Online or Offline? Understanding Consumers’ Experiences and Perceptions of Collaborative Fashion Consumption Channels. A Black Female Perspective.

Abstract

Excessive consumption is evident in the fashion industry with fast fashion contributing to a rapid cycle of consumer acquisition and disposal of apparel products. Collaborative fashion consumption opposes conventional views of consumption, which is dominantly inclined toward purchasing new products. The aim of this study was to understand the lived experiences of collaborative fashion consumers and explore consumers’ personal experiences with second-hand shopping using online and offline channels. In addition, the study examined consumers’ perceptions of the attributes of online and offline second-hand shopping channels that either encourage or deter their decision to engage in collaborative fashion consumption. Questions developed to address the research objectives were as follows: 1) What are second-hand consumers’ experiences with shopping clothing items using online and offline channels? 2) What are second-hand consumers’ perceptions of the attributes of online and offline second-hand channels? 3) What incentives drive second-hand consumers to patronize one channel over the other? The study adopted a qualitative approach using phenomenology to collect data from black female participants who engage in collaborative fashion consumption using online and offline second-hand shopping channels. Themes that were generated from the interviews were discussed. This work contributes to the existing literature on consumer behavior and collaborative fashion consumption. Limitations and suggestions for future studies were discussed.