The 2019 McKinsey State of Fashion
Report
found that 66 percent of UK consumers were willing (in theory) to spend more on
sustainable brands, yet sustainable fashion represents just one percent of the
entire fashion industry in the UK. There is a huge opportunity for fashion
brands to democratise sustainable fashion — in the same way that brands such as
Primark democratised fashion through price — but there is a hold up: Despite
the consumer demand, brand opportunity and the environmental imperative, very
few brands are taking action in a meaningful way.
The 2019 Pulse
Report
showed that the pace of sustainability progress in the fashion industry has
slowed vs. last year, while the industry itself is enjoying immense growth — by
2030, it is expected to reach $3.3trillion and manufacture 102m tonnes of
clothes and shoes. So, what’s holding up the necessary shift away from fast
fashion?
It’s undermined by a perceived trade-off: aesthetic vs ethics
Fashion is about image, invention, imagination. Fashion is about fantasy, not
function. Sustainability is seen by some in the industry as a barrier or
constraint on the creative process. Even at the Copenhagen Fashion
Summit
this year, panellists talked about a trade-off between design and
sustainability, like it was a real thing. In my mind, it’s a false paradox. The
desire to stay creatively original also means there is a tendency and emphasis
on ‘anti-collaboration’ in fashion. This is one of the reasons that it is harder
to apply mass transformation within the sector.
European luxury brands, in particular, tend to be quite closed, creatively.
There can be a disconnect between the artistic vision within fashion houses and
what is actually happening or needed in the market. It is one of the reasons why
big cultural appropriation issues happen — they aren’t in touch with the
cultural reality for consumers.
Transforming fashion through materials innovation
Join us as leaders from Crocs, Hilos, Marchon Eyewear, Planet FWD and Target discuss real-world examples, practical strategies, and supply chain considerations for developing eco-friendly clothing, shoes, and accessories that minimize waste and protect the planet — Tuesday, Oct. 15, at SB'24 San Diego.
Ironically, it is fashion’s creative minds who have the potential to bring
sustainability to life. Some fashion designers are starting to do this,
channelling their commitment to sustainability into a different kind of
creativity or design ethos — the brilliantly outspoken Katharine
Hamnett is a trailblazing designer leading
this charge. A Cold Wall is also
doing some really interesting work on re-engineering design philosophy — the
brand is challenging hype culture and adding a ‘human patina’ to the marketing
of its clothes; the way we use trainers, for example, is being shown to add to
their value; and on a social front, working to equalise luxury fashion by
telling stories rooted in youth culture and opening out fashion presentations to
a public audience.
Focusing on small changes, while ignoring the bigger picture
There is no doubt that initiatives such as the 1p tax on all garments
sold,
proposed by the Environmental Audit Committee in its Fixing Fashion report
earlier this year, was a step in the right direction, but the bigger picture
must be acknowledged and addressed. The sustainability issues in the fashion
industry are so systemic and interdependent — working conditions, child labour,
forced labour, chemical management, wastewater and effluents, energy and carbon
emissions,
microfibres associated with synthetic
textiles
… the list goes on. Brand heroes will not be those that just own a single issue.
In addition, brands should not only be thinking about how they can reduce
negative impact, but also how they can generate value for people and
communities.
However, I believe the most important issue fashion brands can, and should be,
taking responsibility for is their supply chains. And there must be greater
transparency
about how they do this — made all too clear by the Fashion Transparency
Index.
There’s also a responsibility to help consumers buy more sustainably — whether
that’s through choice editing (removing non-sustainable
choices,
limited purchase, etc); or conversely, through choice influencing (providing
information and rewarding more sustainable choices).
Sustainability not taken seriously internally
Although most fashion brands do have an inhouse team dedicated to
sustainability, their appetite and commitment is often not enough in isolation.
They don’t have enough influence within organisations to make significant change
happen. For real impact, it needs to be baked-in across the whole business, from
supply chain to sales, and it must start from the top. Fashion leaders need to
quickly understand that this is the future of fashion. As Mark Carney warned
business leaders about their laissez-fair approach to climate change, they must
adapt or ‘fail to
exist.’
The question will be how quickly they will respond.
Brands must first be clear on the role sustainability will play in their
business — is it about license to operate, driving efficiencies or brand
differentiation, growth, innovation? They need to develop a robust POV on the
most important issues and implement this across the entire value chain.
Sustainability must then be integrated into both the business model and brand —
it can’t be a stand-alone initiative. It must be dealt with holistically (from
seasonality and sourcing to consumer communications), and shared accountability
needs to be created to ensure everyone in the business has the right knowledge
and skills to reflect the strategy within their decision-making.
For those sustainability teams who do remain siloed, here are some tips for
ensuring your voice gets heard:
-
Collaborate with designers and buyers — inspire them, upskill them and
help them deliver the change
-
Bring consumer insight into the process — in 2018, the fashion search
engine Lyst tracked more than 100 million searches on its shopping site
and reported a 47 percent increase in shoppers looking for products that
merged ethical and style qualities, including search terms such as ‘vegan
leather’ and ‘organic cotton’
-
Ask for forgiveness, not permission! The best way to persuade a business
to launch a new idea is to prove that it can work. Sustainability teams need
to learn how to trial (fail) and learn fast
Where do we go from here?
Fashion brands do still have a long way to go in improving their approach and
commitment to sustainability. Where should they start? Greater
transparency
is an important first step. This then should be backed up with improved
traceability — and there’s so much brilliant new technology to help make this
easier. If transparency is about trust, traceability is about accountability —
the combination of the two will help drive real change.
In terms of commercial motivation, sustainability will rarely be the primary
purchase driver — that’s not how fashion works. But, if choice and availability
can be improved, then people are likely to make the more sustainable choice.
Purchase decisions can also be influenced by using sustainability messaging to
create stronger connections for consumers — people buy into brand stories and
like to say something about themselves through what they wear.
One day, a really successful mainstream brand will show the potential of
sustainability and design working in perfect harmony — and will demonstrate, in
practice, its creative potential and commercial returns.
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Managing Director & Co-Founder
Given
Becky Willan is Managing Director of Given — a brand purpose agency that helps businesses grow by doing good.
Published Jul 19, 2019 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST