The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
"Trade in Fake Goods Now Worth $461 Billion" (Reuters)
"Counterfeited and pirated goods accounted for up to 2.5 percent of world trade, or as much as $461 billion, significantly damaging companies and state coffers, said the OECD."
"Prada, Chanel, and More Big-Name Fashion Brands Called Out for Secret Supply Chains" (Vice)
"Some of the world's most popular clothing brands, including Forever 21 and Michael Kors, have been slammed by a new report for not being upfront with customers about their supply chains."
"California Minimum Wage Hike Hits L.A. Apparel Industry: 'The Exodus Has Begun'" (Los Angeles Times)
"Los Angeles firms are facing another big hurdle — California's minimum wage hitting $15 an hour by 2022 — which could spur more garment makers to exit the state."
"Is H&M Misleading Customers with All Its Talk of Sustainability?" (Quartz)
"H&M undeniably spends time and money on these programs, and has made very real strides to reduce its impact—which is much more than many other companies have done. So is it fair to take the brand to task?"
"Here's How Adidas Plans to Drastically Cut Down on Waste" (Fortune)
"The world's second largest athletic-gear maker has stopped stocking plastic water bottles for meetings, swapped plastic straws for paper ones, and at a recent global marketing meeting, reused banners to create bags that were needed for the event."
Europe’s Parliament has signed off rules that will make brands more accountable for what happens in their supply chains, ban products made with forced labour and set new environmental standards for the design and disposal of products.
Fashion’s biggest sustainable cotton certifier said it found no evidence of non-compliance at farms covered by its standard, but acknowledged weaknesses in its monitoring approach.
As they move to protect their intellectual property, big brands are coming into conflict with a growing class of up-and-coming designers working with refashioned designer gear.
The industry needs to ditch its reliance on fossil-fuel-based materials like polyester in order to meet climate targets, according to a new report from Textile Exchange.