The Luxury-Sustainability Paradox: How Brand Legitimacy is Integrated and Negotiated in Luxury Fashion

Abstract

While prior research has examined sustainability and luxury largely from brand or consumer perspectives separately, there remains limited understanding of how legitimacy is shaped between multiple actors online. The purpose of this study is to examine how sustainability-related legitimacy is integrated and negotiated around luxury fashion brands on digital platforms. To address this purpose, the study adopts a multi-level perspective of brands, influencers and consumers in which sustainability-related legitimacy is examined through the following research questions: (1) how luxury fashion brands communicate sustainability in relation to their luxury positioning, (2) how influencers interpret sustainability narratives associated with luxury brands, and (3) how consumers respond to sustainability claims made by luxury brands across digital platforms. Using a qualitative multi-level approach grounded in legitimacy theory, empirical material was collected from Instagram, TikTok, fashion blogs and online discussion forums relating to Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Stella McCartney between January 2024 and January 2026. The empirical material consisted of brand posts and videos from Instagram and TikTok, influencer content from fashion blogs, and consumer discussions from comment sections and online forums. In total, the dataset included 90 brand posts, 44 influencer posts/articles and 50 consumer discussion threads. The findings demonstrate that sustainability legitimacy is continuously negotiated between brands, influencers and consumers rather than established solely through brand communication. While Louis Vuitton and Gucci primarily maintain traditional luxury narratives, Stella McCartney integrates sustainability more directly into its brand identity. The findings indicate that sustainability legitimacy becomes stronger when sustainability is integrated into the symbolic core of the brand rather than positioned as a supplementary attribute. Furthermore, the study highlights the co-creation of legitimacy across digital actors and demonstrates how conscious and conspicuous consumption logics coexists within contemporary luxury discussions, suggesting that tensions between luxury and sustainability are not necessarily resolved but continuously negotiated.