Analysis of the consumers’ perception and adoption of use-oriented PSS offerings in the fashion industry

Details

Supervisors

Swaen, Valérie

Faculty

Louvain School of Management

Degree label

Master [120] en sciences de gestion, à finalité spécialisée

Abstract

The fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. Its activities result in considerable harm both socially and ecologically and follow a linear model called “take-make-waste”. However, numerous actors in the industry are adopting strategies to shift towards a circular economy. In that sense, one framework that can be highlighted is the use-oriented product-service system, based on one of the most resource-effective circular strategy: re-use. When applied to the fashion industry, it is referred as fashion rental and fashion leasing (or ownerless fashion consumption models). This master’s thesis aims at understanding the factors that affect the consumers’ perception and adoption of these offerings in the Belgian fashion industry. While a review of the literature helps understanding the categories of drivers and barriers that influence the intention to access clothing, there is no guarantee that these categories are applicable to the Belgian market. As a result, various conclusions will be drawn based on qualitative research conducted on Belgian consumers and managers where the drivers and barriers as well as the suitable goods that influence consumers' decisions to adopt ownerless fashion models. Furthermore, managerial recommendations will be proposed based on the conclusions from the research to help improve the offerings on the Belgian market and, who knows, help shifting from a linear to a circular fashion industry.