Majority of UK fashion shoppers switch, avoid or boycott brands because of their environmental policies, says consultants at Kantar

Sustainability and social responsibility are of paramount importance 

to today’s modern shoppers.

Brazilian denim specialist VICUNHA TEXTIL has brought in denim guru Adriano Goldschmied (who has established a number of brands including Diesel and Replay) to help develop a denim fabric that saves up to 95% water and up to 90% chemicals in its production. As it is made of recycled pre-consumer denim, additional dyeing is not necessary. The special character of the fabric is down to the indigo of the original material, which is shredded and turned into a new fabric. With its authentic and unique appearance, ABSOLUT ECO offers an innovative alternative to reusing denim waste without the need for further dyeing. Items from the ABSOLUT ECO line are barely washed or not washed at all. They can be used directly for ready-to-wear, without any other chemicals having to be used.  

New consumer research published this week by Kantar, a leading data, insights and consulting firm, reveals that over three-quarters (76%) of UK fashion shoppers have, in the last 12 months, switched, avoided or boycotted buying certain fashion labels, or would consider doing so in the future, based on brands’ environmental policies.

Kantar questioned over 1,200 UK consumers between the ages of 16 and 65+ about their concern over a range of environmental issues, their purchasing decisions based on a brand’s sustainability credentials, environmental responsibility and whether, as a consumer, they had ever decided to boycott buying a product or switch to another brand based on its environmental reputation.

Brand loyalty is lowest among the youngest age group of 16-24 year-olds with 83% saying they have switched or might do so, with more males (22%) switching or boycotting brands than females (16%).

Responses differ considerably among generations too, with over a third (35%) of Millennials saying they have avoided buying, or decided to choose a different brand over the last 12 months, compared to only 8% of Baby Boomers. However almost half (49%) of this generation of 55-65+ year-olds indicated that while they hadn’t switched or boycotted brands in the last year because of their environmental credentials, they might consider doing so in the future – the highest among all age groups.

Harsh working conditions, environmental pollution and the overuse of packaging are some of the issues consumers think carefully about before purchasing clothes.

Much more work needs to be done by the fashion industry when it comes to publicising the positive work it is doing to address the environmental problems resulting from the throw-away, ‘fast fashion’ culture we live in today, say 72% of consumers. This sentiment is high across all regions (>69%) with more shoppers in Greater London (76%) agreeing. Only 13% consider this issue unimportant.

Mark Chamberlain, managing director of Brand, Kantar UK said: “Responsible living is being driven by cross-generational groups of ‘woke’ consumers that look towards inspiring brand heroes as change leaders. Governments and organisations are being forced to listen and respond to consumers’ demands for greater transparency as businesses strive to become more purposeful.”

Almost 90% of respondents surveyed agree that brands need to take more responsibility for the waste they produce and the impact it this has on our environment. This sentiment was high across all age groups (>82%) but highest among those aged 65 and over (92%). Three-quarters of shoppers agree that, due to inaction from many of the world’s governments, they want brands to act as forces for positive change in our society. However, when questioned about their response, over 70% of all consumers agreed that efforts by businesses to protect the environment are ‘too little, too late’, with younger generations of Millennials agreeing most with this statement (78%).

Sustainability the focus of Smart Creations during Première Vision Paris trade fair September 17 - 19

At the upcoming edition of the Première Vision Paris trade fair for professionals in the textile and fibres industries, which is due to take place September 17-19 at Parc des Expositions in north Paris, sustainability, interweaving creativity with technology will be a major focus at the Smart Creation Area.

Clothing with "smart" qualities featured at  Première Vision Paris

February 2019 edition.

Photo by Lucia Carpio.

Among the exhibitors this September, premium stretch fibre company ROICA™, by leading material innovator Asahi Kasei of Japan, will be showcasing their ultimate hyper-performative yarns such as the certified ROICA Eco-Smart™ Family.


“The ROICA Eco-Smart™ Family is the result of the innovation process marrying the company’s  inquiring mind of innovativeness and sustainability with brands and designers’ growing demand for responsible materials.” Comments Shinichiro Haga, Senior Executive Manager - ROICA™ Division. 
“The new premium stretch is synonymous of transformation: from standard to speciality, from basic to special, from ordinary to clever and from standard to Smart.”

"Closed" jeans made with

Candiani ReLast

containing sustainable  Roica (TM)

Today ROICA™, and especially ROICA EcoSmart™, is the premium secret ingredient enhancing fashion-led collections, including the German denim brand Closed, founded in 1978, which is totally handmade in Italy.

Closed selected the new amazing Candiani ReLast line, the range of market fresh responsible denim products whose objective is to introduce a 100% transformed innovative solution. The partnership between ROICA™ and Candiani generated uses a very special ROICA™ yarn realized only for Candiani. A premium stretch yarn that is boasting a GRS (Global Recycled Standard) version 4 certification, thanks to its high percentage of recycled content and appropriated process of transformation.

Another brand using Roica's sustainable yarns is un-sanctioned™, an innovation-driven performance running apparel brand newly launched in September, 2019; founded on the belief that it’s time for running to give back to the environment all runners take so much joy from.  In partnership with Miti-Spa, un-sanctioned™ has developed and launched with two initial sustainable performance running fabrics called [ BottleKnit™ ] — a 100% recycled polyester made from plastic bottles. And [ WasteKnit™] — a 100% upcycled polyamide made from industrial waste blended with ROICA™ EF yarn for uncompromising smart stretch performance. 

The ROICA Eco-Smart™ family offers two responsibly-made yarns with outstanding stretch performances that give free rein to designers’ creativity and guarantees the highest quality while complying to the most-cutting edge sustainable standards: • Yarns that are ROICA™ EF– GRS (Global Recycled Standard) certified - is made with 58% of pre-consumer recycled content.  GRS guarantees its sustainable mission with a certification by the influential Textile Exchange*, one of the most known and recognized global players in the market. 

• Meanwhile the ROICA™ V550   which breaks down without releasing harmful substance under the testing environment according to Hohenstein Environmental Compatibility certification. Made and engineered by Asahi Kasei R&D team, and produced in ROICA™'s German plant only, the yarn offers additional and relevant circular economy advantages linked to material health as proved by a Gold Level Material Health Certificate by the Cradle to Cradle Product Innovation Institute for a safe and biological end of life cycle.  

Recycled Cashmere and Velvet from recycled polyester for H&M’s new Conscious Exclusive Collection

This autumn, H&M is launching its debut Conscious Exclusive A/W 2018 collection showcasing a range of sustainable fabrics, including recycled cashmere and velvet made from recycled polyester.  The Conscious Exclusive A/W 2018 is available online 

from 27 September on hm.com.

Inspired by a lost fragment of an ancient tapestry, the collection merges the life and journey of lost historical artefacts with the latest in sustainable fabric innovation, proposing dramatic yet romantic silhouettes and a modern edge.

“The Autumn/Winter collection of Conscious Exclusive started with a desire to create a statement coat in a sustainable material that could be worn for both those special occasions and day-to-day life, but then evolved into something more substantial by merging the journey of historical artefacts with a modern design sensibility,” says Ann-Sofie Johansson, Creative Advisor at H&M.

"Fabrics in this collection, like recycled cashmere, the new velvet made from recycled polyester as well as the use of leftover ECONYL® from the previous collection.  In addition, organic silks and cottons are used.  The quality and textures not only complement the designs but highlight the fabric innovation that H&M is closely involved with. The velvet, for instance, has taken years to develop in order to create a high enough calibre that we were happy with,”  says Cecilia Brännsten, Environmental Sustainability Manager at H&M group.

In addition to women’s ready-to-wear, the range includes lingerie, shoes and accessories that balance drama with sophistication, allowing the modern pieces to be worn for party season, but also for more laidback yet luxurious-feeling days.

Key items include a sweeping full-length black coat with an oversized collar and striking waist-high side slits made from a recycled wool blend, and an all-over sequinned flower jacket made from recycled PET bottles, while the long printed dress with voluminous sleeves and deep v back in 100% organic silk will also turn heads.

Overall, the colour palette consists of black, off-white, dusty rose pink, mustard yellow, dusty blues and a touch of light grey.

Accessories include sculptural earrings made from recycled plastic, black sock booties made from recycled polyester and slingback stilettos with ribbons made from recycled polyester and TENCEL™, a large printed scarf with long fringes in a TENCEL™ blend, a black shoulder piece with recycled velvet circles attached to long ribbons and a black sequinned hoodie.

Fashion and Sportswear brands take urgent action to utilise recycled material waste

SEAQUAL ™ changes plastic waste to filament yarns.
Photo © Lucia Carpio 2018

There is no time to wait and see with the critical problem we are facing on this planet after many years of not realising the damage that plastics, despite their amazing range of usefulness, have contributed to polluting our environment, our oceans, our cities, our countryside, and affecting the health of all living beings, ourselves, our nature and our wildlife.

The BBC nature programme Blue Planet II had driven the message hard and highlighted the immense urgency we are facing in one of their critically-acclaimed programmes hosted by nature guru and UK national treasure David Attenborough.

One shocking fact we have learned is that less than 50% of the 480 billion plastic bottles sold in 2016 were collected for recycling. It is indeed a responsibility of all of us to take action and tackle this irreversible global crisis.

Sundried sportswear made from
recycled plastics.

While politicians, activists and environmental agencies are reportedly taking action plans to promote recycling and minimising waste, many companies and brands are giving new lease of life to recycled plastic bottles by turning the waste into new ethical and environmental friendly products.

One such company is activewear brand Sundried whose sportswear range is made from 100% recycled materials including plastic bottles.

While helping to clean up the global excess of plastic bottles which would otherwise take thousands or even millions of years to decompose naturally Sundried are also reducing harmful emissions and water waste used to create new textiles.

Sundried was founded by personal trainer and triathlete Daniel Puddick. His goal was to create a brand that his children would be proud to be associated with in years to come.

Puddick says: "Being a parent makes you think about the bigger picture for the world, so business for me now is more than just creating a financially successful brand."

From the ten-piece pilot collection launched in 2016, Puddick has grown Sundried in size and together with his small team of designers have created sportswear made from recycled materials whilst ensuring a low carbon footprint.

Sundried activewear made from recycled materials
including coffee waste.

Sundried founder Puddick adds: "Creating collections made from recycled plastic bottles and recycled coffee waste has been a really exciting part of this journey and we are continuing to research the best, ethically-sourced materials available."

Fashioned from Nature exhibition - Victoria and Albert Museum, London until January 27 2019.
Photo © by Lucia Carpio 2018.

Of course Sundried is just one of many brands and designers who are all too aware of the plastic crisis and material waste.  Designs by the likes of Nike, Calvin Klein and Stella McCartney are on show among fashion specimens highlighting the close relationship between fashion and the environment at the Fashioned from Nature exhibition currently on at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London.  Forming an important of the exhibition is the forcus on practices in the fashion industry that threaten people, the lives and the environment.  Running until January 27 2019, this is billed as the first UK exhibition to explore the complex relationship between fashion and nature over the last few centuries, from 1600 to the present day.

Recognising that urgent action is required quickly to tackle marine plastics pollution, a Spanish company of textile fibres has recently unveiled its commitments to initiate a new eco-friendly yarns called SEAQUAL ™ filament yarn made out of plastic waste retrieved from the ocean.

Seaqual 4U was founded in 2016 to tackle marine pollution with as a starting point the recovery of plastic waste collected in the oceans and recycling them into a range of continuous and discontinuous yarns.

Its ingenious plan is to dredge then upcycle plastics from the bottom of the sea and turn them into fibres and yarns.  The company partners with some 400 fishing boats off Spanish coasts that help it to collect the plastic waste.

The company has thus set up a virtuous chain involving various stakeholders in the textile industry including spinners, weavers and brands. 

SEAQUAL ™  fibres is a real catalyst engaging the entire textile industry and thus inspire consumers to buy products made of sustainable fabrics made from recycled plastics.

New innovations from SEAQUAL ™ will include exclusive yarns in staple fibres for blending with other fibres such as recycled cotton, Tencel ® , viscose, wool, linen and will be available as both continuous and discontinuous versions in their natural ecru shade or dyed into different colours. 

Weekend Max Mara presents Monochrome with a twist - using a special yarn.

Weekend Max Mara is known for its high quality fashion designs for the contemporary woman and a recent project sees them moving to new platform with the use of a special yarn that is made of recycled plastic bottles.

The new Weekend MaX Mara Spring/Summer 2014 collection features an oversize herringbone check that gives a directional edge to the range of Monochrome looks, a key trend for this season.  What's more interesting is that the range is made of a special Italian-made hi-tech fabric, using a recycled yarn called NewLife™ .

This is part of a special project of the brand that underlines the constant commitment of the Group in the search

of new and best performing raw materials, as part of the creative process.

The use of NewLife™ is significant because this yarn is obtained by converting recycled plastic bottles in Italy and transformed into a polymer spun into yarns by means of a 100% Made in Italy mechanical rather than through a chemical process.

The manufacturing process is highly innovative, fully traceable, entirely mechanical and the Made in Italy label means the quality is impeccable.  The special yarn allows considerable savings in water and energy resources and a significant reduction of carbon dioxide emissions.

Being responsible to the environment and society, the group Max Mara also has installed 11,000 solar panels

for the production of eco-friendly electricity.

Sustainability, quality and attention to fashion blend in this cutting-edge style project by Max Mara Weekend,

which proudly stems from 100% Italian research.

About Newlife™
Newlife™  combines fashion with innovation, combining 30 years of textile expertise of Saluzzo Yarns to create a completely new kind of yarn 100% made in Italy.
It is created using a High Tech Conversion Model that transforms 100% traceable post-consumer plastic bottles into an unrivaled high tech quality polymer while generating considerable savings in water -94%, energy consumption -60% and carbon emissions -32% as per Life Cycle Assessment conducted by ICEA. Newlife™ is also GRS certified by Textile Exchange and is certified by Oekotex.
The Newlife™ yarns platform comes in a wide range of counts with multiple functional performances offering incredibly different choices in terms of applications in textile productions: fashion, casual wear, lingerie, outdoor, luggage, workwear, sportswear, labels, ribbons, automotive, home textiles and outdoor furnishing. The Newlife™ yarn range allows the creation of fabrics and garments that comply to sustainability requirements.