The effectiveness of the Luxury sustainable communication on green consumption value: The role of perceived durability and consumers’ materialism

Luxury companies increasingly grasp the relevance of sustainability in addressing consumers’ needs and desires. In this research we hypothesize that communication focused on the internalized luxury (vs. externalized luxury) consumption approach undertaken by a sustainable luxury brand might affect perception of product' durability. Moreover, we speculate that this effect is moderated by consumers’ materialism. We test this idea across two experiments. The results of two experiments show that an internalized luxury-focused message may increase perceived product durability more than an externalized luxury-focused message, thus leading to a higher green consumption value. Moreover, this effect is magnified by lower levels of materialism. This research contributes to extant knowledge about the role of different luxury consumption approaches in sustainable communication development. Relevant managerial implications are discussed.