The fashion industry of today can affect and create major changes in the world. As an industry, this power to be heard and affect changes can be beneficial for the entire planet. The future of the fashion industry, too, is filled with innovations in materials, breakthroughs in chemical textile and textile recycling technologies.
Customers, especially millennials, are becoming more risk-averse when it comes to spending their money. They generally spend more carefully than previous generations. However, when they do spend, there are some emerging patterns that favour sustainable brands. These consumers prefer to spend their money on brands that preach pro-social messages, apply sustainable manufacturing practices and exercise ethical business standards.
Answering The Customer Call For Sustainability
Customers are not shying away from spending more on brands that promise and deliver on their sustainability vows. A new survey by Bain & Company said 52% of consumers in urban India expect to increase spending on sustainable brands in the next three years. Furthermore, according to Nielsen’s 2015 Global Corporate Sustainability Report, 66% of consumers would spend more on a product if it came from a sustainable brand.
Due to a diabolical amount of damage imposed by the single-use plastic monster, consumers are consciously drifting away from companies embroiled in conventional methods of packaging that are heavily dependent on the use of single-use plastic. This has created a branch of new-age packaging companies that are deliberately steering away from traditional packaging processes by adopting sustainable and planet-friendly ways to do the same. It has become clear that sustainable, simple, and eco-friendly are necessary keywords for the future.
Sustainability A Key Aspect Of The Retail Industry
A number of retailing powerhouses like Target, for instance, have ordained the use of sustainable and eco-friendly methods of packaging for every brand featured under their roof. These steps have not only been lauded by present-day customers but also a number of brands that vend their offerings across Target showrooms. This is evident, as since declaring its uncompromising shift towards sustainability, the retail company has witnessed a steep surge in their annual revenue from 69.5 billion in 2017 to $75.36 billion in 2019.
Brands Want Your Fashion Discards By Offering Discounts
Hennes and Mauritz AB say it has a solution to tight cotton supplies and the piles of old garments choking landfills worldwide: convince consumers to recycle cast-offs by offering discounts on yet more clothing. For every plastic bag of clothing collected in Sweden, H&M gives the donor a 50 kronor ($7.80) discount on purchases of 300 kronor at its shops.
Moreover, The H&M Conscious Exclusive collections are recurring fashion collections at the forefront of H&M’s sustainability work. The collections aim to move H&M’s fashion and sustainability development and innovation forward towards a sustainable fashion future. Made from sustainable materials, the collections offer their design team an opportunity to experiment with new, interesting sustainable materials.
Optimal Packing Can Help Companies Save A Ton
Sustainable packaging methods ensure a surge in overall sustainability levels when it comes to manufacturing, operations and the supply chain. The leading home goods retailer brand IKEA has been instrumental in deploying sustainable packaging across 50% of its entire product line which led them to save a whopping 1.2 million Euros every year. As a large brand, the company believes that with great power comes great responsibility that involves embracing a people and planet-oriented approach that is also conducive to business operations.
Sustainable Goes Beyond Green
More companies are addressing social issues in their environmental sustainability programs as they realise how interlocked the two are. Therefore, a number of sustainable brands across India and the world are changing the name of the game by adopting planet-friendly and plastic-free ways of packaging. This is not only great for business and consumer experience but will also extend a fortuitous and much-needed respite for mother earth, hitherto ravaged by the forces of pollution. The greatest awareness brands must make is that sustainability goes beyond caring for the environment.
