How Can Fast Fashion Brands Slow Down And Do A Good Job Of "Sustainable Fashion"?

The fashion industry has signed a fashion environmental protection agreement, used renewable materials, implemented a recycling scheme for old clothes, and launched a series of environmentally friendly products, aiming at the trend of "environmental protection has become a lifestyle" and constantly refreshing the "green marketing" strategy. But how can "green marketing" be sincere and effective, not just marketing gimmicks? Can fashion brands, especially the "fast fashion" brand known for its "fast fashion, fashionable and high consumption", really do a good job of "sustainable fashion" solutions?

The "organic cotton" planting pilot project was carried out in Binzhou, Shandong, and 300 cotton farmers were supported to transform from traditional cotton to organic cotton. The Dutch fast fashion brand C&A, which was founded in 1841, is trying to deepen the "sustainable strategy" of localization in the Chinese market.

The sustainable development report will be released regularly every year in Shanghai, showing the source of raw material procurement, disclosing the brand's greenhouse gas and water "footprint", and publishing highly transparent supply chain information. Since 2016, C&A has held "Green New Fashion" activities worldwide every year.

According to the Survey Report on Chinese Fashion Consumption previously released by Huali Zhi, 28.7% of the post-80s and post-90s high-end consumers will pay more attention to the brand, or even have a good impression, because the brand pays attention to social responsibilities such as environmental protection.

The "sustainable strategy" of C&A is not only to win more popularity for the brand, but also to really contribute "green change" to the whole industry. Recently, Huali Zhi interviewed Jeffrey Hogue, the global chief sustainable development officer of C&A exclusively. In his opinion, the biggest challenge facing the world at present is how to create an environment for non-traditional cooperation, so that all brands can work together to cope with the main impact in the collective value chain. He emphasized that "it is not enough to rely on the brand alone, and only joint efforts can bring more changes."

In recent years, fabric innovation has always been one of the most eye-catching environmental protection campaigns in the fashion industry. C&A China focuses on "environmentally friendly cotton" in the fabric field. In the process of planting organic cotton, the use of toxic and non degradable synthetic agricultural chemicals and the planting of genetically modified seeds will be completely prohibited. Therefore, organic cotton is relatively green and safe for both ecological environment and producers and users.

In 2005, C&A joined the Textile Exchange and began to advocate the green clothing industry chain in many countries and regions around the world. Since 2012, C&A has always been the world's leading purchaser of organic cotton.

Promote recyclable fashion trends

How to effectively implement "sustainable fashion" instead of simply establishing a "sense of environmental ethics" is a topic that many fashion brands have been thinking about and exploring.

According to the 2017 Global Sustainable Development Report released by C&A and C&A Foundation, as of 2017, C&A has launched more than 1.3 million pieces of Cradle to Cradle (C2C) Certified to the global market ™ Clothing, and maintain the most sustainable fashion series in the market at present. And C&A promises that by 2020, two-thirds of C&A's procurement materials will be more sustainable materials.

"Localization" to practice sustainable projects

C&A's concept of "sustainable development" is also reflected in its adherence to "localization". The fashion industry is a multi chain operation system. The localized production of environmentally friendly raw materials can not only benefit the local economy and the natural environment, but also reduce the carbon emissions of transnational transportation.

C&A vigorously promotes the localized planting of organic cotton in China, which can not only meet the brand's demand for environmentally friendly raw materials, but also enable more Chinese cotton farmers to become growers of green raw materials and pass on the concept of sustainable development to more producers.

In 2018, C&A China held the "80's retro theme - C&A environmental cotton product design contest", with the theme of "green new fashion", calling on more designers to carry out creative design for the graphic patterns of environmental cotton products (T-shirts, environmental bags) for C&A China.

For example, C&A has been educating its team members on green environmental protection construction, organizing them to study planting and picking cotton in Shandong Binzhou Organic Cotton Base, and talking with farm workers to make each team member realize that "I" is related to the practice of sustainable development.

In recent years, in the "Wear the change green new fashion" environmental protection activity, C&A has passed on the meaning and concept behind environmental protection products to Chinese consumers, helping them form the concept of "sustainable fashion", becoming conscious and rational consumers, not only blindly buying new clothes and caring about styles, but also paying more attention to "who, where and how" clothes are produced.

How can fast fashion companies do a good job in "sustainable fashion"? C&A's strategy sounds simple - to produce sustainable products, adhere to sustainable supply chain, and influence sustainable life, there is no shortcut, and it requires time, patience and cooperation. Sometimes, slowing down may be the "fastest speed" to reach the goal.

Huali Zhi: In 2016, C&A launched the first green, new fashion and environmental protection activity Wear the change. In 2018, C&A launched this activity in China. So far, what achievements and feedback have been obtained from this activity?

　　Jeffrey Hogue：# WearTheChange green new fashion # activity is very popular in China. We are glad to see that Chinese consumers can closely link this activity with the C&A brand. So far, we have invited consumers to participate in a series of high-quality # WearTheChange green new fashion # activities. We believe that these activities can effectively promote the brand's sustainable products, and at the same time, convey our global commitment to sustainable development.

Hua Lizhi: According to the traditional view, fast fashion is not a real sustainable development industry. For example, fast fashion industry often emphasizes the speed of updating, resulting in a surge of waste products. What kind of sustainable development plan do you think the fast fashion industry needs? Do you see any sustainable fashion solutions you appreciate?

Jeffrey Hogue: At present, the trend of sustainable development in the fashion industry is approaching the peak. Most international brands, including C&A, focus on the above challenges and use powerful resources to deal with them. At C&A, we believe that we can create a cycle model to keep the raw materials and fibers of products in an eternal flow - this is our "Cradle to Cradle" scheme. The fashion products bred from this model can benefit the future life of consumers - we promise to use only non-toxic materials in the manufacturing process, which will also have a positive impact on the environment and society.

Huali Zhi: There will be some conflicts between sustainable fashion and commercial market, or enterprises need to make some sacrifices. From this point of view, what kind of experience or mechanism does C&A have to ensure a good balance between adhering to sustainable fashion and commercial operation? Is there any relevant assessment mechanism to promote the brand to implement sustainable fashion in terms of enterprise management, operation, organizational structure, etc?

Jeffrey Hogue: We have different views on this issue. When we started the journey of organic cotton certification, we decided not to shift the cost of organic cotton to consumers. This decision has enabled our consumers to have a broader understanding of organic agriculture and its benefits. In 2005, C&A was one of the only international brands selling organic cotton at super value retail prices in the world. From 2005 to 2018, the total number of products certified by C&A organic cotton increased from 1 million to more than 140 million. This is a good example of how enterprises should stick to their beliefs and maintain their consistent practices of sustainable development in the face of challenges, so as to open up a larger market for organic cotton and enhance the awareness of the brand's efforts in the sustainable field.

Huali Zhi: We learned that in terms of fabric research and development and innovation, C&A will launch a series of environmentally friendly fabric products every year, and launch a pilot project of organic cotton planting in Shandong, China. Did C&A meet some challenges and accumulate some experience in the process of project initiation and implementation?

Jeffrey Hogue: Compared with traditional cotton, the planting yield of organic cotton is relatively low, and farmers initially have concerns about the planting of organic cotton. We have made positive efforts in this regard. The most important thing is to create a real case to make them believe that C&A can guarantee their economic benefits and ensure that the organic cotton they grow will be purchased. After several harvest seasons, farmers found that they could really benefit from planting organic cotton. At the same time, the green raw materials they planted would eventually be made into products and sold to Chinese consumers. They are proud to be producers of organic cotton and a part of sustainable development.

Hua Lizhi: For C&A, what is the core and primary strategy in implementing sustainable development, from design to raw material procurement, from production to store operation? What is the biggest challenge for China? The Chinese market is a market that needs to be tackled most for sustainable development. Is there a specific target for the Chinese market?

Jeffrey Hogue: In order to control the influence of raw materials in our value chain, we have formulated a comprehensive strategy, which has three pillars: sustainable products, sustainable supply and sustainable life. In each pillar of the strategy, we have set targets for its impact areas, and monitor and measure progress through online sustainable development reports. We are a global company, so we will comprehensively review the strategies of major retail markets and purchasing countries, including China. At present, the biggest challenge facing the world is how to create an environment for non-traditional cooperation, so that all brands can work together to cope with the main impact in the collective value chain. We believe that the strength of the brand alone is not enough, and only joint efforts can bring more changes.

Huali Zhi: To promote sustainable fashion, the brand side needs to cooperate with manufacturers and fabric manufacturers. In what ways do you think the brand side can influence and promote the sustainable development of other links in the supply chain? Such as design, fabric purchase, partner inspection, etc.

Jeffrey Hogue: As I said earlier, brand collaboration is the key to creating systematic changes in the industry. At present, C&A cooperates in many fields, including the "Fashion Cycle Initiative" and the "Minimum Living Wage Bill Initiative" jointly launched by Ellen MacArthur Foundation, as well as the industry collective concerned with supply chain repair and capacity building.

Hua Lizhi: According to the report released by Hualizhi, young consumers in China will be willing to choose those brands with more social responsibility. According to your observation, what changes have taken place in Chinese consumers' consumption preferences and environmental awareness in recent years?

Jeffrey Hogue: Every year, we conduct research on the sustainable development of consumers, and the results are consistent with your findings. Chinese consumers have a strong sense of sustainability, especially focusing on healthy life and air quality. However, we also see that few consumers can say which Chinese fashion brand is the most sustainable, which also provides an opportunity for domestic and foreign brands to encourage them to enhance interaction with Chinese consumers on sustainable development.

Huali Zhi: As a Dutch brand with 178 years of history and six generations of inheritance, what is the key to maintaining vitality? In your opinion, what is the most important point in the company culture?

Jeffrey Hogue: We can provide targeted products and services to consumers in different markets. Therefore, we regard ourselves as an international retailer, not just a brand in a certain country. The company's culture can be continued and kept alive because of our stable traditions and values. C&A is a company that can measure the sustainable development of generations. It encourages employees to participate actively and also establishes a bond between consumers and brands.