As the world recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, some question how sustainability will fit in with fashion’s new landscape.
For sustainable denim brand G-Star Raw, it will continue to be the main focus. In a Rivet 50 podcast, Adriana Galijasevic, G-Star Raw’s denim and sustainability expert, addressed the industry-wide issue of waste, and explained how a circular economy could be the solution.
“By focusing on circular product design, as well as using waste as a resource, it’s our long-term ambition to eliminate waste,” she said. “That’s something that we will be continuing to work on.”
In 2018, the brand created the first Cradle to Cradle gold-certified denim fabric, and shared its findings with the rest of the industry—and it’s this same commitment to transparency that it expects of its supply chain partners.
Galijasevic says the greatest barrier to sustainability is some companies’ reluctance to transparency, noting that some suppliers don’t know or are unable to disclose the origin of their ingredients.
“All parties involved have to be ready to identify problematic aspects and willing to actually invest in optimization,” she said, adding that effective partnerships are crucial. “We don’t claim to have all the answers, but we make sure to partner up with those who do in order to solve these challenges.”
Next for the brand is a greater emphasis on consumer education, as Galijasevic noted that customers are clamoring for education now more than ever. The brand will focus on delivering more sustainability reporting to consumers in the near future.
Click here to listen to the full conversation with Galijasevic.
Subscribe to the Sourcing Journal Podcast on Spotify, Apple iTunes, Google Play and Tune In.
This podcast episode is made possible by Cotton Incorporated, a not-for-profit company funded by U.S. cotton producers and importers, and whose mission is to increase the demand and profitability of cotton. Discover What Cotton Can Do.
