MS. RONA’S EFFECT ON THE FASHION INDUSTRY
DENIZ AKKAYA
What should be done for our new future during these dark times?
Fashion councils are encouraging brands to go digital for their collections, brands like Valentino took more of a traditional approach by deciding to execute an at-home show instead of flying the collection and the atelier members to Paris. The brand lowered its carbon footprint around %60 by transporting thie atelier members and the collection by train. It’s not just the logistics and health risks that make the fashion weeks challenging; even before the pandemic, constant air travel, luxury runway sets, and shipping had begun to feel reckless and irresponsible given the climate crisis.
Carbon Trust that makes climate change consultancy for businesses, governments and establishments all across the globe, showed in its report that air travel during fashion weeks caused 241.000 tonnes of carbon emissions last year. This equals to Times Square’s 58 years of electricity needs! A trip to New York Fashion Week consists the 37% of all travel emissions and Paris with 28%, London with 18% and Milano with 17% comes after NYFW. Carbon Trust’s sustainable fashion leader Pauline Op de Beeck commented “While the emissions measured in this study are likely to be a small percentage of the fashion industry’s total emissions, it is a highly visible part of the industry where positive change can be influential across the supply chain and other industries” about the report. Results paint the picture of fashion month’s environmental impact clearly and show that sustainable approaches need to go beyond clothes.
We all follow fashion trends one way or another. Though we forget, the fashion industry also follows some trends. Last year’s most popular one was cultural diversity; however, the new trend became sustainability right after the pandemic came into our lives. Even though these are the trends that will take us to a better place as humanity (with the help of Gen Z of course), it isn’t possible to see their effects unless they stay as permanent changes.
Tommy Hilfiger -planning to make its sustainability initiatives permanent- announced they will produce jeans with a mechanic method that produces less carbon dioxide using less water, carbon and chemicals. The thread they use in jeans will be produced from recycled plastic bottles and unused stocks from the brand’s previous seasons. This way, all the jeans in the collections will be completely eco-friendly. And by 2030, the brand aims to reach the 24 bold goals they set within the scope of the “Make it Possible” sustainability project, which they created with the mission of “Wastes Nothing and Welcomes All”. Both Gucci and Burberry started to work on neutralizing their carbon footprints in their supply chains and lowering the environmental impact following the footsteps of Hilfiger. Gen Z, encouraging brands to make better decisions, managed to creatively redefine the coronavirus and its impact on the world! Thinking that it would be more appropriate to give a female personality to this powerful virus, Gen Z nicknamed the coronavirus Miss Rona.
Cultural diversity which started the most crucial dialogues in 2017, unfortunately, started to lose its importance. According to the report prepared by Fashion Revolution by examining 51 of the best domestic, international and independent fashion magazines, the diversity in the covers showed a significant increase of 5.2% between 2017 and 2018. Unfortunately, there was no such increase from 2018 to 2019. In 2020, we saw that many magazines reserved their covers for healthcare professionals. These people put our lives before those of themselves and their families, not only in this difficult period we’ve been experiencing, but since the day they started the profession. So, will we continue to see these people on the covers after all this is over? Or will this take its place in the archives as the trend of 2020?
Yes, we are tired of hearing that our old normal is not so normal, but now, when this pandemic is over, we must make sure that the fashion industry and all of us individually are abandoning our habits that are hurting our planet. Our only wish is that Ms. Rona’s lesson to the fashion industry will last longer than the pandemic. The permanence of this is of course also our responsibility. Good luck World!
Cover imagery via Balenciaga
