• Human Ecology Research
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.279-291
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• 2015

Fair trade is international trade that pays just wages, supplies stable and eco-friendly products, and supports the sustainable development of economies. This study examined consumers 'cognition of fair trade, product intention of fair trade products, and consumer demand for fair trade education. We compare these variables between Korean and Chinese consumers and explored variables that affect consumers' cognition, purchase intentions and consumer education demand. This study randomly targeted 428 adult consumers in Seoul (219) and Beijing (209) to grasp the demand of customer education and a purchasing intention for fair trade products. The results of this study are as follows. First, participants showed a low cognition of fair trade and purchase intention, while consumer demand for fair trade education on concept, campaign and effect had a comparatively higher level. Chinese consumers showed a higher level of purchase intention, but a lower level of consumer education demand for fair trade concepts. Second, a higher education level resulted in a higher cognition of fair trade by Korean consumers and more experienced Chinese consumers had a higher cognition. Third, the cognition of fair trade affected the purchase intentions positively for both in Korean and Chinese consumers. Finally, cognition and purchase intention showed positive effects of the consumer demand for fair trade education on concept, campaign, and effect.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.22 no.9
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• pp.163-170
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• 2017

The purpose of this study is to find the differences in fair trade practice behavior, according to socio-demographic variables and to analyze the effects of psycho-social variables on fair trade practice behavior. This study includes the psycho-social variables as materialism, altruism, ethical identity, and perceived consumer effectiveness. The results of this study are as follows. First, the mean score of consumers' fair trade practice behavior was 4.12 on a 7-point scale, which means that respondents performed fair trade practice behavior at the middle level. Second, in terms of socio-demographic variables, there was a significant difference only in an age. Third, fair trade practice behavior had positive correlations with each of altruism, ethical identity, and perceived consumer effectiveness. Finally, regression analyses showed that altruism, ethical identity, and perceived consumer effectiveness had positive effects on fair trade practice behavior, whereas materialism had a negative effect on fair trade practice behavior.

• THE INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE & LAW REVIEW
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• v.73
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• pp.91-110
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• 2017

Recently, world wide trading which support free trade will increase the economic volume size. It will grow the quality of life. But, the reduce of gap between the rich state and the poor one has always been risen the problem of one of welfare. Trough unregulated trade activities, multinational corporations succeeded in expanding the market globally. However, there were unfair acts such as infringement of serious rights of producer of low development countries. Fair trade has begun to pay fair value to them and to ease inequality, but, as time went by, the its idea became thinner, distorted in the market, or became a marketing tools. So, In this paper, I analyze the limitations and causes of fair trade and suggest directions for fair trade. This Study provided a causes of the limitation of fair trade and for the future, I'll suggest an alternative of limitation of fair trade.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.304-315
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to identify factors affecting the purchase of Fair Trade products and to segment consumer which were typed according to the fair trade consumption competency, attitude and ethical consciousness of the University students. As a result, there are 4 type consumers, general type, indifferent type, individualism type, and fair trade practice type. Factors that directly affect the purchase experience of Fair Trade products are knowledge, willingness and interest in fair trade. In the end, education should be provided through fair education and ethical consumption through systematic education, and outside of school, social effort should be accompanied by the media and various contents to enable college students to promote their knowledge and interest in fair trade. In order to activate the fair trade market, it will be necessary to improve the quality to secure the market value as a commodity and to increase the price acceptance of the consumer.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.19 no.10
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• pp.23-33
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• 2021

Purpose: This study explored factors affecting the purchase of fair trade hand-made products. We focused on the difference between the mediating effect of purchase intention and purchase purpose, and verified the additional effectiveness of premium prices. Research design, data and methodology: The data was collected through an online survey. The reliability and validity of each variable used in the questionnaire were verified. Then, each hypothesis was analyzed through multiple regression analysis. Results: First, individual social responsibility and purchasing experience of general fair trade products have a definitive effect on the intention of purchasing fair trade hand-made products. Second, the willingness to pay premium prices varies depending on whether it is an individual's consumption or consumption for others. Third, the higher the individual's social responsibility and experience in purchasing fair trade products, the more willing he is to pay premium prices. Fourth, the purchase intention of fair trade hand-made products is to have the effect of partial mediation. Fifth, when choosing a gift for an adult, it was determined that the consumer was willing to pay premium prices the highest amount. Conclusions: In terms of factors affecting the purchase of fair trade hand-made products at premium prices, it was confirmed that individuals' social responsibilities and purchases of fair trade general products had an impact.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.1121-1133
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• 2011

Fair trade has received increasing attention from ethical consumers in the North Trans-Atlantic world. It is a movement establishing alternative trading organizations to ensure minimal returns, safe working conditions, and to provide continuity in the trading relationship for disadvantaged producers, especially women and indigenous people in the South. Despite of the growing fair trade movement in the U.S. and Europe, it is still in the introductory stage in Korea. Although fair trade has gained some attention because of the efforts of activists, most Korean consumers are still unaware of it. This paper is divided into four sections including an introduction and conclusions. In section two, I analysed sales of the fairly traded products and the websites of the fairly traded products sellers. In section three, I proposed two effective recommendations for the better marketing and promotion strategies of fairly traded products. One proposal is for providing consumer information, like fair trade certificates, consumer campaigns, and consumer information of the fair trade sellers' websites analyses. The other is for establishing the infrastructure to promote the consumption of fairly traded products such as consumer education, corporate social responsibility, social enterprise, fair trade town and school, and networking. This study is relavant to academics, non-profit fair trade organizations, manufacturers, retailers and governments.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.63 no.1
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• pp.16-26
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• 2013

This study seeks solutions for two conflict values from the fair trade, one being fulfilling environment and social responsibility and the other being suggesting stylish designs within a reasonable price range. The purposes of this study were to establish fair-trade fashion product development process by investigating practices in fashion product development process within fair-trade company, and to identify the characteristics of fair-trade fashion product development. Qualitative research method was employed. Participant observation and in-depth interviews were conducted with practitioners working in fairtradekorea, Ltd. and producers in Bangladesh, from which case studies were compiled. The results were as follows: The case study provided evidence that fair-trade fashion product development has the same steps as practiced in general fashion brands, but has different characteristics such as fair-trade products going through a much slower process which led to early planning, having producer-centered product development, concentrating on spring/summer products, having a high cost structure, and having unpredictable quality control. Study implications and future research avenues are also discussed.

• The Southeast Asian review
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.1-45
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• 2018

This research is concerned with the current state and uniqueness of Vietnam's Fair Trade through the case study of Fair Trade Organizations (hereafter FTOs) in Vietnam. Vietnam has emerged a successful developing country with rapid economic growth under the socialist regime, while the income gap between the rich and the poor is still growing. Especially the poverty is becoming a serious issue for ethnic minorities and smallholder farmers in the mountainous areas. Fair Trade in the early stage has been initiated, and still is led by the charities and international development agencies of the Global North. But Vietnam's Fair Trade has been introduced by local Vietnamese who have been motivated to solve their own problems voluntarily. This is different from other Fair Trade producing countries in the Global South. It's noticeable that Vietnam's FTOs are playing a significant role of adopting and applying Fair Trade practices. Concerning Fair Trade producing countries the researchers are mostly focusing on Africa and Latin America and the themes are mainly to do with the impact of Fair Trade producers. There are very few research outcomes on the analysis of producing countries' FTOs and their motives and developing processes. The research findings can contribute to understand not only Vietnam's challenges and issues, but also Fair Trade producing countries in general.

• Journal of Korea Fair Competition Federation
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• no.139
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• pp.144-159
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• 2008

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.1-14
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• 2016

Consumers have been increasing their interests in firms' ethicality as well as in the features of the firms' products when they decide to purchase a certain product. Recently, fair trade is considered to be a type of ethical marketing in the business-to-consumer market. In this regard, the effects of fair trade-based marketing on firm performance have become the center of academic and managerial concerns. Despite this importance, few studies have investigated whether fair-trade is a source of competitive advantage or just a cost of doing business. The present research attempts to provide evidence of how fair trade-based marketing influences competitive advantage. Two experimental studies were conducted to explore consumers' purchase intention, which can be a proxy of competitive advantage, in a foreign product-consumption context. Drawing on the stakeholder theory, the first study was performed to examine the effects of fair trade marketing on consumers' purchase intention through a within-subjects design. In addition, building on the signal theory, the second study was executed to test the effects of a fair trade mark on consumers' purchase intention. The findings of the current research reveal that consumers prefer fair trade-based products to others and that when it comes to fair trade-certified products, consumers are more likely to purchase products with that certification than otherwise, even when those products are sold at higher costs than rival products. Interestingly, the results of this research present that there is a significant difference of consumers' purchase intention of a fair trade-based product between two different marketers. This implies that fair trade-based products should be differentially distributed and targeted at a certain type of consumers.