The circular materials company’s Circular-Conscious Consumer Report found that 27.7% of respondents would leave a brand after a garment failed to meet expectations. Of these, 15.8% said they would not buy from the brand again, while 11.9% said they would switch to a competitor.
By comparison, 5.9% said they would return the item, and 2.3% would replace it with another product from the same brand.
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More than 64% of respondents said they would either repair the garment or continue wearing it.
Samsara Eco said this meant brands could lose customers without receiving product-return data that identifies the underlying quality issue.
Fabric thinning or holes were the most frequently cited frustrations, selected by 62% of respondents, followed by split or unravelled seams at 55% and fabric pilling at 50%.
The survey also pointed to a preference for product-level material information and evidence of durability. More than 80% of respondents said it was important to know what clothing was made from.
When asked which information would most improve confidence that an item was better made, material information and evidence of performance over time received a combined 63% of first-place responses. Independent certification ranked last out of five options, receiving 6.6%.
Cost-of-living pressures were influencing purchasing behaviour, according to the report. Some 88% of respondents said these pressures had affected how they bought clothing, with 43% purchasing second-hand goods and around one-third buying fewer items while expecting each to last longer. A further 13.9% said they were choosing cheaper options.
Respondents placed primary responsibility for clothing quality on brands, with 54% selecting companies, compared with 27% who cited government regulation.
Fewer than 9% said consumers themselves were chiefly responsible for buying less and buying better.
Almost 89% of respondents expected clothing to last for at least 30 wears before it was no longer usable.
Samsara Eco general manager Dr Lars Kissau said: “Circularity means keeping materials in circulation at their highest possible value – not their lowest available use. That’s why durability matters so much. A garment has to last to be worn again, resold, handed on. And when it genuinely can’t be worn any longer, it should become clothing again, not something lesser. Downcycling only slows the linear model. It doesn’t stop it.”
The online survey ran from 22 July to 23 August 2026 and received 5,208 responses from members of Samsara Eco’s Sam for Change community in 120 countries.
The company said the group was self-selected and predominantly aged 18–24, meaning the results reflect an engaged community rather than the wider consumer population.
