What the fashion industry is doing for Earth Day

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Highlights of this Earth Day include Luluelemon rolling out its new resale programme to all US stores, and Old Navy launching The Go Greener Shop, a one-stop-shop for more sustainable styles.

Lululemon Like New
Canadian athletic apparel retailer Lululemon Athletica is expanding its recommerce programme to all US stores today (22 April) in a move supporting its goal to make 100% of its products with sustainable materials and end-of-use solutions by 2030. The nationwide expansion of Lululemon Like New, the brand’s first trade-in and resale programme, follows a successful two-state pilot last year.

Starting on Earth Day (22 April) Lululemon Like New will be available to all consumers across the US, with 100% of the programme’s profits being reinvested to support Lululemon’s commitments outlined in its Impact Agenda, including making 100% of products with sustainable materials and end-of-use solutions by 2030.

Old Navy’s The Going Greener Shop
In celebration of Earth Month, Old Navy is launching The Go Greener Shop, a one-stop-shop for more sustainable styles, furthering the brand’s commitment to making responsibly-made clothes accessible to all and at a great value.

Old Navy’s sustainability commitments are a part of Old Navy’s value platform, The Imagine Mission, which focuses on Old Navy’s efforts to be a force for good in the lives of employees, customers and the communities where the brand does business in around the world. As part of its latest sustainability commitments, Old Navy is working towards:

85% of the fibres used in clothing be more sustainable by 2025
100% of the cotton used will be Better Cotton, verified US-grown and recycled by the end of 2022
100% of denim will be made with water-saving techniques by the end of 2022
60% of polyester will come from recycled sources by 2025

CanopyStyle initiative gets new members
Primark, River Island, and Shein are among the latest fashion firms to commit to keeping ancient and endangered Forests out of the viscose supply chain. The companies have joined the CanopyStyle initiative alongside AllSaints, Target Australia, Boody, Hanky Panky, ocean+main, and Kmart Australia in a move that aligns with Earth Day (22 April) and sees them join forces with the 478 brands already signed on to CanopyStyle to save forests.

CanopyStyle is a collaborative initiative dedicated to transforming viscose supply chains away from sourcing from forests and accelerating the production of low-carbon, Next Generation Solutions like recycled-textile or agricultural residue-derived viscose.

Smartwool sock drive
Smartwool, which creates Merino wool-based socks and apparel, has relaunched its Second Cut Project, aiming to collect 400,000 old socks through the brand’s annual retail take-back event, as part of its ongoing circularity efforts. Smartwool first announced the Second Cut Project in April 2021 to help address the apparel industry’s textile waste problem, with only 12% of clothing materials recycled globally, and socks being one of the most thrown-away pieces of apparel. Last year’s sock take-back collection kept over 12,000 pounds of material out of landfills. The goal to collect 400,000 socks this year will help Smartwool create recycled yarn to use in future circular products.

“With the relaunch of our Second Cut Project, we are one step closer towards achieving our 100% circularity pledge by 2030,” says Alicia Chin, sustainability and social impact senior manager, Smartwool. “We are committed to finding innovative ways of manufacturing to limit our impact on the environment, and the Second Cut Project allows consumers to aid in our progress by visiting our retail partners to recycle their socks.”

Famous Footwear backing green spaces
Famous Footwear, one of the Caleres brands, is inviting shoppers to consider rounding up their purchase total to support the Gateway Arch Park Foundation during National Park Week and Earth Day. Famous Footwear customers will have the chance to round up in any of the nearly 900 stores around the country and online until 25 April.

“We’re fortunate to have an urban national park in our headquarters hometown and we wanted to celebrate and support that during National Park Week and Earth Day,” says Mike Edwards, president of Famous Footwear. “Gateway Arch Park Foundation does a fantastic job ensuring the Gateway Arch, its grounds, neighboring public space and attractions are a welcoming and well-supported resource for our community, visitors and our nation for generations to come. This programme is a nice complement to our ongoing eco-conscious effort as we look to create a more environmentally-friendly future, from offering more sustainable products to our packaging and shipping efforts.”

Other companies who have made sustainability announcements in the lead-up to Earth Day include fashion resale platform Vestiaire Collective which says in its inaugural impact report, almost three quarters of its customers believe shopping on the platform prevents them from buying brand-new items.

Elsewhere, German luxury fashion firm Hugo Boss is to launch a premium resale platform in the third quarter of 2022, and chemicals specialist Archroma has partnered with Stony Creek Colors, a manufacturer of traceable natural indigo dyes, to scale Stony Creek’s IndiGold high-performance plant-based pre-reduced indigo.

This week has also seen the launch of a new manifesto by the Prince of Wales’ Sustainable Markets Initiative Fashion Task Force to drive a progressive shift towards regenerative fashion. The first project under the manifesto is a EUR1m (US$1.09m) investment programme in the Himalayas to restore wildlife and sustainable farming.