Factors that Affect the Fashion Preferences of Filipino University Students

A Thesis Study

Presented to the Faculty of College of Business Administration

Polytechnic University of the Philippines

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Subject Thesis Writing (Mark 4113) for the Course
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration Major in Marketing Management

Fundamentals of Research

Submitted by:

Agustin, Lloyd Aaron

Alcantara, Sheena

Caacbay, Nick Joseph

Cansino, Trisha Mae

Crisostomo, Marianne Denice

Fernandez, Justine

Mañugo, Kyle Aaron

Ramos, Abigail

Villanueva, Kim

Submitted to:
Prof. Blessing G. Glova

CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

Fashion is changing at an increasingly faster pace. People nowadays wear what they want and when
they want it (Skurzak, 2016). This trend is what most millenials are known for-- Stylish. Goldsmith (2002)
and Roach-Higgins & Eicher (1992) said that clothing says a lot about an individual's personality, social
groups and their economic status. Clothing fashion can also be used to express one's personal conviction
through statement shirts or social reality inspired apparel (Roach-Higgins & Eicher, 1992). The youth
commonly use clothing and fashion in general to express their support or dissent towards an issue.
Clothing is a manifestation of power for it is an avenue of self expression and self actualization (Prola,
2017). Everyday fashion is an interactive process through which the aspiring individuals of the society
consciously project their bodily self in a distinctive manner in the form of clothing style (Saravanan &
Nithyaprakash, 2015). It is unlike the traditional capitalist fashion system where the so called elite or rich
decide the course of fashion tastes and fashion gets spread from the top to bottom sections of the
society.

Isla (2013) in her study shows that in the Philippines, patronage of branded second hand clothes is high
and it can be attributed to various regional and national discourse. The proliferation of these thrift
shops with its cheap and accessible characteristics allowed Filipinos to use such fashionable apparel as a
medium to express their social standing (Isla, 2013). Expression of the self is more prominent in the
university settings since they can wear what they want (Piacentini & Mailer, 2004). Thus, it can be
inferred that since most state universities in the Philippines do not employ uniforms most of time, self
expression through clothing is prevalent. University students especially in state universities use their
freedom to choose their own clothing style by experimenting or following different trends and merging
them in accordance to their prerogative. This proves that Generation Z are all about matching modern
classic, which inevitably affects the fashion industry in a lot of amazing ways. (Yotka, 2017)

According to the article entitled "Impact of Fashion on Students" it stated that there is a positive and
negative effects of fashion on students. Nowadays most students mainly follow fashion trends to gets a
sense of identity and belonging out of it. The way of dressing gives an insight into the personality.
"Whatever you wear, if you think that you are looking best; it gives you a great sense of confidence".
Beside the positive effects, there is also a negative effect that associates it the fashion rage among the
students. Getting too involved in fashion, students try to buy almost all new fashionable products as a
result of keeping their good image to others. However, such a big loss of money leads to a financial
burden on their parents.

They think of fashion as a part of their identity that represents important values and reflects their
characters (Piacentini & Mailer, 2004). No matter how they are perceived, the fact is that millennials are
reshaping the fashion industry in more ways than we can possibly imagine. These people have stepped
outside their comfort zone and have done something great for everyone. (Friedman, 2019)

This research aims to identify the perception of consumer preference in choosing their fashion products
among students of Business Administration in Polytechnic University of the Philippines. Fashion happens
to be a relevant and powerful force in our lives. At every level of society, people greatly care about the
way they look, which affects both self-esteem and the way they interact with others

Background of the Study

Theoretical Framework

Kwon (1991), reported that clothing practices can be used to boost one's self-concept, especially if they
have negative perceptions about themselves. Moreover, the findings of research by Kwon (1994),
implied that clothing practices are "a very personal and emotional issue to an individual and a very
important means to define, refine or enhance one's self-esteem.

Kang, Johnson and Kim (2013) asserted that undergraduate female students tended to select clothing
based on how they could camouflage flaws in appearance and provide assurance as well as
fashionability and individuality. Piacentini and Mailer (2004) conducted an interview to thirty-eight
young individuals and found that their clothing choices were closely tied with their self-concept and how
they expressed themselves while making judgements about others. Their research findings also yielded
that clothing influenced one's confidence.

Gbadamosi (2012) suggested that weather conditions, social and personal factors, and religion impact
clothing acculturation among these women was influenced by the following interconnected factors:
weather conditions, social factors, religion and personal factors.

Moody and Sinha (2010) explored the relationship among clothing style. preferences, personality
factors, emotions and mood. They administered two sets of questionnaires to the female participants to
examine emotion, mood and personality before and after they tried on eight set of clothing of various
styles. The results suggested that mood was a significant predictor of preference, while personality was
a moderator factor.

Statement of the Problem

An effective way of reaching out to the market is to research into who are most likely to benefit the
business’ product or service. Up to now we still fail to determine the following questions:

How do select college students perceive the idea of being fashionable taking into consideration external
factors (e.g. climate, status, university facilities, etc.)?

What is the relationship between socioeconomic class and ability to be “fashionable”?

Goal

The primary goals of this article is to first provide sufficient data on the target market group regarding
their perception and preference when it comes to clothing and fashion taking into consideration various
external factors such as culture, standards, and lifestyle. Second, to give necessary recommendations on
how clothing/fashion ventures and enterprises can penetrate the college-student market particularly in
the case of Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) by capitalizing on the culture, standard, and
lifestyle present within that market. Lastly, it is also the best interest of the researchers to describe the
PUP College population as potential consumers of certain clothing/fashion commodity. Through this
research, a customer profile will also be built to further characterize the market being described.

Hypothesis

It is hypothesized that Filipino university students especially from State Universities like
Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) where people comes from a very diverse social class.
Consumers will most likely purchase products or brands that are well known, in the latest trends, and
are associated with other popular entities. The company’s strategy on how the brand is being marketed
greatly affects the customer’s buying decision. One of the influences that greatly affects the students
motivation in consuming clothing apparels is modern culture in social media platforms (e.g. Instagram).

There is no significant relationship between socio-economic status and purchasing power when it comes
to buying clothes, for as long as these products will give consumers a sense of validation in terms of
being fashionable. The idea of being ‘fashionable’ is to represent a current popular trend or style.
College students from PUP likes to stay fashionable regardless of their purchasing capabilities, the
climate, or the poor facilities of the university. The best way the penetrate this target market group is to
market your product in modern social media using popular and socially relevant entities.

Scope and Limitations

The study is descriptive and focused on the students of Polytechnic University of the Philippines
basically the College of Business Administration. The research sample is composed of fifteen (15)
respondents from 1st year, 2nd year, 3rd year and 4th year students in the College of Business
Administration. The primary gathering data used was interview to determine their fashion preference.
The scope area of the research study is the consumer of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.
Study will be conducted on the different views and opinions of the students to help understanding a lot
more about how the culture influence marketing or otherwise. The assumption is to prove that without
proper knowledge about the culture, the growth of the business cannot be perceived. Most of the
brands are actively working on responding to cultural values. So, a brand that does not work on the
cultural side of marketing misses a very important part of its marketing strategy. By responding to the
cultural values, the brands prove that they know their consumers’ needs better. The research study
limits itself into the population of different colleges in the Polytechnic University of the Philippines. It is
to better understand what are the fashion preferences of the people in it and if they acquire their sense
of fashion based on their cultural values, environment or the way of how they live.

Definition of Terms

Fashionable - The way an individual dresses up according to the current popular trend or style.

Consumers - Refers to the college marketing students of Polytechnic University of the Philippines

Marketing - refers to activities undertaken by a company to promote the buying or selling of a product
or service. Marketing includes advertising, selling, and delivering products to consumers or other
businesses.

Fashion - is a popular aesthetic expression in a certain time and context, especially in clothing, footwear,
lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle and body proportions.

Culture - is a way of life of a group of people--the behaviors, beliefs, values, and symbols that they
accept, generally without thinking about them, and that are passed along by communication and
imitation from one generation to the next. Culture is symbolic communication.

Lifestyle – is the habits, attitudes, tastes, moral standards, economic level, etc., that together constitute
the mode of living of an individual or group.

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE & STUDIES

This chapter presents the related literature reviews and studies based on scholarly journals, reports,
online article, unpublished thesis and other reference materials that supported and further discussed
the study.

FOREIGN STUDY

Crane, D. (2002) Clothing and Social Change: Status, Class and Identity

Changes in clothing and in the discourses surrounding clothing indicate shift social relationships and
tensions between different social groups that present themselves in different ways in public space. The
availability of clothing increases to members of different social classes that were related to a gradual
decline in the cost of clothing affected the origin and accessibility of fashionable styles. "In the Middle
Ages, clothes in European societies began to resemble those shapeless gowns were replaced by tailored,
fitted garments whose forms were generally influenced by fashions originating in the courts of the
upper classes.” Apparel (clothing) and footwear industries are considered as elements of a fashion
industry. There has been a declining trend trend in global employment in the clothing industry from 14.5
million workers in 1990 to 13.0 million in 2000.

Easey, M. (Ed.). (2009). Fashion marketing.

Fashion marketing has presented and defined fashion and marketing, and how fashion marketing
highlights the significance of design; seeks to satisfy the requirements of clients; helps attain corporate
objectives. The practical side of fashion marketing was examined: how fashion marketers’ function; the
ethical problems. The section concludes with: examining the company environment and the position of
fashion marketing within it; introducing marketing research and consumer behavior ideas; outlining
target marketing concepts and the fashion marketing mix.

For the clothing industry, this is a moment of transition. The surviving businesses will be the ones that
initiate change and adapt. For those who are slow and lagging behind, there is not much scope. In the
medium term there appears to be little prospect of a return to the high growth rates of clothing sales
seen in much of the 1980s. Unless they can offer discounted rates and high value clients are looking for,
many businesses will discover that they can only survive by moving away from these price-sensitive
areas of the market into sections where quality, design, diversity and rapid response to changes in
fashion and consumer tastes matter more than price. Although it will be difficult for clients to accept
much in the manner of price rises now with expectations of low prices, since spare revenue has already
been assigned to other items. If anything, they are shifting the other way around 58Fashion Marketing,
requiring more retailer’s quality and design while maintaining prices low.

People are increasing older in terms of clothing later and there will be opportunities for manufacturers
and distributors who will be able to satisfy the requirement of elderly and more discerning clients who
are looking for the present fashion design in their clothing but are more carefully suited to their
requirements such as better quality, more comfortable styling and friendly, well informed service.

U.K. High Street dominates garments produced abroad. The UK has to offer a quick response to
compete, which means low inventory rates for the retailer, particularly as the seasons become less
different and distributors want to offer more frequent seasonal ranges.

Customers choose to purchase their clothes from wherever they like best, whether it is high street
shops, shopping malls, supermarkets, catalogs or online. Fashion is moving into an age of more
important marketing methods than ever before.

In the fashion market the concept of buyer behavior. It has dealt with: the significance of knowing
buyers; how individual clients make choices; what kinds of choices they have to create; psychological
impacts on client decision-making; how fashion marketers classify clients and sociological influences;
institutional and consumer purchasing comparisons.
Gereffi, G. (1999) International Trade and Industrial Upgrading in the Apparel Commodity Chain

Producer-driven and buyer-driven global commodity chains

'Internationalization' refers to the geographic spread of economic activities across national

boundaries. Producer-driven tend to have high barriers of entry since many commodity chains require
capital/technology intensive production and economies of scale, such as in the automobile and
aeronautical industries. Under such circumstances, the value chain is mostly coordinated by the
producers and the capacity of the distributors to deliver parts provided by subcontractors and finished
goods to the marker. Buyer-driven tend to have low barriers to entry. Producers are bound to the
decisions of buyers through the functions of design and marketing, notably when retailing and brand
names are concerned. The most significant sectors concern agriculture, garments, footwear and toys.

FOREIGN LITERATURE

Featherstone, M. Lifestyle and Consumer Culture

The word 'lifestyle' is in vogue at the moment. While the word has a more limited sociological
significance in relation to the unique lifestyle of particular status organizations (Weber, 1968; Sobel,
1982; Rojek, 1985), it connotes individuality, self-expression, and stylistic self-consciousness within
modern consumer culture. One's body, clothes, speech, leisure pastimes, preferences for eating and
drinking, home, vehicle, vacation choices, etc. should be considered as indicators of the owner /
consumer's individual taste and sense of fashion. Contrary to the designation of the 1950s as an age of
gray conformism, a time of mass consumption, shifts in manufacturing methods, market segmentation
and customer demand for a wider spectrum of products are often considered to make higher selection
possible (management of which becomes an art form itself) not only for post-1960 generation youth,
but progressively for the middle aged and elderly. Three sentences from Stuart and Elizabeth Ewen's
Channels of Desire (1982: 249- 51), which they see as symptomatic of latest consumer culture trends,
come to mind here: "Today there is no fashion: there are only fashions." ' No rules, only decisions. ' '
Everyone can be anyone. ' What does it imply to suggest that long-held codes of fashion have been
breached, that there is a war against uniformity. It results that were moving towards a culture without
fixed status groups in which the acceptance of lifestyles (manifest in the selection of clothes,
recreational activities, consumer goods, body arrangements) fixed to particular groups has been
exceeded. This apparent movement toward a postmodern consumer culture based on an abundance of
information and proliferation of images that can not eventually be stabilized or hierarchized into a
structure that correlates late to fixed social divisions would further suggest the irrelevance of social
divisions and eventually the end of the social as an important point of reference.

This is a viewpoint that extends beyond the view that a mass society's lifestyle and consumption
are completely manipulated products, and the reverse stance that seeks to maintain the lifestyle and
consumption field, or at least a specific aspect of it (e.g. sport), as an independent, playful space beyond
determination.
Social Class and Clothing (A blog by Katalin Medlevev)

Display of wealth through dress became customary in Europe in the late thirteenth century. Therefore, a
person's class affiliation could be assessed with relative ease. Because dress was recognized as an
expressive and a potent means of social distinction, it was often exploited in class warfare to gain
leverage. Dress was capable of signifying one's culture, propriety, moral standards, economic status, and
social power, and so it became a powerful tool to negotiate and structure social relations as well as to
enforce class differences.

For example, the sumptuary laws in Europe in the Middle Ages emerged as a way to monitor and
maintain social hierarchy and order through clothes. People's visual representation was prescriptive,
standardized, and regulated to the minutest detail. The types of dress, the length and width of the
garment, the use of particular materials, the colors and decorative elements, and the number of layers
in the garment, for instance, were confined to specific class categories. However, after society's lower-
class groups relentlessly challenged the class structure and evaded the sumptuary laws' strictures, the
laws were finally removed from statute books in the second half of the eighteenth century.

The sartorial expression of difference in social rank is also historically cross-cultural. For example, in
China, a robe in yellow, which stood for the center and the earth, was to be used only by the emperor.
In Africa among the Hausa community, members of the ruling aristocracy wore large turbans and layers
of several gowns made of expensive imported cloth to increase their body size and thus set them apart
from the rest of the society. In Japan, the colors of the kimono, its weave, the way it was worn, the size
and stiffness of the obi (sash), and accoutrements gave away the wearer's social rank and gentility.

LOCAL LITERATURE

Abadejos, A. et al. (2018) The Cost of Fast Fashion

Fast fashion is described as cut-rate clothing's fast-paced manufacturing. As a consequence of its

affordability and accessibility. Fast Fashion has taken over the clothing sector. It promotes excessive
consumerism with its elevated demand, which in turn leads to uncontrolled environmental waste.
Through the ecofeminist structure as the key to eradicating oppression and subordinate group and
nature domination. The rapid fashion ecofeminist assessment will serve as a guide on what can be done
to improve fast fashion costs and generate suggestions for sustainable fashion options.

In contrast to average customer perceptions, there are ethical concerns that need to be highlighted in
order to determine the real price of fast fashion. The same can be applied to finding sustainable options
for it further.

By encouraging values such as environmental preservation and social justice, the problems of rapid
fashion can be resolved through ecofeminism. Fast fashion induces social economic injustices through
labor and environmental harm, resource wastage and toxic substances emitted. Despite the affordability
and comfort of fast fashion, its real price is the irreversible impacts on the environment and its
employees. By implementing ecofeminism, the option of viable solutions to quick fashion is feasible as
techniques such as the use of native and sustainable products in the manufacture of garments and the
conversion of clothing brands to encourage viable, ethical and slow fashion (where the method of
apparel creation does not damage the environment and employees) provide ethical and equitable
treatment to all.

As long as no action is taken, fast fashion will only continue to be popular and issues arise alongside it -
its harmful environmental effects, oppression, and financial injustices.

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

Research Methodology

In this study, the researchers used qualitative research method. The interview is a means of gathering
bits of information received from interviewing certain University students; CBA marketing management
students residing in Polytechnic University of the Philippines to be exact.

The research is dealing with human interaction and perspective hence it is highly encouraged to use
qualitative method. It will be a more accurate finding as the interviewees are perceived to give more
honest answers and opinions through personal interaction with the interviewer.
A one on one interview in different variety of student of PUP Campus have been conducted on this
qualitative research. One of the advantage of this method our study used is it provides an opportunity to
gather more precise data about what specific student believe and what their mindsets about fashion
are. By asking the appropriate questions that will give us a meaningful data and also some follow up
questions that will help collect more information; will gave our study more opportunity to understand
the fellow students body language and match some of their responses.

Data Collection and Tools

To gather the information vital for this research we will conduct a three focus group discussions (FGD)
with a total of fifteen participants divided into three groups of five. The FGD will be held in a chosen
room in the north wing, 4th floor of the main building of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines
which is estimated to last for fifteen to twenty minutes. The participant will have the liberty to express
their own opinions and answers in regards to the following research questions:

Are you an independent or dependent student?

if yes, how much money do you spend on clothing apparels?

if no, do you have an allotted money for clothing coming from your allowance?

How often do you buy clothes?

How does clothing brands impact your purchasing motivation?

Does branded clothing give more motivation than clothes from thrift shops? elaborate your answer

Does popular entities like celebrities or social media influencers motivate you to purchase the clothes
they wear or advertise? if yes, why?

What external factors do you consider when choosing clothes to purchase (e.g. climate, facilities, etc.)

How does these external factors affect the way you dress?

What cultures from other countries contributes to your purchasing behavior when it comes to clothes?

How does these cultures affect your buying behavior?

How does being fashionable helps your everyday endeavour in school?

Does it help to make you more confident and empowered?

Through what advertising platform do you base your motivation in purchasing clothes?

How would you describe the freedom of being able to wear your own choice of clothing every day in
school and how does it impact your purchasing patterns in general?

Sample Selection
 The Polytechnic University of the Philippines is a place where students from all sorts of places,
culture, and social class gather. To ensure the quality and relevance of the focus group discussion
towards ratifying this research, We will use a maximum variation or heterogenous type of purposive
sampling where one is selected to provide a diverse range of cases relevant to our research. The
purpose of this kind of sampling is to provide as much insight as possible into the phenomenon under
examination. We would want to ensure that he or she speaks with as many different kinds of people as
possible in order to construct a robust view of the issue from the public's perspective. Thus we decided
to make a list of the type of people that will be participating in our focus group discussion:

A regular student from the upper class

A regular student from the lower to middle class

A parent student

A working student

A student from the LGBTQ+ community

In a series of 3 focus group discussion with 5 people each, we will make sure that the 5 people included
passes the qualification that we desire.

Research Process

Participants will be obtained through room to room basis. Where potential participants will be
contacted directly and will be informed that in the interview, they would be asked to answer some
questions about themselves, their clothing preferences, things they consider first before purchasing
apparels. Potential participants will also be informed that participation will be completely anonymous
and they could withdraw at any time. At the end of the questionnaire, participants will be debriefed and
given contact details for the researcher. The interview will be distributed by choosing willing participants
and will be assisted in a room where a focus group discussion will be held.
References

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Friedman, V. (2019). Millennials Are Taking Over Fashion, Too. Retrieved from

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/05/style/millennials-are-taking-over-fashion-too.html.

Goldsmith, R. (2002). Some personality traits of frequent clothing buyers. Journal of

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doi:10.1108/13612020210441373

Isla, V. (2013). Investigating second-hand fashion trade and consumption in the

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Yotka, S. (2017, June 30). 4 Things to Knosalw About the Gen Z Fashion Lover. Retrieved

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