COMMUNICATION: CONSUMER EDUCATION AND TRANSPARENCY
Castellano, North Sails:
The most important aspect of sustainability is knowledge. Only when people are informed and have options to choose from, then we can say we have reached our objective. We are investing most of our marketing budget into awareness of plastic pollution, creating sustainability-related communication campaigns.
Turner, Vicunha:
Sustainability is an overused word, especially in marketing: it infers a lot and can mean so little. For example, a mill can state that it has reduced its water consumption by 30%, but the question is what is the figure that it is 30% less than? And is that water coming from a sustainable source? It would be more accurate to measure water consumption in liters used to make 1 meter of fabric; and it would be better to have transparency of water use throughout the chain […]
Lanowy, Alberto:
In the food sector, we have orientation labels or seals, so that the customer can make a well-considered purchase decision. But in the fashion industry there are so many aspects – how does the end consumer orient himself? The biggest sustainability aspect in our society is that everyone wants everything at the lowest price. But there are no sustainable jeans for 19 EUR. Of course, there has to be a rethinking of society, but communication must be honest and authentic.
Breitfeld, 360 Public Relations:
Just the idea of writing a sentence including the words fashion and sustainability seems like a contradiction in itself. Yes, sustainability has become fashionable, but sustainable fashion?... Could supporting a fairly produced, ecological piece “spark more joy” – as cleaning expert Marie Kondo would say – than a less sustainable counterpart? Yes. We need to explain to the consumer why we do what we do and make them part of the process. Be honest, adapt your sources; if necessary, raise your prices and provide an open calculation. Make them part of the journey, explain your choices and, most importantly, get into a dialogue if you want to stay in the game.
Testino:
Governments push the industry with their regulations, but no one is telling consumers, actual leaders of the industry's practices, what to do or choose. If the demand for clothes increases, the industry's offer will also increase to cover those requests (requests that of course imply economic opportunities for manufacturers, brands, etc.). We need to reverse that. Start again.
Chervinska, Sustainable Fashion Pad:
For me, the most important moment of sustainability begins with work with the consumer and his/her education. By bringing to consumers information about the dangers of production and the disposal of cheap and lowquality clothes that wear out quickly, we will change the very approach to the consumption.