Does sustainable fashion have a 'visibility' problem?

Fashion’s sustainability problem is well-known throughout the industry, even if efforts to make changes are slow moving.

 

Consumers are aware of it too though and they’re actively looking for more sustainable options.

 

A WWF-commissioned report found that there was a 71% increase in searches for sustainable goods between 2016 and 2020. 

 

In 2022, Statista reported that the vast majority of consumers globally said their purchasing behaviour had shifted at least a little towards buying more sustainable products compared to five years earlier.

 

But while the intention to buy better might be there, consumers aren’t always finding it easy to find sustainable fashion.

Why is it Hard to Find Sustainable Fashion?

According to a 2023 survey shared by Statista, one of the main reasons consumers in France, Great Britain, Germany, and Italy weren’t purchasing sustainable fashion is that they find it hard to find eco-friendly options.

 

Between 20-30% of consumers across all four countries said sustainable clothing wasn’t easy to find. 18-30% also said that it was hard to find proper eco-friendly brands. And around 30% on average said it was unclear which eco-friendly aspects were being fulfilled when looking for sustainable fashion.

 

In a 2024 survey of UK shoppers, commissioned by Amazon, two in three people said they’d prefer to buy products that have a more positive environmental and social impact. But only 7% said they always understand a product’s environmental impact when shopping.

 

This matters because 41% of those surveyed claimed to have abandoned a purchase when they did not trust or understand its sustainability claims.

 

If we look at e-commerce specifically, then sustainable fashion’s visibility problem is clear. 

 

The first challenge is discovery. Sustainable fashion brands want to be found when consumers specifically search for environmentally friendly options. But they also want to appear in more general online searches for fashion items, so that shoppers become aware of more environmentally friendly options.

 

The sheer number of products and brands that exist online makes this hard though. Competition is incredibly high to be top of search results and sustainable options – especially from newer brands - can easily be pushed down the list.

 

The second challenge is verification. Brands need to make sure that consumers can easily recognise more sustainable options from their product pages. The small, flat images on e-commerce websites mean that any points of difference are rarely clear based on how the product looks. This means that it’s the on-page description that has to do the heavy lifting.

 

In a 2021 McKinsey Sustainability Survey of UK consumers, 42.7% said they rely on a brand’s website to understand whether the brand is sustainable. 39.1% use product tags as a source of information about sustainability.

 

One in three people said they are more likely to try a new brand or product if the social, ethical and environmental credentials are clear on the product, or at the online point of sale.

 

This shows the importance of making sure that sustainability information is front and centre at the points of sale. Sustainable fashion retailers also need to make sure that consumers can understand the information and not blind shoppers with vague terms.

 

Certifications like B-Corp status are one way to improve discoverability of sustainable fashion and help consumers to verify that sustainability statements are true.

 

In Amazon’s survey, 77% of people said they are more likely to trust a product’s sustainability claims if it is supported by an official certification from a reputable organisation. 

 

Badges that show a product or brand has achieved an official certification can be added to the product page to act as shorthand for consumers looking for sustainable options. But companies like B-Corp could also help improve discoverability by making it easier for shoppers to search their database of certified companies. 

 

Physical Retail is Making Sustainable Fashion More Visible

One consequence of this is that more sustainable fashion brands are turning to physical retail to increase their visibility.

 

Whether it’s permanent retail stores or pop-ups, last year saw several sustainable fashion businesses open their first store or expand their physical presence.

 

These stores make the brands more visible because they act as billboards. There are only a finite number of physical stores compared to endless search results online.

 

They also position sustainable fashion alongside established products and brands that consumers are familiar with. This helps to alleviate preconceptions shoppers might have about how sustainable fashion looks or feels.  

 

Canadian sustainable fashion brand Kotn uses its stores to demonstrate to consumers that it makes great products first and foremost. Shoppers don’t necessarily enter the spaces because they’re looking for sustainable fashion. Instead, they just see great clothes, which then gives Kotn the opportunity to demonstrate the sustainable benefits as well.

 

Physical stores mean consumers can get hands-on and check the quality and the feel and the fall of the fabric. This is particularly valuable if the clothing is made of newly developed and pioneering sustainable materials that consumers may be unfamiliar with or unsure of.

 

 

This is one reason that sustainable materials pioneer Pangaia has opened a store on London’s Carnaby Street. Shoppers can get hands-on with the different materials that the brand has developed, including leather made from grape waste from the wine-making industry.

 

It’s easier for sustainable fashion brands to educate consumers in a physical space about their products and the points of difference. The story behind the brand is more immersive and immediate.

 

Another great example of this is the Denim Futures at Fabrica X, a Hong Kong store run by The Mills Fabrica. 

 

This gave consumers a behind-the-scenes look at the supply chain for creating jeans and what the future of denim might look like via workshops, 3D body scanning tech, and the chance to touch new material innovations. The space also sold jeans made by sustainable and future-focused brands.

 

Visibility Drives Changes in Consumer Behaviour

Interestingly, it’s the impact of reality TV show Love Island that really shows the power of visibility to drive changes in consumer buying behaviours. 

 

When Love Island switched from working with fast fashion sponsors to partnering with eBay in 2022, the result was a 1600% increase for ‘pre-loved clothes’ on eBay.

 

In 2023, ITV research also found that 53% of Love Island viewers who were familiar with the eBay partnership had bought pre-loved fashion in the past three months. This was more than double the number of people who bought pre-loved fashion and weren’t aware of the deal or didn’t watch the reality show.

 

Although there are a variety of reasons consumers don’t buy sustainable fashion - cost being one - it’s clear that visibility is a key factor. Because as with Love Island and eBay, once consumers are aware of another option, they’re often willing to embrace it.