The Impact of Social Responsibility on a Company's Market Share (Levi's Strauss in the US Market)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

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DECLARATION

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTii

DECLARATIONiii

CHAPTER # 1: INTRODUCTION5

Background of the Study5

History of Levi's Strauss6

Purpose of the Study7

Significance of the Study7

CHAPTER # 2: LITERATURE REVIEW9

Corporate Social Responsibility and Performance9

CSR Buyer-Supplier Relationship Theory12

Toward Operationalization: The Corporate Social Performance Model13

Principles of corporate social responsibility14

Processes of Corporate Social Responsiveness15

Outcomes of Corporate Behaviour17

Summary of Corporate Social Responsibility Research18

Corporate Image19

Image, Identity and Reputation20

Current or potential social image Theory21

Summary23

CHAPTER # 3: METHODOLOGY24

Introduction24

Research Hypothesis26

Sample and Unit of Analysis26

Data Sources27

Data Collection Methods27

Reliability of the Study28

Justification29

Data Analysis Techniques29

Limitations and Delimitations of the Study31

REFERENCES32

BIBLIOGRAPHY35

CHAPTER # 1: INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

This study specifically focuses on the challenges faced by U.S. apparel industry in building, maintaining, and strengthening their relationships with suppliers. The social inheritance is modified by the changes that occur in the social and cultural environment so that each historical period leaves its visual evidence in the fashion of the times. For this reason, the social and cultural environment in which people live is crucial in analyzing fashion process.

Social change is the process by which alteration occurs in the structure and function of a social system. Significant social changes can occur in terms of personal styles and values, social institutions, and technological innovations. Change in society influences the emergence of new fashions by encouraging their development or evolution. Styles of dress have evolved in a continuous progression of innovation and changes influenced by shifts in the social environment and lifestyles of a society.

Fashion change has been accelerated in contemporary society. According to Zaitman, et al. (1972, p. 1), American society in the latter half of the twentieth century has been described as the “temporary” society which is adaptive, rapidly changing, imaginative and innovative.

The specific influence of social change has been examined by some researchers. Sproles (1979) and Horn (1975) agree on four kinds of social change that typically have a great impact on fashion change:

modernization and advances in technology,

demographic trends and abundance and diffusion of wealth,

new social opportunities and increased leisure, and

Changing sex roles or improved status of women.

History of Levi's Strauss

Although Levi Strauss is a publicly held corporation, it is still managed by a number of the descendants of the company's founder. Levi Strauss, (1829-1902), started as a wholesaler of dry goods in San Francisco during the l850s and entered the clothing industry almost as an after thought. A tailor from Reno, Nevada, Jacob W. Davis approached Levi Strauss with an offer to jointly produce workpants. Davis had designed a pair of ...