• The Korean Fashion and Textile Research Journal
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.366-379
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• 2024

The environmental and ethical concerns raised by the fashion industry have highlighted the need for sustainable fashion. Consequently, upcycling production methods have attracted considerable attention as alternative solutions. This study examines the effect of upcycling fashion brand image on brand equity, which further influences behavioral intentions, and investigates how the relationship between brand image and brand equity differs according to the acceptance of green peer influence. The study collected and analyzed 432 survey responses. Functional, symbolic, and hedonic brand images, which are all subdimensions of upcycling fashion brand image, were found to have a positive impact on brand equity. However, CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) brand image did not exhibit a significant effect on brand equity. The study also found that the effect of CSR brand image on brand equity was significantly higher for the high green peer influence group than for the low green peer influence group, with only the high green peer influence group having statistical significance. This study suggests certain theoretical implications to applying brand equity theory in the upcycling fashion brand context and certain practical implications to building upcycling fashion branding strategies.