Almost three-quarters of British shoppers still think that it is important the clothes they buy are ethical, up from 59% a year ago.
And there has been a monumental shift in the number of young shoppers who have become more concerned about the origins of their clothes, with just 36% of those under 25 now not worried about these items.
Moreover, shoppers are now more skeptical about claims made by retailers that they have an ethical conscience. In total, 57% took this stance.
Such findings come after chief executive at the Institute of Grocery Distribution Joanne (IGD) Denney-Finch said that consumers will retain their ethical values despite the credit crunch.
Speaking at the IGD’s convention this week, Denney-Finch claimed that consumers will not abandon these values “overnight” even though the emphasis is shifting to cheapness and basics.
“With the increasing attention brought to ethical issues by the media, awareness of the potential cost to humanity for ‘unethical clothing’ has reached unprecedented levels,” commented the research manager at TNS Worldpanel Fashion Elaine Giles.
She added that consumers will not be convinced by “tokenistic gestures” from retailers.
