B.A.F.F.L.E.D. Green
Retailers Zoom In On Sustainability--
With carbon footprints and "going green" gaining more attention, fashion retailers are putting sustainability at the top of their strategy plans. Fashion has long been an industry serving excess, but as tides in the environment change, so too does the garment market.
Greater emphasis is being put on strengthening the circular economy, these days. Brands large and small are shifting away from a make-sell-make model, taking conservation into account. While fast fashion still has its place, "slow fashion" is making moves to increase consciousness of how negative impacts on the environment really hurt everyday life.
Many consumers are responding, too, looking for Fair Trade brands to support (here are 35!), and taking notes from the World Fair Trade Organization on what they should be seeking when they shop. People not only want to know the earth is being well-served, but that employees are being treated right as well. Shoppers are buying at all levels and reconsidering treatment of low-cost items as disposable.
In response to consumer energy, big brands like Eileen Fisher, H&M, and Levis are stepping up. Eileen Fisher offers a discount on items when previously purchased garments are brought back to their stores. They even reuse the garments to make new ones, giving them new life. Levis is doing the same through their "I:Collect" program, and are even including shoes. Fabrics are repurposed into yarn for denim, and they've taken the lead on using less water in the finishing of their denims. H&M has a goal of using only recycled or sustainably-sourced materials by 2030. Major stakers are doing what they must.
Surely this is just the start of extending the life of textiles. They deserve a longer lifespan, don't they?!
Here's more on how fast fashion is killing your pockets. This True Cost Documentary shares some alarming truths, too.
With carbon footprints and "going green" gaining more attention, fashion retailers are putting sustainability at the top of their strategy plans. Fashion has long been an industry serving excess, but as tides in the environment change, so too does the garment market.
Greater emphasis is being put on strengthening the circular economy, these days. Brands large and small are shifting away from a make-sell-make model, taking conservation into account. While fast fashion still has its place, "slow fashion" is making moves to increase consciousness of how negative impacts on the environment really hurt everyday life.
Many consumers are responding, too, looking for Fair Trade brands to support (here are 35!), and taking notes from the World Fair Trade Organization on what they should be seeking when they shop. People not only want to know the earth is being well-served, but that employees are being treated right as well. Shoppers are buying at all levels and reconsidering treatment of low-cost items as disposable.
In response to consumer energy, big brands like Eileen Fisher, H&M, and Levis are stepping up. Eileen Fisher offers a discount on items when previously purchased garments are brought back to their stores. They even reuse the garments to make new ones, giving them new life. Levis is doing the same through their "I:Collect" program, and are even including shoes. Fabrics are repurposed into yarn for denim, and they've taken the lead on using less water in the finishing of their denims. H&M has a goal of using only recycled or sustainably-sourced materials by 2030. Major stakers are doing what they must.
Surely this is just the start of extending the life of textiles. They deserve a longer lifespan, don't they?!
Here's more on how fast fashion is killing your pockets. This True Cost Documentary shares some alarming truths, too.