InterviewLooking at the entire fashion system and how to incorporate the consumer.

Kate Fletcher is a true pioneer of sustainable fashion. Having started research in the field more than 15 years ago, she is the mind behind the concept of Slow Fashion, and always at the forefront of innovation through directional sustainability projects. A prolific author, she has just published her latest book, co-authored with Lynda Grose called Fashion & Sustainability-Design For Change.

The book was launched in London last week, at the Carnaby Book Exchange, with an introduction by Dilys Wiliams, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Fashion (London College of Fashion), and in conversation with Patrick Laine, Director of Corporate Partnerships, WWF-UK.

EcoSalon had the chance to have a chat with Kate Fletcher during this occasion, to talk about the book and the solutions she presents in it – to create a new fashion system that recognizes sustainability as a fundamental element.

Who is your book aimed at? Who is the target audience, and who is the message for?

Its audience is the design community, but by design community I mean something extremely broad and inclusive. Not just the professionals who have been to design school, but everyone who is trying to change things, in a direction where they see a positive effect. So all of those who are engaging with issues in the area of sustainability. The ambition of the book is to show people a whole diversity of innovations and opportunities around fashion and sustainability, because too often things are framed as “eco-efficiency” opportunities, while that is only just the first step on a very complex journey.

You said you want to create a shift from “adding sustainability to fashion as it currently works” to transforming fashion practices at their core. Do you believe this can evolve from the current situation where a niche movement is trying to take on the whole of the industry?  How else do you think the issue should be tackled?

I think it’s important to be speaking to the mainstream sector, it’s important to be showing them what they can do today, and how they can begin to transform their business, but at the moment that’s what’s happening largely alone, and I don’t think that can’t happen alone. And if a big company doesn’t increment that with a broader vision, you end up always reiterating the same things that have been done in the past.
The problem as I see it, is that we can’t get to sustainability by extrapolating from where we are today, because this is just building in the shortcomings and the problems of the current business models. So we must dream up something as a positive step, ask ourselves “what do we want? What’s a healthy sector like?” And if we can start building from that perspective, then inherently we won’t have the problems that we have today.

Still with regards to the big fashion companies, both high-street retailers and luxury conglomerates: what’s your opinion about their efforts to incorporate sustainability? Do you think their approach is truly felt, or do you see them as token gestures to avoid criticism, and spurred by the fact that sustainability can sell?

I think it is meant and felt, but a lot of people in the industry are deluding themselves that what they’re doing is worthwhile and enough. So a lot of people are still perpetuating the same model, but they substitute one fibre with another, or try to build a more transparent supply chain… Certainly with some of the luxury sector there are some shameful practices that are going on, and blatant greenwashing and bandwagon-jumping. This doesn’t mean that they’re not sincere, but they’re certainly misguided, and that’s the problem.

Author Kate Fletcher with Patrick Laine at her recent book launch

In the UK, recently three TV programs have been aired, showing the efforts of companies that are trying to bring manufacturing back to Britain. Do you think going back to local manufacturing is feasible, is it achievable?

There is evidence this is already happening, even though the move has been driven by economic factors rather than sustainability reasons. There is every reason to ride that wave, as it is going in the same direction that we want, and we should use that energy. Also, “Made in the UK” is not the solution to all problems, firstly because at the moment there’s a major skills gap, and we don’t have a skilled enough workforce to make products the way we want them; and also because in many developing countries a lot of people depend on the manufacturing jobs created by our demands. But I think there is an opportunity there for us to think what we want our sector to be, and try to strike a balance between the two realities. From my personal perspective however, I see localism as a cornerstone idea within sustainability.

You have an important role as an academic, within the CFS at LCF. A lot of universities now offer sustainable fashion courses, forming the designers of tomorrow. But what about the consumer of tomorrow? What do we need to do to engage the young generations, and how do we communicate sustainability to them?

If all we do, like we’re still doing today, is get them to choose between two different products on a shelf, then I don’t think we’re doing the right thing. Part of the problem is that we’re casting people in a very simple way as consumers vs. producers. I think we need to think of what they are in a very different way: as part of the whole process, as engaged persons, who take responsibility, who ask their own questions. Therefore I wouldn’t even talk about them as “consumers,” but rather as “citizens,” as people who are in the system with us, and make their choices part of their lifestyle. Perhaps that’s where the real change lies.

One thing I would really suggest to all users of clothes to do, would be to go through their wardrobes and try to remember why they bought each garment, consider what they liked about it and the reason why they chose it. So that they can be reminded of the garment itself, assess its current potential to be worn again, styled with something else, and develop more awareness of what’s already in our wardrobes. We are so overwhelmed by the shopping options out there, and we need to take a moment and re-engage with what we already have.

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The Copenhagen Fashion Summit for 2012 tackles the future of sustainable fashion.

With initiatives aplenty directed at minimizing the impact of the fashion industry and to making it more sustainable, what is needed is probably a truly official and international effort to bring the most relevant ones together, and give them global resonance. Enter the Copenhagen Fashion Summit, a one-day event filled with the most prominent and prolific movers and shakers gathering to exchange knowledge and plans of action.

The outcome of the event was the actual presentation of a major initiative, highlighting a growing commitment of government bodies and major industry players alike, towards the creation of a truly sustainable future for fashion. The Copenhagen Fashion Summit was the platform for the launch of the first-ever sector-specific global initiative, the NICE Code of Conduct and Manual, under the Global Compact Programme.

NICE stands for Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical, a joint commitment by the Nordic Fashion Association and its partners, to take a lead on social and environmental issues.
NICE has worked to create a framework for engaging consumers in sustainable consumption of fashion, which was recently handed over to the Danish EU Presidency and the European Commission. The framework will also be presented at the UN conference Rio+20 negotiations in June.

The Code of Conduct was developed as a multi-stakeholder effort, developed in close consultation with industry representatives, and the UN Global Compact Office. The objective? To take inspiration from the Compact Office’s 10 principles, but to also integrate them with more sector-specific content. The result is a 16-principle document that aims to assist fashion and textile manufacturers to ensure continuous improvement toward ethical and sustainable practices – a milestone in the evolvement of the future fashion industry that many want to see.

But what’s also remarkable and innovative about the NICE initiative, is that it doesn’t only address major industry players in a closed-loop, industry-only discourse. Mainly, it aims to highlight the consumer’s key role, and strives to create guidelines for the industry to educate the users towards a more responsible consumption of fashion.

This issue was indeed the subject of a Pre-Summit, which took place on May 2nd, ahead of the main event. Around 100 professionals, already involved with creating a better future for fashion, were invited to create an interactive workshop, going by the tagline of “Breathing Life into the NICE Consumer.”

Cody Sisco, BSR

The two-fold purpose for the gathering was to discuss NICE’s “Framework for achieving sustainable fashion consumption through collaboration,” as well as to devise practical ways to put the framework into action, by integrating suggestions from summit participant.

The subject of the relationship between industry and the consumer was approached from a multitude of angles. From designing for sustainable consumption, to engagement with consumers on responsible care and disposal of garments, and from awareness raising and consumer education to business model innovation. Facilitators such as Anne Prahl of WGSN, Holly Dublin of PPR (the holding behind major brands such as Stella McCartney and Puma), Allanna McAspurn of Made-By, Johan Ward of H&M, Orsola De Castro of From Somewhere, Kate Fletcher, author of Slow Fashion, Giordano Capuano of Vivienne Westwood and Lucy Siegle of The Guardian, among others.

But then again, the true impact of the event could truly be felt on the main day of the conference. Held at the beautiful venue of the Copenhagen Opera House, this saw more than a thousand industry and press attend, from 27 different countries.
And the line-up of speakers was utterly impressive – in NICE’s own words: “from Gucci to Greenpeace.” Once again, a wide range of perspectives were presented, from the luxury industry to the mass market, from trend analysis to statistics, from the next designer generation to NGO and policy level.

Certainly a nice touch and a breath of hope were brought on stage by the 100 students that took part in the Youth Summit. Arriving from 16 European design and business schools, they drew up a range of specific demands and recommendations on what the fashion leaders should be doing now to shape the industry they will one day be taking over. It was a moment which felt very true, with the students remarks sounding very aware and not at all naïve in their vision of the future.

After such an intense day, a touch of real fashion glamor was added to conclude the day in style, with a proper catwalk show, which was held outdoors, in front of the Opera House.
Naturally, a lot of thought had been put into this moment too. Not just a generic runway show, but one generated from a Design Challenge thrown at 15 Nordic fashion houses, whose test was to demonstrate once more what standards can be achieved through the use of sustainable textiles. And prove it they did.
The designers were provided with the highest quality fabrics by C.L.A.S.S. (Creativity, Lifestyle and Sustainable Synergy), the leading platform for sustainable textile sourcing and innovation, which promote materials such as Ingeo and Newlife (the new patent  recently used by Giorgio Armani to produce the Oscars gown for Livia Firth to wear during her ongoing Green Carpet Challenge, now in its third year).

designers were also allowed to incorporate cut-offs, leftover and recycled fabrics in their creations. The result was a truly creative catwalk, which would have been perfectly apt for any of the major international fashion weeks.
The challenge was won by Susanne Rützou, and the prize presented to her by supermodel Erin O’Connor, who graced the catwalk with her understated presence, and reaffirmed her support for a sustainable fashion industry.

Here are some of our favorite looks from the runway:

Baum und Pferdgarten

Hanna Petursdottir

Nanso

Ivana Helsinki

Marimekko

Mika Modiggård

Asta Creative Clothing

Nolan

Camilla Norrback

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