The influence of cost-per-wear information on consumers’ purchase decisions

Consumers typically neglect durability or usage frequency considerations when respective cues are absent in the purchase context. The cost-per-wear (CPW) concept suggests evaluating a garment in terms of the hypothetical price paid for each time it is worn, which decreases the more often the garment can be worn. High-quality items inherently provide a higher number of wears such that despite their often higher total purchase price, their CPW is lower than for low-quality items. Based on the literature on unit prices, consumers should prefer the more economical, higher-quality clothing option when CPW information is provided.

Across several pre-registered experimental studies, the project will empirically test the CPW concept to provide an objective, quantifiable and comparable metric across different clothing options. With this series of studies, it seeks to provide robust evidence of the effectiveness of CPW as a simple, yet powerful intervention. If adequately implemented, CPW provides consumers with an objective indication of quality and a quantitative cue for the most economical option, making cheap fast fashion appear more expensive due to a higher CPW. Hence, CPW has the potential to stimulate sustainable decisions without explicitly cueing sustainability.