The Future of Circular Fashion Will Require a Conscious Effort

With waste accumulation in the fashion industry hitting record numbers, the fashion industry is responsible for 8% of global CO² emissions. Thanks to the modern phenomenon of fast fashion, less than 1% of recycled textiles are made into new, wearable garments, and the rest ending up in landfills. 92 million tonnes of textile waste ends up in landfills every year, causing environmental issues such as the generation of greenhouse gases and the release of chemicals into the land and groundwater. Circular Fashion - What is it? In regards to reducing its environmental footprint, the industry has finally come to realize that less is more. A sure-fire way for fashion to make less of an impact on the planet is by scaling circular business models. This is done by adopting strategies that reduce waste by making more efficient use of resources. Circularity intends to indeed revolutionize the entire industry by including the use of reusing, recycling, regenerating natural systems, and eliminating waste and pollution. Raw materials are fed back into the system once they reach the “end of life” stage of the product's life cycle. Brands that implement circular methods select eco-conscious materials so that they can be recycled. This keeps products circulating at their highest value and makes use of the full life cycle of garments. The Challenges of Scaling Circularity The value of circular systems radically differs from that of linear systems. A single garment can create value over and over again - through, sale, resale, rental, being repaired, refurbished, recycled, and so on. Thus, this increase in value has prompted several industry leaders to get involved in starting the loop over. Shopping resale app Depop has seen a 300% increase in items sold during the Covid-19 pandemic, which demonstrates a rising consumer demand for pre-owned purchases. However, there are three obstacles to achieving circularity at scale. Firstly, value assessment needs to be based on recyclability. When garments have a high level of recyclability, product value stays at a high level for a more significant amount of time. Unfortunately, many garments are made from a mix of materials, which renders recycling rather difficult. Brands can demand relatively high prices for well-refurbished products, due to many clothes ending up stained, stretched, or marked when disposed of. Secondly, a complex web of logistics is essential in order to enable circularity. Most resale transactions are peer-to-peer, meaning that individuals decide whether the resale value is worth the time and work cost to wash, photograph, package, and send the garment. For example, the rental model requires the economics to make good business sense, with the key challenges of logistics, as well as laundry and delivery. Finally, it is necessary to overcome stigmas when it comes to circularity to effectively engage consumers. Although the idea of circularity is winning among consumer groups, it’s still a generally abstract concept to most. Terms like recycle, upcycle and repair still have negative connotations. However, consumers are willing to return their clothing items with the incentive of a refund or in exchange for another item. What Companies Can Do to Scale Circularity Companies that want to integrate circularity into their business should design for zero waste. This requires channels where the limited-edition product concept is accepted, and that color scheme supports an idiosyncratic design. Effective designs can be achieved this way, but they may not be suitable for conventional merchandising or stock-supported wholesale business models. Companies should invest in test alternative materials to work out the kinks of a circular system. Reducing production waste radically can ultimately train and incentivize suppliers to reduce and reuse their fiber, chemicals, and also packaging. Design teams will need to be reskilled and retrained, to encourage and foment circular design innovation. In addition, fashion companies have to create momentum by collaborating with other brands and develop innovative tools. Conclusion Ultimately, the zero-waste design calls for the innovation of materials and products. Due to increasing concerns about textile waste and its toll on the environment, circularity is on its way to becoming one of the key business trades in the next decade. Fashion companies, brands, customers, and all participants in the value chain need to collaborate to make a real joint effort. We can’t wait for a few world leaders to step in while the rest of us watch. Players that highlight sustainability as one of its core values have also been at the forefront of circular practices, along with some established luxury brands like Stella McCartney. Looking forward, we would hope to expect mass-market, commercial brands to also scale their efforts. As consumers become more concerned with sustainability, circularity is the missing piece of the puzzle for brands to really make a difference.