How Fashion Brands Can Truly Embrace Sustainability

Sustainability discussions in the fashion industry began in the 1960s. According to the website “Climate Trade,” the fashion industry ranks as the third most polluting industry, following fossil fuels and agriculture. Further, they explain that the fashion industry is responsible for producing 10% of the annual carbon footprint and consumes water equivalent to quenching the thirst of five million people every year. From production to consumption, numerous aspects affect the environment, including water consumption, chemical pollution, CO2 emissions, and garment and packaging waste, among others.

The fashion industry is a vast value stream that begins with fiber manufacturing and extends to retailing, involving numerous parties. There are three main stakeholders who can exert control over this disaster to a certain extent: apparel manufacturers, fashion brands, and consumers. This article primarily focuses on the responsibilities that fashion brands have within the scope of the entire value stream.

1. Source from Sustainable Manufacturers

Today, many vendors offer products at a lower cost that brands can source, but it’s crucial to question whether these vendors follow sustainable manufacturing processes. Brands, however, bear the responsibility of understanding their suppliers, their production processes, and the environmental impacts associated with manufacturing these products. There are various methods brands can employ.

• Third-party Audits and Factory Visits:

In the current world, brands use various means to assess their manufacturers. They request factory approvals and international certifications like ISO14001 etc. However, in a world with potential corruption, brands must prioritize the independence of these audits. They should conduct these audits through reputable third-party organizations. Additionally, brands should employ sustainable manufacturing specialists to evaluate manufacturers independently and should insist on plant visits for thorough evaluations. Brands should invest some money to identify the real sustainable manufacturers from those who are pretending to be.

• Restricted Substance Testing on Products:

During the fabric manufacturing stage, mills may use inexpensive chemicals/raw materials that are harmful to the environment, sometimes hidden from approval processes. While there are certifications in place to address this issue, the true effectiveness of these tests is questionable. The persistent environmental pollution caused by the fashion industry suggests that suppliers may have potentially found ways to circumvent these tests. Therefore, in addition to certifications, brands should conduct random RSL (restricted substance list) testing on their products to assess their vendors and take necessary actions against the vendors.

2. Eliminate Unnecessary Quality Requirements that Consumers Don’t Demand

The fashion industry is highly competitive today, and brands often maintain stringent quality standards and other criteria. However, it’s essential to question whether these parameters are realistic and genuinely contribute to sustainability in the industry. More importantly, we should consider whether the end consumer actually demands these high-quality standards.

For example, some brands reject garments simply because they have 1-2mm, fairly negligible dirt marks on the back of the garment, but does this truly impact the end consumer? Manufacturers discard these as scrap, contributing to waste accumulation, even though these items could still be used. Sometimes the end use of the product may be as an inner layer, where the end consumer pays little to no attention to the appearance.

Similarly, colorists sometimes demand such precise color matching that the differences are imperceptible to the end consumer. Achieving these slight color deviations in fabric production requires significant resources like steam, electricity, and water, resulting in substantial wastewater generation—a burden on the environment that brands often overlook.

Instances like these call for brands to reassess their quality standards and determine whether they genuinely matter to the end consumer or if they merely add to the environmental burden.

3. Cultivate a Sustainable Product Trend Among Consumers

Brands, as we all know, wield significant influence over fashion trends. They invest heavily in fashion marketing, which ultimately leads to the emergence of major fashion trends. People are often willing to pay a premium to follow these trends. In the same vein, brands possess the capability to foster sustainable fashion trends in the market and should bear the responsibility to invest in them.

While brands frequently allocate substantial resources to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects that contribute to a better world, there should be a greater emphasis on reshaping consumer behavior. It’s a widely acknowledged fact that it’s often cheaper to produce goods using environmentally harmful materials rather than eco-friendly, bio-based alternatives. However, brands should educate their customers and encourage them to opt for bio-based products, even if they come at a slightly higher cost. Furthermore, brands should collaborate with mills to introduce solutions like upcycling, which can help reduce the global footprint of the industry.

It’s worth acknowledging that some brands and dedicated individuals within these organizations are already prioritizing their responsibilities toward a more sustainable world. However, true satisfaction can only be achieved when all brands and their employees unite on this journey of creating a better Earth.

Author:
Dileepa Fernando
MBA, BSc (Industrial Statistics),
Diploma in Textile Coloration & Finishing, Lean Yellow Belt