(Red) A Movement

Many of you may know about the (Red) program. It started as an idea and has turned into a movement with some major support through partnerships with a variety of businesses - Gap, Microsoft, Converse, Apple, Hallmark, Dell, Starbucks and many more. Project (Red) in depth from the Arts & Initiatives Conference in December 2005. (Podcast excerpt from NexusRadio 12/14/08)

--till next week Restore, Refresh, Recycle, Renew

Macy's 300 Million Hangers and Enviro Unfriendly bags

How Green is Your Closet? introduces podcasts to the mix. The next several blog entries will be podcast excerpts from a recent radio project.

Macy's estimates usage of 300 million plastic hangers each year. That is a lot of petroleum based, non-recyclable plastic going into landfills. Listen to Macy's dilemma and solution.

That big old red Macy's shopping bag might have been pretty but it sure wasn't environmentally friendly. That shiny ink blew it's carbon footprint right out of the water. Hear Macy's bag challenges and changes.

--till next week Restore, Refresh, Recycle and Renew

Beautiful Planet

More from the annual Initiatives in Arts and Culture conference in NYC where many fashion companies presented interesting information about what they are doing to 'green' their businesses. I will discuss some of these initiatives in a live radio segment of How Green is Your Closet? on Wednesday, December 17th and post the show in several podcasts over the next several weeks. This week I'd like to give props to Macy's for Beautiful Planet.

Macy's is hosting a shop-within-shop concept in the cosmetics area called Beautiful Planet with an online catalog as well. My colleague and I made a trek to the Herald Square location and we were quite pleased overall. Beautiful Planet brings together many environmentally friendly beauty brands: Terre d'Oc, Origins Organic, Care by Stella McCartney, Pangea Organics, Farmaesthetics, Burt's Bees and Organic Apoteke.

The shop is created with environmentally friendly materials including renewable bamboo, recycled post-industrial eco resin, recycled steel and aluminum, low VOC paint, rescued tree limbs and renewable coconut shell tiles using sustainable construction methods to install the shop as well.

Packaging and marketing materials are produced on recycled paper. On our visit we found an exceptional sales person staffing the shop. She was well-educated (self-study of pamphlets and talking to the brand reps) on each of the brands. She discussed each brand story with us, suggested some wonderful products for each of us and pointed out some nice gift options.

There is a nice article and a picture of the Paramus shop on nj.com for your viewing pleasure.

Macy's is a huge company with many opportunities to reduce their carbon footprint. This is a positive step in the plan and you will hear more about their plan next week on my podcast.

till next week -- Restore, Refresh, Recycle and Renew

Green: Sustainability, Significance and Style

I am just back from the annual Initiatives in Arts and Culture conference in NYC. The focus this year was on Green in the Fashion industry. There were a broad variety of speakers representing various aspects of the jewelry industry, textiles, retail, apparel design, cause marketing and creative capitalism.

Many topics were discussed from fair trade mining, to packing materials, to supply chain management, to plastic hangars and more. Speakers represented many levels of business from high end to mass market.

Several themes resonated among all the speakers and I think it is worth noting them here:
1. Green is not a Trend. It is a Movement. In many cases the customer is driving the Movement.
2. Sustainability in not only good for the Planet. It is good for Business.
3. Creativity in the design process can affect the results.

Recently, The Economist stated the new sustainability is to stay in business. In these tough economic times, many sustainability initiatives could go by the way side. It is important for companies and customers alike to repeat the mantra that Sustainability is Good for Business. Support companies that support sustainable initiatives.

Another "r" word came up as well - Repurpose. It is a good one to consider along with the rest of my sign off.

till next week -- Restore, Refresh, Recycle and Renew

Patagonia's Common Threads Program

Interested in taking responsibility for their garments at the end of their life, Patagonia launched the Commons Threads Program in 2005. Business Week provides an in-depth discussion of the program history and challenges in the November 2008 issue.

At the beginning of the program, customers were asked to return used Capilene undergarments to the stores. The polyester from the used garments was recycled into new "base layer" garments. The customer and production partner response was so positive that the program expanded to include organic cotton and polyester fleece.

While using recycled fibers adds to the cost of the end product, processing recycled fibers can be more energy efficient than using virgin fibers. For example, using recycled polyester reduces waste overall and yields a 76% reduction in energy use. The model fits in with Patagonia's belief that prosperity should not come at the expense of the environment. Their goal for Common Threads is to sell only recycled and recyclable products by 2010.

Described as a "closed loop system" or "cradle to cradle" design, the goal is to turn used items and waste material into new desirable goods. Popularized by William McDonough, the idea is inspiring, but the practice is far more difficult to attain. Patagonia needed more recycled product in the system. In order to get that, they had to partner with other apparel producers and a partnership with competitor REI and Timberland was born.

Nylon is one of the most challenging fibers. Patagonia uses nylon in 15-20% of their products. There is only one supplier of recyclable or recycled Nylon, Toray, in Japan. Toray can only supply spun yarn which is made from short fibers and is prone to pilling. In addition, they can't use older Patagonia garments in the process at all. Further they can only work with color dyes and finishes designed specifically for the process. So far, Patagonia has been able to create two lines of pants, one line of shorts and a limited edition bag using this process.

Next, Patagonia tried to move some product to polyester. Another Japanese supplier, Teijin, produces filament yarn from recycled uniforms, industrial waste and pop bottles. Polyester is not as abrasion resistant as nylon, so Patagonia has only been able to convert some nylon products to polyester.

Some new suppliers have entered the mix. Unifi produces high quality recycled nylon filament yarnt. Chain Yarn takes yarn waste from weavers and creates recycled yarns. Patagonia is working with both suppliers to test the products they can produce. Unfortunately, neither supplier takes used garments.

REI has partnered with MEC on a clothing take back program, but issues with sorting garments efficiently for various suppliers is holding up the process.

Patagonia's Common Threads program has raised the bar for garment producers. It has started the conversation and the exploration toward a greener industry. While Patagonia has made very positive steps, there is still a long way to go to acheive their goal. Thumbs up to Patagonia and their partners for persistence. I look forward the day the Common Threads Program achieves 100% success.

till next week --Restore, Refresh, Recycle and Renew