Today on the blog, Haley Justus explains how Gen Z is likely to change fast fashion forever.
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Fast Fashion’s Failings
on Category: apparel
on MABR Cohort Perspectives: Time for Fast Fashion to adopt Sustainable Practices
on Today’s opinion is from Haley Justus.
The time is now for fast fashion retailers to adopt more sustainable practicesFast fashion, stores like H&M, Zara, and Forever 21, has shaped how people shop for clothes in society today. By giving constant options and encouraging a consistent rotation of new attire, the consumer has become accustomed to searching for the next best thing. This has created a faster consumption of items that has a life span of about of no more than 10 wears, according to the New York Times. This system perpetuated by fast fashion brands fuels the amount of clothes that end up in landfills each year. According to the EPA, “Landfills received 11.3 million tons of MSW textiles in 2018. This was 7.7 percent of all MSW landfilled.”
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic retail sales are in free fall as people reallocate their spending priorities. The pandemic has caused consumers to pull back spending by two-thirds according to Refinery29. As profit continues to fall across the board, retailers are looking to ecommerce as their primary revenue stream. This, however, presents a new set of sustainability issues for the fast fashion industry.The transition to more digital shopping in response to the pandemic also means an increase in shipping, handling, and packaging that brings those items to the consumers doorstep. According to the BBC, “Returning items can effectively double the emissions from transporting your goods, and if you factor in failed collections and deliveries, that number can grow further.”
As the fast fashion industry continues to dive into a deeper hole, CEO’s are wondering how they keep business alive. A Refinery29 article states, “The bigger question for fast fashion is whether the model, which hinges on its prodigious volume to make the razor-thin margins work, will survive the pandemic.”
If they are already going to have to think about how to reshape their business because of the pandemic, why can’t they rethink their business models and encourage more sustainable consumerism?As much as people have stopped spending, they have also started caring. Caring more about who or what they are giving their money to and what those entities represent. An AdAge article about Gen Z stated, “73 percent of those it surveyed would pay more for sustainable items, with the majority of that chunk willing to pay a 10 percent price premium.”Fast fashion brands have an opportunity here to help save our planet as well drive some consumers back to opening their wallets for their products. They will need to vet their authenticity and actually follow through with affective strategies that address their sustainability issues if they hope to see the shift save them from decline. It’s time for them to authentically step up to what their consumer base is demanding more of and start to put planet over profit.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200310-sustainable-fashion-how-to-buy-clothes-good-for-the-climate
https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/04/9714553/coronavirus-effect-on-fast-fashion
https://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/generation-z-willing-pay-more-eco-friendly-products/2227101
https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/textiles-material-specific-data
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/climate/sustainable-clothing.html#:~:text=A%20separate%20study%20found%20that,of%20textile%20waste%20per%20year.
MABR Cohort Perspectives: Harry Potter and Inclusivity
on Today’s opinion piece is from Haileigh Farrell.
Silly Bandz, Webkinz and Harry Potter are just a few of the staples of my childhood. Curled up on a classroom beanbag during reading time, I would find myself getting deeper and deeper into the story.
Fast forward and Harry Potter has done it yet again, capturing the hearts of many with an exclusive line with MeUndies, an underwear, loungewear and apparel company. While some fans have eagerly ordered the five epic Potter prints, which include a unique “Mischief Managed” pattern as well as one embodying each fictional house, a more serious conversation has rose around MeUndies.
On June 6, 2020, J.K Rowling created controversy with a series of transphobic tweets. This did not stop the brand from releasing the Potter collection featured in its Fall 2020 product line. Once a champion for diversity and inclusion, MeUndies had a history of being a “friend” and an “ally” to consumers. For example, the Company celebrated Pride Month in 2017 with a Rainbow Collection that showcased influential LGBTQIA+ members and has partnered with the It Gets Better Project to further empower this community.
After receiving backlash from releasing the Potter line, MeUndies went on to issue a ten-slide carousel “apology” in an Instagram post on October 30, which read “Please know that it was never our intent to hurt or offend anyone.” Rather than pulling the line, MeUndies removed the collection from the homepage wall. Yet, the prints are still available for purchase.
User comments from some quickly responded to the post, identifying an underlying motive, profits. One comment from @ohmygodsquad read, “lol just say *shrug* we don’t care because capitalism.”
Since this decision, MeUndies has dealt with a loss of trust for many customers who now feel alienated from the brand, although they once viewed it as one who empathized with their struggles and promoted inclusivity.But, this matter of mistrust is bigger than just MeUndies. It also applies to any brand associated with Harry Potter like Warner Bros, Universal Parks and Resorts, as well as bookstore or online suppliers.
So, what’s a brand to do? Stick to its values, it’s a compass that will guide their way.
MABR cohort perspective: the luxury fashion market
on Today, Pamela Herring provides some thoughts about the luxury fashion industry.
I have always had a keen interest in the luxury market, throughout these past few months, my interest in this market has further developed into quite a passion of mine, and has quickly turned into a field that I see myself working in later in life, specifically in the lines of corporate social responsibility.
As someone who is interested in sustainability within the fashion industry, a quote that caused me to do a double take was a statement posted on vox.com, stating that “Burberry brought in $3.6 billion in revenue last year — and destroyed $36.8 million worth of its own merchandise.” (Lieber, Vox 2018) Question 1. Why? Question 2. Again… WHY?? (I hope that you feel my frustration through the screen.)
Though public outrage caused Burberry to abolish this practice, according to the article, numerous brands use this strategy and also destroy their unsold goods, too. Richemont, Nike, Louis Vuitton, Victoria’s Secret, and plenty of other well-known retailers use this same practice to “preserve [their] reputation of exclusivity”.
I do understand where these brands are coming from; if their goods are donated, they could easily be resold for less, and could cause the brand image to potentially decrease in value. However, simultaneously, these iconic, high-value companies are wasting tons of materials only to have them be shredded or burned up. It’s interesting to me that the “top of the food chain” brands are the ones that are seemingly the most wasteful, and makes me wonder what kind of unsustainable practices these brands are doing behind the scenes that perhaps aren’t known to the public.
With all of this being said, I do feel for these luxury brands and resonate with why they partake in these choices. But more so, I firmly believe that all brands have a responsibility to make the right environmental choices, which in this case would be coming up with a plan to either having some sort of second-hand system in place for their goods, or making all of their products to order. Hopefully one day I will be in a position to aid in making these choices for brands such as Burberry, and coming up with a strategy to leave a better environmental imprint within the fashion world.
Cole, Brendan. “Burberry Burns Millions of Dollars of Clothes to Stop Them from Being Sold at Discount Prices.” Newsweek, Newsweek, 19 July 2018,
www.newsweek.com/luxury-brands-prefer-burn-millions-dollars-worth-clothes-over-letting-wrong-1032088.
Jonathan Andrews Follow. “Marketing Plan for Nest Thermostats.” SlideShare, 20 Aug. 2015, www.slideshare.net/JonathanAndrews10/marketing-plan-for-nest-thermostats-51868271.
Wicker, Alden. “We Have No Idea How Bad Fashion Actually Is for the Environment.” Racked, Racked, 15 Mar. 2017, www.racked.com/2017/3/15/14842476/fashion-climate-change-environment-pollution.
MABR cohort perspectives: Meeting the Moment in uncertain times
on Today, Hannah Reinhardt shares her thoughts about meeting the moment in uncertain times.
We are amidst a pandemic, have just reached the end of one of the most polarizing presidential elections in the history of the United States, are experiencing the devasting effects of climate change, the mental health crisis has never been more pronounced, and marginalized groups are still being marginalized to unacceptable degrees. And yet, this is just the current predicament. As a society we will need to brace ourselves for the aftermath of all of these atrocities. This aftermath will be another new normal and we all will need to adapt. With the complexity, sadness and unpredictability of 2020 there is no better time for brands to ‘meet the moment’. We need brands like we need each other during this time of the looming unknown. Extending our community will enable us to collectively move together into each moment, but what we don’t need is disingenuity.
I looked up what others think ‘meeting the moment’ means and what I found was encouraging. The crucial elements of how and why individuals should and can ‘meet the [hypothetical] moment’ spoke to some of the most foundational values instilled in responsible brands. Author and founder of Sensitive Evolution Maria Hill states, “It is a place that includes all history and the unknown, a way of seeing that allows the current reality, and a way of addressing what is important, not what we want or do not want…” See for responsible brands it is not only about taking action just because it is what is expected of them, but it is more than that. It is about holding true to their purpose, their values, their goals and being so enormously confident in their identity that when the time comes to ‘meet the moment’ they don’t have to concatenate responses out of thin air to meet the demands of the current climate. These brands simply look through their metaphorical tool kits of strategy that have served them through their history and will continue to serve them as they face the unknown. Looking in from a stance where I have a rough sketch of what it truly means to be labeled as a responsible brand—it is overwhelmingly encouraging to see brands not waiting for their time to ‘meet the moment’ but rather to embody the concept of continuously ‘living in, beyond and among these moments’. Citations:Bharwani, S. (2020, June 30). Healthcare brands stand out amid sea of COVID-19 messaging. Retrieved November 14, 2020, from https://adage.com/article/AcuityAds/how-make-impression-amid-sea-covid-19-brand-messages/2264446Forman, T., & Morgan, S. (2020, August 14). What Does Brand Purpose Mean in the COVID-19 Era? Retrieved November 14, 2020, from https://www.bynder.com/en/blog/what-brand-purpose-means-in-covid-19-era/Hill, M. (2019, January 17). Meeting The Moment. Retrieved November 14, 2020, from https://sensitiveevolution.com/meeting-the-moment/
Pandemic Lessons part 1
on It seems like a lot of pundits are publishing lessons for brands from the pandemic this month. Seems a bit early given that we’re still in the midst of it, but here are a few that I learned today from an Adweek article that focused on changes to luxury purchases.
1. Blogs are back! Many brands are feeling that advertising seems to be tone deaf, and that blogs can be more authentic. Blogs can be one way to provide content that makes people feel better and informs and inspires them.
2. Perceptions of luxury have changed. People have traditionally bought luxury goods as a way to communicate their status to others. In a pandemic, that signaling stopped, and luxury good sales decreased. Now that people are thinking about purchasing luxury again, they seem to be appreciating lower price points. Maybe the ‘break’ from buying a lot of stuff has re-set our minds about the appropriate prices for things?
3. Consumers have become accustomed to ‘waiting’ for products given shortages earlier in the pandemic and with shipping time lags. The value of ‘overnight delivery’ from Amazon and other companies may be diminished.
Allbirds & Adidas to Work Together to Tackle Climate Change
on MABR grad Trevor Shott wrote this at the end of Spring term—right before life got really crazy. We’ve saved it to now. Thanks Trevor!
On Twitter last week, shoe giant Adidas and sustainable footwear brand Allbirds, made an announcement that they would be working together to create a performance shoe with the lowest carbon emissions ever. By working with one another, the two competitors are hoping to “redefine the playbook on sustainability” and show that some issues, such as our growing climate crisis, are too important to try and tackle alone.
The shoe industry produces more than 24 billion pairs of shoes annually worldwide for a population of “only” 7.8 billion people. The emissions from these shoes adds up to over 700 million metric tons of carbon dioxide every year – that’s the equivalent of powering 80,775,444 homes for an entire year. According to Allbirds, the standard shoe has a carbon footprint of 12.5 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions (CO2e) when you consider manufacturing, materials, and end of life disposal. A study by MIT shows that this number could even be closer to 30 kg. By acknowledging their industry’s large impact on our environment, Allbirds and Adidas are hoping to co-create a shoe with an output of 2 kg CO2e or less.
Currently, Allbirds has gotten their products down to an average of 7.6 kg CO2e due in large part to the innovation of their materials. They do this in part by using more sustainable and renewable resources such as merino wool, eucalyptus trees, and sugarcane. On top of their materials, Allbirds makes sure to offset any remaining carbon emissions in order to be fully carbon neutral – with the larger goal of emitting no carbon in the first place. Though Allbirds is known for their sustainability, Adidas is no stranger to earth-friendly initiatives themselves. Their Parlay collaboration turns plastic waste found in our oceans into high performance shoes. They’re also currently developing a closed-loop shoe that can be returned and remade into an entirely new shoe via their FUTURECRAFT.LOOP initiative.
Both companies are trying to do their part to reduce their impact on the environment, and James Carnes, vice president of brand strategy at Adidas, is already seeing the benefits of working together, “We’ve already realized we’re doing the right thing because we’re moving so much faster than either of us would have if we were trying to do this alone.”
While collaboration between brands is not uncommon, it’s typically done so across different markets. This unique partnership, however, will allow the two companies to combine their tools and sustainably produce shoes at scale. Allbirds cofounder Tim Brown believes this shift in perspective about competition is a necessary step for the future of our planet, “When it comes to sustainability, we don’t see ourselves competing with one another, but competing for the future.” Allbirds and Adidas are paving the way for more teamwork and collaboration between companies for the sake of our planet and should be looked at as an example for others to follow suit. We can only hope that this partnership will lead to a future that emphasizes collaboration over competition. One where companies acknowledge that a combined effort can lead to a win for not just their bottom lines, but for society as a whole.
Only time will tell how this partnership works out, but there’s no doubt that they are redefining what role businesses have in tackling social and environmental issues. On his responsibility in addressing the environmental crisis, Brown says, “Climate change is a global problem that knows no borders, will wait for no one, and will challenge everyone. It’s going to be on countries, governments, companies, and individuals to solve the problem—it’s not going to be fixed by one person. We’re all in this race together.” Seeing companies come together in this time is very encouraging, and hopefully it inspires other businesses reflect on their own practices and how they can make a difference.
For all the brands out there: Take notes. This is brand responsibility. This is the future.
Chatting with Tommy Hilfiger about a vision for a better fashion industry
on Day 2 of Fast Company’s Festival of Innovation–Innovation for Good had me (and thousands of my close friends) hearing from Tommy Hilfiger, the fashion designer.
Tommy Hilfiger is on the left, an editor for Fast Company is on the right.
Tommy Hilfiger defines American style. The brand has worked on becoming more sustainable and innovative. The pandemic and BLM led them to think about how they operate, and they realized they needed to change their strategy.
Covid at first made them change to short term thinking, focusing on associate health and well being and cash flow. The brand then changed to midterm recovery: how do they get out of crisis and build back the business? Sustainability became even more important. The brand did not slow down investment in sustainability—now they are launching a new sustainability strategy.
In September, they announced their ‘make it possible’ strategy for the next ten years. Co-creation process with 100 of associates. Circularity and inclusivity: the brand wants to be a brand that wastes nothing and welcomes all. These two pillars will drive everything they do.
• They have many new styles using organic cotton, sustainable cotton, and low impact finishing techniques.
• Tommy For Life—resale market for used Tommy Hilfiger clothes
• Washing denim pollutes ocean and lakes and streams with poison as indigo dye goes into system and hangs around. They figured out a way to wash denim without water. The denim is broken down (softened and colored) with laser treatments!
• Use fewer chemicals, water and energy in manufacturing.
• On-demand manufacturing—the goal is to have no inventory.
• Using all solar power in their plant in the Netherlands.
• 3D digital design—designs are all done on computer, not wasting time, money, logistics, emissions, materials
Tommy believes that if his company takes the lead on this, other companies will follow.
They are also focused on creating an inclusive workspace and looking after workers’ rights. Workers will have stronger voices in the company. They are also reintroducing “People’s Place”, a platform that the brand will use to bring in BIPOC to mentor them and tap into the Hilfiger network and collaborate with them.
My take–this company says the right things. It has a history of being on the cutting edge, particularly in the digital space. They have made some strides to be more sustainable, and if they can keep up the momentum and show a profit they will be a market leader in sustainability. Cotton is always a problematic fabric, so we’ll see how the continued use of that fabric affects their sustainability.
I’m not as familiar with issues of diversity and inclusion in the fashion industry—my take was that this is one of the more diverse industries but I may be wrong. I’ll do a bit more digging on this aspect and watch to see how they build a better company in this area.