Barnes & Lea-
Greenwood,
2006). The majority of fashion industry labour is located in
offshore
countries and composed of young, poorly educated people, since
the
manufacturing process in this sector does not require high

skills.
Women and children make up the majority of the workforce in
developing countries, since these disadvantaged people accept
work
at lower wages. In addition, there is a significant amount of
forced
labour in certain countries, such as Bangladesh (Viederman,
2013).
Within this employment structure, the workforce is highly
vulnerable to discrimination, bad treatment, low wages and long
working hours (Ichimura, 2011).
De Brito et al. (2008) divide fast fashion companies into two
main groups. The first group is composed of those companies
that
resist sustainability practices and simply try to survive in a
highly
demanding environment. The second group is composed of
compa-
nies trying to adopt and improve sustainability through their
supply chains by the utilization of tools such as eco-labelling,
man-
agement systems, environmental and social audits, communities
of
practice, fair trade and clean transportation modes. However,
con-
sidering the negative environmental and social impacts of this
industry, there is a need for a sector-wide recognition of the
latter
group’s strategy. In order to take strategic action, fast fashion
retailers take different measures and communicate these through
their sustainability reports.
For example, the global fast fashion retailer H&M states that
they are implementing intensive sustainability practices in their
procurement, stakeholder management, human resource manage-

ment and environmental processes (H&M Conscious Actions.,
2012). Similarly, Inditex Group lists a series of strategic actions
within their environmental plan for 2011–2015, covering actions
such as eco-efficient design of stores, reduced environmental
im-
pact of logistics activities, eco-friendly products, etc. (Inditex
Group, 2013). In accordance with their Code of Practice
principles,
Next states that they conducted 1647 audits in 570 suppliers
that
they worked with in 44 different countries during 2012 (Next
CSR
Report., 2013).
The theoretical framework
Existing SSCM research on the fast fashion industry has
focused
on the introduction of qualitative and quantitative sustainability
indicators that apply to both internal and external supply chains
(De Brito et al., 2008), the study of consumer perceptions and
behaviour towards sustainable fashion supply chains (Bhardwaj
& Fairhurst, 2010), and the use of awareness-raising practices
through celebrities for the slow fashion movement to involve
con-
sumers in building a more sustainable supply chain
(Pookulangara
& Shephard, 2013).
Despite these various and increasing efforts to integrate sus-
tainability into fast fashion research, a wider perspective on the
industry seems to be missing regarding the existing
applications.
The annual reports that companies use to communicate their
sus-
tainability practices through corporate reporting schemes

annually
can be invaluable sources for exploring industrial practices. To
bridge the gap in the literature regarding effort wider
perspective,
this study draws on an SSCM framework to conduct a frequency
content analysis on the sustainability reports of leading fast
fash-
ion companies to measure the leniency of these practices.
The SSCM framework employed in the study is developed from
Seuring and Müller’s (2008) theoretical approach towards the
con-
ceptualization of SSCM. After reviewing the existing literature
on
SSCM, Seuring and Müller (2008) develop a conceptual
framework
with three main parts. The first part identifies the triggers and
incentives stimulating the focal company to adopt SSCM
practices.
These generally come from overall stakeholders, customers and
especially governments. The focal company then passes these
sus-
tainability pressures onto its suppliers through two norm
strategies.
Seuring and Müller (2008) build their framework on Bowen
et al.’s (2001) division between ‘‘greening the supply process’’
and ‘‘product-based green supply’’. They propose supplier
evalua-
tion for risk and performance and SCM for sustainable products
as the other two parts of their framework. These are two
comple-
mentary norm strategies, with the adoption of one able to lead
to
the achievement of the other in certain cases. The sub-
dimensions

of the two norm strategies have been schematized for a
systematic
exploration of SSCM applications in large manufacturing
compa-
nies operating in Turkey (Altuntas & Turker, 2012). Fig. 1
shows
these sub-dimensions.
According to Seuring and Müller (2008), supplier evaluation for
risk and performance focuses on associated risks and barriers
along
the supply chain as well as performance concerns from an
internal
perspective. This is connected to a supplier assessment plan
where
monitoring, auditing and evaluation take place. This assessment
process has two objectives: improving the overall performance
of
suppliers, and avoiding risks in the supply chain. Dependency,
flex-
ibility, quality and speed are the important criteria for
measuring
improvements in supplier performance, while the possible risks
are evaluated according to the dimensions of the triple bottom
line.
On the other hand, life cycle assessment is a widely used tool to
achieve SCM for sustainable products ‘‘to comprehend all kinds
of
products that have or aim at an improved environmental and
social
quality, which can be related back to the already mentioned
imple-
mentation of environmental and social standards’’ (Seuring &
Müller, 2008, 1705). It demands various minimum criteria
require-

ments from suppliers when designing or producing the products.
In addition, sustainable products require intense communication
with suppliers while improving their sustainable practices. To
emphasise that management systems play a crucial role within
the entire system of SSCM, they are placed at the heart of
theoret-
ical framework in Fig. 1. By integrating all these factors within
a
theoretical framework, it is important to analyse fashion compa-
nies with reference to their actions regarding these factors in
order
to evaluate how they cope with the fast fashion-sustainability
dilemma.
Methodology
Sample selection and data collection
The population for the study includes firms operating in the fast
fashion sector around Europe. In order to obtain a comparable
data
set, the sample was chosen from firms preparing their
sustainabil-
ity or corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports in
accordance
with the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
Devel-
oped through a multi-stakeholder process, this framework helps
organizations assess their economic, social and environmental
per-
formance and impacts (GRI, 2013a; GRI, 2013b). The GRI
database
was searched for reports of firms operating in Europe’s textiles
and

SCM
for Sustainable
Products
SSCM
SCM
for Risk and
Performance
Supplier Assessment Plan
Product Life Cycle Assessment
Avoding
risks
Improving supply chain
performance
Speed
Dependency Flexibility
Quality
Economic
Environmental
Social
Improving
Suppliers
Training

Communicating
with Suppliers
Criteria for
Suppliers
Environmental Social
Management
System
Fig. 1. The theoretical framework. Note: Supply chain
management (SCM); sustainable supply chain management
(SSCM). Source: Altuntas and Turker (2012) adapted from
the study of Seuring and Müller (2008).
840 D. Turker, C. Altuntas / European Management Journal 32
(2014) 837–849
apparel sector within the last 3 years (GRI Database, 2013a;
GRI Database, 2013b), providing a total of 20 reports; however,
some of them were reports from the same companies in previous
years, while others were non-English so were excluded due to
translation difficulties. This left 9 reports for the analysis.
Although
3 of these companies (Oberalp, Puma and Switcher) focus
specifi-
cally on sportswear, they were included in the analysis because
they operate under similar conditions to other companies in the
fast fashion industry. That is, the shortened seasonal cycle,
market
pressures and similar globally-dispersed supply chain structures
mean that sportswear brands can also be taken as part of the fast
fashion sector. Today, many sportswear brands focus on
shortening
their lead times in order to meet the challenge of quick response

requirements in a fiercely competitive market (Taylor, 2008).
Since
the reports analysed in this study cover the period 2011–2013,
they were prepared in accordance with the old versions of GRI
guidelines. GRI has launched its most current generation of
guide-
lines (G4 Guidelines) in 2013 while continuing to recognize
reports
prepared before based on previous versions of G3 and G3.1 till
the
end of 2015 (GRI, 2013a; GRI, 2013b).
Analysis method
Content analysis is used for making ‘‘replicable and valid infer-
ences from texts (or other meaningful matter) to the contexts of
their use’’ (Krippendorff, 2004, 18). In the current study, the
re-
ports were analysed and interpreted with the particular intention
of exploring the corporate sustainability of companies along
their
supply chains in the face of increasing pressures of fast fashion
trends in order to determine whether this sustainability focus
matches the theoretical framework of Seuring and Müller
(2008).
Therefore, the relevant texts in the reports were connected and
conceptualized with this main research question to reveal the
exis-
tence or not of various patterns through the use of some specific
words, concepts, themes, etc. The main categories and sub-
codings
were provided by the dimensions of SSCM identified in the
frame-
work of Seuring and Müller (2008) within the twofold strategies
of
‘‘supplier evaluation for risk and performance’’ and ‘‘SCM for

sustain-
able products’’ (Weber, 1990) More specifically, the content
analysis relied on five main concepts drawn from the framework
of Seuring and Müller (2008), as shown in Fig. 1: (1) avoiding
risks,
(2) supply chain performance, (3) criteria for suppliers, (4)
communication with suppliers and (5) improvement of
suppliers.
First, texts (sentences, paragraphs, and sections) related with
the
company’s overall SCM approach were recorded on a separate
sheet from the main reports for further analysis. In the next
step,
sentences that included these 5 sub-codes were identified and
as-
sessed as to whether they are actually used in accordance with
the
framework of Seuring and Müller (2008) and how they are
articu-
lated and practiced by the company. That is, the coding process
aimed to provide both quantitative and qualitative information
about the on-going SSCM approach of the 9 companies. In
doing
so, while the existence and frequency of each category was
mea-
sured throughout the texts (Bailey, 1994), new categories were
also identified to explore new trends and changes in SSCM. In
order
to ensure the reliability of the coding process, each text was
inves-
tigated independently by two researchers. In the case of
disagree-
ment during this process, the dispute was resolved through the
involvement of a third researcher (Weber, 1990, 17).
Overall findings

Table 1 presents the overall information about the companies
and their reports. Such reports are usually named as
sustainability
or related terms, with sustainability in the supply chain being a
core activity for almost all companies. For instance, in Calida’s
2011 report, supplier management was the primary activity
during
the reporting period. The content percentage of supply chain
issues
was between 10.34% and 34.42%, measured as frequency count
of
the keyword ‘supply chain’ across all reports. Once the
keywords
were detected, the number of words in relevant sentences was
compared to the overall word count of the analysed report. Not
only large companies, like Inditex, H&M, and Puma, but also
some
relatively small companies (Calida and Switcher) elaborately
ex-
plained their practices during the reporting period. Based on the
quantitative results of content analysis, it can be stated that
SSCM
is becoming a critical issue for almost all companies in the
sector.
The positioning of SSCM within the report is also an indicator
of
the priority given to the issue. Most companies directly provide
an
explanation about SSCM under a separate title within their
reports
and 6 companies mention their suppliers as partners with whom
the company wants to establish long-term relations. Depending
on the continuity of trusting relations, while H&M, Inditex and
Puma called some suppliers strategic partners, other companies

Table 1
Overall information on company reports.
Firm Headquarter Title of report Period Total
pages
Content%a Supplier
definition
Supplier
positioning
Number of
suppliers
Geographical distribution of
suppliers
Calida Sursee/
Switzerland
Corporate
social
responsibility
2011 33 29.28 Partners Direct [Corporate
social
responsibility/
supplier
management]
N/A [90% of its
production is

coming from 5
producers]
Production: Europe 66%
[Hungary (own factory) 40%;
Hungary (sub-contractors)
14%; Other countries
(Bulgaria, Romania, Poland,
Italy, Turkey) 12%]; Asia 34%
[China 32%; India 2%]
Procurement: Europe 63%;
Asia 37%
Mango Barcelona/Spain Sustainability
report
2012 58 10.34 Member in
their group
of interest
Direct [Our
sustainability
policy and
model/the supply
chain and
suppliers]
264 suppliers of
garments and
accessories
Purchases: China 41.66%;
Turkey 12.4%; Morocco
5.87%; South Korea 9.38%;
Spain 7.69%; India 5.42%;
Bangladesh 5.81%; Vietnam

3.88%; Italy 3.70%; Taiwan
1.33%; Pakistan .89%;
Portugal .84%; Indonesia
.31%; Others .82%
C&A Brussels/
Belgium
Acting
sustainably.
C&A 2012
2012 156 20.38 Partners Indirect
[Mentioned
under related
titles]
785
merchandise
suppliers
Procures: China 30.30%;
Bangladesh 25.10%; India
7.8%; Turkey 6.5%; Indonesia
4.2%; Cambodia 3.9%;
Vietnam 2.9%; Sri Lanka
2.8%; Pakistan 2.6%; Romania
1.5%; Others 12.4%
H&M Stockholm/
Sweden
Conscious
actions
sustainability
report 2012

2012 93 31.18 Partners Direct
[Commitments-
2. Choose and
reward
responsible
partners]
785 suppliers
[148 strategic
partners make
53% of products]
N/A [The list of suppliers
were given in the company
web site/; but the share of
each country is not provided]
Inditex A Coruña/Spain Annual
reportb
2012 61c 34.42 One of its
most
important
stakeholders
Direct
[Challenges and
perspective/
sustainable
supply chain]
1434 [During
2012, 474
suppliers are
excluded, 418

are included
into chain]
Purchases: Africa (Morocco)
112; America (Argentina,
Brazil) 68; Asia (Bangladesh,
China, India) 672; Non-EU
Europe (Turkey) 136;
European Union (Spain,
Portugal) 446
Marimekko Helsinki/Finland Yearbook
2012
2012 40 12.74 Long-term
partners
Direct
[Responsible
procurement]
N/A [70% of the
products are
made by the 25
biggest
suppliers]
Manufacturing: EU countries
(Finland 34%, the Baltic
countries 31%, and Portugal
11%) 79%; Non-EU countries
(Thailand, China, India) 21%
Oberalp Bolzano/Italy Sustainability
report 2013
[The

Individual in
Focus]
2013 87 11.49 Long-
standing
partners
Direct
[Implementation
of sustainability/
suppliers]
82 [38 Apparel
suppliers in
Salewa group]
Apparel (Value in Euro) in
Salewa: Bangladesh .34;
China 26.32%; Germany
.05%; Greece .38%; Indonesia
4.96%; Italy 1.5%; Lithuania
.24%; Myanmar 1.31%;
Mauritius .30%; Turkey .29%;
Vietnam 3.82%.
Puma Herzogenaurach/
Germany
Business and
sustainability
reportb
2012 86c 27.90 [Strategic
partners]
Direct [Under

safe ecology, safe
humanity]
500 Active
facilities in 42
countries
[Approximately
47 of Tier 1
factories are
strategic
partners]
N/A [Sourcing countries by
number of audited Tier 1
facilities are China (174),
India (36), Vietnam (34),
South Korea (12), Turkey
(13), Bangladesh (11),
Cambodia (11) and Argentina
(8)]
Switcher Lausanne/
Switzerland
Report 2011
[Social,
Environment,
Economy]
2011 56 23.67 Stakeholders Direct [Under
traceability,
social issues,
environment]
21 suppliers Production Factories: India
70.9%; China 14.3%; Romania

7.4%; Portugal 5.7%; Turkey
0.9%; Taiwan 0.8%
a The percentage of SSCM related content in the report is found
through the word counts.
b The report includes the disclosures on both business
operations and sustainability issues based on GRI framework.
c The number of page for only the sustainability related part of
the report.
D. Turker, C. Altuntas / European Management Journal 32
(2014) 837–849 841
reported being proud of having such a long-term relationship.
For
instance, Calida stated that the company ‘‘relies on a small
number
of long-term relationships with its suppliers. This means that 90
percent of its products come from just five producers’’, while
Switcher ‘‘favours a long-term partnership with its suppliers in
order to establish a relationship of trust and co-operation. Our
rela-
tionships last 6 years on average’’.
The number of globally dispersed suppliers varies based on the
size of companies. The most important suppliers are in
developing
countries in Asia (China, India, Bangladesh, Cambodia, and
Vietnam
Table 2
Content analysis.
Firm Objective Performance Risks Improvement
Communication Criteria (Compliance system,

monitoring, auditing)
Calida Ensure the good manufacturing
conditions, same quality, same
know-how along the value chain
and set long-term relationship
with suppliers
Quality, continuity,
monitoring and
reporting, ecology,
ethics, know-how
� Social: good manufacturing
conditions
� Environmental: product safety,
ecology, ethics, recycling, cross-
docking system
� Economic: quality, local eco-
nomic development, fair procure-
ment prices and living wages
Training, know-how
transfer, helping suppliers
to develop solutions,
support
� Long-term cooperation with
suppliers on a partnership basis
� Supplier visits, personal cooper-
ation, production rooms, con-
sidering cross-cultural
differences

� Mandatory/compliance to BSCI
and Oeko-Tex Standard 100 [The
suppliers showing no progress in
spite of checks are excluded] [5
of them signed conduct]
� Due to a change of supplier or
late renewal of certificates only
4 out of 13 suppliers have cur-
rently been audited
Mango Maintain the compliance of Code
of Conduct and ‘‘made in Green’’
certification among suppliers;
Creating synergies throughout our
entire manufacturing chain
Quality, safety
(laboratory tests),
monitoring and
reporting
� Environmental: cross-docking
system (reducing consumption
and costs), quality and safety in
the use of chemicals, networking
(joined the Detox initiative being
promoted by the Greenpeace
organisation, which consists of
the banning or substitution)
Training (CSR teams),
technical support,
exchanges of ideas

� Long-term collaboration/rela-
tionship of mutual trust
� Supplier visits
� Mandatory/Company’s Code of
Conduct (Based on UN Global
Compact, Universal Declaration
of Human Rights, UN Rights of
the Child, ILO)
� First, the supplier’s written decla-
ration of the use of products and
substances in manufacturing.
Then, laboratory test on the
selected samples. (Not apply – if
the manufacturers provide the
Oeko-Tex certification for the
fabrics) (Internal and External
Audit)
C&A Provide fair and honest dealing;
Offering long-term prospects to its
suppliers and the greatest possible
degree of safety for all employees
Monitoring and
reporting
� Social: good manufacturing con-
ditions, child labour, discrimina-
tion, migrant workers, CSR (The
C&A Foundation’s sustainable
supplier programme in Asia to
improve the well-being of
people)
� Environmental: product safety,

hazardous chemical, organic
farming
� Economic: contributing local
economy
� Training, advice and
support, knowledge
transfer (for
compliance)
� SOCAM held 7 work-
shops for buying office,
38 in C&A’s own buying
centers, 5 in-depth sem-
inars for groups of
suppliers
� Long-term, trusting business
relationships with its contract
partners
� C&A Fairness Channel (Direct
contact with top management),
announcements, posters, value
chain conferences on organic
cotton, using GIN in-house
communication platform
� 77 individual coaching sessions,
37 counselling meetings were
held in 2011
� Mandatory/Compliance to Code
of Conduct for the Supply of Mer-

chandise; Monitored by SOCAM
team; Oeko-Tex Standard 100
� Quality Assurance System: Three
stages of Sampling inspection,
Quality conformity check, Struc-
tured quality checks for all
suppliers
� SOCAM conducted 1724 audits in
25 countries
H&M Ensure high social and
environmental standards
throughout the value chain; set
long-term relationship and mutual
growth
� Sustainability,
quality, speed
(lead times),
prices, monitor-
ing and report-
ing, rewarding
� Supplier sus-
tainability per-
formance index
(ICoC)
increased from
76.5 to 78.4
during 2012
� Social: Wages, gender equality,
worker’s rights, reduce overtimes
promoting social dialogue, gen-

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