Background:The downsides of fast fashion and increasing awareness towards environmental sustainability in the apparel industry have paved the path for the emergence of slow fashion. In an economy heavily dependent on fast fashion production, running a slow fashion company can be challenging. Therefore, it was founded interesting to investigate motivational factors of sustainable entrepreneurs to start and conduct slow fashion companies in Turkey.

Purpose:This paper seeks to identify the factors that keep Turkish sustainable entrepreneurs motivated to start and conduct slow fashion companies in Turkey.

Method:A qualitative research approach was selected to answer the research question. Empirical data were gathered by four in-depth semi-structured interviews held with the managers of slow fashion companies.

Conclusion:This paper has provided an explanation of why sustainable entrepreneurs start and conduct a slow fashion business in Turkey by analysing their entrepreneurial goals and the factors that have influenced them. The research has contributed to the previous literature in two main areas: firstly, it has discussed the slow fashion movement in the context of a developing economy, which has not been previously researched, and secondly, it has provided new insights on entrepreneurial motivation by developing a “Framework of Motivation for Sustainable Entrepreneurs”.