Environmental Concerns Help Push Consumer Procurement.

The new study points out that the growing concern of environment and sustainability plays a very important role in consumer decision making in clothing purchase. For apparel brands and retailers, the use of transparency in natural fibers is more and more important.

The recent research report of Cotton USA came from a study commissioned by the Cotton Council International, which is dominated by Harris Insights and Analytics. The study found that 86% of the people in the world are considering sustainability and its impact on all aspects of daily life. 57% of them said that in the past year, they thought more about sustainability than before.

Although American cotton found that consumers were most concerned about sustainability, this topic covered food, home appliances and car purchases, but 61% of respondents said they also care about sustainability and environmental impact when they buy clothes. As part of the study, nearly 2/3 of participants said they would make more efforts to find clothes labeled "environmentally-friendly".

Moreover, when asked why it concerns the reasons for sustainable development, 38% of consumers said it is essential to support those brands and retailers who are conscious and positive about the environment. Subsequently, those opposed to unfair treatment of employees (35%) or non perpetual practices as part of their manufacturing process (33%) took an opposing position.

"Today's global brands and retailers must establish and maintain a strong and sustainable image and maintain transparency so that consumers can see clearly the measures they have taken," said Stephanie Thiers-Ratcliffe, the European brand director of the US cotton business.

We pay special attention to cotton. The overwhelming majority of consumers in the world (83%) say they think fiber is safe for the environment. 69% of consumers think that American cotton is regarded as the choice of environmental safety. In addition, 100% of consumers believe that cotton fiber is related to sustainability and is more important than other fabrics such as wool, silk, polyester, Rayon or spandex.

The study is based on 7365 interviews conducted in the United States, Britain, India, Germany, Italy, Mexico and Mainland China (each country has at least 1000 interviews).