Planet
The fashion industry is one of the most harmful to the environment in the world, built on a linear supply chain model that is outdated and unsustainable. It is estimated that 120 billion garments are produced every year, with this massive overconsumption and the post-industrial revolution measures of success driving increasingly accelerated production (Mitterfellner, 2023). Lowering this overproduction could reduce carbon emissions by 158 tonnes every year, while also minimising the amount of pieces sold at markdown, currently 40% of all garments, making it not only beneficial to the environment but also to business and profit margins (Drapers, 2022).
This decrease in overproduction can be made by businesses understanding and monitoring their supply chain through all stages: design, production, distribution, use, and end of life (Gwilt, 2020). In order for this to be done effectively, strategies and classifications have been created to help quantify and identify their impacts.
Carbon emissions can be grouped into scope 1, 2 and 3. Scope 3, often the largest and hardest to measure, encompasses emissions from farms and factories, transportation of the products, and how the consumer uses the garment. Change in these areas, while crucial is often harder to track as these emissions are not directly generated by the business, a problem made worse by the fact that up to 70% of climate impact can occur during manufacturing alone (Drapers, 2022). However, for this change to meet the SDGs, particularly responsible consumption and production, the traditional linear supply chain needs to become a circular economy, with no new resources being added. This would also reduce the amount of pollution from processing of raw materials, with leather, for example, using dangerous chromium and producing toxic waste (Mitterfellner, 2023).
Some companies have already started to implement circularity to their ways of working, with organisations such as LVMH’s Nona Source reinventing the way that textiles are sourced and used. By selling deadstock textiles from massive labels to designers, they reduce the waste of valuable fabrics while also making quality materials available to smaller designers who couldn’t otherwise afford them (Drapers, 2022). In the end of life stage, designers such as Patrick McDowell have begun offering services such as free repairs and alterations, making garments last for longer and be less likely to be thrown away. These sustainable design strategies are going to become essential in revolutionising the fashion industry and mitigating the damage it causes (Gwilt, 2020).
References:
Gwilt, A. (2020) A Practical guide to sustainable fashion. Bloomsbury
Moran, G. (2022) ‘Collaborating For Change: Sustainability Report 2022’, Available at: https://www.drapersonline.com/guides/collaborating-for-change-sustainability-report-2022 (Accessed: 08 October 2023).
Mitterfellner, O. (2023) ‘Luxury Fashion and the Sustainable Approach’, in Luxury Fashion Brand Management. Routledge.