Research Topic: The Impact of Fast Fashion On the Environment

Student's Name: Poonam Ashok Pokale

Batch No.: 02 SYBCOM: C 2021-22 Roll No.: 062
Email ID: poonam.pokale22@gmail.com Mobile No.: 8169397676
Payment Proof:
Transaction ID: 134922480261
Transaction Date: 15 December 2021

Table of contents

Assignment 1: Sources of data collection.............................................................................1-2

1. Jodha's kitchen.............................................................................................................1
2. Quit India Movement....................................................................................................2
3. Maharashtra Flood 2005..............................................................................................2
4. COVID-19 2020............................................................................................................2
Assignment 2: Research paper...........................................................................................3-10
1. Abstract........................................................................................................................3
2. Introduction...................................................................................................................3
3. Review of literature...................................................................................................3-5
4. Objective of the study...................................................................................................5
5. Hypothesis................................................................................................................5-6
6. Research methodology.............................................................................................6-8
A. Descriptive analysis
B. Statistical analysis
7. Limitations of the study.................................................................................................9
8. Conclusion....................................................................................................................9
9. Bibliography/ Referencing (APA Style)....................................................................9-10

ASSIGNMENT 1

Write sources of data collection for the following.

1. Jodha's kitchen

Primary: The descendants of the Mughals, descendants of traditional cooks,

historians/food historians, writers.

Secondary: Link to some articles:

● Food Story: The saga of Moradabadi dal | Lifestyle News, The Indian
Express.
https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/food-wine/food-story-the-saga-of-mo
radabadi-dal/:
● https://kitchensofhistory.wordpress.com/tag/jodha-bai/

These articles show some facts and history of the recipes also the eating habits
evolved from Jodha bai's kitchen.

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2. Quit India Movement

Primary: The transcripts of the speeches made by the contributors of the Quit India
Movement.

Secondary: Links to some articles and books:

● https://www.jagranjosh.com/general-knowledge/quit-india-movement-1446798
420-1
● https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/quit-india-move
ment-2
● Chaudhury, P. C. R. (1977). [Review of Quit India Movement—British Secret
Report, by P. N. Chopra]. India International Centre Quarterly, 4(2), 200–204.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/23001495
These articles and books shows us the events and evidence of the movement.

3. Maharashtra Flood 2005

Primary: Weather Forecast and reports from agencies like IMD (INDIAN
METEOROLOGICAL DEPARTMENT) also Government notices, alerts and
newscasts of the disaster happened.

Secondary: Link to some articles :

● https://www.ndtv.com/photos/news/26july-2005-the-day-mumbai-stopped-110
00
● https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maharashtra_floods_of_2005

These articles is a brief of the flood disaster and damages caused because of it.

4. COVID-19 2020

Primary: The lab testing and genome sequencing can be accessed for the primary
data about the spread of Covid-19, which makes us aware about the mutations in the
virus.

Secondary: Links to some statistical data and articles:

● https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
● https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmed.2020.00250/full

These shows live statistical data about the pandemic and impacts of covid-19 in
India.

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ASSIGNMENT 2

The Impact of Fast Fashion On the Environment

1. Abstract

The emergence of the fast fashion business model has increased the introduction
of trends leading to premature product replacement and fashion obsolescence.
This business model also has an extensively negative impact on the environment. This
research paper seeks to fill some gaps in the study of the environmental sustainability of
major consumption practices particularly in India. Structured Questionnaire was carried out
to gather primary research data. The investigation revealed that there is a somewhat
growing awareness among consumers on the issue of fast fashion and sustainability and
also sometimes make active fashion choices on the basis of sustainability, however there is
a pervasive gap between attitude and consumption behaviour in this regard. Most of the
consumers are willing to learn the impacts of fast fashion and overcome It and agree to buy
sustainable clothing even for higher rates. It also revealed that there is no realistic incentive
from fashion brands for sustainable fashion according to consumers. It may be
recommended for consumers to take action in environmentally friendly practices by means
of recycling, thrift shopping and gaining interest in how the clothes are manufactured that
they consume.

Keywords: Consumption Behaviours, Environment impacts, Environmental Friendly, Fast

Fashion, Sustainability, Sustainable fashion.

2. Introduction

The fashion industry model produces an estimated 10% of all greenhouse gas
emissions,dries up water sources, and pollutes rivers and streams. What's more, 85% of all
textiles go to the dump each year (UNECE, 2018), and washing some types of clothes sends
a significant amount of microplastics into the ocean. There is an 'action gap' between how
important sustainability is to shoppers objectively and their actual purchase behaviours. Most
of the shoppers claimed sustainability was more important than value but yet their actions
showed more interest in value and style rather than sustainability. Fast fashion comes at an
astonishing environmental cost. While the impacts of the fast fashion industry in terms of
pollution, water use, carbon emissions and waste are increasing, the need for a shift to
sustainable fashion is evident.

3. Review of literature

Note: The references are mentioned at the end of the paper in the APA style reference in the
same sequence as in the review of literature.

1) McNeill, L., & Moore, R. (2015). Sustainable fashion consumption and the fast
fashion conundrum: fashionable consumers and attitudes to sustainability in
clothing choice. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 39(3), 212-222.
This study explores the attitudes of fashion consumers toward sustainable products,
ethical fashion purchasing and their subsequent behaviour. The research applies the

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 developmental theory model to a fashion context, finding fashion consumers can be
categorized into one of three groups: ‘Self’ consumers, concerned with hedonistic
needs, ‘Social’ consumers, concerned with social image and ‘Sacrifice’ consumers
who strive to reduce their impact on the world. These different groups view fast
fashion in conflicting ways and subsequent implications for marketing sustainably
produced fashion products to each group are, thus, significantly different.

2) Anguelov, N. (2015). The dirty side of the garment industry: Fast fashion and its
negative impact on environment and society. CRC PPress.
This book raises visibility of the ethical aspects of promoting overconsumption
through explaining the ecological damage resulting from the high rate of discarding
old clothes.It presents an expert overview of the garment industry, highlighting the
harsh realities of the environment and also labor problems associated with it.

3) Niinimäki, K., Peters, G., Dahlbo, H., Perry, P., Rissanen, T., & Gwilt, A. (2020).
The environmental price of fast fashion. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment,
1(4), 189-200.
This article shows that Impacts from the fashion industry include over 92 million
tonnes of waste produced per year and 1.5 trillion litres of water consumed. On the
basis of these environmental impacts, we need to outline the fundamental changes in
the fashion business model, including a deceleration of manufacturing and the
introduction of sustainable practices throughout the supply chain, as well a shift in
consumer behaviour namely, decreasing clothing purchases and increasing garment
lifetimes.

4) Bick, R., Halsey, E., & Ekenga, C. C. (2018). The global environmental injustice
of fast fashion. Environmental Health, 17(1), 1-4.
Those who work in or live near textile manufacturing facilities bear a disproportionate
burden of environmental health hazards. While fast fashion offers consumers an
opportunity to buy more clothes for less,there is an increase in consumption due to it.
Furthermore, increased consumption patterns have also created millions of tons of
textile waste in landfills and unregulated settings.

5) Bruce, M., & Daly, L. (2006). Buyer behaviour for fast fashion. Journal of
Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal.
This study reveals the buying practices for fast fashion, namely, a combination of
global and local suppliers, trust is an important factor in the supplier-retailer
relationship ensuring fast delivery at an agreed quality; and integration of key internal
activities and processes to facilitate the speed of buying decisions that may be
required.

6) Park, H. J., & Lin, L. M. (2020). Exploring attitude–behavior gap in sustainable

consumption: Comparison of recycled and upcycled fashion products. Journal
of Business Research, 117, 623-628.
This study focused on exploring the gap between the purchase intention and
purchase experience in recycled and upcycled fashion products. Factors including
perceived values, risks, environmental concern, perceived consumer effectiveness,
subjective norms, and demographic variables were examined to understand the

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 discrepancy. Many consumers have a positive attitude toward sustainable products;
however they commonly end up not purchasing them.

7) Claudio, L. (2007). Waste couture: Environmental impact of the clothing

industry.
Fast fashion leaves a pollution footprint, with each step of the clothing life cycle
generating potential environmental and occupational hazards. polyester, the most
widely used manufactured fiber, is made from petroleum. With the rise in production
in the fashion industry, demand for man-made fibers, especially polyester, has nearly
doubled in the last 15 years, according to figures from the Technical Textile Markets.

4. Objective of the study

1. To observe the awareness of the consumer\buyer towards fast fashion business

models and its impacts.
2. To determine the gap between attitude and behavior of consumer\buyer towards
consumption of sustainability clothing.
3. To determine what creates the 'action gap' between attitude and behavior of
consumer\buyer.

5. Hypothesis

Hypothesis 1
Null hypothesis (H0) : Consumers would not like to pay more for sustainable clothing than
unsustainable fashion.
Due to Affordable prices and instant gratification of Fast fashion consumers would not pay
more for sustainable clothing. Sustainable clothing is expensive due to the fact that mass
production cannot be practiced. This includes prioritising the environment and workers. But
according to 35 individuals who have responded to the survey 65.7% of individuals agree to
pay more whereas 34.3% disagree. So we have to reject the null hypothesis here.

Alternative hypothesis (H1): Consumers would like to pay more for sustainable clothing
than unsustainable fashion.
According to the data we have seen 34.3% of individuals responded are not willing to pay
more than usual although the majority of consumers agree to pay more for sustainable
clothing therefore we can accept the alternative hypothesis here.

Hypothesis 2
Null hypothesis (H0) : The incentives of fashion brands regarding sustainability are not
realistic.
Not only consumers but also fashion brands practice sustainability to reduce fashion impacts
on the environment. They Offer the campaign of recycling old garments into new apparels,
thrift shopping, etc but fail to do so in regard to earning more profits. Therefore among the 35
respondents of the survey 29 individuals (82.9% of respondents) agree that these incentives
are not realistic.Thus,we can accept the null hypothesis here.

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Alternative hypothesis (H1):The incentives of fashion brands regarding sustainability are
realistic.
According to the data we have seen Out of 35 respondent individuals 29 agree that the
incentives of fashion brands are not realistic in maintaining sustainability as they fail to do
so. Thus we have to reject the alternative hypothesis here.

6. Research methodology

For this research the questionnaire method was used. Structured questionnaire Google form
was sent to 35 individuals of various age groups. The descriptive analysis and statistical
analysis of the same is as follows:

A) Descriptive analysis: The number of respondents were 35 out of which 15 were

male and 20 were females of various age groups. They were asked 10 questions on
the basis of their awareness, behaviour, practices and attitude towards fast fashion
impacting the environment as consumers. Diagrams from the Google forms are
shown below to make the analysis clear.

Here we can see the awareness of Here we can see the awareness of the
consumers about fast fashion. Consumers about the impacts of Fast fashion
on the environment.

Here we can see how aware Here we can see how often consumers
Consumers are about the way their make active shopping choices knowing the
Clothes are manufactured. Impacts.

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 Here we can see how often consumers Here we can see willingness of
Shop from thrift shops or second hand consumers to learn about the environmental
Clothing stores. impacts.

Here we can see willingness of Here we can see on what basis

Consumers to change the way they consumers mostly shop.
Shop due to the environmental impacts.

Here we can see whether consumers Here we can see the incentives of fashion
will go for sustainable clothing or not brands regarding sustainability are not realistic
If they cost more. According to consumers.

B) Statistical analysis:
Here we can observe in detail the awareness and practices of consumers regarding
fast fashion and its impacts i.e. how consumers make choices even if they know the

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fast fashion impacts costing the environment. After Analysing the overall data of the
Respondents

From the above graphs we can clearly see how some individuals, Even though
knowing of the impacts of fast fashion only Sometimes make active choices.
This shows that there is an action gap between attitude and behavior.

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7. Limitations of the study

This research faced certain limitations. As fast fashion is a relatively new

concept, there is limited amount of scientific literature available on this topic.Reports on
changes and developments in consumption behavioural patterns and the relationship of this
with the environment cannot be made, which results in the loss of important
research data.The present study aimed at the opinions of the individuals who were
interviewed.The primary research conducted for this study was of a small scale nature due
to time constraints. This may have inhibited the generalizability of the
findings. Future studies may provide different findings considering larger scale
primary research.Due to the lack of the necessary resources and time that would have been
needed to conduct a larger scale research, the findings are limited to a small and specific
population. A much more in-depth study may have been achieved with more time and better
resources.

8. Conclusion

The findings reveal a generally positive attitude towards environmentally

friendly consumption and business practices. However, some gaps have been
revealed among consumers in the matter of positive attitudes but no action
taken.Consumers should consider their duty to help preserve the environment by
making better consumption and post-consumption choices. It can be
recommended for consumers that, if within possibility, to consume products that
are from sustainable sources and that are sold by companies who keep the
environment in utmost regard. Consumers should also be aware of the
importance of what they do with their textiles after they no longer use them.
They can inform themselves more on the subject and also help to raise awareness
among others. Consumers may also demand that environmentally friendly
practices are implemented by businesses and the government.

9. Bibliography/ Referencing (APA Style)

(Note: The APA style references here are in the same sequence as in the review of literature
section)

1) McNeill, L., & Moore, R. (2015). Sustainable fashion consumption and the fast
fashion conundrum: fashionable consumers and attitudes to sustainability in
clothing choice. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 39(3), 212-222.
2) Anguelov, N. (2015). The dirty side of the garment industry: Fast fashion and its
negative impact on environment and society. CRC PPress.
3) Niinimäki, K., Peters, G., Dahlbo, H., Perry, P., Rissanen, T., & Gwilt, A. (2020).
The environmental price of fast fashion. Nature Reviews Earth & Environment,
1(4), 189-200.
4) Bick, R., Halsey, E., & Ekenga, C. C. (2018). The global environmental injustice
of fast fashion. Environmental Health, 17(1), 1-4.
5) Bruce, M., & Daly, L. (2006). Buyer behaviour for fast fashion. Journal of
Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal.

9
6) Park, H. J., & Lin, L. M. (2020). Exploring attitude–behavior gap in sustainable
consumption: Comparison of recycled and upcycled fashion products. Journal
of Business Research, 117, 623-628.
7) Claudio, L. (2007). Waste couture: Environmental impact of the clothing
industry.

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