ABSTRACT. The luxury fashion sector occupies a prominent position in the market. The global luxury goods market is expected to grow at 8.52% in value terms to reach about USD 429.81 billion by 2026 (BusinessWire, 2022). However, despite its economic relevance, the luxury fashion sector is one of the polluting industries due to the use of rare and exotic materials and a production process requiring chemical substances, generating marine contamination and textile waste (Niinimäki et al., 2020; Bubicz et al., 2021), and its negative social aura by being the privilege of a few with conflicting views on the relationship between luxury and sustainability (Streit and Davies, 2017; Achabou and Dekhili, 2013). If Sustainability and Luxury concepts initially appeared to be opposites - luxury being associated with superficiality, exclusiveness, ostentatiousness, conspicuousness and hedonism (Vock, 2022; Guercini and Ranfagni, 2013), while sustainability attached to preservation of rare and limited resources, sobriety, altruism and ethics (Kapferer and Michaut-Denizeau, 2020; Carrier and Luetchford, 2012) -, luxury and sustainability have showed to be joined by the concepts of quality, durability, rarity and authenticity (Grazzini et al., 2021; Vock, 2022; Guercini & Ranfagni, 2013; Kapferer and Michaut-Denizeau, 2014). Given the increasing societal and consumer demand for sustainability, luxury fashion brands are requested to communicate on their sustainable efforts, evidencing the critical role played by communication in managing a coherent sustainability programme (Da Giau et al., 2016), stimulating consumer brand engagement (Parguel et al., 2011), informing stakeholders about the firm's efforts toward sustainability (Sander et al., 2021) as well as persuading consumers (Lopes and Veiga, 2019). Given the increasingly fundamental call for sustainability, it has become paramount for luxury fashion brands to advertise on their efforts (Sheng, 2019), and persuade consumers (Lopes and Veiga, 2019). This project aims at examining how integrating sustainability in social media advertising can enhance consumer brand equity. It reveals he key role of sustainability in omnichannel communication in increasing consumer brand equity. In particular, the research shows the critical impact of diverse factors when communicating sustainable brand actions in improving customer brand equity. Focusing on luxury fashion brands, it presents a multiple case study of international luxury fashion brands committed to sustainability and in analysing the social media content of brand posts. From a theoretical perspective, the study advances literature on sustainable luxury fashion, SMM and consumer brand equity.

ABSTRACT. Numerous fashion companies are increasingly promoting their sustainable practices and products. Despite this trend, scholarly investigations into sustainable fashion advertising remain sparse, focusing predominantly on multinational corporations. This study aims to fill this gap by delving into the sustainable fashion advertising strategies employed by Italian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the context of luxury and premium sustainable fashion and ‘Made in Italy’ products. The research adopts a narrative theory perspective, conducting an exploratory qualitative analysis of Italian SME managers and CEOs specializing in sustainable luxury or premium fashion goods to achieve the research goals. The study entails in-depth interviews with managers and CEOs to contribute to theoretical understanding by identifying messages, objectives, expected results, and content shared by Made in Italy SMEs. By advancing knowledge in sustainable fashion advertising and narrative theory, this research provides valuable insights for optimizing advertising campaigns practically. Moreover, the study seeks to identify common vulnerabilities within the sustainable fashion advertising practices of Made in Italy SMEs. The findings aim to offer actionable suggestions to policymakers for fortifying these advertising efforts.

ABSTRACT. Promoting influencers on social media has become a primary online marketing strategy for luxury brands. Notably, with the development of innovative technologies, virtual influencers are gradually becoming active on social media. As a result, luxury brands are no longer confined to collaborating with human influencers, and the phenomenon of choosing virtual influencers as endorsers is becoming increasingly common. There are a lot of previous studies on virtual and human influencers, but the consensus has not been reached. The purpose of influencer marketing is to stimulate the consumption involvement behaviors of Internet users, thus, their perception towards influencers is vital, including trustworthiness, perceived expertise, and parasocial relationship. Notably, the consumption of luxury goods is also influenced by the perceived value of luxury brands (emotional value and functional value), and the extent to which virtual influencers and human influencers affect the perceived value of luxury brands will also influence consumers’ responses. What’s more, the indegree of influencers is an important criterion for consideration when brands employ endorsers. However, most studies mainly focus on the indegree of human influencers, thus, whether the indegree of human influencers and virtual influencers will have different effects should be considered when choosing endorsers. This study aims to identify the differences in perceived characterizations between human and virtual influencers, and how they contribute to the perceived value of luxury brands. Besides, the research investigates the relationship between perceived values of luxury brands and consumers’ purchase intentions. Further, the study examines the moderating role played by influencers' indegree.

ABSTRACT. The idealised image of influencers in social media marketing messages could negatively impact consumer mental health and psychological wellbeing. However, scant research has explored how to overcome this negative effect. This research intends to provide new insights into this area by exploring the effective ways of using virtual influencers, who are increasingly involved in social media marketing in the fashion industry, to reduce fashion consumers’ negative psychological outcomes and unsustainable buying. Using the compensatory consumer behaviour model as the theoretical framework, this research examines the impact of virtual influencers on consumer body dissatisfaction, appearance anxiety, loneliness and impulsive purchase. An experiment with 579 participants was conducted. The main results show that low-anthropomorphised virtual influencers lead to lower appearance anxiety, which subsequently leads to lower impulse purchase. Also, virtual influencers with a high socialisation intensity lead to lower appearance anxiety, which subsequently leads to lower impulse purchase toward the products endorsed by the influencer. This research provides important implications for theoretical knowledge and real-life practice in building and optimising virtual influencer marketing approaches to diminish negative outcomes for consumer wellbeing while achieving ideal marketing objectives.

ABSTRACT. In recent decades, we have seen a growing interest and concern in purchasing sustainable fashion brands. With the exponential growth in consumption and production of clothing and the economic, social, and environmental impacts of the so-called “fast fashion”, there has been a growth in “sustainable fashion”. This is due, among other factors, to increased concerns regarding environmental impacts and the number of more ecologically conscious consumers. These practices have been contributing to the creation of new opportunities for companies, resulting in the emergence of brands considered environmentally responsible and revolutionizing consumption practices associated with the textile sector. However, it is curious to understand the profile of the customers, the motivations behind them, what are their emotions during and after the purchasing process of this type of brands. Considering this reality, the study aims to reflect on the current consumers’ involvement in sustainable fashion brands, during the process of consumer experience in Portugal. What are the factors that can trigger consumers’ positive feelings and increase their preferences for either type of sustainable fashion brand or also the negative emotions, such as guilt or pride. The project is at the beginning of development but intends to have an online questionnaire and be applied, during the next months, to national buyers of sustainable fashion brands, in Portugal. The questionnaire will be divided into different parts. The profile of consumers is going to be characterized, by the reasons of buying these types of products, their involvement during and after the purchase, and in which channels (online, stores).

ABSTRACT. Studying inclusion in advertising is of special interest, as it functions as a powerful tool for shaping individuals' attitudes towards cultural groups and their roles. Race inclusion, in particular, expressed by the diversity of skin tone, is important given the white-skinned dominant presence. This study analyses the actual representation of diverse skin tones in cosmetic brand publications on their Instagram pages. Moreover, it examines the impact of inclusive communication regarding skin tones on user engagement. A content analysis of 50 Instagram posts from 15 beauty brands was conducted, with a total of 750 posts inspected. Results indicate a lack of representation of skin tone diversity. Likewise, it was possible to conclude that diversity in skin tone negatively affects engagement, with darker skin tones performing worst among mass market cosmetic brands. Otherwise, diversity seems to be well accepted among audiences of premium brands. Implications for practice and theory are discussed.

ABSTRACT. As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to evolve, it has become increasingly challenging to differentiate between real and synthetic content, given the AI's ability to simulate human abilities. One such area of synthetic media that has gained significant attention is deepfakes, which involve manipulating and creating hyper-realistic imagery. Despite the possible relevance of deepfakes to marketing and their growing popularity, they are often portrayed in the media as a “phantom menace”. However, there is a lack of understanding about the potential benefits and malfeasance associated with deepfakes. Therefore, it is imperative to gain a comprehensive understanding of the implications of deepfakes in marketing theory and practice. To date, deepfakes have been studied in different fields with distinct research focuses, however, academic research has predominantly centered on three aspects of deepfake technology: refining algorithms for more realistic visual results, creating detection methods, and scrutinizing the potential societal effects of its use. Yet, little focus has been given to investigating the research prospects of deepfakes and their implications on brand communication. This study intends to bridge this gap by proposing that deepfake technology can offer significant value as an advertising tool.

ABSTRACT. Our daily lives are significantly influenced by the fashion industry, which shapes our identities and reflects our social and cultural values. However, the conventional fashion sector has been linked to numerous social and environmental problems, raising concerns about its sustainability. The detrimental environmental effects of fast fashion have increased the demand for other strategies that promote sustainability without sacrificing style and customer preferences. As a result, sustainable fashion has become a promising response to these problems. This research analyses consumers' willingness to pay for sustainable fashion, acknowledging the important role of brand coolness and sustainability perception in influencing consumers' decisions. Study findings demonstrate a shift toward more responsible consumption patterns within the fashion sector, which can lead to a more responsible future where fashion and sustainability coexist.

ABSTRACT. Fashion, especially apparel, stands out as a rapidly growing online shopping category. Given consumers' need for a sensory experience, particularly aesthetically driven apparel, live streaming has become an important tool for e-retailers to strategically showcase and promote their products in the apparel industry. While existing literature has primarily delved into the technical aspects of consumer engagement once they are in the broadcasting room, there is a notable oversight regarding the preceding search stage. Addressing this gap, we adopted information foraging theory to examine a novel two-stage information search model that incorporates search cues and evaluation cues. To explore these issues, we analyzed data collected from 466 Chinese consumers using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings show that search (i.e., streamer attractiveness and co-viewer involvement) and evaluation cues (social pricing and substitutability of personal examination) have positive impacts on consumers' emotional engagement, ultimately shaping their purchase intentions. The findings offer critical insights for e-retailers or streamers seeking effective ways to promote their products through live streaming. Specifically, streamers are suggested to pay more effort on personal image, and more interactive product presentations to capture consumers’ attention.

ABSTRACT. More and more brands have adopted virtual idols as endorsements to prevent the incidents of real-person spokespersons, despite only a few marketing studies having discussed such topics. Therefore, this paper explores the role of consumers’ loneliness on their attitudes toward advertisements that use virtual idol spokespersons. Three experiments were conducted and the findings show that compared with consumers with low loneliness, consumers with high loneliness prefer virtual idol spokesperson advertisements. Such effect was mediated by advertising engagement and moderated by spokesperson type; that is, when facing low image similarity virtual idol spokesperson advertisements, consumers with high loneliness will have a high level of advertisement engagement and then form a positive advertising attitude; contrarily when facing high image similarity virtual idol spokespersons, consumers with low loneliness will participate in advertising more actively, and then form a positive advertising attitude. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed in the context of marketing.

ABSTRACT. Marketers make so many efforts for creating cool brands because it makes brands uniqueness, identification and attractiveness. But how to make a brand cool is still a big challenge that troubles many marketers. This research provides a new way to increase brand coolness, that is design a contrast animal brand logo. This paper tested the impact of contrast animal logo to brand cool perception from 2 experiments. The results find that contrast animal logo could increase brand cool perception, especially for warm kind animals. And consumers with high openness will experience a higher perception of brand coolness after viewing contrast animal brand logos. Implications and suggestions for future research are also discussed.

ABSTRACT. The fashion industry is rapidly shifting towards sustainability, necessitating new guidelines for design in the digital era. This study explored a hybrid design process integrating digital technology and handmaking, which followed the optimized C2CAD design framework, validating each phase’s sustainable impact, to provide insights into sustainable fashion design innovation.

ABSTRACT. Fashion brands have used speculative design in the creation of their fashion films, fostering a revitalization of communication strategies. This approach involves visual narratives that encompass a range of features, distinguishing it as a critical and forward-thinking approach to fashion communication. Speculative design contributes to an understanding of fashion as a cultural phenomenon that interacts with the world around it, working as an active agent in shaping aesthetics and identity in society and places. The intersection of fashion with speculative design allowed fashion brands to portray an insight into alternative possibilities of future scenarios, with more impact on society, through more conscious strategies focused on reinforcing their brand values with a stronger emotional connection with consumers. This paper discusses how fashion brands used speculative design to produce fashion films to highlight their collections during the restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. We performed a depth analysis of the characteristics of three fashion films released during the pandemic that successfully transmitted brand value and unique characteristics. Each video highlighted a distinct brand positioning, and, during the analysis, we focused on four of the main aspects of Speculative Design. This discussion shows how using Speculative Design can lead brands to successfully create videos that make their positioning stronger and more consistent throughout time, and that the use of speculative design in fashion films has allowed brands to create engaging and thought-provoking content that resonates with audiences and reinforces brand values. By exploring potential futures and challenges, fashion brands can stay ahead of the curve and adapt to changing trends and consumer preferences.

ABSTRACT. The recently inaugurated luxury global brand Gucci store in Chengdu, China, has garnered attention for its creative interior design and bold innovation through the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) in a generated video, aiming to integrate the brand's Italian culture with the local Chinese culture. The store's atmosphere, described as "Futuristic Renaissance," blends the beauty of the past with the audacity of the future in its impressive LED display covering its three-level store walls, creating a dynamic digital fresco showcasing dreamlike landscapes. In its pursuit of a hybrid aesthetic, merging both Italian and Chinese cultures, the brand faces the challenge of balancing cultural sensibilities. While the store is undoubtedly a testament to Gucci's creative prowess, it prompts reflection on the broader implications of luxury brands navigating diverse cultural landscapes. Peircean semiotic analysis, emphasizing the importance of signs and interpretation in communication, can, in this context, aid the brand in understanding diverse cultural signs through cultural semiosis. An analysis from a branding perspective was performed ad showcases how Gucci used heritage, innovativeness, storytelling, and glocalization as a successful branding strategy in the Chinese market. Cultural sensitivity, when incorporated into a brand narrative in the choice of signs, colors, and symbols, creates communication that resonates authentically and harmoniously, respecting not only cultural diversities but also the commercial and institutional facets of a brand.

ABSTRACT. This study explores perceived personalization in the online fashion context. It collects consumers’ experiences with personalization through focus groups. The contributions of this study are twofold: firstly, it advances the construct of perceived personalization by identifying the conditions under which individuals perceive an object to be personalized; secondly, it provides a comprehensive overview of its critical success factors.

ABSTRACT. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have recently gained prominence in several industries and sectors – from gaming to visual art and audio communications. Adding to the extant literature on the subject, this paper profiles the integration of NFTs in luxury brand and art collaborations, assessing their impact on the evolving luxury value creation and delivery. The analysis of NFTs-infused luxury brand and art collaborations suggests that the integration of NFTs is not merely an addition, rather it should be considered a case of augmentation: this, in turn, expresses and marks the qualitative evolution of luxury as both an economic and an aesthetic value residing in a brand’s ability to activate highly creative phygital productions through the coordination of a complex network of partners, and to identify novel ways to segment, reward, and engage customers across a variety of touchpoints.

ABSTRACT. In the evolving luxury industry, brands are shifting from bold affluence to “quiet luxury”. This study delves into this transition, examining how luxury brands are adapting and strategically repositioning themselves in this changing environment. Based on a qualitative study involving interviews with luxury executives, it identifies emerging avenues for value creation and a series of drivers behind "quiet luxury" strategies - substance and authenticity, savoir-faire, heritage, timelessness, cultural impact, and hyper-exclusivity. This research reveals how “quiet luxury” is reshaping the industry and offers new insights into the evolving definition of luxury.

ABSTRACT. Purpose - This study aims to ascertain what makes millennials xenocentric. This study investigates the mediating impact of consumer xenocentrism in the relationship between social factors and impulsive buying based on the stimulus organism response model. Design/methodology/approach – The quantitative approach research method that includes a survey and convenience sampling has been used. The study comprises 328 female cosmetic consumers of the millennial generation drawn from four higher education institutions in the urban area of Sindh, Pakistan. A self-administered questionnaire is used to collect information from the respondents. This study employed the partial least squares technique to examine the data. Findings - The study validates evidence that those high in xenocentrism are more prone to impulsive behavior. This study found that social comparison, materialism, and status consumption are responsible for xenocentric behavior among female cosmetic consumers of the millennial generation. Results indicate that consumer xenocentrism is a mediator between specific factors (i.e., social comparison, materialism, and status consumption) and impulsive buying. Research limitations/implications – The research is based on Islamic female youth consumers’ exposure to national and international cosmetic brands. The effect of consumer xenocentrism on different brand categories that may capture actual behavior is worth evaluating. Practical implications - The study also provides necessary information for researchers, policymakers, brand managers, and marketing experts to understand how consumer xenocentrism develops among female millennials in cosmetic brands. The validated scale can better understand this customer behavior pattern and assist marketers in fine-tuning their product positioning and communication tactics.

ABSTRACT. This study explores which factors determine consumer ambivalence toward AI-generated image content. The findings show skepticism and liking predict ambivalence. Perceived appropriateness and novelty decrease skepticism, whereas perceived appropriateness, novelty, and perceived effort increase liking. The relationship between skepticism and ambivalence is stronger for commercial than noncommercial content.

ABSTRACT. Generative AI (GAI) is predicted to revolutionise digital fashion marketing. By leveraging pre-trained algorithms on extensive consumer datasets, GAI promises to augment content creation by providing highly personalised marketing communications for individual consumers (Ford et al., 2023). Business of Fashion (2024) highlights that 34% of fashion companies are already using GAI to write marketing copy, making it the most used application of GAI in the industry to date. Despite this, consumer concerns about manipulative synthetic content and information accuracy are rising. Indeed, fashion brand Selkie recently faced criticism after sharing a promotional campaign, partially created by GAI on Instagram, leading some consumers to publicly express their decision to never purchase from the brand again (Business of Fashion, 2024). Thus, this raises a critical question: Does GAI marketing copy enhance or diminish purchasing outcomes? While GAI has the potential to craft marketing copy and better communicate product attributes, concerns also linger regarding potential factual errors, thereby impacting the perceived informativeness and persuasiveness of the marketing copy. Consequently, this study aims to investigate whether GAI marketing copy increases or decreases consumer purchase intentions in the context of online fashion marketing. Grounded in the heuristic-systematic model, the study aims to test the effects of systematic cues (informativeness and persuasiveness) and heuristic cues, represented by two distinctive types of marketing copy (GAI copy vs. brand-created copy) on consumer trust and the sequential effect on consumer purchase intentions.

To achieve this aim, a scenario-based online experiment featuring two types of marketing advertising copy (GAI copy vs. brand-created copy) will be conducted with 500+ UK respondents. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) will assess both the proposed measurement model and the structural model. Preliminary results will be shared at the conference. This study is predicted to make novel theoretical contributions by applying the heuristic-systematic model to ascertain whether GAI marketing copy (vs. brand-created copy) exerts different influences on consumer trust and in turn purchase intentions. Researchers have remained mostly silent on the topic of how synthetic content is perceived by consumers (Arango et al., 2023), especially GAI copy, and how this in turn affects consumer trust and purchase intentions. This study is predicated to provide managment insights for fashion marketers seeking to use GAI within their content strategies. The findings should guide ethical usage of GAI in fashion marketing practices and advance current understanding of the intersection between GAI technology and persuasion.

ABSTRACT. Despite advancements in providing VAs with a form and more realistic appearance through generative AI, resulting in their evolution into VAAs, there remains a surprisingly limited understanding of how VAA’s form realism influences consumers’ VAA usage behavior in the existing literature. Our research findings address this gap and contribute to the academic understanding of VAs, particularly VAAs, on several aspects, particularly in their role in facilitating consumers’ fashion shopping experiences.

ABSTRACT. Consumers’ sensory store and product experience still play critical roles in influencing consumer purchase decision-making processes. In the current highly digital oriented marketplace, more and more retailers employ their physical stores as an experiential marketing tool to provide unique and high-class attention-grabbing experiences for consumers. Yet little attention has been given to the impact of in-store sensory and experiential shopping experiences on consumer potential and actual behavior due to an emphasis on speedy digital transformation and abrupt advancement of technologies in the retail industry. This study aims to examine the impacts of sensory store, product, and personnel experiences on consumers’ decision-making processes and behavioral intent in a physical retail setting. This study reinforces the significance of experiential marketing through sensory store and product experiences in improving consumers’ affective cognitive decision-making processes.

ABSTRACT. The research explores the intersection of employer branding and employee engagement within the context of the Industrial Metaverse. It emphasizes the relevance of this relationship in the contemporary business landscape, particularly for service-oriented industries and SMEs in Italy. The Industrial Metaverse, characterized by the blending of virtual and real-world elements, offers opportunities for immersive experiences and enhanced communication. By leveraging virtual and augmented reality technologies, organizations can create innovative experiences that attract and retain top talent, enhance communication and collaboration, and contribute to positive employer branding. The proposed study aims to bridge the gap in understanding the implications of employer branding in the Industrial Metaverse, especially for SMEs in Italy's service sector. It will explore the conceptual relationship between employer branding and employee engagement, drawing upon social exchange theory. The study will adopt an exploratory research method and perform content analysis to gain a comprehensive understanding of employer engagement and employer branding in the Industrial Metaverse. The research will contribute to the literature on the Industrial Metaverse in the service sector and provide useful information to managers on promoting employer branding and employee engagement through this platform.

ABSTRACT. This paper explores the impact of lighting on consumer perceptions and attention in Augmented Reality (AR) experiences, with a focus on product visualization and marketing applications. The research integrates subjective data collected through questionnaires with biometric responses to provide a comprehensive understanding of consumers' actual attention to virtual products in AR environments. The theoretical contributions of this study are twofold. Firstly, it addresses a crucial gap in the current literature by specifically focusing on the influence of environmental factors, particularly lighting, on the perception of products in AR. Secondly, it proposes a methodological shift from relying solely on self-reported measures through surveys to incorporating physiological measures of attention, such as eye-tracking data, to enhance the reliability of findings. The study emphasizes the significance of lighting in shaping consumer perceptions of both physical and virtual products in AR. It highlights that well-lit objects appear more realistic, detailed, and attractive, while poorly-lit objects may appear flat and lack detail, impacting their perceived realism. The research proposes Proposition 1, stating that the lighting of the scenario significantly affects the attention to the virtual product, and Proposition 2, indicating that the lighting of the scenario will affect the perceived realism of the virtual product. Methodologically, the research is based on two quantitative empirical studies. The first study involves an online experiment with two scenarios, manipulating the degree of illumination of virtual objects in relation to the real environment using the Ikea Place app. The data obtained from this study will be analysed using Structural Equation Modelling, particularly SmartPLS, to understand how environmental factors, specifically lighting, influence perceptions and attention in AR experiences. The second study will be conducted in a laboratory environment, where participants will have a real experience with an AR application while wearing eye-tracking glasses to measure their attention. The practical implications of this research are significant for retailers and marketers, offering insights into optimizing in-store AR experiences and enhancing customer engagement based on a deeper understanding of how environmental factors, particularly lighting, shape consumer perceptions. The findings from this study can help retailers and marketers make informed decisions regarding the use of augmented reality and lighting to enhance product perception. Additionally, the research contributes to the broader application of mixed reality technologies by considering the implications of environmental factors on user experience and perceived realism. In conclusion, this study provides valuable insights into the role of lighting in optimizing virtual product representations in AR and its implications for marketing and consumer engagement. The findings contribute to both theoretical and practical advancements in understanding the influence of environmental factors on consumer perceptions and attention in AR experiences.

ABSTRACT. This abstract reports on part of a larger study exploring social-media sentiment in the UK fashion industry. Specifically, this paper explores sentiment around environmental issues for nine of the largest UK fashion retailers. The study period was from January 2020 to December 2022 and the analysis extracted topics and measured net sentiment in order to highlight issues relevant to fashion consumers and compare fashion retailers. Findings show the proportion of positive and negative environmentally related conversation by each retail brand. While H&M stood out in terms of conversation volume, brands like Next and Boohoo saw the largest proportions of negative environmental conversation. Conversely, Burberry achieved the highest proportion of positive conversation, standing out from the rest of the industry, which recorded an average of 75.1% negative conversation. Negative sentiment was driven by incidents involving supplier practices, a widely publicised PETA investigation and allegations of greenwashing. Consumers praised Burberry for actively improving its carbon footprint by designing outfits out of waste material, donating unused fabric to fashion students, and discarding its use of exotic leather. The topic of animal rights contributed to the largest amount of negative discussion in environmental conversation. Animal rights activists and organisations were key contributors to this conversation, driving awareness around the harsh living conditions and inhumane animal practices that occur in the fast fashion industry. These include the de-beaking and live plucking of feathers, which cause significant distress, injury and even death to animals. This research is part of an attempt to build social media sentiment related theory as a compliment existing theory explaining fashion brand loyalty and switching behaviour.

ABSTRACT. In the current fashion market, companies are increasingly promoting sustainable marketing. Hence, various sustainable options, as well as conventional ones, are available for consumers. In this context, consumers generally pay a premium when choosing sustainable branded products: this premium is considered to reflect not only product quality in comparison with other alternatives but also non-product related value. However, the contribution of each element to this premium is unclear. Besides, consumers’ perception of quality differences between alternatives is possibly biased according to the brand (i.e., the halo effect). Thus, this study addresses the relationships between sustainable brand, product quality specification, consumers’ perception of functional and sustainable quality, and their willingness to pay (WTP). Including these elements, the study extends the multi-attribute attitude model and mathematically suggests a sustainable brand equity model. Based on this model, a structural model is also presented. In addition, the results of model assessments based on a consumer survey will be reported at the conference. With the suggested model, managers may discuss the structure of sustainable brand equity comprising functionality, sustainability, and brand attractiveness from the customer-based perspective: they can thus elaborately align their brand strategy.

ABSTRACT. In the contemporary landscape, where body positivity in ads is emphasized, the portrayal of plus-size models deviates from traditional ideals, prompting an examination of its gendered impact. Grounded in the Socio-Cultural Theory, which highlights mass media's role in shaping beauty norms, this study investigates potential gender disparities in implicit attitudes when exposed to plus-size versus no-model ads. Existing literature predominantly relies on explicit self-report measures and focuses on female models exclusively. In this neuromarketing study, 65 undergraduate students from diverse faculties participated, utilizing an AI, Affectiva software for detecting implicit emotions, and EEG for detecting approach/avoidance motivations. Findings indicated that females demonstrated heightened implicit sadness towards the plus-size ad condition compared to control ads with no model, supporting the Socio-Cultural Theory and the Agency and Communal Model. Notably, females with low body image displayed reduced avoidance towards the plus-size ad condition, in alignment with the social identity theory. This research contributes theoretically by delving into implicit attitudes components and provides practical insights for marketers to craft inclusive campaigns challenging beauty norms and stereotypes, marking an initial stride toward a broader and challenging societal change.

ABSTRACT. 'Femvertising' an advertising trend aimed to empower women by challenging traditional gender norms, has garnered significant attention in recent years. This trend helps counteract harmful biases that persist in society as it may change gender-related perceptions and attitudes. In this dynamic landscape, the research explores the nuanced emotional responses of both women and men following exposure to 'Femvertising' ads, particularly those featuring women with notable muscularity. It investigates how these responses vary across different ad formats. Implicit emotional reactions, with a specific focus on contempt—a negative social emotion indicative of rejecting and socially excluding individuals deviating from gender group norms—are examined. This study builds on the Social Role Theory to provide a deeper understanding of the internalized impact of social norms and their manifestation in responses to progressive 'Femvertising' messages. Two studies were performed (Study 1= 66 undergraduate students, Study 2=142 prolific website users) to explore the impact of 'Femvertising' ad conditions on implicit contempt, considering gender moderation and empowerment message perception. In both studies, AI Affectiva software was utilized to detect automatic unconscious responses. The results, enhance our understanding of gender dynamics in fashion advertising, specifically 'Femvertising' with muscular women. It provides practical insights, allowing advertisers to tailor messages, reduce implicit contempt, and enhance inclusivity. The findings contribute to shaping both academic and real-world advertising practices.