The Importance of Corporate Social Responsibility

For a long period of time researchers anticipate consumers shall act accordingly with their corporate social responsibility information process, supporting companies with good CSR reputation than those who have poor ethical records. Such actions, consumer would be able to influence companies to create a social and environmental friendly outcome. However, realities do not match with researchers' expectations, previous study shows that CSR offers one of the main foundations of consumers' identification with brands, although CSR stands for a brand's values in connection with serious social issues. However, sustainability is barely the core criteria for consumers' buying decisions.

Recent studies indicate the barrier to ethical consumption. Carrington et al. (2014) indicate four key elements that influence consumers' attitude-behaviour gaps. First, namely prioritisation of ethical issues that the main ethical matter promotes to a sense of disharmony when non-ethical purchases occur, habits, willingness to commit to ethical consumption and finally, types of purchasing behaviour. Research also demonstrate the arguments between consumers' attitudes and actions, which are the economic rationalist argument that the costs of environmental concerns consumption override the benefits, the economic development reality argument that economic up growth override sustainability and ethical aspirations. Finally, the government dependency argument that the lack of action from the governments' cause of short of awareness and action by consumers (d’Astous and Legendre 2009). Moraes et al, (2015) also suggest consumer rationalize their behavior distance that neutralizing and denial of responsibility. Further, Chatzidakis et al. (2007) justify consumers' ethical attitudes are not adapted to their ethical buying actions. Together, those researches identify and explain the distance between consumers' attitude and behaviour.

Moraes et al, (2015) highlight the sustainability and ethical consumption and the investigation of consumer buying decisions in relation to ethical interest remain an intricate task. The endeavour of the broad-scale literature on rational motivation force the ethical consumption decisions, pursue of the segmentation to the ethical consumers and the attempts to understand the distance of attitude-behaviour gap, vast of the research adopted to date target particularly on low-participating and habitual shopping. Although the investigations of luxury purchases performed since Veblen (1912), related literature demonstrate growth in study on luxury brands. However, applicability of high-involvement consumption such as fine jewellery purchases process is short.

Consumers will consider different sustainability stander across various product categories. Kapferer and Denizeau (2014) explores the level of sustainability consciousness of luxury brand consumer and suggested that consumers have contradictory attitudes towards to luxury brand, that the luxury buyer considers luxury and sustainability development are relatively ambivalent in the social and economic harmony context. Achabou and Dekhili (2013) demonstrate that consumer expect superior quality from the luxury brand, despite the environmental concern is developing, recycled materials in luxury goods are not responding positively from the consumers. Luxury goods are connected with a positive social figure. Luxury consumption can be beneficial for the consumers' social statue that includes the evocation of favourable treatment which could be a valuable social strategy. Therefore, conspicuousness strategy is a constant practice in the luxury brand industry, in line with luxury buyers' conspicuous consumption trend to consume highly recognizable luxury goods to show off their wealth and achieve certain social status. From the consumer point of view, conspicuousness is a major motivation for purchasing luxury goods. Luxury buyer may have a strong ethical awareness when buying commodity product but when it comes to luxury goods purchasing, the craftsmanship, the product quality and luxurious brand service become the consumers' priority than their sustainability interest.