VF Corporation is approaching sustainability from the ground up.
It is making progress in ethical sourcing in its supply chains. VF set up the Responsible Down Standard for the treatment of ducks and geese with the non-profit organisation Textile Exchange and works in accordance with the Paris Agreement on climate change, which aims to keep a global temperature rise to less than 2ºC.
Its sustainability strategy, Made for Change, consists of three main pillars: transitioning to a circular economy and business model whereby resources are reused in a cycle rather than disposing of them – for example, recycling fabric from old products to create new garments, using its scale to drive wider industry change, and empowering consumers to live more sustainable lifestyles.
VF is committed to training designers in circular economy principles by 2020, and to a ten per cent increase in quantity of product that it collects through its payback program in The North Face and Timberland stores in the same time period. This scheme encourages shoppers to recycle their old clothing or shoes at in-store drop-off points. So far 4,700 kg of clothes have been recycled via The North Face stores.
Sustainability is becoming a business strategy, an urgent and pressing priority for brands and for the industry. They need to stay relevant to consumers and be competitive in an increasingly eco-conscious market.
