A new study with board directors and senior executives who work for fashion brands and retailers in the UK, US and Australia, by Aquapak Polymers, show that 12 per cent expect their business to be fully circular within one to two years, 34 per cent within two to three years and 31 per cent within three to four years. The remaining fifth expect to reach this goal in four to five years.
Almost one third (32 per cent) rated their strategy for making their business fully circular as excellent, over half (54 per cent) said it was good and 14 per cent described it as average, suggesting there is room for improvement.
When it comes to sustainability leadership, over half (54 per cent) described their business as a market leader and innovator, 39 per cent said that their business was average and ‘following the leaders’ and seven per cent described their business as a laggard and ‘playing catchup’.
The findings also show that while 49 per cent said sustainability is regarded as highly important to the success of their business, just 21 per cent described the quality of effectiveness of their sustainability strategy and programme as excellent.
Over one third (37 per cent) said that reducing the use of polyethylene plastic in packaging is a "highly important" part of their sustainability strategy, and a further 63 per cent said it was quite important.
Mark Lapping, CEO of Aquapak, said, "Our study shows that the circular economy and sustainability are priorities for boards and senior executives in the fashion industry, although only half think that their business is at the vanguard of change when it comes to innovation and market-leadership. There has been an acceleration in new technologies in the sector, so the opportunity for brands to step up and lead the industry is there for the taking.
"Aquapak is already working with several early-adopter fashion companies who are determined to drive a significant change in the industry by embracing upstream innovation in packaging. These businesses are proof that new materials work and can make the difference that consumers are now demanding to see from fashion brands."
Aquapak say that to help reduce plastic packaging pollution it has developed Hydropol, a new polymer which it says is soluble and non-toxic to marine life. Hydropol is touted as an alternative to conventional plastic in a wide variety of applications as it reportedly provides the same functionality and performance but without the associated environmental problems. It is currently used to make products such as garment bags, offering all the necessary features of traditional polybags: strength and puncture resistance; clarity of film; and protection from leakages and dirt.
Hydropol garment bags are compostable and the company says can be disposed of in existing domestic waste streams without contaminating other recyclable products or they can be dissolved immediately in hot water at home without producing dangerous micro-plastics.
