Some interesting findings from our data analysts.
As you all know, this is something we really care about at Dressipi. We wanted to see whether customers or retailers are driving the shift towards more sustainable fashion and sustainably sourced materials.
It is definitely true that retailers are leading the charge. It was great to see H&M join the Green Consumption Pledge and fantastic to see Next and Gymshark join the circular fashion partnership seeking to achieve a long-term, scalable transition to a circular fashion system.
And certainly retailers are making an effort to produce more products in sustainable fabrics.
The chart here shows the % of products produced in sustainable fabrics rising from 33% in March 2020 to 45% in June 2021.
We have always been concerned that despite all the rhetoric, there is a big disconnect between what the consumer says they care about versus how they spend their money. There are small signs that this is changing though (hopefully).
In Mintel’s UK Womenswear Report from May 2021, surveying women’s priorities when buying clothes, 30% of women thought environmentally friendly / sustainable brands were more important compared to 12 months ago.
And data shows that taking into account that there are more sustainable products available, the consumer is 3% more likely to buy those products made from sustainable materials than they were 12 months ago. Hopefully, a sign in the right direction.
