Lo scenario post crisi del 2008 ha segnato un cambiamento profondo nelle attitudini di consumo dei beni di alta gamma. Il prodotto è tornato protagonista e il concetto di qualità del prodotto non può prescindere da tracciabilità, denominazione d’origine, un’organizzazione del lavoro attenta ai bisogni delle persone e un ciclo di produzione-distribuzione rispettoso dell’ambiente. è cresciuta, nelle aziende della moda, l’attenzione alla corporate social responsibility.#L’articolo si propone di investigare in quale misura questa nuova sensibilità sia una strategia concreta o sia prevalentemente limitata a operazioni di marketing. L’analisi delle politiche di CSR di 26 aziende leader mostra come la responsabilità sociale sia destinata a diventare elemento integrante della value proposition aziendale e premessa del successo competitivo.

CSR FOR FASHION COMPANIES: MARKETING TOOL OR STRATEGIC PILLAR?#The 2008 post crisis scenario has been characterized by a deep change in consumption patterns of fashion and luxury goods. The new preeminence of product forced companies to rethink their supply chains and to move from opportunistic deals with their suppliers to strategic partnerships. Indeed the concept of quality must be strictly related to the issues of traceability, and country of origin; companies need to care both about their employees’ needs and environment protection It’s worthy to notice that fashion companies declare more and more a sensitivity towards the so-called Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).#The article investigates if such a new care for fashion companies is merely a marketing tool or if it is a concrete, consistent and sustainable positioning strategy around the concepts of ethic, respect for the environment, value creation for all stakeholders, with the aim of identifying the factors making CSR a true pillar of company strategy.#From the analysis of CSR policies of a sample of 26 leading companies it emerged that, in spite of few cases in which CSR is limited to occasional events mainly in the communication area, fashion firms are undergoing a profound change: CSR is more and more at the centre of their value proposition and the premise of competitive advantage.