Sustainability and Social Responsibility

What Going “Green” Costs for Cosmetics: The Effect of Sustainability Claims on Colored Makeup Products

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Abstract

While environmentally friendly product options are being integrated into the fashion and beauty industry, mere environmental consciousness has often been observed to not suffice to encourage actual purchase. As previous studies that report positive outcomes of beauty products with green attributes mainly focus on gentleness-related categories such as skincare, or address ‘beauty’ as a whole, this study addressed the wide research gap prevalent in the field of green makeup products, by applying previous literature on the lay theory of ethicality and the goal-attribute theory. A between-subject experimental study showed that eco-friendly ingredient claims had a significant negative effect on perceived appearance enhancement attributes. Perceived appearance enhancing attributes fully mediated the effect that eco-friendly claims had on purchase intention, which was further influenced by personal preference. Managerial implications for beauty and makeup product brands are discussed.

Keywords: sustainability, green beauty, green cosmetics, appearance enhancement, makeup products

How to Cite:

Rhee, H. & Lee, K., (2024) “What Going “Green” Costs for Cosmetics: The Effect of Sustainability Claims on Colored Makeup Products”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 80(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.17482