Wondering about what the fashion industry has prepared for us in 2022? Here is our list of top 5 sustainability trends we believe our wardrobes would witness in the next twelve months:
Recyclable textiles
The fashion industry is worth more than USD 1.5 trillion but it also contributes to more than 10% of global pollution. More than 40 million tonnes of clothing ended up in landfills in 2021 and if we do not take actions today, by 2050, this number would exceed 150 million tonnes.
Recycling textile waste is a major step in tackling this alarming issue and it seems that brands are ready to take on this trend. More and more of them concentrate on working with biodegradable materials and take recyclability in mind when developing their products.
For instance, US-headquartered brand Girlfriend Collective already uses recycled materials in the garments it makes. The company’s motto is “don’t make waste, wear it”. On its website, every buyer could find information about the brand’s products and materials. The company’s packaging is 100% recycled and recyclable. Additionally, the tees and tanks are 100% cupro, a fiber made from waste the cotton industry leaves behind, while the compressive leggings are made from recycled plastic bottles.
Fashion on-demand
Fashion on-demand means clothes and accessories crafted after a buyer purchases them. This is the complete opposite of the mass production model that the majority of brands currently follow. Besides helping the environment, on-demand fashion is a great way to have your clothes tailored for you.
British labels Benjamin Fox and Olivia Rose, for instance, are the perfect examples as they both offer only handmade to order garments. It would be difficult, however, for big brands to transition to such a business model and therefore, experts believe that it would take years before on-demand fashion becomes mainstream. However, 2022 would definitely be a year of growth for this niche market.
Digitalization and transparency
We, at Konsha, value transparency more than anything. Therefore, we really hope that technological development would focus more on bringing traceability to the fashion industry. For instance, our service aims to help brands communicate their sustainability efforts to consumers as well as to provide more transparency and traceability in terms of individual products.
Virtual fashion
The whole metaverse is made of unknowns. One thing, however, is for sure – it offers endless possibilities not only for the virtual but also for the physical world. Of course, taking sustainability in mind right from the beginning is crucial.
Digital environments have the potential to completely change the way we buy fashion products. Imagine your avatar trying the clothes and accessories you wish to buy while you are staying at home. This could decrease returns as well as facilitate on-demand production and data analysis, thus driving our sustainability efforts forward.
Lots of high-end brands have already joined the metaverse hype and created digital collections and experiences. For instance, in April 2021, Gucci collaborated with Roblox and organized a unique virtual garden exhibit that was live for two weeks. Similarly, Ralph Lauren partnered with Roblox in December 2021 to create the Ralph Lauren Winter Escape featuring an exclusive gender-neutral digital clothing collection of eight winter looks.
Bio-based materials
Novel bio-based materials are here to revolutionize the fashion industry. Have you heard of cactus leather, for instance? With the aim of inventing an alternative to animal leather, Adrián López Velarde and Marte Cázarez developed a vegan leather made with nopal – a type of cactus. The product was presented in October 2019 in Milan, Italy, under the trade name trade Desserto®. Since then, the company has collaborated with Adidas, Karl Lagerfeld, H&M and other big names in the fashion and automotive industries. Other natural materials that the fashion industry is going to incorporate more and more in 2022 include rose petals and algae.
Yes, 2022 will be an exciting one and we cannot wait to see how these trends would turn into reality.
