Environmental Sustainability

Want to provide more value to customers? Retailers should consider, if they haven’t already, diversifying their supplier network, especially since today’s consumers increasingly purchase goods and services from ethically sourced local, small and minority-owned businesses. Working with a select group of familiar, reliable suppliers might be working well (why upset the apple cart?). However, expanding…

On Monday, Fabletics joined the growing list of fashion brands that are bringing resale in-house, reports Glossy. The program, launched in partnership with thredUP, allows Fabletics' customers to mail pre-owned clothing to the brand and receive store credit for any item deemed re-sellable. Customers can package Fabletics' clothes and non-Fabletics' clothes together, all of which will…

This past year was tough for retail. From store closures to the explosion of e-commerce to a holiday “return-aggedon,” retailers were forced to make some tough choices, pivot, and then pivot again. Amid a financially challenging and uncertain retail environment, some retailers have, unfortunately, placed environmental and social responsibility programs on the back burner. It’s…

Timberland has announced a critical next step on its path to circularity with the upcoming launch of a global product take-back program. Developed in partnership with global innovation company ReCircled, the take-back program provides the infrastructure needed to fuel Timberland's circular design and development cycle. It also supports the brand's vision, announced last fall, for…

As international clothing manufacturers investigate their sourcing matrices and respond to recent bans imposed by government agencies such as U.S. Customs and Border Protection on most of China’s cotton crop, brands and retailers are coming under scrutiny by shoppers who want ethically sourced fashion. This is about more than just delivering quality products at low…

The apparel and footwear industry is all about style. When it comes to the fashionable world of environmental, social and governance trends, leading brands aren't yet matching that style with substance. According to the recently published Business of Fashion Sustainability Index, “the global economy has 10 years to avoid catastrophic change," and though the fashion…

In episode 296 of Total Retail Talks, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Harry Temkin, vice president of seller experience at eBay, a global commerce leader that connects millions of buyers and sellers around the world. Listen in as Temkin discusses his role at the company, the survey eBay recently conducted with its sellers to better understand…

Various studies show there's an undoubtable uptrend around sustainable consumer products. What’s new is that increasing consumer demand is going beyond targeting only special interest categories, such as apparel or natural foods. Sustainable and responsible products are becoming the new norm. What happened? Retailers and brand managers can remember the circumstance as if it was…

In episode 295 of Total Retail Talks, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Stuart Landesberg, founder and CEO of Grove Collaborative, a leading sustainable CPG company and certified B Corp that creates innovative natural products and offers a curated selection of healthy home essentials. Listen in as Landesberg discusses the mission behind Grove Collaborative, his background that…

lululemon athletica on Tuesday announced its first-ever recommerce program and will pilot a trade-in program in California and Texas next month, with plans to expand to an online resale program in June, reports CNBC. According to a company press release, lululemon Like New is a recommerce model for guests to rethink, revive and rediscover lululemon…