"Carbon" In The Garment Industry Leads To The Future: Sustainable Fabrics May Become A Breakthrough In The Industry

The sustainable transformation of the clothing industry has become a must topic from the bonus item of the "examination paper" of the industry development.

In 2023, SMCP, a French luxury fashion group with Sandro, Maje and other brands, announced that it would stop using feathers and down and move towards a sustainable fashion of "zero animal cruelty". Similarly, Prada, GUCCI, Chanel and other more than 1500 global brands and many well-known designers are prohibited from using fur and other animal materials in their product lines. Coincidentally, French luxury brands Herm è s, Balenciaga and other new products made of "mushroom mycelium" fabric.

As the "wind vane" of the clothing industry, luxury brands' initiatives have made "sustainable transformation" the "mainstream" in the clothing industry.

It is noteworthy that it is no coincidence that many enterprises attach great importance to the R&D and promotion of "sustainable fabric" products. The application of sustainable fabrics may become the key to the sustainable upgrading of clothing brands.

Climate Crisis Expands Sustainable Fabrics as a Breakthrough

The expansion of the climate crisis has become one of the major risks facing the clothing industry.

According to Business Fashion (BoF) and The State of Fashion 2024 report released by the famous consulting company McKinsey, the high frequency of extreme weather related events in 2023 means that the climate crisis is more urgent than in previous years, and also makes the fashion industry more vulnerable.

The sustainable transformation of the clothing industry is not only an obligatory response to the climate crisis, but also a timely adjustment to consumers' increasingly strong environmental awareness. In this context, the application and promotion of sustainable fabrics has undoubtedly become a key breakthrough to promote low-carbon emission reduction and green future of the industry.

It is reported that the emission intensity of organic cotton production is about 50% lower than that of conventional cotton; The emission intensity of rPET (recycled polyethylene terephthalate) is about 40% lower than that of conventional polyester by adopting material recovery and closed-loop production methods; With the closed-loop production method, the emission of plain fibers of sustainable man-made fibers such as Modal fibers and Lyocell fibers is about 50% of that of traditional fibers.

It can be seen that the application of sustainable fabrics not only effectively reduces carbon emissions in the upstream of production, but also points out a new path for the low-carbon transformation of the clothing industry from raw material collection, processing, dyeing, clothing to logistics transportation.

Taking the application of sustainable fabrics by domestic garment enterprises as an example, the leisure light outdoor brand BENLAI (originally) launched by the parent company FMG Group of URBAN REVIVO has reached deep, long-term and stable cooperation with well-known environmental friendly fabric suppliers at home and abroad, applying advanced performance technology and sustainable fabrics. Especially in the raw material end, recycled cellulose fiber, recycled polyester, 3M cotton containing recycled fiber, etc. are selected. Such raw materials have the advantages of renewable, environmental protection, low carbon, etc., which is conducive to reducing the burden on the environment.

Also like the RE launched by Jiangnan Cloth Group; RE; RE; LAB brands also use animal friendly fabrics, which apply the naturally shed yak hair raw materials of natural breeding yaks in Tibet. At the same time, they also use sustainable fabrics, such as 100% recycled polyester as warp material, which is produced through waterless weaving to minimize the use of water resources.

The landing application of sustainable fabrics in the brand makes the application scenario of sustainable fabrics more clear.

　　 Cost is difficult to control Sustainable fabrics still need to achieve market leapfrogging

Although the low-carbon emission reduction effect of sustainable fabrics is immediate, due to the gradual progress of fabric research and development and the lack of awareness of the consumer market, the sustainable development of fabrics still faces many problems.

According to McKinsey's "Fashion on Climate" report, taking textiles as an example, at present, less than 1% of textile waste is recycled for new products. In addition, in terms of the current market share, the proportion of sustainable goods in the clothing industry is still low, and many brands still have great room for improvement in the research, development and application of sustainable fabrics.

In addition, cost is also a major reason that restricts the wide application of sustainable fabrics.

Affected by the cost, most sustainable fabrics are still concentrated on the conceptual application of high-end brands, and the price of sustainable items is generally high, and the technology and quality control are not yet mature. Moreover, the upstream and downstream interests of the industry, such as fur farming and other unsustainable and environmentally unfriendly traditional industries, cannot be eliminated and transformed overnight.

The wide application of sustainable fabrics still needs the long-term efforts of upstream and downstream enterprises in the apparel industry chain to achieve the leap from niche markets to mainstream markets. Nevertheless, according to the observation of brand practice, the cost problem in fabric application has shown positive signs of gradual resolution.

First of all, from the perspective of the overall consumer market environment, the application scenario of sustainable fabrics and the market performance of sustainable brands are very optimistic. "Although the brand was just launched in March this year, we can see that the feedback of the consumer market on the brand's investment in sustainable fashion is very positive, and the product sales have also achieved good results." RE; RE; RE; LAB brand leader said so. Similarly, the person in charge of BENLAI (originally) brand also pointed out: "At present, the overall market has positive feedback on the brand's investment in sustainable fashion. BENLAI (originally) has 15 offline stores in China and continues to expand to the global market."

Secondly, progress in processing technology is also reducing the cost of sustainable fabrics. For example, the intervention of 3D printing and other technologies makes small batch personalized production possible, and consumers will have more choices.

In addition, the recycling rate of storage resources of some enterprises has gradually increased, which has better controlled the cost of sustainable fabrics. In the past, due to the design effect, cost and other considerations of clothing brands, some sampled fabrics were ultimately not used in product production, but stored in warehouses. Now, with the introduction of new technology, these new and high-quality fabrics are used efficiently, reducing the waste of resources.

At present, for many brands, the application of sustainable fabrics is no longer limited to the level of data quantification and concept, but to explore at the practical level, to enter the mainstream market through sustainable fabrics, and to achieve a win-win situation between long-term brand management and social responsibility practice. (Wen Zhouang)

(Source: Xinhuanet)