Smart shoppers

: studying the relationship between Perceived Quality and Willingness to Pay in Fast and Slow Fashion

Abstract

Fashion is, undeniably, one of the largest and most lucrative industries with growingexpectations. Despite its general acceptance and the success, recently it has been heavilyscrutinized regarding its practices and criticized accordingly. From the exploitation of naturalresources, poor working conditions and environmental footprint to intellectual property issues,to name a few. This has led companies to rethink and adopt more sustainable practices, whichconsumers are becoming increasingly aware of and demanding.However, there seems to be quite a gap in the literature between consumers’ perceptions ofslow and fast fashion and their purchasing behavior. This dissertation therefore examines fourbrands, with different levels of perceived quality and from different fashion models, and theireffect on willingness to pay. The results show that these dimensions influence consumers’willingness to pay. Moreover, the mediating effect of brand image and the moderating effect ofbeing a smart shopper were analyzed. Perceived quality was found to have an impact on brandimage, although brand image did not have a direct significant effect on WTP and therefore, notsuitable as a mediator. Finally, smart shopper dimensions were better understood in the contextof fashion, but also not eligible as moderator.The present study adds to the existing literature of the fashion and smart shopper withtheoretical and managerial implications that help better understand consumer behavior towardsthe fashion industry.

Date of Award	26 Jun 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Paulo Romeiro (Supervisor)