Digital Product Traceability and Sustainable Purchase Intentions in Fashion Retail: The Mediating Role of Consumer Trust

Abstract

The growing complexity of fashion supply chains has increased consumer concerns regarding product authenticity, environmental claims, and the credibility of sustainability information. Digital Product Passports (DPPs) and digital product traceability offer emerging mechanisms for improving product-level transparency; however, their influence on consumers' sustainable purchasing decisions remains insufficiently understood, particularly in developing-country contexts. This study examines the effect of digital product traceability on sustainable purchase intentions in Pakistan's fashion retail sector, with consumer trust investigated as a mediating mechanism. Drawing on the Theory of Planned Behaviour, signalling theory, and trust-based perspectives, the study developed and empirically tested four hypotheses. Data were collected from 418 fashion consumers in Pakistan through a structured questionnaire and analysed using structural equation modelling and bootstrapping. The findings indicate that digital product traceability significantly enhances consumer trust and directly increases sustainable purchase intention. Consumer trust also has a significant positive effect on sustainable purchase intention and partially mediates the relationship between digital product traceability and sustainable purchase intention. The findings demonstrate that digital traceability can support sustainable consumption by reducing information uncertainty and strengthening confidence in retailers' sustainability claims. However, transparency alone may not be sufficient; the credibility, accessibility, and verifiability of digital information are critical to building consumer trust. The study contributes to sustainable fashion literature by providing empirical evidence from Pakistan and highlighting consumer trust as a key mechanism through which digital traceability can translate into stronger sustainable purchase intentions.

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