Banana Republic, Old Navy pledge sustainability goals

On Earth Day, Gap also joined forces with other apparel brands to tackle clothing waste through a unique effort. As a core partner of the Make Fashion Circular initiative led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the company is supporting the #WearNext campaign alongside other retail brands and the City of New York. Beginning on Earth Day and lasting through mid-June, participating Athleta, Banana Republic and Gap stores in New York City will host drop off recycling bins where New Yorkers can bring clothing they no longer wear to ensure it will be diverted from landfills through recycling or repurposing. An online map created by New York City Department of Sanitation will guide people to locations across the city where they can take clothes.

Banana Republic will continue to integrate sustainability into design and manufacturing decisions to reduce the environmental impacts of each garment. “Sustainability is important to our brand, to our environment and to our customer,” said Mark Breitbard, Banana Republic president and CEO. “Banana Republic is committed to using production techniques that will save and preserve water quality while creating versatile and more sustainable fabrics that our consumers have come to know and love.”

Old Navy will also increase its sourcing of sustainable cotton and enhance efforts to use water-saving techniques. The brand sells 27,000 Rockstar jeans a day alone, making the scale of its sustainability goals around denim and cotton significant.

In a focused effort to communicate product sustainability efforts directly to customers, Old Navy has also unveiled Heart Earth, the brand’s new sustainability platform. Through Heart Earth, customers can find the latest information about how Old Navy is working to meet their sustainability goals.

“At Old Navy, we believe every one of us has the power to make a difference, and we owe it to future generations to leave our planet better than we found it. But, our work to ensure the world runs right is never done, and we want to bring our customers along on our journey,” said Jamie Gersch, CMO of Old Navy. “We’re proud to introduce Heart Earth, Old Navy’s new sustainability platform, including our goals to produce more sustainable product related to Cotton and Water by 2022.”

As part of its Gap for Good platform for more sustainable fashion, Gap has committed to obtaining 100 per cent of its cotton from more sustainable sources by 2021, employing water-saving techniques, as well as empowering women through Gap Inc.’s signature life skills and education program, PACE (Personal Advancement & Career Enhancement). (RR)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India