purpose blog
The purpose pillar in the fashion business school looks at the missions, visions, values and propositions of a brand or company. It is vital that a brand holds its own unique purpose as this helps to drive creation and consumption, especially when advertising of Gen Z, a generation that holds strong values on elements of fashion like: sustainability and ethicality. Furthermore, with such high competition in fast fashion, holding a distinctive purpose is highly beneficial for a brand to stand out through creativity and authenticity. Even more importantly, maintaining consistency with these values shows strength and morality, an attribute that Gen Z deems important.
A consumer is more likely to be interested in a brand that holds similar values to oneself. For example, “Japan had the privilege of near complete isolation from the world for such a long time that it could develop a very unique culture and philosophy which equally permeated the relationship with luxury.” This quote demonstrates the power of individuality and furthermore personal connection to philosophy. The purpose pillar also plays a paramount role in social responsibility, which can be tested “by investigating potential misalignments between brand identity as intended by the brand owner, and the way in which the brand image is perceived by young consumers”. Misalignments like this show weakness, further proving the importance of not just purpose, but commitment to one’s purpose.
Gen Z has been the first generation to grow up with technology, therefore it is heavily engrained in their lifestyle. “Almost 7 in 10 say they are influenced by friend’s social media posts”, “They discover products online before going out to shop”. Due to this, communication with Gen Z is best done through online advertisement and shopping.
“To meet consumer demands for attention to social and environmental issues, brands now advertise their efforts to develop sustainable products (Han et al., 2017, Jang et al., 2012) and to show corporate social responsibility (CSR) (Aoki et al., 2019, Fineman, 2001, Minton et al., 2012).” This further highlights the fundamentality of transparency and responsibility when advertising purpose in a fashion brand, particularly when communicating with Gen Z.
Ram, S. (2017). Meeting millennials where they shop: Shaping the future of shopping malls. McKinsey & Company, 15.
Mitterfellner, O. (2023). Luxury Fashion Brand Management: Unifying Fashion with Sustainability. Taylor & Francis.
Ross, J., & Harradine, R. (2011). Fashion value brands: the relationship between identity and image. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 15(3), 306-325.
Kong, H. M., Witmaier, A., & Ko, E. (2021). Sustainability and social media communication: How consumers respond to marketing efforts of luxury and non-luxury fashion brands. Journal of Business Research, 131, 640-651.