As you already know, businesses and countries around the world are looking for innovative ways to be more sustainable. One industry in particular that causes a lot of damage is the fashion industry. Many companies are using old techniques that are not adapted to be more sustainable. Nonetheless, companies are making the appropriate change which is needed to be more sustainable.
For a fashion brand to be more sustainable, there are several things they can do. However, it isn’t just the brand that needs to be more sustainable. It is also the consumer who needs to be more sustainable which is why many people are wearing old fashion trends because they are shopping in vintage stores.
Sustainable Fashion – What Is It?
Sustainable fashion is relatively easy to understand. It is when brand designs and sustainably produce clothing to ensure it is eco-friendly. It is something that many fashion brands use as their unique selling point to attract customers to their brand. To be a sustainable brand, there are a few things a brand can do. One of those is to use sustainable materials such as organic cotton, linen, bamboo linen, cork, sheep wool and many more.
The production process is something else that needs to be sustainable as well. It is something that many brands have not adapted because this is where they can lose money. Nonetheless, if they wish to be more modern, they need to adapt to the times and start producing clothes which are much more ethical. Some fashion brands use factories around the world which pay their workers less than minimum wage. Furthermore, some of these factory workers wouldn’t get a break either. They will work 12-hour days with little time to get food and water.
It may come as a surprise there are still fashion brands that are producing unethical and non-sustainable clothing. Some brands are unaware of how unethical they are as well.
Produce What Is In Demand
Something else fashion brands do is mass-produce clothing. It is known as fast fashion and ever since the days of being able to buy your clothes online, fast fashion has become very popular. Due to the pace of clothes sold online, a fashion brand will mass-produce clothing. Sometimes, this can benefit the brand and the consumer however it is not right for the planet.
If a clothing brand doesn’t manage to sell all the clothes that were produced, many materials can go to waste. According to Startups, they said around 32 billion clothes are produced each year and 64% of them end up in a landfill. Some of those could include clothes which have only been worn once but a lot of them would be brand new. Brands such as H&M and Shein are massive contributors to this number, causing many people to avoid them.
Make Production Methods Eco-Friendly
Another thing a fashion brand can do is ensure they are using eco-friendly production methods. For a fashion label to be more sustainable, you need to know how your clothing products are produced.
One eco-friendly method a brand can ensure is using sustainable materials that also require fewer materials to be produced. For example, find a production method that uses less water than your current method.
Something that is being encouraged massively in the industry is using digital textile printers. These printers are great because they eliminate the consumption of water as well as the discharge of noxious effluents and therefore, have a positive environmental impact.
Make Your Clothes More Durable
Making your clothes more sustainable is by ensuring they last longer. Additionally, some materials last much longer than others so ensure you are using those materials. For example, organic cotton is a sustainable material that would last much longer.
Communicating with your customers is essential as well. For example, they need to know how to wash their clothes properly to ensure it lasts longer. Ensure the washing instructions are in detail on the labels to reduce them ruining their clothes when they put them in the washing machine.
Embroidery is another way to ensure clothing items last longer than they usually do. Moreover, embroidery can last for decades, making it the perfect method for sustainably decorating clothing.
Commit To Circular Fashion
If you are unsure what circular fashion is, it is where clothing items are reused and the materials of those clothing products are recycled. It is something that is heavily encouraged by fashion brands at the moment.
There are a few different methods to do this; Use products produced with mono-materials, try and keep products and reuse them, encourage customers to donate/sell their products, and use sustainable materials that can be recycled.
To Conclude
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of fashion brands that are looking to be more sustainable. However, many other brands don’t have this sustainable production of clothing. It is something that many people are encouraging due to the changes the world is facing.
If you own a fashion brand and want to be more sustainable, these will be good first steps. It is a great way to ensure you are more eco-conscious and it will attract many customers to your brand.
Clothes don’t need to be more expensive when they are sustainable and money can still be made on clothing. If your brand specialises in cheap men’s hoodies or other affordable clothing, it is still possible to ensure you are affordable but using more eco-friendly methods.
