The 10.5 million ton opportunity — how clothing brands can turn waste into opportunity
When we think of waste, we tend to think of single-use straws, forgotten leftovers, or plastic packaging, but it’s easy to forget about the 10.5 million tons of clothing that end up in US landfills every year.
When it comes to waste created through the fashion and clothing industry, both brands and consumers share the blame. But, with a rising interest from consumers to reduce waste, brands and other organizations are looking to join the conversation and provide solutions.
Patagonia’s realized opportunity through waste-reduction
Through their work in creating new clothes out of everything from scrap wool to recycled plastic bottles(Synchilla), Patagonia leads the way in recycling and upcycling used clothing. The company’s initiative, Worn Wear, creates a whole second-hand market of discounted Patagonia clothing that the company buys back from the customer, repairs, and sells again at a discounted price.
Reselling repaired garments allows Patagonia to tap into another demographic of customers that are more likely to shop for reduced-cost rather than full-priced clothing. While cutting back on waste, the initiative also gives the company a new stream of revenue without the cost of purchasing new material, assembling it into clothing, and shipping it across the world.
Why fast-fashion is on board with waste-reduction
Joining Patagonia, H&M launched a program that allows customers to drop off any unwanted textile from any brand. What H&M doesn’t sell to second-hand stores, it recycles into everything from rags and home insulation to new yarn, thread, and entirely new garments. H&M even collects and recycles the dust created through the process and claims that 99% of collected clothing ends up reused, recycled, or re-worn.
If waste reduction can make it in NYC, it can make it anywhere
And, if there’s any hope of change, it comes from the heart of the fashion industry — New York City. There, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, an organization focused on developing a circular economy, created partnerships with several entities, including the NYC Department of Sanitation, the NYC Economic Develop Corporation, and a handful of fashion businesses to address garment waste. Through a city-wide social media campaign, the coalition informed New Yorkers on where they could find any one of the 1,000 dropoff locations for used clothing throughout the city.
For all their innovation, have these organizations eliminated textile waste?
No. Not even close.
Why future retail innovation means waste-reduction
In order to bring recycling programs up to scale industry wide, other companies need to get on board. But, with consumer awareness and the demand for less waste and recycled clothing increasing, companies willing to go the extra mile stand to gain.
Take Patagonia again as an example, whose customers willingly pay way well above average prices for products made to last and produced sustainably. Concern over the cost of recycling clothes is valid, but companies looking to protect the bottom line might also realize that wasted material equates to wasted money.
Innovation is a hallmark of the fashion industry & waste-reduction continues that
The fashion industry prides itself on design and innovation. It’s time to apply those same principles to designing recyclable clothes and recycling systems that cut waste and save money on raw materials.
If other companies follow Patagonia and H&M’s footsteps by adopting waste-reduction practices, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation estimates the industry could save as much as 100 billion dollars every year — hardly pocket change for any industry, even the 3 trillion dollar fashion industry.
What can brands do to reduce waste, meet consumer demand, and save money on raw material?
- Promote, incentivize, and increase easy access to garment recycling programs.
- Partner with organizations in the fashion industry to bring recycling programs up to scale.
- Design garments that are compostable and easy to recycle.
- Explore less toxic options for dying clothes — a process that leads to massive water waste.
- Encourage repair and reuse among consumers.
- Lead by example through the adoption of practices that create less waste and recycle more of it.
- Experiment with new materials — like organic cotton and recycled insulation — that demand fewer raw and finite materials to produce. Greater adoption means less cost in the end.
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The above piece was written by Connor Beck in collaboration with Carter Jensen and the Latitude research team.
Other Supporting Resources —
- New Line of Clothing Made From Almost 100% Recycled Material
- H&M’s Sustainable Activewear Incorporates Recycled Fabrics
- Patagonia.com/company-info
- TED: 3 creative ways to fix fashion’s waste problem
- Fashion Industry Waste Statistics
- Seriously, stop throwing away your old clothes
- EPA: Facts and Figures about Materials, Waste and Recycling
- World Recycle Week — What Happens Next?
Resources and original reporting of the above points covered by the following publications— PSFK.com, Fast Company, TED Talks, Edge, H&M, Patagonia, WornWear.patagonia.com
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