Sustainability is an undercurrent of the 80th session of the United Nations, and with that in mind, “Fashion’s Role in a Global Circular Economy” was explored on Sept. 23.
Organized by the United Nations Fashion and Lifestyle Network, the event started with welcoming remarks from its cofounder Kerry Bannigan, who is also president of the board of the PVBLIC Foundation and who noted that the network unites more than 380 members across 139 countries “demonstrating that even in turbulent times collaboration across borders and sectors is possible.”
The average American throws out more than 81.5 pounds of clothing each year, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. And many of those items are only worn seven to 10 times before they get the heave-ho. But panelists seemed to be more keen about mapping out ways the fashion industry and consumers can be proactive about circularity rather than reactive to extreme waste.
The talk featured the panelists Samina Virk, North America chief executive officer for the Vestiaire Collective; Sarah Teresinski, founder of Redeux Style, and Mara Hoffman, designer and artist.
Acknowledging how the fashion industry has been operating on the model of buying things, using them and then throwing then out, Lindita Xhaferi-Salihu, sectoral engagement lead for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate, spoke of the importance of understanding the science and data behind circularity, as well as whether the solutions being applied are the right ones. “There are lots of different companies that are looking at circularity, and how they can switch to new business models, trying and testing things, investing in new solutions. The problem that we’re seeing is the scale,” said Xhaferi-Salihu, adding that talking with policy makers is essential, too. Joan Kennedy of the Business of Fashion moderated the discussion.
Hoffman spoke of deciding to put her sustainable collection on pause last year. From her viewpoint, “we’re in a broken system. Of course, we’re running up against scale and financing the choices that we wanted to make, and policy [issues.]” Emphasizing the need for a positive outlook about circularity in fashion, the designer said clothes need to be designed with a longer lifespan in mind, as well as to ensure they will be loved (and held onto) by consumers. Prioritizing materials to ensure they are recycled, regenerative and/or organic is also needed, as well as offering buyback programs, she said.
For designers, the challenge is, “How do you start thinking about end-of-life at the very beginning [of the design process]” Hoffman said.
Recalling how Vestiaire’s global secondhand luxury fashion platform was started 16 years ago in Paris, Virk spoke of its pillars of fashion curation, trust through authentication, community building and sustainability. She encouraged intentional purchasing, choosing investment pieces and considering a garment’s potential resale value. Archive sales, closet sales and influencers all help to bring Vestiaire to life for consumers, she said.
Giving a few examples of Vestiaire’s successful outreach, Virk pointed to its ban on select brands, which are primarily fast-fashion ones, for not measuring up sustainability-wise.
The company also has highlighted how 92 million tons of textile waste are produced annually and it created another campaign to use a cost-per-wear metric. Through social media, Vestiaire broadens access to current season offerings versus consumers “just buying what’s new,” she said.
Having started sewing and launched Redeux Kids years ago as a single mother, Teresinski said she did so out of necessity. Later with sustainable practices in mind, she renamed her company Redeux Style to encourage upcycling and encompass a wider audience. “Fast fashion is right alongside fast furniture. I just did my daughter’s college freshman room. I thought, ‘Wow, there’s a lot that won’t last and that will be trashed,” she said.
The impetus for Redeux Style was to teach people how to create beautiful moments in their lives to be more sustainable. That could be a matter of making sure that you thrift an outfit or being more conscientious of all the little decisions that consumers make each week such as using a recyclable bag instead of a plastic one for grocery shopping. Those seemingly small choices can collectively lead to a lot, she said. Teresinski’s ability to offer hacks to consumers, such as using the blades from a ceiling fan as wall hooks, is one way she is spreading the word about upcycling through her social media.
Xhaferi-Salihu suggested that the fashion industry can really lead the conversation about circularity from many angles, primarily by bringing the renewable energy of fashion creativity to prompt more people to consider, “What would the fashion industry of the future look like to make us want things that are more sustainable?”