The fashion industry is becoming increasingly fragmented. The sector has a growing number of players, which in turn increases competitiveness. For this reason, companies must, above all, assert their brand. According to a recent study by the Fashion Revolution, companies in the fashion industry need to pay attention to their brand proposition and direction, providing consumers with everything they need in a simple way.
Another important aspect to consider according to the study is transparency. In an increasingly digital environment, consumers are looking for brands that are clear, that offer a complete and defined shopping experience and that are connected with them whenever they require it.
In general, major brands provide very little information on their efforts to address overproduction, plastic use and waste, despite the urgency of the climate crisis. Only 14% of brands disclose the total amount of products they produce each year, making it difficult to understand the extent of global overproduction.
The study, therefore, calls for the imposition of stronger and better-enforced legislation to prevent human rights and environmental abuses for workers in the fashion industry and to require companies to monitor and report on the results of their efforts. And if brands fail to do so, legislation must ensure meaningful penalties and reparations for the harm caused
If a brand builds a direct and transparent relationship with the customer, it’ll gain differentiation and loyalty, which is crucial in an age where brand loyalty is rare.
The Transparency Index calls for stronger and better-enforced legislation to prevent human rights and environmental abuses for workers in the fashion industry and to require companies to monitor and report on the results of their efforts. And if brands fail to do so, legislation must ensure meaningful penalties and reparations for the harm caused.
The Transparency Index
At the top of the ranking is the Italian brand OVS which scored the highest in 2021 with 78 % (+44 % from 2020), followed by H&M with 68 %, Timberland and The North Face with 66 %, C&A and Vans with 65 %.
For the sixth consecutive year, Fashion Revolution, the international fashion activist movement fighting for greater transparency in fashion supply chains, has launched the Fashion Transparency Index.
The index analyzes and ranks 250 of the world's leading fashion brands and retailers according to their public disclosure of their human rights and environmental policies, practices and impact in their operations and supply chains.
20 major brands scored 0%, including Belle, Big Bazaar, Billabong, Celio, Elie Tahari, Fashion Nova, Heilan Home, Max Mara, Mexx, New Yorker, Quiksilver, Pepe Jeans, Roxy, Tom Ford and Tory Burch. Several companies have even dropped in the rankings, such as Wrangler, which lost 24 points between 2020 and 2021.
The Index reveals that very few major brands (only 3%) publicly disclose the number of workers laid off from their supply chains because of the coronavirus, leaving an incomplete picture of the negative socio-economic impact workers have faced throughout the pandemic. Worse, less than one-fifth (18%) of the major brands provide the percentage of full or partial cancellations of their orders.
While payments to suppliers have been delayed and less than 10% of brands publish a policy of paying suppliers within 60 days, meaning that consumers often wear and carry clothing before brands have paid the factories that made it.
Companies that Help Brands in their Transparency Efforts
Goodweave
GoodWeave International is a Nobel Prize-winning organization that offers a certification program that allows companies that pass inspection to attach a logo certifying that their product is made without child labor.
B Corporation
B Lab by the B Corporation, this certificate guarantees organizational sustainability and commits the company to voluntary compliance with high social and environmental standards, as well as commitments to transparency and impact measurement.
Better Cotton Initiative
Better Cotton Initiative is an international entity that promotes the best standards in cotton cultivation in 21 countries through the training of cotton producers. Its mission is to improve their sustainability training and quality of life for workers.