The purpose of this thesis ‘Sustainable conscious fashion consumption from the perspective of Generation Z - With a focus on motivations’ is to provide the reader with deeper knowledge about Generation Z’s perception of sustainable conscious fashion and what motivates them to choose sustainable consumption. Further, this research gives insight into the decision process among Generation Z regarding fashion apparel. The thesis is based on two research questions which are (1) What are the motivations to consume sustainable conscious fashion among Gen Z and (2) How do psychological factors influence Gen Z decisions to consume sustainable conscious fashion? To be able to complete this thesis and answer the research questions, relevant theories have been analyzed and incorporated to create an understanding when analyzing the empirical data. The thesis was conducted using a deductive approach and a qualitative research method to acquire primary data. The data collection has been accumulated by doing semi-structured interviews with the aim to gain in-depth knowledge about Gen Z motivations to consume sustainable conscious fashion. The literature review includes theories that are in relation to the topics of (1) Sustainability, (2) Generation Z, and (3) Psychological Factors such as self-image and cognitive dissonance. Based on the literature review a conceptual framework (Figure 2.1) was created in which the liaisons between the different theories have been presented. The interview guide was created in accordance to the operationalism in order to present the empirical data in chapter 4, ‘Empirical findings’.Thereafter, an analysis based on the empirical findings are discussed in relation to previously presented theories in the literature review. It is concluded that the primary motives for purchasing apparel among Generation Z are to strengthen their self-image, whether it is to fit in or stand out. The generation cares about sustainability, which is expressed by purchasing eco-friendly foods and by considering their choices of transport. The findings show there is a lack of information provided by retailers and authorities, which translates into the consumers not being able to make sustainable choices regarding fashion consumption.

In the last few decades, new vertically integrated players have appeared in the fashion industry providing their customers with lower prices and an increased number of seasons per year. In this context, the need for high efficiency levels among the fast fashion retailers appears as a necessity to survive. Since the area of Store Operations (SO) is directly dealing with processes at the end of the supply chain, boosting revenues through the increased efficiency and incorporation of new technologies in this area becomes critical. In order to accomplish that in a long-term perspective, this must be done while improving staff working conditions, customer experience in the stores and with more cost effective practices. Therefore, this study investigated how established fast fashion retailers can improve their Store Operations in pursuance of coping with growing efficiency requirements and rapidly changing technology in their stores. This has been done by conducting a case study at one of the biggest fast fashion retailers in the world. The research involved 42 different interviews with the case company’s employees and industry experts in the store solutions field, which allowed collecting both qualitative and quantitative data. Moreover, in order to analyze empirical findings obtained during the research process, outsourcing theories, including transactional cost theory (TCT) and resource-based view theory (RBV) as well as innovation theories, including diffusion of innovation and radio frequency identification (RFID) adoption theories, were used. The results indicate that in order to improve their Store Operations, the case company should first work on five areas, which include: (1) stockroom processes, (2) technology and innovation, (3) alarm systems, (4) employee morale, and (5) customer service. At the same time, it was discovered that the solutions that can improve all of these areas are: RFID that act as a security device and the outsourcing of stockroom process, known as Golden Delivery. In order to make the implementation of these two solutions successful, separate implementation guidelines must be created, both of which are presented in this document. The findings of this study have implications on both sustainability and research. This investigation contributes to the literature by giving a better understanding of the operational activities performed in the store environment of fast fashion retailers as well as the link between them and the rest of the supply chain. Moreover, the efficiency solutions presented in this document give fashion retailers a sustainable economic advantage achieved through cost savings and increased business performance, as well as, the motivation to focus on social and environmental aspects related to these practices.

Background: Brands have started paying attention to brand authenticity since consumer demand for authenticity is increasing. Especially Gen Z is constantly seeking for authentic, inclusive, and diverse brands as they are the first generation to choose brands based on authenticity. Especially the LGBTQ community’s representation in advertising is often perceived as inauthentic and superficial. Since Gen Z is not only a big consumer of fast fashion but also the first to include fast fashion as part of their everyday life, the fast fashion industry is required to be more authentic in its use of LGBTQ in advertising. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore how Gen Z perceives LGBTQ images in fast fashion advertising and how this impacts brand authenticity. Method: For this study, an exploratory research design with a qualitative approach was applied. Using an abductive approach, existing literature was used as a basis to create the conceptual model of this study. Further, a fictional fast fashion brand including five advertisements were created and presented to twenty informants during semi-structured interviews to gain a more in-depth understanding of the research problem. Conclusion: The study found that Gen Z’s perceptions of LGBTQ images in fast fashion advertising can be classified into three categories: positive, neutral, and negative perceptions. Informants with a positive perception perceived the brand to be authentic whilst informants with a negative perception the opposite. Since informants with a neutral perception sometimes had similar perceptions as the informants with a positive or negative perception, no clear answer on their perception of brand authenticity can be given.

With the increased focus on climate change, sustainability has become a common term for both organizations as well as consumers. The clothing industry is one of the industries that have the biggest negative impact on climate change. Still, the fast fashion business, based on cheap materials and low production costs, continues to thrive. The clothing companies stand before an increased review from society and are therefore forced to work with sustainability and acceptance. Depending on how the companies handle their communication with regards to sustainability, their consumers are put at risk of being subjectable to greenwashing, since the companies regard themselves to be more sustainable than they are. Generation Z consists of people born between the years of 1995 to 2005 and they were born into the so-called climate crisis. Generation Z is ultimately the generation that will live during the unpredictable future due to climate change. This makes the generation the most environmentally conscious generation yet. Still, the generation is the world’s largest group of consumers, and a large part of their identity lies within how they dress. This study aims to examine how generation Z, as an environmentally conscious group with a lot of purchasing power, perceives the Swedish fashion brand's communication about sustainability. The study is based on a quality method, using focus groups to gather data. This method is chosen since the aim is to analyze generation Z perception, feelings, and ideas. The theory studies terms within the roam of sustainability, both in the Swedish fashion business and as well as marketing. How Swedish fashion companies communicate their work on sustainability and how this is perceived by generation Z is presented via “a linear model of communication”. The result of the study shows that all the respondents have a similar perception of how confidence-inspiring the fashion business combination on sustainability is. Previous research has described generation Z as a consumer group that highly values sustainability, this is in line with the results of this study. The respondents describe that they consume sustainably by shopping second-hand but finds it hard to do sustainable choices when shopping for newly produced clothes. Fashion companies in the fast fashion sector that work with sustainability limited areas of the organization have low to no credibility from the respondents. The will to consume sustainably produced clothes is hindered by the fact that the respondents lack the trust for the actual sustainability in the products and production chain. The respondents seek companies with transparency, since thisincreases their trust and fulfills their will to consume sustainably. / I takt med att vår klimatpåverkan ökar har hållbarhet blivit ett uppmärksammat begrepp hos såväl organisationer som hos konsumenter. Modebranschen är en av de branscher som har störst negativ påverkan på miljön, trots detta fortsätter den så kallade fast fashion-industrin, baserad på billiga material och tillverkningskostnader, att blomstra. Modeföretagen står samtidigt inför en ökad granskning av samhället och tvingas att arbeta med hållbarhet för att få acceptans. Beroende på hur företagen väljer att kommunicera sitt hållbarhetsarbete riskerar konsumenterna att bli utsatta för greenwashing, då företagen anser sig vara mer hållbara än vad de egentligen är. Generation z, personer födda mellan åren 1995–2005, är födda in i den så kallade klimatkrisen samt är också den generation som ska leva i en orolig framtid med växande klimatförändringar. Detta resulterar i att målgruppen är den hittills mest kritiska och miljömedvetna av alla generationer. Samtidigt är målgruppen världens största konsumentgrupp och är måna om att skapa sin identitet genom vad de klär sig i. Studien syftar till att undersöka hur generation z som köpkraftig och miljömedveten målgrupp uppfattar de svenska modeföretagens hållbarhetskommunikation. Forskarna har valt en kvalitativ forskningsmetod med fokusgrupper som insamlingsmetod eftersom studien syftar till att på ett djupgående sätt undersöka generation z:s uppfattningar, känslor och idéer. Teorin belyser begrepp som berör området hållbarhet i den svenska modebranschen och hållbar marknadsföring. Hur svenska modeföretag kommunicerar hållbarhetsarbetet och hur detta tolkas av generation z presenteras via kommunikationsmodellen “A linear model of communication”. Resultatet av studien visar att samtliga respondenter har liknande uppfattningar om hur förtroendeingivande modebranschens hållbarhetskommunikation är. Tidigare forskning beskriver generation z som en konsumentgrupp som värderar hållbarhet högt vilket stämmer överens med studiens resultat. Respondenterna beskriver att de handlar mycket hållbart i form av second hand men anser att det är svårt att göra hållbara val av nyproducerade plagg. Modeföretag verksamma inom fast fashion-industrin som arbetar med hållbarhet inom begränsade delar av organisationen har lågt eller inget förtroende hos representanterna. Viljan att handla nyproducerade hållbara plagg hindras av det faktum att respondenterna inte litar på graden av hållbarhet i produkterna och produktionskedjan. Greenwashing är ett begrepp samtliga respondenter är bekanta med vilket minskar förtroendet för företagen eftersom det är vanligt förekommande inom modebranschen. Samtliga respondenter efterlyser transparens hos företagen vilket skulle öka deras förtroende och vilja att konsumera hållbart.

Influencer marketing is a new marketing strategy that has risen in popularity to be used by businesses during the last decade. Even though studies have been previously made on influencer marketing, little research has been made specifically on influencer marketing in combination with their discount codes being offered. The main purpose of this research paper is to examine the connection between the discount codes and the effect it might have on consumers' purchase intention, behavior and impulsive buying. Furthermore, the satisfactory levels after a purchase due to influencer marketing has been examined as it has not been seen in previous studies. The findings revealed that consumers are directly affected by influencer discount codes, causing impulsive buying to a certain level and affects the purchase intentions and decision-making in a faster manner. Furthermore, consumers who had purchased products due to influencer marketing obtained a high satisfactory level post-purchase. The same result could be seen both with and without discount codes. These results contribute to a positive insight of influencer marketing for businesses as the majority of the consumers were satisfied with their purchases. The research paper is written in english.

This study examines the response of Generation Z females in Sweden to fast fashion web advertisements incorporating six linguistic persuasion strategies. The aim is to identify which of these strategies can be effectively employed in this context to persuade the targeted demographic. An online survey consisting of twelve fast fashion web advertisements was distributed over the social media platforms Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. The respondents' objective was to choose a preferred advertisement from two options, one featuring a linguistic strategy of persuasion and another where the linguistic strategy had been changed or removed, while the respondents had to consider questions related to the linguistic strategies’ persuasive aims. The result from 44 target respondents revealed that the strategies of reader pronouns, directives, and the subject position effectively reached their persuasive aims, while the results for boosters, rhetorical questions, and engagement markers were inconclusive. Still, open-ended non-mandatory answers indicated that the three strategies that got inconclusive results also received negative reactions from the demographic and therefore likely failed at their persuasive aims.

The aim of the study is to further understand the factors influencing consumer behavior in the fast fashion segment. The study is done from a consumer perspective where 84 consumers were asked questions regarding their preferences, behaviors, and habits while shopping, and which aspects they are most keen about while visiting fast fashion stores. After the data was collected from the respondents it has been analyzed with SPSS to answer the two hypotheses, if price and assortment are essential factors for consumers in the fast fashion branch. Findings from the analysis made it clear that price is by far the most important factor for consumers while assortment is essential as well but not in comparison with price. Therefore, it is important for companies within the fast fashion segment to be aware of their competitors price levels to be able to stand out, create and obtain a competitive advantage and preserve or expand their market share. / Syftet med undersökningen är att skapa en ökad förståelse för faktorerna som påverkar konsumentbeteendet inom fast fashion branschen. Genom den ökade förståelsen är det möjligt för företag att utveckla sina kunskaper om sina kunder och på så vis utveckla deras lönsamhet och kundnöjdhet. Undersökningen grundar sig i ett konsumentperspektiv där 84 konsumenter svarade på en enkät som innehöll frågor om deras preferenser, beteenden och vanor vid köp av kläder från fast fashion butiker, online eller fysiskt i butik. Respondenternas svar analyserades därefter med hjälp av SPSS för att svara på arbetets två hypoteser, om pris och sortiment är två viktiga faktorer för konsumenter inom fast fashion branschen. Arbetet visade att pris är den faktor som flest konsumenter prioriterar när de köper kläder. Även sortiment är något som konsumenter prioriterar vid konsumtion, men förhållandevis lågt jämfört med pris. Det är därför viktigt för företag inom fast fashion branschen att vara medvetna om konkurrenternas prisnivå för att på så vis skapa och behålla marknadsandelar samt konkurrensfördelar.

In this comparative study, the design elements and visual merchandising approaches employed in window displays by high-end and fast-fashion retailers are investigated. The study utilizes a visual content analysis method with standardized evaluation criteria to analyze the window displays of six high-end and six fast-fashion stores located in Paris. By adopting an analytical framework adapted mainly from Morgan (2015) and Diamond and Diamond (2007), the research aims to uncover shared patterns and distinguishing factors in the approaches of these two sectors. The findings reveal clear differences in purpose, layout, visual weight, focal points, color schemes, and prop usage between highend and fast-fashion retailers. These insights offer valuable practical implications for enhancing the visual appeal of window displays in the highly competitive retail landscape

The thesis analyses the trend of value-added distribution over a span of 10 years, from 2011 to 2021, in the international supply chain of fast fashion products between manufacturers in Bangladesh and multinational fast fashion retailers in Sweden. Bangladesh has grown economically thanks to its ready-made garment sector and favorable policies for businesses and foreign investments. Meanwhile, fast fashion global brands profit by providing affordable clothing to consumers in Europe while allocating garment production to low-wage countries and imposing tight production timeframes. The purpose of the thesis is to analyze the value-added distribution in the international supply chain of fast fashion products between manufacturers in Bangladesh, multinational fast fashion retailers in Sweden and their workers as key stakeholders. Through this thesis, it is possible to notice the inequality between the wealth generated and the remuneration of the parties involved in the supply chain. The methodology involves multiple case studies and value-added analysis. The thesis has three case studies. In each one of them is included a Swedish retail company and a Bangladeshi garment manufacturer. The value-added analysis is carried out on the selected case study companies’ financial reports from 2011 to 2021. Analyzing the distribution of value-added is key from a social sustainability perspective as it directly impacts poverty levels, countries’ growth, health aspects and living conditions of a large part of the population. The results of the thesis are based on the value-added statement elaborations which entail data processing of the profit and loss statement of the annual reports of the companies selected over a span of ten years. The data collected includes an analysis of a total of 60 annual reports. The findings point to the stark inequality between the average monthly salary costs per worker between Swedish and Bangladeshi workers. The value-added distributed to workers in Bangladesh is slowly increasing however it might take a decade to significantly reduce the difference in remuneration between Swedish and Bangladeshi workers. The core point of the findings has proved that multinational companies’ margins are not significantly impacted if they were to factor in higher salary costs of supply chain workers in Bangladesh to ensure a higher living standard than the current one which is not sufficient for a decent standard of living. To conclude the thesis argues about the current lack of disclosure that fast fashion retailers provide to members of society in their sustainability reports and companies’ sustainability strategies. This is because there is an underlying lack of relevant, faithful, verifiable, understandable, and comparable information provided by companies.

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