Willingness to Pay for Sustainable Luxury: An Empirical Inquiry into the Alchemy with Individual Personality Profiles

Abstract

Amidst an era marked by significant environmental depletion and ethical renaissance, the discourse on sustainability has profoundly permeated public dialogues on global economic and social development since the mid-20th century. An ascending tide of ethical rigor intensifies among consumers increasingly demanding assurances of integrity, a phenomenon that unfolds with particular intrigue within the luxury sector, scrutinized for their pivotal role in international economic development. Indeed, the juxtaposition of the two subjects of sustainability and luxury has catalyzed a spectrum of perspectives among academic researchers, with some perceiving the pair as an apparent oxymoron, while others as inherently symbiotic, thereby revealing a layered narrative of both philosophical and practical inquiry into the essence and implications of luxury in a world increasingly attuned to its ethical obligations. This study ventures into the exploration of consumers’ willingness to pay for sustainable luxury whilst probing the influence of individual personality profiles. Scrutinizing consumer intentions and unveiling barriers and accelerators in the theoretical comprehension to sustainable luxury consumption, research findings aim to contribute to the refinement of both academic perspectives and practical managerial implications for integrating environmental stewardship into the luxury realm.