Sustainability Pulse #24
Sustainability Trends & News Worth Exploring — February 7th, 2022
In China, Spending on Luxury Goods Increased by $20 Billion Last Year
The nation's luxury spending has nearly doubled since the start of the pandemic.
The coronavirus pandemic continues to rage on but that hasn't slowed the Chinese luxury market at all.
Last year saw the country's personal luxury market grow by a whopping 36 percent, according to a new report from Bain & Company (h/t Barrons). Thanks to this boom in spending, China's share of the world's luxury market is now bigger than before the pandemic started.
How Luxury Brands Are Making Money In The Metaverse
In the new frontier of the metaverse – a persistent, shared virtual world that users can access through different devices and platforms – avatars are everything. And that means some users will pay big bucks to outfit their avatar with luxury goods.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg expects this niche to be big in the metaverse. Zuckerberg says, "Avatars will be as common as profile pictures today, but instead of a static image, they're going to be living 3D representations of you, your expressions, your gestures that are going to make interactions much richer than anything that's possible online today.
2022 Predictions: 4 ways retail customer engagement is poised for change
In times like these, when change is rapid and constant, correctly anticipating the future can be a huge strategic advantage in retail customer experience.
So, what does the road ahead hold? Making predictions is always a risky business, but it's worth it. When change is rapid and constant, correctly anticipating the future can be a huge strategic advantage in times like these.
1. Hyper-personalization will officially arrive
2. Retailers will embrace cloud-based digital contact centers
3. Automation will transform agent experiences, not just customer ones
4. Retailers will step up fraud prevention, now that the CX cost has dropped
How Luxury Fashion Brands Are Changing The Reputation Of The Industry Through Eco-Friendly Practices
It's no secret that Fashion is the most wasteful and non-eco-friendly industry, from its use of over 1,000 different chemical types in textile production to water waste- it is an industry with a lot to answer for when it comes to the well-being of the earth. Every year, over 100 billion items are produced worldwide, and 3 out of 5 of these items end up in landfills within 12 months of their production.
Because fashion brands are purveyors of creativity that drive Fashion and design, they are ethical companies to sell sustainable Fashion to their customers. While they may not be at the top of fashion sustainability indexes- Loro Piana, Dior, Ermenegildo Zegna, Valentino, Chanel, and Salvatore Ferragamo are striving to be sustainable luxury fashion brands with each collection they produce:
6 Black-Owned Sustainable Fashion Brands to Shop Online
We're shopping Black-owned vegan businesses this February, and what better way to kick off the month than with clickable purchases that support ethical style! So whether you're searching for swimwear and tees, or shoes and bags, you'll find what you need from these six Black-owned sustainable fashion brands.
Sustainable & Ethical Asian-Owned Fashion Brands
Professionals in the fashion industry have organised, spoke up, and raised awareness about racist bullying against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI).
Below, we have put together a roundup of ethical and sustainable Asian fashion businesses for you to support, not just because the Asian-American experience is under the spotlight but because you deserve a chance to explore the fascinating, ancient wisdom that harmonizes Fashion with nature.
Industry Leaders Declare Climate, Social Emergency With New Grassroots Movement
The new collective is led by Farfetch's Tom Berry and People Tree founder Safia Minney and has support from Ganni, Patagonia, Pangaia and more.
LONDON — Fashion industry executives join forces to launch a new grassroots movement, dubbed Fashion Declares.
This new collective aims straightforward: to declare a "climate, ecological and social emergency" and help accelerate the changes that need to take place in what they call "one of the most polluting and unjust sectors in the world."
Leading the group is Safia Minney, founder of one of the first sustainable labels, People Tree, and Tom Berry, Farfetch's global director of sustainable business.
Sustainable Fashion: How Individual Actions Can Make a Big Impact
In response to the growing climate crisis, Cornell students and researchers have jumped on the global trend of sustainable Fashion with studies on earth-friendly materials and dedicated academic programs.
In the first days of 2022, New York became the country's first state to require big-name brands to provide logistical information about the production of their pieces, such as the volume of recycled material used, through the Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act.
Under this rule, brands like Nike will be subject to fines of up to 2 per cent of its revenue of $450 million or more if legislation isn't adhered to.
The same national and state urgency behind Fashion's role in science can be seen at the University as well. Cornell's focus on the interface of Fashion and humanity drew fashion design management major Mia Bachrack '25 to the University in the first place.
"What really drew me to the school is its heavy science arm and its focus on sustainability," Bachrack said.
An interview with Shannon O’Hara
Founder Agent Reclaim.
Upcycled leather handbags and accessories.
Each Agent Reclaim bag/accessory carries a story through its seams.
Aastha: What is the origin of the word ‘Agent’?
Shannon: I have always loved the word ‘Agent’ and have used it in all my past brands. For me, this word denotes a conduit for something, an agent of change.
My first line was called ‘Agent Honey’. It was a bra with pockets, a true utility piece. Pockets built into the wings for a credit card, money bills and in the centre gore for lipstick, à la Jane Mansfield. I also crafted a line of leather handbags, under the same name, again with a utility function in mind. After my first child was born I saw a need for beautiful eco friendly safe products that could be used by both baby and parents. Agent Mommy was born with a line of large mats made from vintage textiles and a series of accessories that appealed to both babes and their folks. I have always focused on innovation and function in my designs.
Aastha: What made you dive into sustainability?
Shannon: I guess being the middle child I got used to wearing hand-me-downs from my sister and she turned me onto shopping at our local Sally Ann thrift store for cool duds. We were never much for the malls and this was way before fast fashion became a thing. My first awakening of sorts came from reading Overdressed, Elizabeth Cline’s first book which uncovers the dirty truths of cheap disposable fashion. I later joined a nonprofit called Fashion Takes Action focused on the advancement of sustainable fashion through education and awareness. I began teaching their curriculum which explores the damages of the fast fashion industry on the environment and social justice to classrooms in my spare time. I believe education is the key to empowering consumers to make better choices. Teaching children about how clothes are made and how it impacts the people (often children their age) and planet is a powerful way to encourage that child to influence their parents to purchase with as conscience. Learning to shop your closet (or your friend’s) buy second hand, support brands that are transparent about who makes their clothes and look to solution driven makers is a sound way to lessen your foot print and practice a more ethical relationship with fashion and the planet.
Aastha: When did you start Agent Reclaim?
Shannon: Back in 2010, a friend came to me with a well-worn pair of leather pants, which were somewhat beyond repair, but the leather was gorgeous. I had already been working with leather skins for my designs, and took these pants apart to made a bag and fell in love with the transformative process of upcycling. Agent Reclaim was born! I started with an Etsy shop and did a bunch of retail. I reached out to a leather brand in Canada who had a lot of returned damaged inventory and thought to help them manage this waste. It resulted in a lovely collaboration of a few capsule collections, which sold out in their stores in two weeks nationwide.
Aastha: What were the challenges with this collection?
Shannon: It takes roughly 5-8 hours to make a bag from deconstructing the garment to the final finished product and no two items are the same as the origin garment is different so scaling this model is challenging. I prefer custom, made to order and consulting with brands to find solutions for their waste. I am working on developing a platform to link those brands with upcyclers who can make use of their waste. I enjoy working with the individual client who, in some cases will offer their own heirloom leather jacket or garment to be upcycled. There is often a beautiful story about that person who wore that piece. I am honored to be given a chance to reclaim it into to something that can be worn, in a different form for many more years to come.
Aastha: What do you think is the future of fashion?
Shannon: The future of fashion is small independent change makers who are not only innovative in their designs but solution focused to manage textile waste. No brand will be able to survive without a solution for the waste they create. It’s refreshing to see more and more big brands working towards more transparency and better solutions, whether its resale, repair, remake/upcycling or innovating with circular models it’s a step in the right direction but it needs to go further and be adopted across the board. Regulations against bad practices and liability will need to be put in place, not just reporting.
As an independent Upcycle Maker I aim to be fully circular in my designs and manufacturing and believe we can be a zero-waste business, doing good for fashion and the planet.
Shannon lives in Mississauga, Canada, with her husband, two kids and their dog Maggs.
You can find her work on her Etsy shop and follow her on Instagram to check out her fantastic work.
P.S. Want to get more out of your downtime?
Reply to this email with any questions you have regarding sustainability, shopping, books, activities, or more, and we may answer it in an upcoming experimental email series
(sign up here!)