Definitions of uniqueness in terms of individual appearance: Exploring vintage clothing and new clothing wearers

The research objective was to examine the relationship between the desire for a unique appearance and sources of clothing acquisition---vintage or new clothing. Subjects were 97 female college students 18-25 years old who purchased clothing from vintage and/or new clothing sources. Research data were collected using a two-part survey with closed- and open-ended questions designed to investigate subject's ideas of uniqueness and sources of clothing in their current wardrobes. The survey included the "desire for unique consumer products" (DUCP) scale developed by Lynn and Harris (1997a) with eight statements on a 5-point scale. Survey data were categorized according to types of clothing worn and how often: Regular vintage wearers, occasional vintage wearers, and new clothing wearers. Sixteen participants were chosen for in-depth interviews based upon their clothing category and score on the DUCP scale. In the interviews the participants were questioned to determine how they defined and implemented uniqueness into their appearance. The outcome was that regular vintage wearers did have a higher desire for unique consumer products according to the DUCP scale than the new clothing wearers. The regular vintage and new clothing wearers with high DUCP scores used a greater variety of unique pieces from different clothing sources and put them together in unexpected ways to create a unique appearance. In this way those with similar high DUCP scores created an appearance that was more unique than the wearers with low DUCP scores.