Consumer perceptions of CSR in the apparel industry: Studying the relationship between CSR communication and consumer perception of legitimacy.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been argued to form a new criterion for consumers to judge companies. In other words, CSR has become an important factor in the consumer perception of organizations. Social issues have been gaining a lot of attention in the apparel industry in the past couple of years, so the CSR policies of clothing brands have been under scrutiny. This study investigates how CSR communication can help constructing a consumer perception of legitimacy. An online survey was used to assess consumer perceptions of 127 respondents. A quantitative analysis using, among others, ANOVA tests, showed the importance of transparency, non-controllable channels and moralistic justifications in CSR communication in the apparel industry. These conclusions can assist clothing brands in making decisions based on consumer preferences for their CSR communication and serve as an exploratory basis for future academic research.