IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i21p12246-d673327.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Can Fashion Be Circular? A Literature Review on Circular Economy Barriers, Drivers, and Practices in the Fashion Industry’s Productive Chain

Author

Listed:
  • Andreza de Aguiar Hugo

    (Engineering and Management Institute (IEPG), Federal University of Itajuba (UNIFEI), Itajuba 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

  • Jeniffer de Nadae

    (Engineering and Management Institute (IEPG), Federal University of Itajuba (UNIFEI), Itajuba 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

  • Renato da Silva Lima

    (Engineering and Management Institute (IEPG), Federal University of Itajuba (UNIFEI), Itajuba 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

Abstract

Circular economy (CE) principles have gained prominence in the fashion industry since it is a highly polluting industry and requires sustainable changes. Even though there are several CE initiatives already in place within the fashion production chain, changes towards CE are still slow. This study seeks to identify the drivers, barriers, and practices that influence implementing circular economy concepts in the fashion industry production chain using a systematic literature review. The results show that some more barriers and criteria keep consumers away from circular fashion concepts than drivers. These barriers include fast fashion consumer culture, even though more consumers are environmentally conscious. This is because awareness has not reached large-scale populations, despite the world being more aware of social and environmental issues. Consumers still do not see ethical and ecological problems associated with the fashion industry and continue to be targeted for large fast fashion retailers that sell a misguided version of consumerism. This study contributes to both academia and new fashion business models that seek to become more sustainable since it presents opportunities for investments and the obstacles that must be overcome for reaching CE within this sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Andreza de Aguiar Hugo & Jeniffer de Nadae & Renato da Silva Lima, 2021. "Can Fashion Be Circular? A Literature Review on Circular Economy Barriers, Drivers, and Practices in the Fashion Industry’s Productive Chain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-17, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:21:p:12246-:d:673327
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/21/12246/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/21/12246/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sonali Diddi & Ruoh-Nan Yan, 2019. "Consumer Perceptions Related to Clothing Repair and Community Mending Events: A Circular Economy Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-17, September.
    2. de Jesus, Ana & Mendonça, Sandro, 2018. "Lost in Transition? Drivers and Barriers in the Eco-innovation Road to the Circular Economy," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 75-89.
    3. Adıgüzel, Feray & Donato, Carmela, 2021. "Proud to be sustainable: Upcycled versus recycled luxury products," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 137-146.
    4. Elisa Arrigo, 2020. "Global Sourcing in Fast Fashion Retailers: Sourcing Locations and Sustainability Considerations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-22, January.
    5. Róbert Štefko & Vladimira Steffek, 2018. "Key Issues in Slow Fashion: Current Challenges and Future Perspectives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-11, July.
    6. Emma Johnson & Andrius Plepys, 2021. "Product-Service Systems and Sustainability: Analysing the Environmental Impacts of Rental Clothing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-29, February.
    7. Fung, Yi-Ning & Chan, Hau-Ling & Choi, Tsan-Ming & Liu, Rong, 2021. "Sustainable product development processes in fashion: Supply chains structures and classifications," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    8. Siemieniako, Dariusz & Kubacki, Krzysztof & Mitręga, Maciej, 2021. "Inter-organisational relationships for social impact: A systematic literature review," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 453-469.
    9. Mejías, Ana M. & Bellas, Roberto & Pardo, Juan E. & Paz, Enrique, 2019. "Traceability management systems and capacity building as new approaches for improving sustainability in the fashion multi-tier supply chain," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 143-158.
    10. Sojin Jung & Byoungho Jin, 2016. "Sustainable Development of Slow Fashion Businesses: Customer Value Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(6), pages 1-15, June.
    11. Inhwa Kim & Hye Jung Jung & Yuri Lee, 2021. "Consumers’ Value and Risk Perceptions of Circular Fashion: Comparison between Secondhand, Upcycled, and Recycled Clothing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-23, January.
    12. Bin Shen, 2014. "Sustainable Fashion Supply Chain: Lessons from H&M," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(9), pages 1-14, September.
    13. Marium Durrani, 2018. "“People Gather for Stranger Things, So Why Not This?” Learning Sustainable Sensibilities through Communal Garment-Mending Practices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-23, June.
    14. Park, Hyejune & Kim, Youn-Kyung, 2016. "Proactive versus reactive apparel brands in sustainability: Influences on brand loyalty," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 114-122.
    15. Cátia Emiliana Paes & Marcella Bernardo & Renato Lima & Fabiano Leal, 2017. "Management of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment in Brazilian Public Education Institutions: Implementation Through Action Research on a University Campus," Systemic Practice and Action Research, Springer, vol. 30(4), pages 377-393, August.
    16. Patrizia Gazzola & Enrica Pavione & Roberta Pezzetti & Daniele Grechi, 2020. "Trends in the Fashion Industry. The Perception of Sustainability and Circular Economy: A Gender/Generation Quantitative Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-19, April.
    17. Shashi & Piera Centobelli & Roberto Cerchione & Amit Mittal, 2021. "Managing sustainability in luxury industry to pursue circular economy strategies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 432-462, January.
    18. Biao Li & Kekun Wu, 2017. "Environmental Management System Adoption and the Operational Performance of Firm in the Textile and Apparel Industry of China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(6), pages 1-11, June.
    19. Talay, Cagri & Oxborrow, Lynn & Brindley, Clare, 2020. "How small suppliers deal with the buyer power in asymmetric relationships within the sustainable fashion supply chain," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 604-614.
    20. Simona Fortunati & Laura Martiniello & Donato Morea, 2020. "The Strategic Role of the Corporate Social Responsibility and Circular Economy in the Cosmetic Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-28, June.
    21. Nelly Oelze & Tim Gruchmann & Marcus Brandenburg, 2020. "Motivating Factors for Implementing Apparel Certification Schemes—A Sustainable Supply Chain Management Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-15, June.
    22. Todeschini, Bruna Villa & Cortimiglia, Marcelo Nogueira & Callegaro-de-Menezes, Daniela & Ghezzi, Antonio, 2017. "Innovative and sustainable business models in the fashion industry: Entrepreneurial drivers, opportunities, and challenges," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 60(6), pages 759-770.
    23. Sofia Garcia-Torres & Marta Rey-Garcia & Laura Albareda-Vivo, 2017. "Effective Disclosure in the Fast-Fashion Industry: from Sustainability Reporting to Action," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-27, December.
    24. Radka MacGregor Pelikánová & Tereza Němečková & Robert K. MacGregor, 2021. "CSR Statements in International and Czech Luxury Fashion Industry at the Onset and during the COVID-19 Pandemic—Slowing Down the Fast Fashion Business?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-19, March.
    25. Namhee Yoon & Ha Kyung Lee & Ho Jung Choo, 2020. "Fast Fashion Avoidance Beliefs and Anti-Consumption Behaviors: The Cases of Korea and Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-20, August.
    26. Roberta Alves & Karen Lana Alves Ferreira & Renato da Silva Lima & Flavia Tuane Ferreira Moraes, 2021. "An Action Research Study for Elaborating and Implementing an Electronic Waste Collection Program in Brazil," Systemic Practice and Action Research, Springer, vol. 34(1), pages 91-108, February.
    27. Zhi-Hua Hu & Qing Li & Xian-Juan Chen & Yan-Feng Wang, 2014. "Sustainable Rent-Based Closed-Loop Supply Chain for Fashion Products," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(10), pages 1-26, October.
    28. Annelise M. de Jong & Ann-Charlotte Mellquist, 2021. "The Potential of Plastic Reuse for Manufacturing: A Case Study into Circular Business Models for an On-Line Marketplace," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-16, February.
    29. Ronak Warasthe & Finja Schulz & Ralf Enneking & Marcus Brandenburg, 2020. "Sustainability Prerequisites and Practices in Textile and Apparel Supply Chains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-18, November.
    30. Bo Zhang & Yaozhong Zhang & Peng Zhou, 2021. "Consumer Attitude towards Sustainability of Fast Fashion Products in the UK," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-23, February.
    31. Mariachiara Colucci & Alessandra Vecchi, 2021. "Close the loop: Evidence on the implementation of the circular economy from the Italian fashion industry," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(2), pages 856-873, February.
    32. Wang, Xiaojun & Chan, Hing Kai & Yee, Rachel W.Y. & Diaz-Rainey, Ivan, 2012. "A two-stage fuzzy-AHP model for risk assessment of implementing green initiatives in the fashion supply chain," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(2), pages 595-606.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Osmud Rahman & Dingtao Hu & Benjamin C. M. Fung, 2023. "A Systematic Literature Review of Fashion, Sustainability, and Consumption Using a Mixed Methods Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-37, August.
    2. Saskia Manshoven & Wim Van Opstal, 2022. "The Carrot or the Stick? Stakeholder Support for Mandatory Regulations towards a Circular Fashion System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-31, November.
    3. Abbate, Stefano & Centobelli, Piera & Cerchione, Roberto, 2023. "From Fast to Slow: An Exploratory Analysis of Circular Business Models in the Italian Apparel Industry," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    4. Jing Shao & Cedric Aneye & Alyona Kharitonova & Wei Fang, 2023. "Essential innovation capability of producer‐service enterprises towards circular business model: Motivators and barriers," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4548-4567, November.
    5. Arezoo Ghazanfari, 2023. "An Analysis of Circular Economy Literature at the Macro Level, with a Particular Focus on Energy Markets," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(4), pages 1-24, February.
    6. Rui Jorge Carreira & José Vasconcelos Ferreira & Ana Luísa Ramos, 2023. "The Consumer’s Role in the Transition to the Circular Economy: A State of the Art Based on a SLR with Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-19, October.
    7. Víctor Fernández & Elena Laborda & Felipe Del-Busto & Carmen Bartolomé, 2023. "Social Perspectives towards Biobased Products and Textiles," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-24, January.
    8. Tulin Dzhengiz & Andra Riandita & Anders Broström, 2023. "Configurations of sustainability‐oriented textile partnerships," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4392-4412, November.
    9. Rasa Bartkutė & Dalia Streimikiene & Tomas Kačerauskas, 2023. "Between Fast and Sustainable Fashion: The Attitude of Young Lithuanian Designers to the Circular Economy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-21, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Saskia Manshoven & Wim Van Opstal, 2022. "The Carrot or the Stick? Stakeholder Support for Mandatory Regulations towards a Circular Fashion System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-31, November.
    2. Abbate, Stefano & Centobelli, Piera & Cerchione, Roberto, 2023. "From Fast to Slow: An Exploratory Analysis of Circular Business Models in the Italian Apparel Industry," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    3. Sher Jahan Khan & Saeed Badghish & Puneet Kaur & Rajat Sharma & Amandeep Dhir, 2023. "What motivates the purchasing of green apparel products? A systematic review and future research agenda," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4183-4201, November.
    4. Fung, Yi-Ning & Chan, Hau-Ling & Choi, Tsan-Ming & Liu, Rong, 2021. "Sustainable product development processes in fashion: Supply chains structures and classifications," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    5. Thorey S Thorisdottir & Lara Johannsdottir, 2020. "Corporate Social Responsibility Influencing Sustainability within the Fashion Industry. A Systematic Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-64, November.
    6. Maria Elena Aramendia-Muneta & Andrea Ollo-López & Katrin Simón-Elorz, 2022. "Circular Fashion: Cluster Analysis to Define Advertising Strategies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-19, October.
    7. Micol Barletta & Idiano D'Adamo & Jose Arturo Garza‐Reyes & Massimo Gastaldi, 2024. "Business strategy and innovative models in the fashion industry: Clothing leasing as a driver of sustainability," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(5), pages 4730-4743, July.
    8. Chuanlan Liu & Jeremy M. Bernardoni & Zhongjie Wang, 2023. "Examining Generation Z Consumer Online Fashion Resale Participation and Continuance Intention through the Lens of Consumer Perceived Value," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-18, May.
    9. Chih-Hung Hsu & An-Yuan Chang & Ting-Yi Zhang & Wei-Da Lin & Wan-Ling Liu, 2021. "Deploying Resilience Enablers to Mitigate Risks in Sustainable Fashion Supply Chains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-24, March.
    10. Cai, Ya-Jun & Choi, Tsan-Ming, 2020. "A United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals perspective for sustainable textile and apparel supply chain management," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    11. Dan-Cristian Dabija & Veronica Câmpian & Anna-Rebeka Pop & Raluca Bãbu?, 2022. "Generating loyalty towards fast fashion stores: a cross-generational approach based on store attributes and socio-environmental responsibility," Oeconomia Copernicana, Institute of Economic Research, vol. 13(3), pages 891-934, September.
    12. Osmud Rahman & Dingtao Hu & Benjamin C. M. Fung, 2023. "A Systematic Literature Review of Fashion, Sustainability, and Consumption Using a Mixed Methods Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-37, August.
    13. Esther Oluwadamilola Olufemi Rotimi & Cheree Topple & John Hopkins, 2021. "Towards A Conceptual Framework of Sustainable Practices of Post-consumer Textile Waste at Garment End of Lifecycle: A Systematic Literature Review Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-18, March.
    14. Muhammad Azizuddin & Ahm Shamsuzzoha & Sujan Piya, 2021. "Influence of Circular Economy Phenomenon to Fulfil Global Sustainable Development Goal: Perspective from Bangladesh," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-16, October.
    15. Saliha Karadayi-Usta & Erfan Babaee Tirkolaee, 2023. "Evaluating the Sustainability of Fashion Brands Using a Neutrosophical ORESTE Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-17, September.
    16. Arezoo Ghazanfari, 2023. "An Analysis of Circular Economy Literature at the Macro Level, with a Particular Focus on Energy Markets," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(4), pages 1-24, February.
    17. Dangelico, Rosa Maria & Alvino, Letizia & Fraccascia, Luca, 2022. "Investigating the antecedents of consumer behavioral intention for sustainable fashion products: Evidence from a large survey of Italian consumers," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 185(C).
    18. Manoj Kumar Paras & Daniel Ekwall & Rudrajeet Pal & Antonela Curteza & Yan Chen & Lichuan Wang, 2018. "An Exploratory Study of Swedish Charities to Develop a Model for the Reuse-Based Clothing Value Chain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-19, April.
    19. Marie Stenton & Veronika Kapsali & Richard S. Blackburn & Joseph A. Houghton, 2021. "From Clothing Rations to Fast Fashion: Utilising Regenerated Protein Fibres to Alleviate Pressures on Mass Production," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-18, September.
    20. Sojin Jung & Byoungho Ellie Jin, 2022. "RETRACTED ARTICLE: Slow fashion branding: understanding what consumers value most," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 29(2), pages 141-149, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:21:p:12246-:d:673327. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.