Measuring the State of Circularity in the UK Fashion Industry
Executive Summary
Part 1
17
Introduction
Part 2
Part 3
Conclusion
Embracing complexity
Circular models experience different operational complexities than linear models, opening businesses up to a combination of new challenges.
Organisations may need to re-purpose their existing networks – for example, takebacks often utilise retailers’ reverse logistics operations. This provides the benefit of reduced set-up costs, but can negatively impact business functions if not managed effectively. Retailers may also need to develop new networks to facilitate repair or tailoring, which have higher set-up costs and typically require independent management. And complexity is difficult to balance – circularity models aren’t viable if garment volumes are too small, but networks can quickly become overwhelmed by volumes that are too high. The right partnerships can provide the logistics management that’s needed for successful operations – and most business recognise this. Two-thirds (67%) of initiatives have partnerships with third-party organisations, and over a quarter (26%) of initiatives are fully run by third-party organisations – around a fifth (21%) of organisations state that further third-party operational support would aid further scaling. Industry-wide improvements in infrastructure, transparency and organisation agility will unblock both retailers and third parties alike to enable scaling.
Taking stock: An opportunity for cross-functional success
On average, 13% of stock is left unsold after full-price and discounted sales, the majority of which goes into storage, to outlets, or to charity partners. Collaboration between sustainability teams and buying & merchandising teams to improve forecasts could result in a win-win: reducing unsold half (from 13% to 6.5%) in the UK would result in an annual reduction of up to 80,000 tonnes of CO 2 emissions 9 and up to £2bn in cost savings for retailers. 10
Credit: E.STOTT
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs