Future trend for fashion is green
Profiles ACL, a North Lanarkshire designer clothing and accessories hire company that wears its eco-friendly credentials on its sleeve
With barely any offices open, no bars, restaurants or events to go to, what we’re wearing – unless we’re Skyping or Zooming – may not be foremost on most people’s minds in this time of lockdown.
However, according to Anthony Burns, chief operating officer of ACL Clothing, the current health crisis is having a dramatic and potentially long-term impact across the fashion sector, from how we shop to making us reconsider the apparel we actually need.
“It’s making people rethink their clothes. Do they really need to buy as many garments?” he asks.
“Is shopping for clothes even a good idea? Is what they’re buying as clean as they might be? Could there be a better way?”
According to ACL, there is. And it’s a vision that could see us ditch the idea of buying all our outfits for an eco-friendly rental approach.
Based at Eurocentral, Motherwell, ACL has three decades of experience in the nation’s clothes rental sector during which its grown to become the UK’S largest wholesale menswear rental specialist – if you’ve hired a morning suit or kilt for a wedding or a dressy do from the likes of Moss Bros, Debenhams or Slaters, you’ve probably had a brush with one of the firm’s garments.
Working behind the scenes, ACL store high-quality outfits, ensure that they are maintained in prime condition for rent, and – most importantly – put every item through a futuristic ozone-based sanitised cleaning process that keeps clothes in pristine, germ-free condition.
Now, ACL’S management team believes rising demand for more sustainable fashion, the current health crisis and its impact on retail mean that the scene is set for a new UK ‘clothes for hire’ sector.
It’s already the norm for millions of consumers in the US who have signed up with online site Rent the Runway to hire everything from wedding outfits and glamorous evening wear to designer workwear, maternity, men’s and children’s clothes.
Meanwhile, in China, rental platforms are attracting interest from high street retailers such as H&M, that keen to ensure their clothing products are available for consumers to hire.
Back at ACL’S 85,345 sq ft North Lanarkshire base, where there are currently millions of ‘for hire’ outfits stored, the business has been putting finishing touches to the backroom technical structures which will help household name fashion brands create similar offerings to UK customers.
The vision is simple – up front, shoppers would choose outfits to rent from their favourite retailers and designers, while behind the scenes ACL’S expertise will keep the garments in question in perfect condition, sanitised using highlyeffective ozone-based technology and ready to be distributed.
As well as being a cost-effective way for customers to refresh and update their personal style, renting clothes, rather than buying has a vital role in protecting the planet and each other.
“Consumers are becoming aware of the ecological damage the fashion industry can do to the world,” adds Burns. “Fast fashion comes at a cost; the sector’s carbon footprint can be pretty horrific. Renting a garment immediately lessens the environmental impact.
“Also, because of Covid-19, the option to shop online and hire clothes which have been fully sanitised, untouched by hands, may become the preferred option.”
ACL’S research into the benefits of clothes rental has also sparked a more sustainable approach to the company’s business.
Changes to its waste streams mean it now has ‘zero to landfill’ status. Food waste has been tackled in the staff kitchen, while there are plans to introduce beehives, wildflower gardens and fruit trees at its Motherwell site, along with a peatland restoration project.
“We see ourselves as a disruptor in the fashion industry,” adds Burns. “This is a new market with many benefits, not least to the environment.
“We really do believe this is the future of fashion.”
For more information, go online and visit www.aclclothing.co.uk