Psychological, Personal and Social Drivers of Impulse Buying in UK Fast Fashion E-Commerce: Implications for Sustainable Consumption

Abstract

In just seconds, one can purchase a garment online, and fast fashion has made its garments cheap enough that many of them are virtually an after-thought. This is important for sustainability, since the bulk of environmental impact in the sector is associated with the number of unnecessary purchases. This paper is based on an online survey of UK fast fashion shoppers and examines the psychological, personal and social factors that relate to making impulse purchases. Forty-five consumers were interviewed using a cross sectional questionnaire in November and December 2024, descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and simple linear regression were applied during the analysis. The majority of respondents were on incomes of less than £40,000 (73.3%), aged 25-34 (57.8%) and female (62.2%), and were using the internet mainly for convenience, affordability and choice. All three hypotheses were supported by the data. Age, lifestyle and income explained 36.7% of the variance in impulse buying (β = .606, p < .001); family and social reference groups explained 36.0% (β = .600, p < .001); perceptions, attitudes, beliefs and motivation explained 24.1% (β = .491, p = .001). Of those who believed that sustainable and ethical products would make their online shopping experience better, affordable cost was overwhelmingly the best trait that brands should have (62.2%). It seems the peer and personal pressures that foster impulsive consumption might be harnessed to help reduce consumption. These include sustainability messages from trusted peers and micro-influencers, take-back and resale programme, more comprehensive information about the product and stricter guidelines on push selling.