Chapter 6 — full chapter
6.1 Communication as a driver of cultural change
Fashion is more than clothing. It expresses identity, belonging and status, and it changes as society changes. Every advertisement, social media post, sustainability report and conversation contributes to how fashion is understood.
What is culture?
Culture can be understood as the shared values, beliefs, behaviours and social norms that shape what people consider desirable, acceptable or expected. It is not fixed: it evolves through media, education, experience and conversation.
In fashion, communication does not simply reflect culture. Repeated over time, it helps normalise expectations about novelty, value, status, care, ownership and how often clothes should be replaced.
Fashion as a Cultural Expression
Fashion has always reflected cultural values and social change. Throughout history, clothing has been used to express identity, signal belonging, communicate status and respond to changing social movements.
More circular fashion depends on some of these expectations shifting. Communication influences which of the following feels normal:
Highlighting a garment's durability or sharing repair guidance, for example, encourages people to see clothing as something to care for rather than replace.
Communication, Values and Social Norms
A single message rarely changes behaviour. Cultural change happens when messages are repeated consistently enough, across enough channels, that they begin to shape what people expect. This can be described as a sequence:
Message → Repetition → Norm → Expectation → Behaviour → Culture
- Message: a brand communicates that repair is part of owning its garments.
- Repetition: the message appears on product pages, care labels, in store and in campaigns, season after season.
- Norm: repair starts to feel like an ordinary part of owning clothes rather than a niche alternative.
- Expectation: customers begin to expect repair services and durable products, from this brand and from others.
- Behaviour: more people repair, resell or keep garments for longer.
- Culture: longevity and care become part of what fashion values.
The sequence works in both directions. Repeated messages about constant newness, flash sales and hauls have helped normalise high-volume consumption. This is why consistency matters: one sustainability campaign surrounded by messages promoting rapid replacement is unlikely to shift norms.
A useful lens for the rest of this chapter, and for any communication you create, is one question:
What does this communication make seem normal, valuable or desirable?