Slow Fashion: Between Environment Sustainability and Business Sustainability

Slow fashion is a topic that is currently still being widely discussed because it is considered as an environmentally friendly alternative in the fashion industry. Even though this concept is accepted by academics and practitioners, how slow fashion can generate sufficient profits is still a question considering the selling price is quite high and the emphasis is on quality over quantity. This research seeks to close this research gap by using the Consumer Orientation to Slow Fashion (COSF) framework and the perceived customer value of slow fashion products. The analysis of 200 Indonesian consumer data using PLS-SEM revealed that (1) providing authentic, local, and exclusive product attribute are very important in developing customer value in slow fashion products, and (2) perceived value ultimately has a positive impact on purchase intentions. This result provides a business strategy for slow fashion brand owners to be able to focus on these attributes to create a sustainable business model that includes the triple bottom line (people, planet, profit) and contribute to achievement of SDG Goal no 12: responsible consumption and production.


Introduction
Fashion is a very competitive industry and is currently valued at over 1.7 trillion dollars.In fact, by 2027, this market is expected to grow by 1.96% annually [1].Despite its economic importance, the fashion industry, especially fast fashion, is often accused of being one of the biggest contributors to environmental destruction [2].Globally, the potential market of ethical fashion is estimated at USD 12,000 in 2027 [3], while the fast fashion market is estimated at USD 185 billion in the same year [4].This far-reaching comparison proves that the slow fashion market is still very small and must continue to be developed.Fast fashion fosters excessive consumption by producing trendy clothes quickly that end up quickly as well in the landfill [5].Slow fashion arose as the antithesis of the present fast fashion industry in reaction to these substantial environmental challenges.Slow fashion promotes quality and raises awareness among both producers and customers, while also delaying production and consumption cycles.Companies must engage in ecologically and socially responsible production methods immediately because consumers, particularly the younger generation, are becoming more aware of sustainability issues [6].Indeed, companies that can adapt to consumer sustainability needs are more likely to achieve sustainable success [7].1324 (2024) 012068 IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1324/1/012068 2 Support for the slow fashion movement continues to increase, but practice is still hampered by various things, including the selling price of slow fashion products which is still above the average for fast fashion products.For example, Konscio, a local Indonesian brand that carries the concept of slow fashion at affordable prices, charges its products at the lowest price of IDR 139,300.Meanwhile, consumers can get fast fashion products with similar models for under IDR 100,000 in the online marketplace.This raises the question of how slow fashion products can attract consumers to buy their products if they have to compete with fast fashion products.Even though the initial idea of the slow fashion concept was for the environment and society, it is critical for the sustainable fashion to fulfil the triple bottom line, namely: people, planet, and profit [8].Nonetheless, not much recent literature on slow fashion has concentrated on this economic aspect, especially in developing countries like Indonesia.Most slow fashion research concentrates on environmental and social sustainability aspects [9].
The present study aims to understand what slow fashion attributes should be emphasized to maintain profitability and which attributes can influence the creation of high customer value.For this reason, this study uses the Customer Value Creation Framework which states that customers will be more willing to buy a product if they feel the superior value of the offer [10].For the slow fashion attributes studied, this research uses the Consumer Orientation to Slow Fashion (COSF) scale developed by Jung and Jin [11].In other words, empirically, this study seeks to find slow fashion attributes that can lead customers to feel the superior value of slow fashion products and ultimately increase their purchase intentions.The outcomes of this study are expected to serve as the foundation for a viable slow fashion business strategy.Thus, slow fashion is no longer regarded as a passing fad in the fashion industry, but as a business model that is not only sound for the environment and society, but also profitable and promotes sustainable business practices.The results of this research contribute to achieving SDG goal 12, namely responsible consumption and production, because by knowing the slow fashion attributes that affect customers to purchase, company can develop marketing program more effective, thus sustainable production and consumption can be realized.

Slow fashion in business perspective
The subject of fashion as a contradiction to the term 'slow' is an important one to address.Fashion is closely associated with the need to express one's self-concept, whereas slow fashion is closely related to the concept of moral identity [12].Mainstream fast fashion models are centered on increasing the number of fashion seasons (since fast fashion styles only last a few seasons) and increasing production and sales volumes.Production speeds are increasing, and mass production takes only a few weeks from initial design to delivery of final goods to retailers [13].This causes low product quality and low selling prices while encourages consumers to buy many items in large quantities at once, immediately throw them away and buy new ones [14].This type of business model is what generates profits for fast-fashion companies like Zara and H&M.
Contrary to this model, companies that put more emphasis on sustainability make up the slow fashion movement that promote workmanship, excellent governance, and high-quality products [15].Slow fashion, among other things, focuses on ethical production techniques and raw material sourcing, worker welfare, and sustainable consumption [16].Low-speed manufacturing allows natural raw materials to grow naturally and garments to be manufactured slowly as well as in small quantities, decreasing resource consumption and waste [17].In terms of worker welfare, the workers involved in the production of these clothes receive higher wages and greater protection than those who are involved in the fast fashion industry supply chain [15].This causes slow fashion products to cost more.Slow fashion businesses rely on good quality to retain profitability, which requires high selling prices.The strategy of high-quality products at a premium price will give buyers a sense of greater value than what they paid, encouraging them to keep the item rather than discard it [9].Further, being fashionable in a slow way can be achieved by appreciating the item of clothing to its fullest, producing distinctive styles, and fashions that are more timeless and not "outdated" during the extended life of an item [18].
With the various reasons and explanations mentioned above, slow fashion's economic viability is still being debated.This is because companies with small volumes of production and low speed will not be able to compete with companies using an economy of scale strategy.In addition, the charging of higher prices by slow fashion may not generate enough demand.As a result, study into how slow fashion may earn and sustain revenues to continue business over time is required.Indeed, slow fashion might call for a different approach to profit generation than fast fashion [16].This study strives to determine what characteristics can boost profitability in slow fashion by emphasizing the customer's perspective, keeping in mind that fashion customers may expect different benefits from slow fashion than fast fashion [19].That way, businesspeople can concentrate more on slow fashion attributes which are important to be able to increase consumer purchase intentions.

Consumer Orientation to Slow Fashion (COSF) attributes on perceived value
Based on previous findings that slow fashion attributes are a source of providing customer value, this study employs the five slow fashion attributes, which are Equity, Authenticity, Functionality, Localism, and Exclusivity from the Consumer Orientation to Slow Fashion (COSF) scale proposed by Jung and Jin.Based on the results of their research, only exclusivity was proven to have a significant effect on perceived customer value.The author uses this scale because it is considered to be able to describe the attributes of slow fashion as a whole and has been used in several studies [9,20].
The first attribute of the slow fashion orientation was discovered to be Equity.This attribute reflects the idea that fair trade should make slow fashion items available to everyone, and that producers should be rewarded and treated fairly.Better working conditions, free of heavy workloads, and fair wages should be ensured in a slow-paced production [11].However, being slow is not simply a reverse of being fast; by slowing down the process, social and price value is added to the slow fashion products.Second attribute is Authenticity, which involves consumers tendency toward clothing made with traditional craftsmanship and traditional techniques, as opposed to producing similar products made by machines [21].Slow production by hand and traditional methods would allow manufacturers to devote more time to each piece of apparel, allowing each item to have its own historical connotation.This feature should attract customers who care about the authenticity of apparel, and such customers will perceive higher value in slow fashion products.Functionality, the third dimension on the COSF scale, is directly tied to the post-purchase consuming stage.This aspect can be regarded as optimising product utility, which includes apparel longevity and versatility.That is, customers purchase high-quality clothing and wear it for a longer period of time, more frequently, and in many different of ways.Furthermore, customers can fully enjoy an item by using it in a variety of ways [18].This is in stark contrast to the pattern of fast consumption which encourages a person to buy several items of clothing at once and throw them away quickly.Ultimately, this leads to an increase in the price and emotional value of slow fashion.
Localism is the fourth attribute.This dimension reveals that slow fashion products are typically made in local regions and using local resources (raw materials, people, and craftmanship).This dimension also includes choosing domestic/local clothing labels over international apparel brands.In contrast to the global trend towards identical fashion in different regions, Slow fashion can meet consumers' desire to enjoy and immerse themselves in their local identity.This should be used to generate perceived consumer value, such as emotional value.The last slow fashion scale attribute is Exclusivity, which is related with a preference for the product's exclusive value.Slow fashion products are produced in small batches, and even in the same batch, they do not look the same because of human labour.Therefore, exclusive value can be achieved through rare and limited fashion products, thus providing its own value for its users [22].Slow fashion might thus attract customers who want to stand out from the crowd by purchasing rare fashion goods.These attributes can enhance the perceived emotional value of the garment.Based on the previous explanation, the Hypotheses 1 for this study:

Perceived customer value on purchase intention
In general, a company will be able to compete and even outperform its competitors if it is able to create and provide products with greater value to customers.This means the company can generate profitability from consumers through customer satisfaction.Several studies have found that customer loyalty, which includes the propensity to buy, retain, suggest, and pay more, is a direct outcome of the consumer's perceived value, particularly for ethical items [23,24].Customer perceived value is the consumer's overall calculation of the usefulness of a product or service based on perceptions of what is predicted and what is provided [25].In regard to slow fashion, the authors believe that when consumers perceive that slow fashion products have a significantly higher value (customer perceived value), they will be more likely to purchase them.Therefore, the second hypothesis is: Hypotheses 2: The customer's perceived value will have a significant positive effect on the consumer's purchase intention for slow fashion products.
Figure 1 depicts the conceptual framework for this study based on the previously established research idea.This study proposes that each attribute has a positive and significant impact on customer value perceived by consumers, which in turn increases consumer willingness to buy slow fashion products.

Research method
National consumer data of the general population in Indonesia were obtained through online survey companies.Because Localism is one of the dimensions of slow fashion, this study seeks to eliminate response bias due to regional differences by collecting data on the Java Island and outside Java Island.Men and women between the ages of 18 and 50 were selected to be research respondents and data were collected using a purposive sampling method.Only those who understand the concept of 'slow fashion' and its price range are allowed to fill out the research questionnaire.A total of 200 respondents completed the survey to the end, and all their answers can be used for further analysis.The questionnaire was given in Indonesian language, thus there are several terms that must be adjusted without changing the purpose of the questions.The survey questionnaire consists of the COSF scale, customer perceived values, and intention to buy slow fashion products.In the first part, the demographics of the respondents were also asked.The second part of the questionnaire asked about COSF attributes.The 15 COSF items were utilized to assess slow fashion attributes.The scale has five aspects (Equity, Authenticity, Functionality, Localism, and Exclusivity), and each of which has three items.The scales were taken from Jung Jin's research in 2016 [11].Equity is denoted by E1, E2, E3; Authenticity by AU1, AU2, AU3; Functionality by FU1, FU2, FU3; Localism by LO1, LO2, LO3, and Exclusivity by EX1, EX2, EX3.The third part of questionnaire asked about respondents' perceived values on slow fashion products.This attribute was measured by Sweeney and Soutar's PERVAL scale [10] and comprised of 8 items, including quality, price, emotional and social value (PV1-PV8).The last part of questionnaire was asked about respondents' purchase intention for slow fashion product.Three items (PI1, PI2, PI3) measuring the consumer's purchase intention scale were taken from Jung and Jin's study [9].
For all questions, respondents were asked to rate their level of agreement with the statements provided on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree).The reliability and validity of the measurement model in this study were assessed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).

Results and discussion
Respondent demographics are presented in Table 1.Women made up the majority of the 200 respondents, with 112 women (56%) and 87 men (44%) respectively.The age group of respondents sorted from the most is: 18-24 years (59.5%),25-34 years (30.5%),35-44 years (5%), and 45-50 years (5%).The most recent education of the respondents was high school (50.5%), undergraduate (31.5%), diploma (13%), and lastly masters (5%).Most respondents work as employees (48.5%) and students (46.5%) and the rest are other jobs.From this description it could be concluded that respondents representing Generation Z and Millennials have a fairly good level of education.These segments are important groups for the slow fashion industry in emerging markets, including in the Asia-Pacific region.The variable with the highest mean of 4.160 is PV7 ("Slow fashion will help me feel welcome"), and the lowest is 2.550, namely EQ2 ("I am concerned about fair trade when I buy clothes").In general, the mean value for Equity variable is indeed low which showed that Indonesian consumers may not really concern about equity for slow fashion producers.The reliability and validity of the construct can be seen in Table 2.The Factor Loading value of all variables is above 0.7 so the model is fit.CR values range from 0.899 (PI) to 0.975 (EQ) and AVE values range from 0.705 (PV) to 0.928 (EQ).This analysis indicates that the measurement model's reliability is supported.The scale's discriminant validity was then assessed using the Heterotrait-Monotrait (HTMT) ratio.All HTMT values (Table 3) are less than 0.90, indicating the measuring model's discriminant validity [23].Inner model measurement was carried out by looking at the adjusted R-Square.It could be seen in table 3, the R-Square value for variations in the PV construct which can be explained by variations in the COFS attribute construct is 79.1% and variations in the PI construct which can be explained by variations in the PV construct is 73.4%.
Therefore, this research model is quite strong [26].In conclusion, this research measurement model has been proven to be both reliable and valid.To test the structural model, this study used Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) by SmartPLS Version 3.2.9.Table 5 presents the summary of the results of this research hypothesis testing.Hypotheses 1a argues that customers who pay attention to Equity attribute (namely a good work environment, fair compensation for workers, and fair-trade practices) will have a positive influence on customers' perceived value for slow fashion products.However, it was found that the Equity attribute had no effect on respondents' perceived value for slow fashion products.Hypothesis 1c was also not supported, which means that customers who consider the Functionality attribute (comfort and classic design in clothing) to be important do not always have a significant effect on their perceived value of slow fashion products.One possible reason for the lack of support for the Equity dimension is that people tend to engage in ethical purchasing only when ethical issues directly affect them [27].Although society knows slow fashion improves workers' well-being, this awareness does not contribute to the creation of perceived value for slow fashion products because concerns about proper compensation and ensuring a safe working environment do not have a direct influence on consumers.Furthermore, the possible reason why the Functionality dimension does not have a significant relationship with perceived value is due to the habits of Indonesian people who like to shop for clothes at discounts, especially through online channels [28].This causes them to rarely keep clothes for too long and prefer to buy new ones when they get bored.Not surprisingly, the fashion industry in Indonesia is still growing every year [29].
The opposite results were obtained to Hypothesis 1b, 1d, and 1e which were proven to have a significant effect on the perceived customer value of slow fashion products.In other words, customers who highly value and appreciate Authenticity (handcraftsmanship and traditional methods), Localism (domesticmade products and fabrics), and Exclusivity (limited edition and rare clothing models) will also have a high perceived value for slow fashion products.These results are quite different with previous study [9], which concluded that only Exclusivity that had positive significant result with perceived values in US consumers.This difference may occur because the research areas are different so that consumers' assessments of slow fashion attributes are different as well.With respect to the relationship between customer value and marketing, Hypotheses 2 proves that the customer's perceived value for slow fashion products will significantly increase their purchase intention for this product category.This means customers who recognized customer value in slow fashion products were more likely to purchase slow fashion products.This result was consistent with the previous study [11,30].Furthermore, ethical purchasing intentions are frequently employed in research on green products and corporate social IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1324/1/0120688 responsibility actions, both of which have been found to be influenced by perceived customer value [31,32].

Conclusion
The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of slow fashion customer orientation, perceived value, and intention to buy slow fashion products.The findings indicated a significant effect of Authenticity, Localism, and Exclusivity toward customer's perceived value and a significant impact of perceived value on slow fashion purchase intention.The study's findings have important significance for understanding slow fashion perception and involvement.According to the literature, the topic of slow fashion in Indonesia received little attention; thus, the findings contribute to a better understanding of the slow fashion movement in Indonesia [20].
Since this research seeks explanations on how slow fashion can attract consumers despite higher pricing, the business model proposed in this study also suggests a considerable managerial contribution.This research believes that the attributes utilized in the slow fashion business model truly characterize slow fashion, and that each attribute, i.e., Equity, Authenticity, Functionality, Localism, and Exclusivity, can be a source of business strategy for the company.For example, to meet consumer needs for the 'Localism' aspect of slow fashion, businesses can develop slow fashion items that are made from authentic Indonesian materials and use typical Indonesian patterns.This strategy will increase consumers' love for local products and of course increase the value of slow fashion products in their eyes.In terms of the 'Exclusivity' attribute, businesses can focus more on the small quantity of products made in each batch and routinely issue special editions in each season mode.This will create a feeling of exclusivity and uniqueness for the wearer, thus increasing their intention to buy.
Furthermore, this study also provides a critical look at sustainability.Slow fashion is part of a larger movement towards a more sustainable business model that encourages consumers to shift their buying patterns and mindsets from quantity to quality.To increase consumer acceptance and trustworthiness, a range of slow fashion brands must be offered, and they must actively show the distinctiveness of slow fashion to consumers.Maintaining adequate profitability to support a slow fashion company is also critical to achieving this goal.Ultimately, slow fashion companies offer high-quality goods and designs that are made responsibly, indirectly encouraging people to buy less clothes, wear clothes longer and more often, reducing resource consumption and waste while supporting a fair production system.

4 Hypotheses 1 :
Consumers who have a high concern for (a) Equity, (b) Authenticity, (c) Functionality, (d) Localism and (e) Exclusivity will have a high perceived value of slow fashion products.

Table 1 .
Demographic profile

Table 2 .
Construct reliability and validity test (outer model).

Table 5 .
Results of the Structural Model Assessment.