Before investing your time to build a sustainable fashion brand, one must understand what sustainability means. People often assume sustainable and ethical fashion to be the same, but in reality, they both are different.
Where ethical fashion refers to the wellbeing of people and animals involved in the development and manufacturing process, sustainable fashion refers to the wellbeing of the plant.
By going through the following step, you can reflect on the sustainability challenges fashion brands can face and the steps they can take to overcome them.
- Understanding why sustainability makes a difference
There are a number of reasons why sustainability matters in fashion. Considering the norms that could help a business sustain, the business can provide a financial boost by spotting and eradicating inefficiencies throughout the supply chain.
Along with boosting the business’s financial status, sustainability can also help the business build a stronger relationship with conscious consumers.
- Considering the areas where one can improve the sustainability
Having understood the sustainability goals, brands should consider key areas where they can improve their sustainability. and the likely changes to have the biggest impact.
For instance, by implementing a 3D dressing room solution, brands can augment a number of sustainable processes. By inducing a design stage through customer data, the brand can curate just the replica of the gown you wanted. It reduces the need for wasteful samples as the designed dress would fit the best on them.
- Focusing on the whole business and not just clothes
Sustainable business isn’t worked on by focusing on the final product. Rather, it demands an overall effort on every step of the process, from design to buying raw materials, manufacturing, transportation, storage, and sales.
Hence, business owners should develop sustainable supply chains that abate inefficiencies and lean on environmentally friendly substances and techniques rather than focusing on product development.
Using modern technologies like 3D dressing rooms, brands can refine their supply chains, minimizing waste during the design, manufacturing, and inventory planning stages.
- Listening and addressing consumers
Fashion markets are among those top industries that experience the most purchase returns. With almost 50% of purchase return, poor fit and style are often the main cause. Such experiences often compel the consumer to change its value which mounts to waste problems for the brand.
According to GWI, durability is the biggest sustainability concern for consumers. Highlighting their desire by reducing harmful chemicals during the manufacturing process can help the brand stay afloat.
- Teamwork to create sustainable dream work
The fashion industry contributes around 10% to global emissions. Hence it must work together to find solutions that could reduce its impact. Working with like-minded brands is suggested, but the industry should also be encouraged to seek help from other industries such as technology.
Technologies like machine learning, AI-supported 3D dressing rooms, etc., can foster commercial growth and sustainable development.
Conclusion
Learning how to put up with a sustainable business is a complex process. But acquiring the requisite knowledge can drastically change things.
