Key Takeaways
- Strong foundations for engagement: A majority of consumers interviewed report knowing about more sustainable fashion and are already making fashion choices with sustainability in mind today.
- But there is a clear aspiration-action gap: A vast majority reports wanting to do more than they are doing today – whether this is making more sustainable purchasing decisions (71%) or wearing their clothes more sustainably (74%).
- Barriers hinder progress: The biggest obstacles affecting those who aspire to do more are the higher cost of more sustainable fashion (41%), difficulty identifying sustainable items (27%), not knowing where to shop (24%), limited knowledge (21%), and skepticism toward sustainability claims (19%).
GlobeScan recently partnered with leading European fashion platform Zalando to conduct a comprehensive study of Gen Z and Millennial consumer attitudes, behaviors, and expectations regarding fashion and sustainability across France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the UK. The research was supplemented with interviews with industry experts – including Zalando’s partner brands, associations, consultancies, and independent specialists – and culminated in the It takes many report.
The findings reveal that while many consumers are already making efforts to be sustainable, with 66 percent saying they make more sustainable fashion choices and 62 percent reporting at least a moderate level of knowledge, an aspiration-action gap remains. A significant majority of consumers express a desire to do more, with 71 percent aspiring to shop more sustainably and 74 percent wanting to wear clothing more sustainably in the future by keeping the clothing items for longer or purposely extending their lifespan.
However, this ambition is tempered by persistent barriers. The price premium associated with more sustainable fashion is the leading deterrent (cited by 41% of those who aspire to do more), followed by difficulty identifying sustainable items (27%), not knowing where to find them (24%), a general lack of knowledge (21%), and skepticism toward sustainability claims (19%). These information-related challenges are taking place in a shifting regulatory landscape where new anti-greenwashing rules aim to improve transparency but can also make it more complex for brands and retailers to communicate clearly about their sustainability efforts.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
These findings underscore the importance of bridging the gap between aspiration and action. There is significant untapped potential for more sustainable fashion behaviors, but only if key barriers are addressed.
Fashion brands and retailers have a crucial role to play, whether by tackling the price premium through product innovation or by emphasizing the added value that consumers are willing to pay more for, such as durability or quality. They can also harness the industry’s creative strengths to communicate sustainability more effectively and compellingly.
However, closing the aspiration-action gap requires more than retailer – or brand-level initiatives. It demands coordinated efforts across the entire fashion ecosystem – from policymakers, regulators, social media platforms, influencers, and civil society.
The sixth annual Oxford-GlobeScan Global Corporate Affairs Survey report will be published in July, providing the latest overview of opinions, trends, and challenges through the lens of Corporate Affairs practitioners. The report captures the views and insights of 245 senior Corporate Affairs professionals who were surveyed between February and March 2025 on issues and themes relevant to their function.
Survey Questions:
- You said you would like to change the way you buy and/or wear fashion items to be more sustainable. What is currently preventing you from doing more? – Select up to five. Subsample: All who want to change their behavior.
- By “buying more sustainably,” we mean intentionally buying fashion items that are better for the planet and fairer to the people who make them.
- By “wearing more sustainably,” we mean wearing fashion items for longer or purposefully extending their lifespan (e.g., by repairing, caring for them, or passing them on).
Source: Zalando It takes many report (survey of n=5,013 Gen Z and Millennial consumers in France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the UK ‒ February 2025)
