Sustainability and Fashion Brands a Pact for Eco-Luxury

Abstract

The fashion industry is becoming increasingly more important in world economies. Not for nothing is it one of the industries that, despite the crisis, has continued to grow and generate profits. Natural resources are becoming scarce and those brands whose manufacturing processes do not comply with sustainability standards are now being penalized, a state of affairs that not only concerns fashion, but also any other business environment. Sustainability is the sum of environmental and social benefits that enhance global welfare. Moreover, eco-luxury is being advanced as one of the most novel trends in fashion consumption and as a balance between economic return and social awareness. The aim of this study is to show, on the basis of a real project for creating a communication agency specializing in fashion, that entrepreneurs and brands are investing in sustainability and that eco-luxury has become a corporate hallmark. Contextually speaking, this research includes a content analysis of the leading communication agencies in Spain, in order to identify the keys to entrepreneurship and to respond to the current needs of fashion brands and green consumers. The findings not only point to a renovation of materials, resources, and creation and manufacturing processes, but above all reveal changes in business behaviour as regards the way of communicating sustainability and highlighting it as an exclusive, luxury trend, both factors inherent to fashion consumption.