August 2, 2023
The impact of the fashion industry is huge. Globally, around 56 million tonnes of clothing and textiles are purchased each year. Studies by UNECE and McKinsey have estimated that this level of production is responsible for between 4% and 8% of global green house gas emissions.
At the same time, research by WRAP estimates that UK homes contain around USD 50 billion worth of clothing that has been unworn for a year or more. Similarly, a McKinsey study calculated that the material savings alone from effective collection and recycling of end-of-life garments could be worth up to USD 71 billion globally. Clearly massive commercial potential, so what's missing?
Consumers are starting to recognise these issues too and express desires to shop more sustainably. However, they also report challenges finding sustainable fashion options, and when they do find them that product details are confusing and difficult to understand.
There is also a signficant disconnect between perceptions amongst industry leaders and actual consumer behaviours. Recent research by First Insight highlighted that while nearly all retailers surveyed believe consumers rank brand name higher than product sustainability, only half of consumers shared the sentiment.
Interestingly, many industry papers acknowledge the role of customer experience in circular fashion, but provide little in the way of practical guidance for effectively implementing it. Not suprising then, that time and again reports and surveys are highlighting industry disconnects and consumer confusion around sustainable choices.
We audited 30 different fashion retailers, representing a broad cross-section of the market, to assess their customer experience and messaging around sustainable products and ciruclar services. Our findings consistently supported the survey results and highlighted a number of potential challenges.
We found that while many mainstream retailers are beginning to embrace sustainable products and ciruclar models, it was often difficult to find them as they tended to be buried behind branded terminology, prioritised low within the information architecture, or lost behind unintuitive or confusing filters and descriptions.
Key themes identified included the need for:
Addressing these challenges will help consumers better find and understand sustainable options, and help tip the industry towards the much needed mainstream adoption of circular fashion.
Download and read our full 2023 report on Customer Experience in Sustainable Fashion here, and find out how you can optimise your digital customer experience.
