Vancouver Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2021 will be held on October 24 and 25, 2020. Fashion has been undertaking a huge rethink in how it navigates itself. During COVID, most retail outlets have been shuttered especially those founded on non-essential items such as apparel, sporting goods, furniture and most anything outside of the basics. Over and above this, the climate as well as human rights are becoming tantamount issues.
Waste a Lot, Want Not
If fashion retailers weren’t proactively using online sales and marketing, they soon had to pivot their companies or fall to the wayside in the race for a shrinking global consumer. As well, over the last decade, the fast fashion industry is reluctantly coming face to face with their impacts on the environment.
The current consumer generation are making companies take notice as their buying habits shift. In 2019, Nielsen did a survey on the consumer habits. They found that younger consumers were concerned about their effect on the environment. According to the survey, 53% of those aged 21 to 34 said they’d give up a brand-name product in order to buy an environmentally friendly one, compared with 34% of those ages 50 through 64. Meanwhile in a recent European survey done on consumer trends, a majority of shoppers are concerned how their habits would affect the current COVID crisis while just over half of that number were choosing to shop locally putting less strain on the supply chain as well as supporting their local businesses.
A Pioneer in Sustainable Fashion
In a recent Amanpour & Company episode, Christian Amanpour interviewed Stella McCartney. During the interview, McCartney discusses her brand of fashion in this current era. The fashion house is about “doing more with less” says McCartney. Challenging the current standard in fashion houses, where if there is excess in a production run, it is buried or burned to maintain design integrity. However, McCartney is always striving to reach the pinnacle of sustainability. No longer considered the “eco weirdo”, McCartney reflects on how to make her vegan-friendly sustainable fashion house better. McCartney created her own fashion label using principles based on ethical consumption practices back in 2001 as she launched the self-titled fashion house with Kering, previously Gucci. Finally, in 2018, she bought out Kering’s stake in the company and took full control of the helm. In December of the same year, she collaborated with the United Nations to come up with a new fashion industry charter for climate action.
Bloomberg Philanthropies; Creating sustainable fashion to curb climate change Dec. 21, 2018
Falling in Line
Following quickly behind McCartney’s footsteps, Kering’s CEO, François-Henri Pinault, gathered together a group of fashion industry leaders to create the 2019 Fashion Pact. The coalition of companies discussed how they would proactively reduce their impact on the climate. The Fashion Pact was presented to Heads of State at the G7 Summit in Biarritz by President Emmanuel Macron. However, in the list of signatories, there are only 2 manufacturers. Meanwhile, some of the biggest impacts on the environment come from this area of its industry. At the Copenhagen Fashion Summit (CFS+) held on October 12-13, the Fashion Pact had a live panel discussion. However, they failed to establish quantifiable targets. There was also no talk about how the brands are failing the garment workers and suppliers during this global pandemic. One of the panel speakers, Paul Polman, says things need to be “pushed as aggressively as possible” although “the industry alone cannot enact the change needed,” referencing governments and policymakers about the other aspects of the industry.
Reframing Fashion
Determined to make change happen, grassroots fashion retailers and designers are revisioning their industry from the ground up. Many of the sustainable and ethical fashion innovators are local grassroots businesses. Of course, this should be to no surprise but what is surprising is the holistic nature to which they approach their business. Each company chooses a focus and envelops it with complete fervor. For example, the Girlfriend Collective prides itself on its transparency. The collective produces sustainable, ethically made activewear that also focuses on inclusive sizing. The materials include recycled plastic bottles and recycled fishing nets. Meanwhile, the manufacturing is performed in an SA8000-certified factory that guarantees fair wages, safe and healthy conditions for employees, and absolutely no child labor. Learn the specific details on their “about” page.
Another local design collective with similar aspirations will be presenting their designs at the upcoming Vancouver Fashion Week. Faun Studios of Calgary, AB manufactures sustainably and ethically in the designer’s mother’s home country of Vietnam. Marisa P. Clark, the designer of Faun Studio, also launched BOCCA imports. Likewise, this passion project donates 100% of the proceeds to her mother’s charity, B.T. Mekong Education Association, that supports education in rural Vietnam. It appears our current generation is paving the path for all to follow. For more information on other conscientious fashion, choices check out the Arcadia Blog feature “10 Sustainable Clothing Companies.”