The global fashion industry is believed to be responsible for a tenth of the world's annual carbon emissions. HUGO BOSS said in a statement that its new targets meet the highest standards and that it will ensure it plays its part in preventing the worst impacts of climate change.
As such, the working group aims to create a shared strategy, developed in collaboration with suppliers and other end-user companies. Regarding energy use in manufacturing, Hugo Boss is part of the UNFCC working group on this topic. The company states that its scope 3 targets, which is indirect emissions, can only be achieved if partners are involved in the strategy process and are empowered to make their own contribution to reduction.
On its website, HUGO BOSS stresses that the fashion and textile industries have many challenges in terms of sustainability these days. It is important to reflect that the textile industry has always been a pioneering industry. It has been offering a low-barrier entry point for industrialisation and thus for economic and social prosperity and, as a pioneer in the industry, the configuration on the ground is also very prevalent.
For example, with regard to the systems and processes used, the industry has not changed drastically since then, so this is the situation today. The textile industry is still a rather fragmented industry that started only a few years ago to build platforms and collaborate pre-competitively, mainly as a result of the realisation that sustainable challenges need to be addressed collaboratively.
Working with the Science-Based Targets Initiative
The German luxury fashion house divulged its new targets that include a goal to reduce emissions from its operations by 51% by 2030, with the help of the Science-Based Targets Initiative.
In 2018, the company signed the UN Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Change, along with 44 other companies. The Charter obliged signatories to chart a path towards net zero emissions by 2050, with an interim goal of reducing operational emissions by 30% by 2030.
However, HUGO BOSS' new targets go beyond the Charter's intermediate pledge and will see Scope 1 (direct) and Scope 2 (energy-related) emissions halved by 2030, compared to the 2018 baseline.
According to the company's latest sustainability report, its Scope 1 and 2 emissions were collectively 24% lower in 2019 than in 2018, due to investments in on-site renewable energy generation, renewable electricity procurement and energy efficiency technologies. The year also saw HUGO BOSS consolidate and optimise its logistics processes.
The brand is also targeting a 30% reduction in its Scope 3 emissions in the same timeframe. Scope 3 emissions account for more than 90% of the company's total emissions footprint, with the bulk related to raw materials and energy use in the manufacturing process.
In terms of raw materials, HUGO BOSS has committed to using only sustainably certified cotton through the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) by 2025 and is part of industry working groups on viscose and polyester supply chains, linked to deforestation and oil industry pollution respectively. It is also a member of the Leather Working Group (LWG) and aims to certify 100% of its leather within five years.