33 of 2020

                                                              Newsletter No. 33 / 4 September 2020                            

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Tommy Hilfiger accelerates sustainability journey with ambitious make it possible program

Tommy Hilfiger, which is owned by PVH Corp. [NYSE: PVH] announces Make it Possible, a bold approach to environmental and social sustainability that reinforces the organization’s commitment to create fashion that ‘Wastes Nothing and Welcomes All’. With Make it Possible, Tommy Hilfiger is initially committing to 24 ambitious targets centered around circularity and inclusivity, outlined across four pillars towards 2030:

• Circle Round: Make products to be fully circular, and part of a sustainable loop.
• Made for Life: Operate with sensitivity to planetary boundaries, for instance in the areas of climate change, land use, freshwater and chemical pollution, from what we buy to where we sell.
• Everyone Welcome: Be a brand that works for every TOMMY Fan – always inclusive, completely accessible.
• Opportunity for All: Create equal access to opportunity – no barriers to success at Tommy Hilfiger.

Tommy Hilfiger’s program is powered by parent company PVH Corp’s Forward Fashion strategy, a set of 15 priorities designed to reduce negative impacts to zero, increase positive impacts to 100%, and improve the over 1 million lives across the company’s value chain. 

“I opened my first store, People’s Place, in 1969 in my hometown of Elmira for people of all backgrounds to come together and share exciting pop culture experiences,” said Tommy Hilfiger. “As our brand has evolved over the years, driven by this inclusive spirit, so has our commitment to social and environmental sustainability. With Make it Possible, we will go even further with our commitment. We’re working towards our vision with the entire organization focused on it and, while we’re not there yet, we are going to get there.”

“In these times of health, human, environmental and economic crisis, we share a responsibility to find innovative solutions that will encourage inclusivity and build a more circular future,” said Martijn Hagman, CEO, Tommy Hilfiger Global and PVH Europe. “It is in our nature to drive change, even in the most challenging of times, which is why we are announcing our ambitious Make it Possible sustainability program, outlining 24 targets towards 2030. Tommy Hilfiger has a decade’s long track-record for driving a more sustainable future, including pioneering low impact denim processes, championing water stewardship, and creating more inclusive collections. Make it Possible is one way we will work together to make a meaningful and lasting contribution towards a better fashion industry.”

Make it Possible marks the latest milestone in Tommy Hilfiger’s sustainability journey. Key achievements include the launch of Tommy Hilfiger Adaptive, designed to make dressing easier for adults and children with disabilities, and the Tommy Hilfiger Fashion Frontier Challenge, a global program aimed to support start-up and scale-up stage businesses developing solutions that promote inclusivity and sustainability in fashion. More recently Tommy Hilfiger launched People’s Place Program to advance the representation of black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) communities within the fashion and creative industries. To date, more than 80% of Tommy Hilfiger designers have been trained on circular design strategies and, in 2019, 72% of cotton used globally came from more sustainable sources. Additionally 2 million pieces of denim have been finished in lower impact, reducing the amount of water and energy used.  Each seasonal TOMMY HILFIGER collection includes more sustainable styles in its collections, as evidenced by the 50% more sustainable styles planned for Spring 2021, double the amount from Spring 2020.

Recognizing that no one company can change the sustainability landscape alone, Tommy Hilfiger, as part of PVH Corp., has joined forces with industry partners by signing The Fashion Pact in August 2019, as well as joining the Ellen MacArthur Foundation Make Fashion Circular and Jeans Redesign initiatives. For the past several years, Tommy Hilfiger has partnered with the WWF to address water risk in our strategic supply chain locations. This includes training on water risk management for suppliers and industrial parks in China’s Taihu River Basin and serving as the founding brand partner of a new water stewardship program in Vietnam in the Mekong basin. 

Throughout its journey, Tommy Hilfiger will share its progress. For more information on Make it Possible and a full overview of achievements to date, visit: http://sustainability.tommy.com  Styling Concepts

Nominations new open for Twyg Sustainable Fashion Awards 2020

Twyg, a local not-for-profit organisation and online publication, is calling on fashion designers who implement sustainable and circular approaches, and who foster ethical practices, to enter its second annual Sustainable Fashion Awards.

“The awards come at a time of deep introspection. Getting on with the business of fashion has been hard, sometimes impossible, during the Covid-19 pandemic. Many people have lost their jobs, and the industry has had to think about the ethics and sustainability of its practices.

“In addition to these existential questions, the Black Lives Matter movement has drawn attention to the lack of diversity in the fashion system. These are issues that Twyg takes very seriously,” Twyg said in a press release.

The 2020 Sustainable Fashion Awards will welcome back last year’s judging panel, which includes Desiree Smal, Kelly Fung, Cyril Naicker, Aaniyah Omardien and Fezile Mdletshe-Mkhize.

Submissions will be judged according to specific criteria for each category. Twyg urges entrants to carefully select the most fitting award category as each designer can only be nominated for one category. All winners (except for the Student Award) will have been in business for at least one year and would be able to demonstrate:

• Ethical labour practices
• Transparency in design and manufacturing practices and sourcing of materials

Award categories for 2020

Innovative Design and Materials Award: Recognises a designer who has used techniques that minimise textile waste through innovative pattern cutting, the use of pre- and post-consumer fabric waste, and/or reconstruction techniques.

Trans-seasonal Award: Recognises a collection, garment, brand or designer who promotes trans-seasonal and versatile style.
Accessory Award: Recognises an accessory or accessory brand which implements ethical labour practices, limits toxic chemicals and uses sustainable materials to create a quality item and considers end-of-life.

Retail Award: Recognises a retailer or a retailing initiative that enhances sustainability, including pre-loved/gently worn, swap shops, garment rental, and similar activities.

Student Award: A student who has produced a garment or collection that addresses the challenges of sustainability in fashion in the most innovative, beautiful and practical way.

Nicholas Coutts Award: Recognises a designer who uses artisanal craft techniques such as weaving, embroidering or botanical dying to make fashion that foregrounds, celebrates and values the skills of the person who makes the garment.

Influencer Award: Recognises a personality who has actively promoted sustainable fashion over the last 12 months and who has sparked relevant conversations.

Changemaker Award: The designers with the highest scores in the design categories will be judged against the criteria set for the Changemaker Award. This award recognises a designer whose career embraces sustainable and circular design practices.

This year’s Changemaker Award is sponsored by Country Road and will be awarded to the overall winner – drawn from all the categories and based on the judges scoring results. Therefore this category will not be open for nominations. Country Road’s head designer Maria Rinaldi-Cant will join the panel for the judging of the Changemaker Award.

“We are very honoured to be in a position to celebrate excellent work despite, and sometimes because of, the current circumstances,” said Twyg founder and director, Jackie May.

She added, “We would like to thank Country Road and PETCO, the PET plastic recycling company, who’ve made these awards possible. We’d also like to thank the British Council for their support that allowed us to explore circular design in Africa. We’re partnering with Rewoven on a series of digital masterclasses and events scheduled for November.

The deadline for entries is Sunday, 4 October 2020, and winners will be announced on Thursday, 19 November 2020. Qualifying work should have been made by September 2020 and designers should be currently working in South Africa.

To nominate yourself or someone else, find the nomination form here. For more information call Jackie May on 082 825 1855 or e-mail jackie@twyg.co.za .  Bizcommunity

Exports must for sustained economic recovery: Mauritian Prime Minister

Mauritius must start goods exports for a sustained economic recovery, according to Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, who recently said the COVID-19 pandemic has badly affected several sectors, including textiles, tourism, financial services and technology. He said this while visiting a textile factory of Denim de L’Ile Ltd (DDI) in Rivière du Rempart.

He was satisfied that DDI uses sustainable fibres as raw materials and sustainable washing techniques, and optimises its resources by recycling its production waste, according to an official release.

In July 2004, DDI Ltd was set up by World Knits Ltd in collaboration with two Italian investors. The company is an export-oriented enterprise specialising in the manufacture of denim fabrics and garments like trousers, dresses, jackets and blazers. Its main export markets are the United Kingdom, South Africa, the United States and Europe. F2F

Kenya to build a Sh70-million ginnery in Kwale

Kenya will build a Sh70-million ginnery in the Kinondo area of Msambweni sub-county in Kwale, whose governor Salim Mvurya recently announced that land has already been set aside for the project. He thanked President Uhuru Kenyatta for choosing Kwale to be among the five counties with immense potential in cotton production, where ginneries will be built as part of a programme to revive the sector.

He said Kwale-based Australian mining firm Base Titanium has agreed to construct the ginnery at the PAVI Business Park in Kinondo. Mvurya recently received a delegation from the ministry of industry, trade and cooperatives.

The aim is to change the textile chain and increase the percentage of manufacturing in the gross domestic product from 9 per cent to more than 15 per cent under the Pamba na Viazi (PAVI) cotton radicalisation programme and increase cotton production from 29,000 to 65,000 bales annually. Rivatex will buy all cotton from farmers, according to Kenyan media reports.

PAVI Cooperative, supported by Base Titanium, has been instrumental in the revival of the cotton sector in Kwale by supporting local farmers to plant cotton on their farms.

The programme, which started with 100 farmers in 2015, has since grown to include 2,500 farmers cultivating 1,500 acres of cotton on their farms. Base Titanium hopes to expand the Kwale Cotton Programme to 10,000 farmers in the future.

Did you know……..

Sagging

A popular clothing trend with hip-hop artists—baggy pants—was born in the prisons of Los Angeles, where inmates were not allowed to wear belts. The trend got so popular on the outside that governments in North American began to pass laws prohibiting the revealing style, and low-riding pants were banned on transit systems, airlines, and in government buildings like schools. In 2007, the town of Delcambre, Louisiana passed an indecent exposure by-law prohibiting low-riding pants.