The Sustainability of the Fashion Industry: A Bibliometric Analysis

Abstract

The current environmental crisis is largely driven by excessive consumerism, being the fashion industry one of the largest contributors to global pollution. In response, interest in sustainability within this industry has increased among both academics and the wider community. The purpose of this study is to provide a better understanding of the link between the fashion industry and sustainability through a bibliometric analysis of global research. For this purpose, searches were carried out in the Scopus and Web of Science databases, covering the period from 2010 to 2024. Bibliometric tools such as Biblioshiny and Tree of Science were used to process and analyze the 2,144 records obtained, enabling the identification of the most significant documents and providing insights into the evolution of research in this crucial field. Additionally, three main research trends were also identified: circular fashion and consumerism; supply chain; environment and circular economy. The results obtained demonstrate the need to address sustainability in this industry, pointing out the geographic diversity of researchers and the importance of some of them in this field. These findings can guide future research and actions to promote more sustainable fashion, for which a research agenda is proposed.