Colour matters: An exploratory study of the role of colour in clothing consumption choices

Abstract

It is widely acknowledged that clothing serves as our second skin. Colour plays a significant role in our choice when selecting our clothing, as well as in social and cultural realities, various rituals, everyday practices, and individual or group identities. In this study, we discuss consumer clothing choices in relation to colour based on data analysis drawn from focus group-based research. Analysis of the data revealed not only the importance that colour holds for consumers, but also that there exist different types of colour consumers and that different colour consumption attributes coexist. Moreover the study presents consumers’ colour preferences through different lenses; internal forces (colour preferences in connection to consumers’ identity, mood and body image), colour attributes (shade, matching colours, colour maintenance), external structures (colour preferences in connection to weather conditions and markets) and social factors (social acceptance and cultural context).