After years of declining sales, denim fabrics are making a comeback. According to Euromonitor, sales of jeans in the United States have fallen by 11% in the past five years. However, driven by sports and leisure clothing, the sales of overall clothing increased by 10%. Globally, cowboy sales fell 2.3%. Euromonitor predicts that by 2023, the revenue of American jeans will increase by 5% to US $17.5 billion, while the global revenue will increase by 11% to US $111.6 billion.LYST, a global fashion search platform, said that the search volume of jeans was 13 times per second, ranking third in the global search volume, second only to sneakers and dresses. Consumer inquiries reflect changes in demand. On the LYST platform, the search volume of "sustainable" jeans has increased rapidly in the past year, with an increase of 193%, exceeding that of "Mom"Jeans and skinnySearch terms such as "denim". This transformation takes place in a new era of sustainable development, and this transformation is touching every corner of the industry. Mintel retail analyst Chana"People are more aware than ever of the impact of fashion and excessive shopping on the environment," Baram saidThis has prompted jeans manufacturers rooted in traditional country images and brands to change their practices. For example, Wrangler is abandoning the marketing concept of "original denim jeans" and promoting its new foam dyeing and anhydrous production process. The process claims that compared with the traditional method, its energy consumption is reduced by 60% and the chemicals used are reduced by 90%.Roian, director of sustainable business, Wrangler"Today's situation is different. In the past, enterprises need to deal with global issues such as climate change. It would be irresponsible if the cowboy industry stagnated under the condition of continuous innovation in other industries," Atwood saidEnvironmental cost of denim fabricDenim is everywhere, but it is very harmful to the ecological environment. According to Greenpeace, 1.7 million tons of chemicals are needed to produce 2 billion pairs of jeans a year, and the water consumption of each pair of jeans is as high as 7000 litres.The measures to solve this problem are led by emerging enterprises directly facing consumers such as everlane and transformation. They believe that sustainability is the key to their DNA and a big difference from traditional brands. But traditional enterprises are also changing.Levi's, for example, focuses on significantly reducing water consumption in the production of denim fabrics. In terms of retail value, the company is the best-selling jeans brand in the world. The company's goal is that by 2020, 80% of its products will be produced by technology with water saving up to 96%. At present, 67% of its products will be produced by this method.In order to greatly improve efficiency, Levi has set their own water use goals for key suppliers according to the local water shortage. According to world resourcesAccording to the data of the Institute, India and Pakistan are the locations of several denim fabric factories, and they are also one of the countries with high risk of water shortage crisis. Michael Levi, global vice president for sustainable development"This will save a lot of water for areas that need more water in the short term," Kobori said. The company plans to reduce the cumulative water consumption of "water deficient areas" by 50% by 2025.It is not just traditional denim companies that are changing their production methods.Fast, which owns UNIQLO, J brand, Helmut Lang and comptoir des cotonniersRetailing) produced about 18 million jeans in autumn and winter 2019, but the company said that the water saving amount was reduced by at least 90% compared with the traditional method. The company established the jeans Innovation Center (JIC) in Los Angeles to produce jeans for all its major brands. The Japanese group plans to produce 40 million jeans by 2020.Masaaki, chief operating officer of JIC under Fast RetailingMatsubara said: "as the world's third largest clothing retailer, our size is accompanied by responsibility. We do not want to manufacture or sell products that are not conducive to the environment. Our goal is to redefine the sustainability of clothing and let customers make sustainable purchases without worry."The efforts of these companies have also been recognized. In 2018, Levi's "change the world" in Fortune magazineIt ranks 37th on the world list for its contribution to sustainable development, which recognizes companies that have a positive impact on society. In Barron's annual ranking of more sustainable U.S. companies, PVH group (clothing group) jumped to No. 12, after ranking No. 37.Return on investment from sustainable developmentResearch shows that sustainable supply chains can improve profits: global fashion agenda and Boston Consulting GroupA report released by consulting group in 2018 shows that the potential savings and efficiency obtained through sustainable operation can increase the profit margin of the enterprise by 1 to 2 percentage points by 2030.Tommy Hilfiger of PVH group launched a permanent 100% sustainable denim series in 2019. Tommy Hilfiger believes that environmental initiatives are an investment, not a cost. Daniel, CEO of Tommy Hilfiger global and PVH EuropeGrieder said that the sales of these styles of clothing in the past two quarters were "above average", and there are still great opportunities to develop and occupy market share. Although jeans account for TommyHilfiger's global business accounts for 10%, but the executive hopes to increase this proportion to at least 30% in the next few years.According to Atwood, Wrangler's rooted series, including sustainable and traceable products, is one of the more successful series of the brand and will become a popular online series in 2019.Preparing for circular economyThe real sustainability is not limited to a certain stage of garment production, but also includes reducing the amount of water and chemicals in the production process. The whole production cycle needs to be considered.Cowboy industry executives say there is no technology that fully supports recycling. "For cowboy brands, 100% circulation is a great goal, but there is still a lot of work to do to achieve this goal. This is not achievable by the infrastructure or technology we have today," Atwood said.Some companies have taken some early measures. Levi's encourages resale and provides repair services through its authorized Vintage collection. "We are moving towards a more circular economy," Kobori said. Such services also provide brands with the opportunity to double profits from the same product.Brands that invest in the production process of environmentally friendly denim fabrics can get free information, which is also conducive to the formalization of industry standards. In July 2019, Ellen, a non-profit organization focusing on circular economy and sustainable practiceMacArthur The foundation has issued a series of guidelines to solve the waste problem in the cowboy industry by setting minimum requirements for materials and durability. The sustainability of open source can also promote group cooperation.Atwood said: "it is irresponsible for any brand to let important sustainable technologies enter the market and hold for themselves only. We encourage other brands to take advantage of our bubble dye technology." he pointed out that shortly after its launch, Gap discussed all its brands (including Old).Navy and Banana Republic) adopt foam dye technology. "We need to work together to change the historical footprint of such serious damage to the environment," Atwood said
