Doing Good And Making A Profit: These Apparel Companies Are Proving They Aren’t Mutually Exclusive
Sustainability is the hottest word in consumer goods right now. From compostable coffee cups to eco-friendly cosmetics, companies are touting their sustainable products, and consumers are feeling good about buying them. But for the apparel industry, sustainability is doubly important. As Lindsey Tramuta reported in the February issue of Fortune, the fashion industry has more than doubled its production output in the last 15 years as “fast fashion” has boomed in popularity. That’s adding to an already sizable problem with clothing waste: 85% of discarded apparel in the U.S. ends up in landfills even though 95% of it could be recycled, according to the Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association. And then there are issues related to production itself, from the vast amounts of water used to grow and process virgin
