Our latest FashMash Focus turned to sustainable communication and the role storytelling could play in facilitating a more positive fashion sector.
Over our usual virtual roundtable format, we discussed everything from greenwashing to renewed aspiration, transparency and beyond. Joining us as always were a raft of knowledgeable members who each shared their insights into just what is happening, and needs to happen further, in this space.
Read on for some of the highlights:
ON TRANSPARENCY
Across the industry at large, we’re seeing strong progress on sustainability target setting, but still a disconnect as to what the roadmap looks like to actually get there. Greater transparency is needed across the board, meaning there’s a role for communication teams to step out of their silos and help establish a brand’s entire information architecture in line with its sustainability work. This should span corporate strategy, product, brand and beyond.
ON CREATIVE COMMS
When it comes to consumer-facing comms, what we’re currently seeing is a gap between communication that builds excitement for a product, and the very precise and deliberate information that is needed for sustainability. Science-based credentials are essential, but we need to bring in greater creativity to bring these two worlds together.
ON SELLING ASPIRATIONS
Bearing that creative need in mind, fashion has a huge role to play in setting the very notion of what we deem aspirational. Redirecting those efforts towards sustainable lifestyles then, and not just one-off sustainable collections, should be a growing responsibility. We need to reset the objective of marketers from just selling more stuff to selling a new vision for the future. It’s a whole new way of thinking.
We also discussed example brands like Levi's that were not traditionally sustainability first, but have successfully embedded it well in to their communications.
For more on this subject, see UNEP’s focus on sustainable fashion communications, as per our co-founder, Rachel Arthur's work.
FashMash Focus is sponsored by Klaviyo.