# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
London Underground Advertising (also known as Tube Advertising) is a popular form of outdoor advertising and is used by companies wishing to promote their products or services to a large audience in the capital.
Advertising on London Underground is not only used by London based companies, but by national and international brands looking for great exposure and recognition by a diverse and cultural audience.

Although advertising on the London Underground is relatively expensive when compared to standard billboard advertising, it offers amazing reach and brilliant results time after time, which is the reason it is so popular and such a sought after outdoor advertising medium.

With the underground network used by millions of commuters, residents and visitors every day (often stood waiting to catch tubes or travelling up and down escalators, creating great dwell time), it means there are many options available when looking to promote to this captive, receptive and often affluent audience.

If you're interested in tube advertising for your company, please contact us today via the form on this page and we can get the wheels in motion.

Request a free quote

Tube Advertising Options Available

As mentioned there are lots of options to consider with London Underground advertising and there are lots of types of advertising posters to choose from.

Advertising on the London underground network is very popular so booking ahead is vital to ensure you get the stations, transport lines and timings to suit your needs - space is limited and competition is high. Here at Billboard Advertising UK, we can recommend the most effective forms of London underground advertising for your company based on your aims, objectives and budgets. The most popular and effective forms of tube advertising include:

Escalator Panels - sometimes known as LEPS. There are digital and paper versions of escalator panels to choose from depending on the station.

Tunnel Advertising - 4 sheets, 6 sheets, 12 sheets posters, which sit on tunnel walls and popular across the London underground network and have high-impact due to increased dwell time (as people wait to board).

Cove Advertising - the tube adverts you see above the seats inside the tube carriages (sometimes these are known as tube car panels).

Ticket Hall Advertising - these are the posters you see in the ticket halls and when entering the station, also in walk-ways and corridors. They are typically 4 sheets.

Barrier Advertising and Adagte advertising - there are options to brand and advertise on the ticket gates (sometimes known as ticket gate advertising), these are great as your potential customers have no way of avoiding these ads and effectively need to walk through them.

If you're interested in any of these advertising options for your company, brand or service, please get in touch and we can get the wheels in motion. Advertising on the underground is very popular so booking ahead is vital to ensure you get the stations, transport lines and timings to suit your needs.

Contact us today

Underground Advertising Price Factors

"How much does it cost to advertise on London underground" or "how much is advertising on the tube", is not as simple a question as it may seem. There isn't a tube ads rate card as such, as many variables can affect the options available.

Underground advertising costs vary depending broadly upon:

The brand and type of ad you choose - whether you LEP, tunnel ads, cove ads etc.

The size of the ad - the physical size of the poster.

Whether the ad is digital or non-electronic - with printing costs needed to be factored in, the choice of digital and non-digital is important to consider.

The time of the year - Christmas and summertime are generally popular as the capital is packed with tourists spending money.

The length of your campaign - the longer an underground advertising campaign runs, the more expensive it'll be. Most campaigns run for a minimum of 2 weeks but generally, longer campaigns are recommended so that impact is stronger.

As a reference. advertising on the London underground is one of the more expensive Out of Home marketing options in the UK and often larger budgets are required to have an impact. A typical spend on an Underground Advertising campaign is around £15k

Get more information

Therefore, although the outlay can be large (when compared to other forms of outdoor advertising) however, the returns can be very impressive, so it is about balancing up the cost against potential return on investment.

At Billboard Advertising we believe that tube advertising is a key component of any London billboard advertising campaign and form the cornerstone of most successful plans. It is also often teamed with other popular forms of Out of Home advertising including bus stop advertising, phone box ads, roadside billboards and train station advertising. As well as underground advertising we can also supply information and top prices on these other types of outdoor ads too if they are of interest to your business.

For more information on the various costs of underground advertising drop us a message via the contact box on this page and we'll be in touch.

London Underground Advertising Posters

At Billboard Advertising we provide underground marketing posters in a variety of different sizes to meet individual needs and financial budgets, so whether you are looking for escalator ads or tunnel take-overs we can help.

As well as being a great place to market your company advertising in London Underground is also very competitive with lots of companies choosing this as a preferred method of advertising due to brilliant results and the fantastic return on investment it offers. This means that your ads need to stand out from the crowd.

We believe it is therefore important to not only book ahead (to get this best positions) but to also look to create eye-catching artwork for your adverts so that you:

Attract the attention of your target audience

Stand out from the other advertisers and your competition

Get your message across clearly, concisely and professionally

If you need help with poster design for your London underground advertising posters our team at Billboard Advertising will also be able to help and advise on this or put you in contact with suitable designers. They'll offer further details regarding innovative underground poster adverts should you require this and support you in creating excellent tube adverts to achieve the results you want based on your target market.

Which Companies Advertise on the London Underground Network?

London Underground advertising across the tube network is popular with a whole cross-section of businesses (and gets booked up well in advance) and there are also lots of varied marketing options to consider; so whether you are a delicious local restaurant, brilliant West End Theatre show, top fashion outlet, Canary Wharf business or a well-known international brand, advertising on London underground can increase awareness and drive an increase in your sales and turnover.

If you're considering advertising on the tube as part of a London billboard advertising campaign there are many to consider from leading outdoor supplier (such as Clear Channel and Primesight) but our independent underground advertising experts will offer you advice, putting together a bespoke marketing plan so that for your London Underground Advertising campaign achieves the desired results, this could include escalator panels, posters on station platforms, tube car panels or standard poster sites in ticket offices.

As each client is different we like to talk to you to understand more about your business, aims and ambitions - we believe teamwork and clarity are very important so that a campaign is successful. Our media planners and media buyers work with the top tube network advertisers and general advertising agencies every day, which means we are able to obtain the best sites and superb tube advertising rates. We will also check availability and send these to you following your enquiry, so you can clearly see what is available and when. We aim to take the stress out of all your advertising needs.

When contacting us if possible give us an idea of your budget as well as run dates (when you want your London underground advertising campaign to start and finish). If you are uncertain about budgets or start dates drop us a message and one of the team will call you to talk through. All quotes are free so you have nothing to lose in dropping us an enquiry.

Request a call with our team

Are There Other London Outdoor Advertising Options?

As well as advertising on the underground it's often beneficial to support this medium of marketing with other forms of London billboard advertising in and around the station - basically allowing you to hit your target audience hard around a particular location.

So, as well as underground advertising you may look to back this up with standard London billboard advertising such as roadside advertising or London bus stop advertising, at Billboard Advertising we are able to offer you a range of outdoor campaigns and outdoor advertising options to suit your needs. We can talk you through and suggest all these as appropriate.

London Underground Rate Card Request

If you would like us to send over a tube advertising card drop contact us today.

Frequently Asked Question

"We have never tried London Underground advertising before, it is expensive when compared to other forms of outdoor advertising, do you think it is worth the investment and what are the main benefits?" There is no getting away from the fact that London Underground is a costly outlay but this is due to the fact that it has proven success. With thousands of passenger journeys happening every day, these commuters represent a superb captive audience. As an advertising environment, it is perfect in that these commuters cannot avoid your advert - whether it is in a tube car or on a station wall - and it means that both dwell time and recall is high. There are also lots of different options on the London Underground which are not all as costly as you imagine, from printed to digital media options all of which target passenger journeys effectively.

"As an advertising environment London Underground seems packed with lots of big brands all targeting commuters, how can I get my brand to stand out from the crowd with my campaign?" There is no doubt that London Underground is a sort after advertising environment; indeed it is one of the most popular in the world. To stand out means you will certainly need more than one poster on a wall! We often find that large bundles of posters, station take-overs and more quirky ideas can gain real traction, and hopefully increased dwell time from your target market, and elevate your brand to something new and quirky. The idea being to interrupt passenger journeys and make them stop and take notice of your brand.

"London commuters are such a wide audience - is there any way that London Advertising Underground can be targeted?" Yes! The network is vast and covers hundreds of miles of tracks and stations. Each area has it's own different demographic and potential dwell time. With London Underground Advertising you can target certain stations that fit well your target audience.

Contact Us

If underground advertising is of interest to your company drop us a message and we can discuss the various options.

Advertising on London Underground is very popular so we suggest getting in touch some months ahead of your intended campaign so that we can secure the best sites and best rates.

Fill in our contact form and get in touch with some basic information about your company, budget and timings, one of the friendly team will be in touch to talk you through the various advertising options available.

For a full list of services visit our homepage.

More information

Tube Advertising Stations Available

Bakerloo Line - Elephant & Castle, Lambeth North, Waterloo, Embankment, Charing Cross, Piccadilly Circus, Oxford Circus, Regent's Park, Baker Street, Marylebone, Edgware Road, Paddington, Warwick Avenue, Maida Vale, Kilburn Park, Queen's Park, Kensal Green, Willesden Junction, Harlesden, Stonebridge Park, Wembley Central, North Wembley, South Kenton, Kenton, Harrow & Wealdstone.

Central Line - Epping, Theydon Bois, Debden, Loughton, Buckhurst Hill, Grange Hill, Chigwell, Roding Valley, Woodford, South Woodford, Snaresbrook, Hainault, Fairlop, Barkingside, Newbury Park, Gants Hill, Redbridge, Wanstead, Leytonstone, Leyton, Stratford, Mile End, Bethnal Green, Liverpool Street, Bank, St.Paul's, Chancery Lane, Holborn, Tottenham Court Road, Oxford Circus, Bond Street, Marble Arch, Lancaster Gate, Queensway, Notting Hill Gate, Holland Park, Shepherd's Bush, White City, East Acton, North Acton, West Acton, Ealing Broadway, Hanger Lane, Perivale, Greenford, Northolt, South Ruislip, Ruislip Gardens and West Ruislip.

District Line - Upminster. Upminster Bridge. Hornchurch. Elm Park. Dagenham. East Dagenham. Heathway. Becontree. Upney. Barking. East Ham. Upton Park. Plaistow. West Ham. Bromley-by-Bow. Bow Road. Mile End. Stepney Green. Whitechapel. Aldgate East. Tower Hill. Monument. Cannon Street. Mansion House. Blackfriars. Temple. Embankment. Westminster. St. James's Park. Victoria. Sloane Square. South Kensington. Gloucester Road. High Street Kensington, Earl's Court, West Brompton, Fulham Broadway, Parsons Green, Putney Bridge, East Putney, Southfields, Wimbledon Park, Wimbledon, West Kensington, Barons Court, Hammersmith, Ravenscourt Park, Stamford Brook, Turnham Green, Gunnersbury, Kew Gardens, Richmond, Chiswick Park, Acton Town, Ealing Common, Ealing Broadway.

Piccadilly Line - Cockfosters, Oakwood, Southgate, Arnos Grove, Bounds Green, Wood Green, Turnpike Lane, Manor House, Finsbury Park, Arsenal, Holloway Road, Caledonian Road, King's Cross, Russell Square, Holborn, Covent Garden, Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus, Green Park, Hyde Park Corner, Knightsbridge, South Kensington, Gloucester Road, Earl's Court, Barons Court, Hammersmith, Acton Town, South Ealing, Northfields, Boston Manor, Osterley, Hounslow East, Hounslow Central, Hounslow West, Hatton Cross, Heathrow Terminal 4, Heathrow Terminals 1, 2, 3 Ealing Common, North Ealing, Park Royal, Alperton, Sudbury Town, Sudbury Hill, South Harrow, Rayners Lane.

Northen Line - Morden South Wimbledon Colliers Wood Tooting Broadway Tooting Bec Balham Clapham South Clapham Common Clapham North Stockwell Oval Kennington Elephant Castle Borough London Bridge Bank Moorgate Old Street Angel King's Cross Waterloo Embankment Charing Cross Leicester Square Tottenham Court Road Goodge Street Warren Street Euston Mornington Crescent Camden town Kentish Town Tufnell Park Archway Highgate East Finchley Finchley Central Mill Hill East West Finchley Woodside Park Totteridge Hiigh Barnet Chalk Farm Belsize Park Hampstead Golders Green Brent Cross Hendon Central Colindale Burnt Oak Edgeware.

Hammersmith & City Line - Hammersmith, Goldhawk Road, Shepherd's Bush, Latimer Road, Ladbroke Grove, Westbourne Park, Royal Oak, Paddington, Edgware Road, Baker Street, Great Portland Street, Euston Square, King's Cross, Farringdon, Barbican, Moorgate, Liverpool Street, Aldgate, Tower Hill, Aldgate East, Whitechapel.

Circle Line - Tower Hill, Aldgate, Liverpool Street, Moorgate, Barbican, Farringdon, King's Cross, Euston Square, Great Portland Street, Baker Street, Edgware Road, Paddington, Bayswater, Notting Hill Gate, High Street Kensington, Gloucester Road, South Kensington, Sloane Square, Victoria, St James's Park, Westminster, Embankment, Temple, Blackfriars, Mansion House, Cannon Street, Monument.

East London Line - New Cross, New Cross Gate, Surrey Quays, Rotherhithe, Wapping, Shadwell, Whitechapel, Shoreditch.

Jubilee Line Line - Stanmore, Canons Park, Queensbury, Kingsbury, Wembley Park, Neasden, Dollis Hill, Willesden Green, Kilburn, West Hampstead, Finchley Road, Swiss Cottage, St John's Wood, Baker Street, Bond Street, Green Park, Westminister, Waterloo, Southwark, London Bridge, Bermondsey, Canada Water, Canary Wharf, Canning Town, West Ham, Stratford.

Metropolitan Line - Aldgate, Liverpool Street, Moorgate, Barbican, Farringdon, King's Cross, Euston Square, Great Portland Street, Baker Street, Finchley Road, Wembley Park, Preston Road, Northwick Park, Marylebone, Harrow-on-the-hill, West Harrow, Rayners Lane, Eastcote, Ruislip Manor, Ruislip, Ickenham, Hillingdon, Uxbridge, North Harrow, Pinner, Northwood Hills, Northwood, Moor Park, Croxley, Watford, Rickmansworth, Chorleywood, Chalfont, Latimer, Chesham, Amersham.

Victoria Line - Brixton, Stockwell, Vauxhall, Pimlico, Victoria, Green Park, Oxford Circus, Warren Street, Euston, King's Cross, Highbury & Islington, Finsbury Park, Seven Sisters, Tottenham Hale, Blackhorse Road, Walthamstow Central.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
London Underground Advertising (also known as Tube Advertising) is a popular form of outdoor advertising and is used by companies wishing to promote their products or services to a large audience in the capital. Advertising on London Underground is not only used by London based companies, but by national and international brands looking for great exposure and recognition by a diverse and cultural audience.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Millennials and Gen Z Causing Surge in Used Clothing Demand - Planet Aid, Inc.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
There are two main factors leading to the increase in clothing resale and reuse. First, demand for sustainability and ethical fashion is on the rise, and reuse is an obvious way to save resources. Secondly, consumers want to be able to constantly change their wardrobe, a trend that has been fueled by social media and a desire to always be seen in something different.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
Social Media Marketing & Management Dashboard

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
You're in a meeting with your boss when it happens. Your breathing starts to quicken. Goosebumps appear on your arms. A bead of sweat drips down your forehead. You know it's coming. Your boss is about to ask you how to market to Generation Z.

The mere mention of this group of 2.1 billion individuals born between 1995 and 2010 sends shivers up your spine.

You know Generation Z is a huge group with spending power of over $143 billion in the United States alone. But how do you start marketing to them?

What do they like?

How do they talk?

What actually matters to them?

These are big questions. And the answers will help you do more than just market to Gen Z. They'll help you create valuable relationships and prepare your business for the future.

Here's what you need to know if you want to make meaningful connections with the next most important generation on the market.

Everything you need to know about Generation Z

They value individual expression

The phrase 'be yourself' has never rung as true as with Gen Z. The act of buying products or services isn't necessarily about fitting in with trends or 'what's cool.' It's about expressing individual identity.

"Generation Z is not only eager for more personalized products but also willing to pay a premium for products that highlight their individuality," research from global consulting firm McKinsey and Company finds. In fact, 58% of those surveyed said they're willing to pay more for products and services that highlight their individual personalities.

The same research finds that Gen Z wants brands to align with their personal values and beliefs.

They're protective of their privacy

Gen Zers crave hyper-personal experiences on social media, but they're also keen to protect their privacy. They're also more inclined to cover the webcam on their laptops.

Marketers need to make sure they connect with Gen Zers on their own terms so that they don't come across as creepy or too invasive.

Less than one-third of teens say they are comfortable sharing personal details other than contact information and purchase history, according to IBM's survey Uniquely Gen Z. But 61% would feel better sharing personal information with brands if they could trust it was being securely stored and protected.

They put their money where their values are

Generation Z isn't content to simply post about causes they believe in. They're putting their money where their beliefs are and voting with their dollars.

"This generation often puts aside its differences and rallies around causes that will benefit the greater good," research by Facebook explains. "Gen Z expects brands to do the same-to live their own values and to offer value. In fact, 68% of Gen Zers expect brands to contribute to society."

61% of Gen Z also says they'd pay more for products or services that are produced in an ethical and sustainable way.

This isn't just an empty declaration. "In the past year, 91% of Gen Z experienced one or more emotional or physiological stress-related symptoms," psychology professor B. Janet Hibbs, PhD, shares with Refinery29, citing an October 2018 report from the American Psychological Association.

Among other things, Gen Z is most concerned about climate change.

Brands are slowly realizing they can no longer get away with lackluster or non-existent environmental and ethical commitments. If brands want to appeal to Gen Z (and the greater good) they need to ensure their ethics align with this progressive generation.

If your business doesn't know where to start, look at Patagonia, Reformation, or any of the brands featured on conscious consumer site The Good Trade.

They value diversity and equality

Due to the increased level of mobilization made possible by technology, Gen Z doesn't distinguish between friends they have "in real life" and friends they have on the internet. While this might seem like a parent's worst nightmare, there's actually a nice reason for it.

"Gen Zers value online communities because they allow people of different economic circumstances to connect and mobilize around causes and interests," research from McKinsey finds.

"66% of surveyed Gen Zers believe that communities are created by causes and interests, not by economic backgrounds or educational levels."

This is number is way bigger than the ones reported by baby boomers, Gen Xers, and even millennials.

When it comes to gender equality, 77% of Gen Z say they feel more positively towards a brand when it promotes equality on social media. 71% said they'd like to see more diversity in advertising.

That doesn't mean you can just throw a person of color or LGBTQ couple in one of your Instagram posts or Facebook ads. "If a brand advertises diversity but lacks diversity within its own ranks, for example, that contradiction will be noticed," McKinsey and Company explains.

Seems like lazy marketing and business practices have finally met their match in Gen Z.

They're smart. Like, really smart.

Generation Z are the essential digital natives. They don't know a world without the internet, so they know how to use it better than anyone else.

Thanks to this digital-savviness, they' make highly-informed decisions. According to McKinsey, "they're more pragmatic and analytical about their decisions than members of previous generations were."

Before buying anything, Gen Z expects to access and evaluate information, reviews, and their own research.

McKinsey finds that " 65% of Gen Zers said they particularly value knowing what is going on around them and being in control. They're more comfortable absorbing knowledge online than in traditional institutions of learning."

Marketers need to ensure that information about their company is transparent and readily available online. You'll also want to make sure that information shines an honest, but positive, light on your business.

Keep tabs on what others are saying about your organization with our guide to social media sentiment analysis.

They trust friends and family over anyone else

You might want to take another look at your influencer budget.

While Morning Consult's recent Influencer Report found that 52% of Gen Z trusts influencers they follow on social media for advice about products or brands, a whopping 82% trust their friends and family over any other source.

When it comes to the influencers they do trust, male Gen Zers are most likely to follow them on YouTube. Female Gen Zers most often follow influencers on Instagram.

Pro tip: the second most trusted resource for Generation Z is product reviews on Amazon or similar sites. Leverage this knowledge by regularly posting genuine positive reviews from real customers to your social media accounts.

Do NOT write fake reviews or have your employees write faux reviews. These will always catch up with you and the negative fallout from this kind of scandal will irrevocably damage your reputation, not to mention the loss of your customers' trust.

They prefer mobile

According to Global Web Index's 2019 report on Gen Z, this age group greatly prefers the on-the-go convenience of their mobile devices over PCs and even laptops.

Whether accessing social networks, chatting, watching videos, or looking at maps, Gen Z is most likely doing it on their mobile devices.

As you can see, this doesn't mean that they've completely abandoned PCs and laptops, just that those are a less popular option overall.

They embrace the second-screen lifestyle

Global Web Index found that 95% of Gen Zers said they were using another device while watching TV, particularly mobiles.

What are they doing, exactly? More than 70% say they're talking to their friends or social networking. However, only 35% are actually chatting or accessing content related to what their watching. Armed with this information, marketers can look to target Gen Z on multiple platforms and devices at all times.

Read our guide on how to make the most of the second screen social trend.

They use different networks for each stage of their shopping journey

Market research shows that 85% of Generation Z learns about new products on social media.

They are also 59% more likely than older generations to connect with brands on social, too.
Instagram is the most popular app for brand discovery, with 45% of teens using it to find cool new products, followed by Facebook, which comes in at 40%. Before making a purchase, Gen Zers are two times more likely than Millennials to turn to YouTube.

YouTube is also the platform of preference when it comes to shopping recommendations, ranking first among Generation Z with 24%, followed by Instagram at 17% and Facebook at 16%.

Meanwhile, in real brick-and-mortar stores, teens are most likely to turn to Snapchat to document their shopping experiences.

Understanding how teens use social media throughout their shopping process is key to engaging them on the right platforms with the right message.

They're not afraid to buy things online

While older consumers still have some hesitations about sharing their credit card and personal or financial information online, Gen Z isn't as phased.

72% of Gen Zers have bought something online in the last month, with 6 out of 10 making purchases on their mobile devices.

What are they buying, you may ask? Global Web Index finds that Gen Z is much more interested in spending money on experiences like concert tickets and other entertainment, technology, and fashion.

They're (mostly) happy to see you

Generation Z isn't bothered by branded content. In fact, most of them welcome it.

"Gen Z is happy to have content from their favorite brands appear in their newsfeeds," Global Web Index shares. "4 in 10 are following brands they like on social media, with 1 in 3 following the brands they are thinking of buying from."

Before you go blasting your social media content and ads out to everyone, you need to know your audience.

Make sure you're targeting people who could actually find value in your product or service, and focus on attracting their attention.

Not sure where to start? Check out our guide to social ad targeting for a comprehensive resource on converting your Gen Z audience.

They love TikTok

TikTok, the short video creation and sharing app, has taken the world by storm. While it was once basically a shared amongst teens, it's now hit the mainstream.

Late Night show hosts share TikTok content on their programs. Instagram meme accounts are dedicated to simply reposting popular TikToks. And many social media accounts are gathering content and inspiration from the addictive app.

Based on the way trends and media flow, it's no wonder that TikTok is especially popular with teenagers. More than 41% of TikTok users are between 16 and 24 years old. And we bet that 100% of them are cooler than us.

While you never want your brand to have a ' how do you do, fellow kids? ' moment, there are ways businesses and organizations can authentically use the platform. If your brand voice is more playful or irreverent, TikTok could be the perfect place to create and share content.

Collaborate with TikTok influencers, post content using a branded hashtag, or participate in one of the countless TikTok challenges, as long as it aligns with your brand.

Now that you know these key statistics and facts about Generation Z, you're equipped to not only reach them with your marketing, but to make a lasting impact.

Remember: you're not just looking to create valuable relationships with them at this point in their lives, but as they grow and age. You haven't seen the last of Gen Z.
Connect with Generation Z using Hootsuite. From a single dashboard you can easily manage all your social channels, collect real-time data, and engage with your audience across networks. Try it free today. Get Started

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Generation Z: Everything Social Marketers Need to Know

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Today's teenagers are tomorrow's trendsetters. Here's what marketers should know if they want to reach Generation Z on social media.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Generations are shaped by the context in which they arise, and Generation Z is no different. You may still call them kids, but they are already making a true impact on the world. This is the first digital native generation (aka iGen), and Generation Z lives up to this concept: they are always connected and they can move around the online world like none of their predecessors.

The vast availability of information along with the ease with which they can navigate the internet and use it in their pursuit to change the world is building a more diverse and tolerant generation. Not to mention that they are on their way to becoming the most educated generation ever.

iGen is also reinterpreting established notions of gender, race, consumption, authenticity, and they are encouraging society to think and talk about topics like sustainability and plus-privilege. Instead of following old trends, Generation Z are creating new ones and inviting older generations to tag along. For sure you've heard of concepts like genderfluidity, genderqueer, non-binary, non-conforming, cisgender, gender-questioning, even though you might not be entirely confident about what they mean.

And on top of all that, they are passionate. They fight for their beliefs, they support each other, and they mobilize themselves around causes that speak to them. They are creative and inventive, and they can build powerful messages that can go viral and grow into movements.
Influence with purpose
That's why Generation Z is a generation like no other and has arrived to change how society is currently shaped. This change is also happening in the Influencer Marketing scene - and it couldn't be any different. In fact, influencers are the ones who inspire their peers in their pursuit of purpose and truth, while also spreading Generation Z's message across older generations. It's safe to say that Generation Z influencers have helped building this new cultural panorama and are more relevant than never before. They aren't influencers, but creators, innovators, who are leading content creation to new and unexplored dimensions.

By now, you should already know that, if brands want to continue being relevant, they will have to keep up. And by keeping up, we don't mean adding 'gender-questioning' to the target audience of your Facebook Ads. Besides, only tapping into trends won't get you very far since Generation Z probably already saw whatever-the-latest-trend-is.

Brands must reinvent themselves in order to arouse this new generation's interest and attention. In order to do this, they need to add real value. And the only way they can truly create real value is by aligning with iGen's values and beliefs. They need to soak themselves in what's important to Generation Z.

Forget the picture-perfect, super-edited type of content. Look for authenticity, and be authentic yourself. This generation is looking for the truth and values they can connect to, and that's what you should deliver.

Pay extra attention to your social presence, because that's where Generation Z live, and they will keep an eye on your every move. Your social channels are not only the space to provide valuable content, but also the space to listen to them, to engage and interact with them, to learn and understand what's important to them. Use this information to align your social presence with Generation Z's mindset, renew your image and make a stance. Be innovative so you can attract them to your conversation, and we promise that they will connect with you on a much deeper level.
Emilie Tabor, chief marketing officer and founder at IMA.
// Featured in this article

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Generation Z is upending influencer marketing

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Generations are shaped by the context in which they arise, and Generation Z is no different. You may still call them kids, but they are already making a true impact on the world. This is the first digital native generation (aka iGen), and Generation Z lives up to this concept: they are always connected and they can move around the online world like none of their predecessors.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When it comes to Gen Z-dominated social media platforms, TikTok has generated all the buzz in the ... [+]
Paul Hanaoka Via Unsplash

When it comes to Gen Z-dominated social media platforms, TikTok has generated all the buzz in the past six months thanks to some astounding numbers. The app has grown exponentially since its launch in 2016, and after its parent company, Byte Dance, bought Musical.ly and merged the two. Meanwhile, the platform has more than 800 million active users and has been downloaded 1.5 billion times in more than 150 countries. While the platform has drawn mass user growth and engagement, there is still a knowledge gap on why the platform is unique and how we can leverage it as marketers. To gather insights, I spoke with Kieran Mathew, founder and CEO of Amplify, a research and marketing company that helps brands grow in the student market.

Jeff Fromm: Can you provide some background information on TikTok and why it is so engaging for Gen Z consumers?

Kieran Mathew: In its simplest form, TikTok has won the hearts of Gen Z consumers because it has democratized virality. In the last six months, we have seen explosive growth from hundreds of influencers across the world. The growth rate for the top performers is unparalleled on this platform. As a result, users feel as though they have a tangible chance of going viral and becoming an influencer. The influencer-life is one that speaks to young consumers as it is a means for passive income and fame. From a content standpoint, it is a platform that has enabled everyone to speak in their own language and from a highly unique, creative lense. Although users have taken a liking to dancing videos, skits, 60s vlogs, music, science, and even political videos are also performing incredibly well. This means that users can feel comfortable simply being themselves, creating what they want to create, not only what they think others want to see.

Fromm: Why should brands invest in influencer marketing on TikTok?

Mathew: More than 40% of TikTok users are aged 16-24 and 90% of those users go on the app more than once daily. As a result, the platform provides a unique and targeted means of reaching Gen Z consumers. The biggest upside on TikTok is sound. The significant majority of content on social platforms is consumed without sound. In contrast, all TikTok users are watching content with sound on. To understand the significance of sound, consider watching a movie without it. It is a lot harder to drive emotional reactions and engagement without the climactic crescendos of music and voices. The same can be said for ads. The additional benefit is that sounds-alone can go viral on TikTok. When creating content, users will often start with audio, working to create 15-60 second content around it. That means brands which create quirky and engaging sounds have the opportunity to capitalize on incredible user-generated content. Cash App is a shining example of this with their feature in Roddy Ricch's 'The Box.' The song was not created for TikTok, but it did become a viral sound on the platform leading to hundreds of millions of additional impressions.

Fromm: Aside from the opportunity to engage users with sound, how does this differ from other platforms?

Mathew: TikTok is fascinating because users spend more time on content discovery than engaging with those they already follow. If you think of Instagram, Facebook, or Snapchat, time is predominantly spent consuming content from users one already follows. In contrast, TikTok users spend most of their time on the 'for you page' which showcases content from all users on the platform. Some of the content is viral while other content is local and will have very little views or engagement. This is why I feel that the platform has democratized virality, it is providing everyone with the opportunity to be discovered, not just prioritizing content from people who have already amassed a large audience. The algorithm also favors local content which means that influencer campaigns can still be targeted.

Fromm: What should marketers know when planning and executing campaigns?

Mathew: Reach is not as predictable on TikTok. When we invest in Instagram influencers, we have a strong idea of the impressions and reach that will be achieved. Given TikTok is predicated on content discovery, this predictability does not exist. As a result, I recommend investing in multiple pieces of content to maximize upside but also mitigate the risk of having content underperform. This also will provide marketers with the opportunity to test multiple forms of creativity from brand initiatives to conversion-focused content. Marketers will want to maximize their upside by having partners share content that is aligned to their brand and top-performing posts. For example, if you are partnering with a dance-influencer, get creative on inserting your product and service into a new routine with your own sound.

I would also encourage marketers to scroll through each prospective partner's account and see much views and engagement fluctuate on different pieces of content. If the numbers fluctuate significantly, I suggest building a performance-based compensation model instead of a flat fee. Marketers must also be careful if they are trying to capitalize on viral content. Whether it is a viral sound, dance move, or skit, these trends rise and fall fast. One must act very quickly to capitalize on it or content will be quickly deemed cringe and fall flat. As on all social platforms, request audience demographic information to verify that their partners are reaching the target market.

... Read More

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
TikTok Doesn't Stop: How To Reach Gen Z Consumers With Influencer Campaigns

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When it comes to Gen Z-dominated social media platforms, TikTok has generated all the buzz in the past six months thanks to some astounding numbers. The app has grown exponentially since its launch in 2016, and after its parent company, Byte Dance, bought Musical.ly and merged the two.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Gen Z is reinventing social media marketing

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As Gen Z consumers show unique online behaviour, brands should evolve their marketing strategies and reconsider platforms to reach younger audiences.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Younger consumers are seriously concerned with social and environmental causes, which many regard as being the defining issues of our time. They increasingly back their beliefs with their shopping habits, favoring brands that are aligned with their values and avoiding those that don't.

Brands are responding by integrating social and environmental themes into their products and services. The benefits of these policies are clear, but as the causes that some brands champion venture into controversial territory there are risks and consequences for those that fail to get it right. Against that background, in our latest State of Fashion report-written in partnership with the Business of Fashion (BoF) -we dived deeply into the rise of "woke" consumers as one of ten trends the fashion industry should watch in 2019.

Nine in ten Generation Z consumers believe companies have a responsibility to address environmental and social issues. The inclusion of the latter is a departure from the views of the previous generation of millennials, which had a greener focus. The change is reflected in the higher profile of social issues and in campaigns such as #metoo, #blacklivesmatter, and #timesup, all of which have entered the mainstream lexicon over the past couple of years.

The views of Gen Z and millennial consumers are critical. Together, these cohorts represent around $350 billion of spending power in the United States alone (approximately $150 billion spent by Gen Z and around $200 billion by millennials); additionally, Gen Z will account for 40 percent of global consumers by 2020. But concern over environmental and social issues is not restricted to younger consumers. Some two-thirds of consumers worldwide say they would switch, avoid, or boycott brands based on their stance on controversial issues. Half of these regard themselves as activists, driven by passion. The other half are less dogmatic, tailoring their decision to the situation at hand.

Still, the dynamics behind the numbers are compelling. Over the past three years a third of consumers worldwide have expanded the scope of their purchasing decisions to incorporate principled values and views. A new global ethos is emerging, and billions of people are using consumption as a means to express their deeply held beliefs.

Signs of this evolving agenda can be found beyond consumer sentiment, too. Fashion companies are showing signs of getting "woke" (a phrase defined as "alert to injustice in society," popularized on social media). For example, based on a "data scrape" of more than 2,000 fashion retailers, the appearance of the word "feminist" on homepages and newsletters increased by a factor of more than five from 2016 to 2018.

Many brands and retailers, including Levi Strauss and Nike, are on board, and both companies have taken a clear stance on social issues in recent months-Nike supporting Colin Kaepernick, the face of the NFL's "anthem protests," and Levi's fronting a campaign against gun violence. Gucci has also supported that cause, supporting a student-led march calling for more gun control.

And American designer Jeremy Scott appeared at his New York Fashion Week show with a T-shirt urging, "Tell your senator no on Kavanaugh," in reference to the then-embattled US Supreme Court justice undergoing confirmation hearings.

In Asia, Fast Retailing, the parent company of Japanese retailer Uniqlo, has made efforts to hire refugees and, since 2016, has donated more than $5 million to the support of refugee initiatives in Asia. British retailer ASOS has taken a different approach to support refugees, launching an exclusive lingerie line in partnership with designer Katharine Hamnett and Help Refugees, a nongovernmental organization that will receive all profits from the initiative.

Some fashion players have attached collections and ranges to specific causes-for example, H&M launched a Pride collection in 2018 in support of the LGBTQ+ community, and Balenciaga collaborated with World Food Programme, donning its slogan, "Saving Lives, Changing Lives." And others have geared campaigns to reflect beliefs; in a 2018 campaign to promote diversity, for example, Moschino switched to using only models of color.

Some companies are taking things a step further, putting purpose at the heart of their strategy and operations. There are growing numbers of B-Corporations, which are certified to have considered the impact of their decisions on people, society, and the planet (exhibit). Companies including Ben & Jerry's, Danone, and Patagonia are B-certified. In the fashion, apparel, and beauty sector, the number of B-corps had risen to nearly 200 as of April 2018, compared with just seven in 2010. Athleta promises that 40 percent of its products are made of recycled and sustainable materials, while Allbirds and Eileen Fisher have made similar commitments. The former donates returned used shoes to charity. We would not be surprised if at least one $500 million-plus fashion company became a B-corp in 2019.

Notably, environmentally and socially focused companies are considered by younger cohorts to be better prospects as employers, and the vast majority say they would be more loyal to companies that are aligned with those values. Commitment to tracking organizational key performance indicators is critical, as LVMH has done, setting out to have equal gender representation among executive ranks by 2020. A commitment to values on a group level can have impact on its brands' culture. As mentioned by Balenciaga chief executive, Cédric Charbit, "I think the fact the brand belongs to Kering, and having Kering expressing commitment towards sustainability and values as a group, makes a difference. You work in an environment where this matters, this exists, and we all are committed to this."

Not all causes that fashion brands advocate are universally popular, and these can come with significant risks. The NFL "anthem protest" was a divisive issue in the United States, creating a mixture of applause and backlash for Nike. Still, it created earned media exposure worth more than $163 million, within just days of the campaign launch. Besides potential controversy from supporting divisive causes, brands may also risk being perceived as hypocritical if they do not carefully ensure consistency in their messages and actions. In 2018, Primark was severely criticized and called unethical for releasing a line of Pride-themed T-shirts that were produced in Turkey, a country that is ranked the third worst in Europe for LGBTQ+ equality. Nike recently faced pressure from civil-society groups to ensure fair wages are paid to workers of suppliers in emerging markets.

Another reason that brand alignment with causes can backfire is that discerning consumers can easily spot the difference between gimmicks and a genuine purpose that aligns with the values of the organization. Companies can expect consumers to closely examine the level of continuity across campaigns and the nature of their strategic and operational decisions, as well as their tone.

It is worth noting that right now the movement is much more pronounced in Western markets, and in certain territories it is not at all appropriate for brands to align with certain issues. While consumers in Western markets currently do tend to dominate the movement toward environmental and social conscience, that is likely to change. In the coming year we expect rising numbers of consumers in other markets to increase their levels of commitment. Darshan Mehta, founder and chief executive of Reliance Brands, a subsidiary of the Indian retail conglomerate Reliance Industries, believes "the number of voices is not enough to aggregate to anything significant [yet], but it's a small wave and a tsunami may wash onto our shores [in India] in the years to come."

Despite the many associated risks, some large brands will be willing to court controversy to express beliefs, particularly luxury players, which will seek to attract younger consumer groups looking to trade up. There are clear benefits from doing so, and the more that companies express an authentic view, the more that those who don't will be exposed. And while there is a counterargument that expression of controversial views may deter some customers, the calculation, of course, is that the loyalty rewarded by its remaining customers matters more.

For more on all ten trends that will define the fashion agenda in 2019, see The State of Fashion 2019: A year of awakening.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The influence of 'woke' consumers on fashion

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Gen Z fashion trends are rooted in social and environmental issues. Here's what the industry should know.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Younger consumers are seriously concerned with social and environmental causes, which many regard as being the defining issues of our time. They increasingly back their beliefs with their shopping habits, favoring brands that are aligned with their values and avoiding those that don't.

Brands are responding by integrating social and environmental themes into their products and services. The benefits of these policies are clear, but as the causes that some brands champion venture into controversial territory there are risks and consequences for those that fail to get it right. Against that background, in our latest State of Fashion report-written in partnership with the Business of Fashion (BoF) -we dived deeply into the rise of "woke" consumers as one of ten trends the fashion industry should watch in 2019.

Nine in ten Generation Z consumers believe companies have a responsibility to address environmental and social issues. The inclusion of the latter is a departure from the views of the previous generation of millennials, which had a greener focus. The change is reflected in the higher profile of social issues and in campaigns such as #metoo, #blacklivesmatter, and #timesup, all of which have entered the mainstream lexicon over the past couple of years.

The views of Gen Z and millennial consumers are critical. Together, these cohorts represent around $350 billion of spending power in the United States alone (approximately $150 billion spent by Gen Z and around $200 billion by millennials); additionally, Gen Z will account for 40 percent of global consumers by 2020. But concern over environmental and social issues is not restricted to younger consumers. Some two-thirds of consumers worldwide say they would switch, avoid, or boycott brands based on their stance on controversial issues. Half of these regard themselves as activists, driven by passion. The other half are less dogmatic, tailoring their decision to the situation at hand.

Still, the dynamics behind the numbers are compelling. Over the past three years a third of consumers worldwide have expanded the scope of their purchasing decisions to incorporate principled values and views. A new global ethos is emerging, and billions of people are using consumption as a means to express their deeply held beliefs.

Signs of this evolving agenda can be found beyond consumer sentiment, too. Fashion companies are showing signs of getting "woke" (a phrase defined as "alert to injustice in society," popularized on social media). For example, based on a "data scrape" of more than 2,000 fashion retailers, the appearance of the word "feminist" on homepages and newsletters increased by a factor of more than five from 2016 to 2018.

Many brands and retailers, including Levi Strauss and Nike, are on board, and both companies have taken a clear stance on social issues in recent months-Nike supporting Colin Kaepernick, the face of the NFL's "anthem protests," and Levi's fronting a campaign against gun violence. Gucci has also supported that cause, supporting a student-led march calling for more gun control.

And American designer Jeremy Scott appeared at his New York Fashion Week show with a T-shirt urging, "Tell your senator no on Kavanaugh," in reference to the then-embattled US Supreme Court justice undergoing confirmation hearings.

In Asia, Fast Retailing, the parent company of Japanese retailer Uniqlo, has made efforts to hire refugees and, since 2016, has donated more than $5 million to the support of refugee initiatives in Asia. British retailer ASOS has taken a different approach to support refugees, launching an exclusive lingerie line in partnership with designer Katharine Hamnett and Help Refugees, a nongovernmental organization that will receive all profits from the initiative.

Some fashion players have attached collections and ranges to specific causes-for example, H&M launched a Pride collection in 2018 in support of the LGBTQ+ community, and Balenciaga collaborated with World Food Programme, donning its slogan, "Saving Lives, Changing Lives." And others have geared campaigns to reflect beliefs; in a 2018 campaign to promote diversity, for example, Moschino switched to using only models of color.

Some companies are taking things a step further, putting purpose at the heart of their strategy and operations. There are growing numbers of B-Corporations, which are certified to have considered the impact of their decisions on people, society, and the planet (exhibit). Companies including Ben & Jerry's, Danone, and Patagonia are B-certified. In the fashion, apparel, and beauty sector, the number of B-corps had risen to nearly 200 as of April 2018, compared with just seven in 2010. Athleta promises that 40 percent of its products are made of recycled and sustainable materials, while Allbirds and Eileen Fisher have made similar commitments. The former donates returned used shoes to charity. We would not be surprised if at least one $500 million-plus fashion company became a B-corp in 2019.

Notably, environmentally and socially focused companies are considered by younger cohorts to be better prospects as employers, and the vast majority say they would be more loyal to companies that are aligned with those values. Commitment to tracking organizational key performance indicators is critical, as LVMH has done, setting out to have equal gender representation among executive ranks by 2020. A commitment to values on a group level can have impact on its brands' culture. As mentioned by Balenciaga chief executive, Cédric Charbit, "I think the fact the brand belongs to Kering, and having Kering expressing commitment towards sustainability and values as a group, makes a difference. You work in an environment where this matters, this exists, and we all are committed to this."

Not all causes that fashion brands advocate are universally popular, and these can come with significant risks. The NFL "anthem protest" was a divisive issue in the United States, creating a mixture of applause and backlash for Nike. Still, it created earned media exposure worth more than $163 million, within just days of the campaign launch. Besides potential controversy from supporting divisive causes, brands may also risk being perceived as hypocritical if they do not carefully ensure consistency in their messages and actions. In 2018, Primark was severely criticized and called unethical for releasing a line of Pride-themed T-shirts that were produced in Turkey, a country that is ranked the third worst in Europe for LGBTQ+ equality. Nike recently faced pressure from civil-society groups to ensure fair wages are paid to workers of suppliers in emerging markets.

Another reason that brand alignment with causes can backfire is that discerning consumers can easily spot the difference between gimmicks and a genuine purpose that aligns with the values of the organization. Companies can expect consumers to closely examine the level of continuity across campaigns and the nature of their strategic and operational decisions, as well as their tone.

It is worth noting that right now the movement is much more pronounced in Western markets, and in certain territories it is not at all appropriate for brands to align with certain issues. While consumers in Western markets currently do tend to dominate the movement toward environmental and social conscience, that is likely to change. In the coming year we expect rising numbers of consumers in other markets to increase their levels of commitment. Darshan Mehta, founder and chief executive of Reliance Brands, a subsidiary of the Indian retail conglomerate Reliance Industries, believes "the number of voices is not enough to aggregate to anything significant [yet], but it's a small wave and a tsunami may wash onto our shores [in India] in the years to come."

Despite the many associated risks, some large brands will be willing to court controversy to express beliefs, particularly luxury players, which will seek to attract younger consumer groups looking to trade up. There are clear benefits from doing so, and the more that companies express an authentic view, the more that those who don't will be exposed. And while there is a counterargument that expression of controversial views may deter some customers, the calculation, of course, is that the loyalty rewarded by its remaining customers matters more.

For more on all ten trends that will define the fashion agenda in 2019, see The State of Fashion 2019: A year of awakening.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The influence of 'woke' consumers on fashion

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Gen Z fashion trends are rooted in social and environmental issues. Here's what the industry should know.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
7 ways to reach and influence millennials using social media marketing | Smart Insights

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Social media is one of the best ways to reach a millennial audience, but what should your social media strategy include in order to engage this demographic?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Covent Garden Tube Station is in the Borough of Westminster serving the Piccadilly Line and is part of Transport for London's Travelcard Zone 1.

Advertising at Covent Garden Tube Station will reach the 20.28 million passengers who come through the station every year. On the border of London's central tourist region, Covent Garden lies alongside the iconic theatre district of the West End and presents an alternative retail location to Oxford Street. It also boasts the largest Apple store in the entire world, with a vibrant assortment of bars and restaurants in addition to frequent street entertainment.

Advertising formats at Covent Garden Tube Station include 4 sheets, 12 sheets, 16 sheets, 48 sheets, lift, stairs and escalator panels, LCD screens, ticket gateways, cross track projection, Digiwall, cross track Digiwall, while platform, station domination, platform side domination, special impact and tube car panels (advertisements placed inside the tube carriages).

Consumers spend around 3 minutes engaging with ads on London Underground platforms, and, with an average journey time of around 13 minutes, they have ample time to take in all the information displayed on tube car panel adverts.

Covent Garden Tube Station assists your audience in making an immediate purchase decision as soon as they see your tube advertising as Covent Garde n is a Wi-Fi enabled station, allowing millions of commuters and visitors to get online, visit social media sites, go online to shop or just browse the web to discover your brand.

An amazing 79% of commuters have responded to tube advertising by visiting an event, buying a product or looking something up as a direct result of seeing the brand on the London Underground. Don't miss out on the power and influence tube advertising has.

Transport Media offers Tube Advertising across all stations on the London Underground.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Covent Garden Tube Station is in the Borough of Westminster serving the Piccadilly Line and is part of Transport for London's Travelcard Zone 1. Advertising at Covent Garden Tube Station will reach the 20.28 million passengers who come through the station every year.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Advertising on the London underground is hugely popular with many advertisers and used by companies from all over the country, not just London based ones, in order to promote a wide range of products, brands and services.
London Underground advertising offers the potential to reach out to London's diverse potential of over 8 million people, as well as visitors from all corners of the UK, and indeed the whole world. With the tube network covering over 402km and serving 270 busy stations - carrying a total of 4.8 million passengers a day - there is a multitude of advertising options.

With such mass reach, it's easy to see why underground advertising is so popular with businesses, ranging from small local start-ups through to UK-wide and established international companies.

In this section, we will explain the many options and benefits of tube advertising and the cost factors. Alternatively for more information and free quotes, simply drop us a message and we will give you a call to chat through the options available.

We look forward to hearing from you.

get a free quote

What is London Underground Advertising?

It is basically out-of-home advertising using the infrastructure of the London underground system to promote services, brands and products.

As the capital of the United Kingdom, London not only has lots of residents but many business people visiting, as well as those on holidays from overseas, all making frequent passenger journeys across the city. This potential exposure to lots of different people makes London Underground advertising a profitable and popular investment for many businesses, targetting potential customers on platforms and escalators who have dwell time and time to take in marketing messages.

London Underground advertising options are both varied and proven, and there are lots to consider for any advertiser and company when putting together a marketing campaign.

It has certainly stood the test of time and has been around for over a hundred years, but as with the London Underground network itself, there are constantly both new stations and therefore new options to consider; London Underground advertising is like the capital itself, ever-evolving and exciting!

enquire today

Tube Advertising Options - A Full Range of Options

They are a variety of options to consider when advertising on the London underground.

The main options to consider are listed below:

Escalator Panels (these are also known as London Escalator Panels or LEPS) - they are the posters that you see at the side of the escalator as you travel to and from the train stations and tube platforms. They are the most popular form of advertising on the tube. Traditionally they are printed on paper but there are also digital escalator panels available in the bigger stations, which are impactful and effective. London Escalator Panels are an exceptionally popular form of advert as they are seen by people standing on the escalators - they, therefore, have high-impact with the majority of passengers. With lots of escalator panel ads on every line, it is important to think about your artwork - strong and clear messages work best especially as dwell time is short. With this type of London underground advertising, you can also select key stations to target, which can make the return on investment even better.

Tube Tunnels Ads - these are much larger than LEPs and therefore have a greater impact. They are the large posters (large format) on the tube walls and are seen by people who are stood on platforms waiting for the trains to arrive. They are a favoured form of advertising with large brands and international advertisers. They are fantastic at building brand awareness and as passengers are often a few minutes on platforms, it means messages are properly absorbed and taken on board as dwell time can be considerable. Check out this video of tunnel advertising in action:

Large format posters on the station platforms - these are typically 4 sheets or 6 sheets in size and they hold the similar benefits of Tube Tunnel Ads (in that they target waiting passengers) but as they are smaller, they are cheaper. Advertisers and businesses tend to buy these in packages and have more than one poster. The benefit of this is that this form of advertising can be spread over different platforms, and also different stations, increasing your reach and impact with potential London underground users. For more information get in touch today.

Walk-way branding - this form of advertising is rare with smaller business as it is expensive - but it's popular for those with big budgets. Basically, there are options to brand whole walkways or take over all the posters sites in one section of the station. The benefit of this is your potential customers and tube users can't escape it - both large format posters and good potential dwell time! You literally have to walk-through the ad to get to your destination. They are often good for product launches or niche type events and become talking points with potential customers. A few years there was a famous "cat" take-over in Clapham North. It got everyone talking!

Adgate advertising - this is basically the gates that tube users have to put their ticket through, or where you present your bankcard or Oyster card as you enter the London Underground network. Again as every customer has to go through the barriers to travel, this type of ad gets a lot of attention and exposure. This form of advertising is a popular form of London underground advertising, it is also commonly teamed with advertising at other train stations, where commuters may be travelling into London from outer areas.

Concourses/ticket area/entrances - as well as options in the walkways and on the escalators, simple poster sites in the concourses, are often popular, targeting people who are buying tickets, waiting for friends etc. There are various sizes of posters to choose from in these areas, for more info drop us a message.

Inside the tube trains/tube coves (sometimes known as tube seat advertising) - these are the small poster sites you see above the seats. They are often eye-catching and are seen by London underground users as they are travelling. As you can't use mobile phones (or usage is restricted) these are a popular and more affordable form of advertising than other options. Passengers often have little to do, or look at, when travelling so this is very effective and reaches every stop along each tube line!

Digital escalator panels - a form of LEP there are lots of new digital escalator panel options popping up, these are bright, colourful, animated and updated with new messaging.

Request a quote

How Much Does it Cost to Advertise on London Underground?

Costs of advertising on the London tube varies depending on a number of factors, these are briefly outlined below:

The time of year - as with any form of outdoor advertising we always recommend that you book as far in advance as possible, especially if you are targetting key dates such as Christmas, Easter, Valentines, Mothers Day etc. This will allow you to get the best rates and more importantly top underground sites.

The type or format of the advert - in general, the larger format posters are more costly than smaller posters.

Which stations you want to advertise in - the more central and with greater daily footfall eg. Oxford Circus and Waterloo, are more expensive than those on the outskirts. Again it's worth thinking about your target market and if you specifically want to target certain parts or demographics of the capital.

Length of the advertising campaign - the longer you want posters up, the more expensive, however, it is proven that longer campaigns have a better return on investment. Most tube advertising is a minimum of 2 weeks, whilst the majority of advertisers tend to do a month or more.

To find out more info and for specific costs on London underground advertising give us a bit of info about what you are looking to promote, budgets, timings and also any stations you are particularly interested in. We will work up a bespoke campaign for you to consider based on these factors.

What are the Benefits of London Underground Advertising?

There are many benefits to tube advertising as outlined above but at PromoMedia we would say the main ones are;

Massive exposure and a receptive advertising environment

Ability to target stations with key messaging

Potential to seen by people from all over the UK (and indeed the world) - not just people in London

Options to suit various budgets

Great at establishing and maintaining positive brand perceptions

If you have any more questions, simply get in touch with us today.

Which Companies Advertise on The Underground?

Lots of major national and international companies advertise on the tube network every day, including car companies, supermarkets, clothes, fashion and luxury brands, whilst small local companies also choose stations to target people in their neighbourhood (such as local hairdressers, independent bars, cafes, gyms, restaurants etc.).

London underground advertising is, therefore, a popular choice with a wide range of companies and is more affordable than many imagine. If tube advertising is something you are interested in for your company we can provide you with costs and lots of suitable options to consider (including 4 sheets, 6 sheets, 48 sheets, tunnel advertising and escalator panels).

If adverts on the London Underground are of interest to you and your company contact us today for more specific information and find out about how tube advertising can work for your business on either a local London, national or even international level. Alternatively, if other forms of advertising are of interest, we can also advise and book TV adverts, outdoor advertising, radio and more, simply contact our media buyers today.

Advertising on London Underground Summary

London Underground advertising can initially seem an expensive form of outdoor advertising, however, when weighing up the positives and proven results it is clear why it is so popular with a whole range of businesses. It is a common misconception that tube advertising is only used by London based companies but this is not the case, it's effective for international brands as well as local businesses in the locale of the stations.

As the London underground network is ever-growing it means that tube advertising is also often new and exciting too, with new digital options, tunnel take-overs ever-evolving well as more traditional poster advertising options.

If London Underground advertising is something which you are interested in, get in touch today. We will then put together a bespoke campaign based on your aims, ambitions and budgets. You too can join the successful businesses who advertise on the London tube network every day. We look forward to hearing from you.

Contact us today

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Advertising on the London underground is hugely popular with many advertisers and used by companies from all over the country, not just London based ones, in order to promote a wide range of products, brands and services.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
We have opportunities for you to connect with one of the world's most powerful audiences: the London commuter.

Connect with London commuters

Our advertising strategy team are part of our ambitious programme to generate £3.4bn in non-fares revenue over the next ten years. The money generated will be invested back into the transport network and help to keep fares down.

We do this by offering businesses the opportunity to connect with a particularly powerful audience: the London commuter.

Millions of passenger journeys take place across our network every day and our media partners can help you reach this audience. Engaging and entertaining opportunities on the Tube, trains, trams and buses, as well as roadside estate, are a real opportunity.

We can help your business do business by positioning your message in front of this influential, demanding, and active audience.

Advertising policy

Our advertising policy is designed to ensure that fair and consistent guidelines are applied to advertisements across our network. We also work to maintain a safe travelling environment for passengers, and a quality outdoor estate for advertisers. The most recent revisions to our policy came into effect in February 2019.

Advertising and sponsorship policy

Advertising annual reports

Information on the implementation of our advertising policy. Includes the number of advertisements carried on the network, the number of advertisements rejected by us and our advertising partners and the number of complaints we have received.

Mayor's Advertising Steering Group

Advertising partnership

Our advertising partner Global are turning the Underground into the UK's largest single advertising network. By installing digital advertising in many of the busiest Underground stations, they are presenting advertising opportunities to the millions of people who use the London Underground each day. Your business message could take over entire platforms, stations or Tube lines.

Our services under the advertising partnership with Global include:

London Underground

London Overground

DLR

Croydon Tram Link

Victoria Coach Station

The Elizabeth Line (Crossrail) when operational

Other advertising opportunities include leaflet and free gift distribution and experiential or marketing events on the TfL network. For more information, or to discuss a brief, please contact TfL Commercial Partnerships team at: experientialmarketing@tfl.tube.gov.uk
Contact
Buses

With millions of people using our bus services each day, Global, our main partner for advertising space on buses, can offer a range of opportunities for bus interiors and exteriors. Alternatively, there is also a digital or static on-street presence run by JCDecaux, our partner for all advertising opportunities on bus shelters. Choose from a variety of media, including traditional poster sites and digital panels.
Contact
Digital

The TfL website gets over 3 million page views daily and our digital advertising partner, the Council Advertising Network can work with brands to take advantage of opportunities that come with this exposure.
Contact Council Advertising Network

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Transport for London | Every Journey Matters

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We have opportunities for you to connect with one of the world's most powerful audiences: the London commuter. Our advertising strategy team are part of our ambitious programme to generate £3.4bn in non-fares revenue over the next ten years. The money generated will be invested back into the transport network and help to keep fares down.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Strange as it may seem in the age of Facebook and Google ads, a growing number of London startups are turning to tube advertising to attract new customers and help their brands stand out from the masses.

'The tube cuts through the noise,' says Tom Cavill, co-founder of property Isa firm Bricklane, which first tried its luck with the underground's users (up to 4.8 million of them per day) in January this year. 'Other ad formats are thirsty for your attention.'

Companies can be reluctant to advertise on London's underground as it's sometimes associated with trashy brands and ugly adverts.

But Cavill believes that commuters are a relatively captive audience. They're looking for distraction, rather than trying to avoid it.

Facebook: loud and expensive

'With other areas of advertising, like Facebook, you have to think about how to dress an ad up as something other than an ad. With the tube, people almost want to be entertained,' says Cavill.

But advertising on the tube isn't just a way to catch commuters' eyes and distinguish a brand. It's also a means of future-proofing against Facebook and Google's 99% share of the digital ad market.

Personalised children's book publisher Lost My Name has been experimenting with advertising channels in the US, from TV campaigns to podcasts, for some time. 'Last year, one of our biggest pushes was to diversify our marketing,' explains head of marketing Anne Thouas. 'We're pretty Facebook-dependent, but it's only going to get more expensive. It's added two million more advertisers year-on-year.'

Over 60 million businesses now advertise via Facebook users' news feeds. In the last few months of 2016, the average cost per Facebook ad click in the UK was 21p, while the cost per app install was £4.33 - more than double the cost in the US. Thouas is also convinced that, after three years, it's getting harder for Lost My Name to reach new customers through Facebook.

Experimental advertising

Lost My Name trialled its first tube campaign before Christmas 2015, after noticing several other startups advertising on the tube - Hello Fresh, Dog Buddy, Swoon Editions among them - and asking them for feedback. It ran a second set of 2,200 ads inside tube carriages for two weeks in March this year.

'You don't want to make eye contact with anybody, so you end up looking around,' says Thouas. 'Ads are memorable in the tube.'

Exterion, the media agency responsible for selling TfL's ad space, says the majority of its clients come through word-of-mouth referrals. 'The startup world is a small one,' notes Killian Barrins, who heads up Exterion's ventures arm, which was set up in 2015.

To encourage consumer-facing startups with limited marketing budgets to dip into tube ads, Exterion offers various payment deals, from a share in revenue to a percentage per app download, for example. One of its longest-running advertisers is Made.com, which has seen a 50% increase in sales year-on-year and is one of the fastest growing retail brands in the UK. 'Lots of startups use us just before looking for funding,' adds Barrins.

New customers

Bricklane's objective was to gain new customers, stand out from its competition and build trust in its brand in the run up to the Isa deadline; it wanted its campaign to be 'remarkable'. It created two ads - one that was simply descriptive, another that was 'more creative, to make you think' - and opted for the large '16-sheet' posters opposite platforms favoured by big brands. 150 adverts were pasted up in stations throughout zones one and two for one month.

'We're a considered purchase,' adds Cavill. 'People like to see us a few times, and seeing us in places other than the internet builds that story of the brand.'

Tracking success

Although quantifying brand recognition is hard, Lost My Name took a forensic approach to monitoring the success of its London underground ads, using surveys on the order complete page to find out how customers had heard about the site, then verifying the responses against users' IP addresses. Thouas says there was a definite uptick in sales from the capital on both occasions, although she admits the March campaign was less successful than the initial Christmas one. 'It's a difficult time of year for a seasonal business,' she explains.

While Exterion's data can pinpoint how and where to best target specific user groups, Barrins recommends 'reaching as many people as possible, as often as possible, as quickly as possible, instead of zoning in on a particular station'.
Costs
£127,600 for 4,400 panels ads in every tube carriage on every line for two weeks

£103,600 for 200 16-sheet poster ads, one in most stations in zones one and two for two weeks

Carriages have a 13 minutes average dwell time

Platforms have a 3 minutes average dwell time

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why tech startups advertise on the Tube - Courier

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Strange as it may seem in the age of Facebook and Google ads, a growing number of London startups are turning to tube advertising to attract new customers and help their brands stand out from the masses. 'The tube cuts through the noise,' says Tom Cavill, co-founder of property Isa firm Bricklane, which first tried [...]

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
If you want unique, the underground is an environment with plenty of opportunities. Here you can find formats that don't appear anywhere else, immediately drawing the eye and creating a point of difference. From Cross Track billboards to digital escalator panels, there's something for every campaign and budget.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tube Advertising | Advertise on London Underground | Monster Outdoor

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
If you want unique, the underground is an environment with plenty of opportunities. Here you can find formats that don't appear anywhere else, immediately drawing the eye and creating a point of difference. From Cross Track billboards to digital escalator panels, there's something for every campaign and budget.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
If you want unique, the underground is an environment with plenty of opportunities. Here you can find formats that don't appear anywhere else, immediately drawing the eye and creating a point of difference. From Cross Track billboards to digital escalator panels, there's something for every campaign and budget.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tube Advertising | Advertise on London Underground | Monster Outdoor

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
If you want unique, the underground is an environment with plenty of opportunities. Here you can find formats that don't appear anywhere else, immediately drawing the eye and creating a point of difference. From Cross Track billboards to digital escalator panels, there's something for every campaign and budget.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When it comes to marketing to today's young consumers, whether on Instagram or in traditional brick-and-mortar stores, brands are trying desperately to figure out what resonates.

Millennials and Generation Z are both extremely digitally savvy. For this reason, they're often lumped into the same category (strategically speaking). Brands looking to stay at the forefront of what's "cool" tend to view millennials as nearly identical to their younger brothers and sisters who are members of Generation Z.

However, while both millennials and Generation Z are digital natives, they do not consume the same sorts of content. Remember, millennials are those between the ages of 19 to 35, whereas Generation Z is composed of those between the ages of 11 and 18.

To claim that what's cool to a 31-year-old is the same as what's cool to a 15-year-old doesn't make much sense. They are entirely independent audiences, with different habits, preferences, and reasons for being online.

In order to effectively market to both millennials and Generation Z consumers, it's important to understand their differences.
1. Generation Z Prefers Influencer Marketing More Than Millennials Do
Influencer marketing has become extremely popular for targeting younger demographics. Influencers appear more genuine, they carry their own loyal audiences and the content they produce tends to outperform the content most brands create internally.

However, influencer marketing is not a "one-size-fits-all" solution. While it is certainly effective for reaching millennial consumers, it's worth pointing out that it's actually Generation Z who is most receptive to it. According to a report by Google, 70% of teen YouTube subscribers see their favorite YouTube influencers as more relatable than traditional celebrities. For Gen Z, influencers are more than just afternoon entertainers.

They are role models, movement leaders, even educators. It's very common for Gen Zers to turn to YouTube when they want to learn something-instead of using more conventional education methods like finding a tutor.

Influencer marketing is thus only successful when you choose the right influencers for the goals of the campaign. And if you're looking to target Generation Z consumers, you need to understand which influencers are maintaining their attention. Chances are, they're not the same influencers whose audiences are made up of millennials.
2. Generation Z Doesn't Shop Online Nearly As Much As Millennials
Retail brands are scratching their heads trying to figure out how to drive more online sales from younger consumers.

According to a survey of over 1,400 consumers, 74% of millennials make purchases online. Their shopping habits lead them to click "checkout" at least once per month. For Generation Z, this number is much lower. Only 49% of Generation Z makes a purchase online per month. Part of the reason for this, of course, is that Gen Z consumers are much younger, and their online shopping is usually chaperoned by their parents.

This is not to say that Generation Z consumers won't shop online more in the future. But for now, millennials are the demographic that does the most shopping.
3. Generation Z Uses More Digital Platforms (At The Same Time)
It's common knowledge that consumer attention spans are dwindling. The average attention span of a millennial is a whopping 12 seconds -and for Gen Zers, that number is an even more disappointing 8 seconds.

But the real difference between the two consumer groups comes down to how and where they actually consume the information. Generation Z doesn't just have a shorter attention span; they also juggle more screens. On average, millennials bounce between 3 screens at a time -which is why television commercials are seen as poor marketing strategies for reaching these attention-scattered viewers. However, things aren't getting less complicated: Generation Z tends to juggle 5 screens at once!

That in itself makes Gen Zers difficult to reach (and is why tactics like influencer marketing have become so effective).
4. Generation Z Doesn't Want Anything That Isn't Real
Authenticity has become a huge focal point in the world of marketing. Millennial consumers were the first generation to make known their preference for authentic content. They don't want to see digitally altered models or fake celebrity news stories.

Generation Z goes even further: they have made it clear that what they care about more than anything is feeling like they know the brand or the person behind the camera. They don't want to feel marketed to-they want to feel like they're part of something.

This is why so many brands have made conscious decisions to make their marketing campaigns seem as relatable and lifelike as possible. For example, in 2014 American Eagle implemented a "no-Photoshop" policy-and saw their sales go up as a result.
5. Generation Z Doesn't Want A Loyalty Program - They Want To Be Independent.
So many brands build loyalty programs with the hope of giving consumers a reason to come back. And while this might work well for millennial consumers, Generation Z isn't very interested in having to pledge their allegiance to any one brand. They'd rather be given options so they can get what they want, when they want it.

According to a study by Ernst & Young, 45% of millennials see loyalty programs as a good thing-and many actually appreciate being rewarded for their purchases. Gen Zers, however, are not as enthusiastic. Only 30% of Generation Z consumers see loyalty programs as a positive thing, and they much prefer being able to engage with brands on their own terms.

What Generation Z wants is independence. When you take a look at some of these subtle differences between the two consumer groups, you can see how different your marketing strategies need to be, based on who you want to target. Generation Z has different preferences from their older millennial counterparts. You can't speak to one consumer group and expect to grab the attention of both.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
5 D​ifferences ​Between ​Marketing ​To​ M​illennials V​s​. ​Gen Z

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When it comes to marketing to today's young consumers, whether on Instagram or in traditional brick-and-mortar stores, brands are trying desperately to figure out what resonates. Millennials and Generation Z are both extremely digitally savvy. For this reason, they're often lumped into the same category (strategically speaking).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why YouTube Stars Are More Influential Than Traditional Celebrities

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Viewers say that YouTube creators are more relatable and trendsetting than traditional celebrities.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Technology is revolutionizing the retail sector. Whether that's reimagining physical stores, changing consumer demands, rethinking brand marketing, or bolstering back-of-shop efficiency.

Retailers who want to succeed need to reevaluate their current operations and adapt if they want to thrive. We broke down the 4 most important retail trends hitting the industry this year to see how they're going to do just that.

1. Online and offline retail are coming together.

In recent years, various media outlets have been suggesting that the humble retail store will soon fall victim to the unstoppable power of online retail commerce.

This is often coined the retail apocalypse. However, we've found that such claims may be exaggerated.

The high street is not the same as it once was. Businesses that are unable to adapt to the internet age are facing serious challenges.

For example, Toys 'R' Us and Mothercare are no longer regular shopping spots. And recently, one of the UK's biggest property funds, M&G, suspended its £2.5bn property portfolio blaming the retail downturn for its problems.

Our data found that the retail store is here to stay: 3 in 4 internet users in the U.S. and UK say shopping in-store is their preferred way of shopping for clothes. Interestingly, this figure doesn't even fall below 70% for the digitally-native Gen Z, illustrating how offline fashion has a truly cross-demographic appeal.

Consumers value the tangible connection that physical stores give them. They want to be able to feel, smell, and try the products they buy, which is one of the primary reasons why they keep coming back to stores.

Essentially, we're seeing a new kind of coexistence emerge, one where the offline and digital worlds work together and complement each other seamlessly. This is happening in two directions:

Online giants are investing in the physical retail space, e.g. Amazon's launch of Amazon Go.

While traditional retailers are developing their online presence, such as Walmart's acquisition of digitally-native, Eloquii.

In 2020, successful retailers will be those that focus on the customer experience rather than transactions.

Whether that's implementing immersive technology features like smart mirrors, or more practical elements like a cafe, transforming the in-store experience based on consumers' needs is increasingly important to not only drive traffic but to keep consumers engaged for longer.

Almost a quarter of in-store fashion buyers say they shop in-store because they enjoy the experience.

It's also pivotal that retailers actively promote this online and offline integration. We know from our data that online shoppers would be encouraged to shop in-store for a number of reasons, such as if they were able to order out-of-stock merchandize for delivery (26%) or pay without waiting in a queue (30%).

The process of online and offline integration is not just driven by consumer demand for omni-channel capabilities - increased efficiency for the retailer is also a major contributing factor. For example, by encouraging in-store pick up, retailers can have a much better understanding of localized consumer demand.

Not only does this improve Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) by reducing oversupply and subsequent waste; the reduction in last-mile delivery costs can be substantial.

Improvements to CSR are welcomed in any industry, but in retail, sustainability is of particular relevance.

2. Sustainability is more important than ever.

Globally, 64% of millennials and Gen Z try to buy natural or organic products.

In the past, buying sustainable products was often unaffordable for many; today, alternative eco-friendly products are much cheaper. This is especially true in consumption-based industries such as retail. They're no longer a show of status, they're simply just the right thing to do.

This is also a topic that touches a nerve, especially among younger generations. In fact, as much as half of Gen Zs in Europe and North America do not feel positive about the future of the environment.

And retailers are taking note.

For fashion retailer Timberland, sustainability is key to its purpose as a brand, and its overall identity.

In November last year, the company launched its first " purpose-led " flagship store in London. With real trees, a full-height living green wall, and natural elements throughout, the aim was to bring nature into the city and encourage customers to interact and explore the brand in a more physical way.

Not only is this an example of reimaging physical stores, but it shows how sustainability - as part of the experience - is key to that.

Consumers are more informed about the sustainable qualities of retail products, and they're also cautious of quantity. Responsible consumption has already developed in the food industry but the fear of living a wasteful life is starting to take effect in other industries too. When we asked U.S. and UK consumers which industries should hold themselves most accountable to having a better CSR policy, the food and pharmaceutical industries came out on top - with over half of respondents selecting these.

In comparison, only a third of respondents thought the fashion industry needed to be more accountable to having a better CSR policy.

Despite many fashion brands driving the sustainability agenda, it's clear the stigma surrounding policies in fast fashion is less ingrained in society than issues such as food waste. However, as movements propelled by Extinction Rebellion and Greta Thunberg build sustainability awareness, consumers will begin to demand more from retailers across the board.

We also can't ignore the fact that if current fast fashion policies continue, the retail industry could consume a quarter of the world's carbon budget by 2050.

Above all, consumer demands and expectations from retailers are changing. Our data shows that 48% of internet users want brands to be eco-friendly, rising to 52% for Gen Z.

Sustainability is increasingly becoming key to retail's long-term success and it's crucial that brands earn the loyalty of this young generation before it's too late.

3. Social media is a key part of the purchase journey.

Efficiently optimizing social media in the online purchase journey will be key to being profitable in the retail space in 2020. The most successful retailers will be able to make use of influencers to drive purchases, rather than just brand promotion.

Influencer marketing is most relevant to Gen Z because globally they're 34% more likely to find out about new brands and products through endorsements by celebrities or well-known individuals.

What's more, 3 in 10 Gen Z and millennials typically discover new brands through ads seen on social media. As Gen Z grows older and their spending power increases it's important that retailers are successful in engaging them.

A survey carried out using our custom research found that 48% of influencer followers ¹ in the U.S. and UK want influencers to be trustworthy, making this the number one desirable attribute.

By partnering with trusted influencers, that trust is reflected in the brand. Using the right influencers in brand campaigns can be a powerful way to convert followers into brand customers and may be more effective than traditional advertising methods, especially for younger generations.

Over 40% of internet users in the U.S. and UK use Instagram to engage with influencers - making it the most popular platform to do this. As Instagram is currently experimenting with in-app purchases, influencer partnerships are set to earn retailers some serious rewards.

4. Efficiency is changing retail from the inside out.

A final major retail trend is how new technology is changing the way in which vendors operate their supply chain and optimize their inventory.

The technological advancements driving this trend, include, but are not limited to: artificial intelligence; the Internet of Things; motorized robotic micro fulfilment warehouses such as TakeOff; blockchain in the supply chain such as Wholechain; and autonomous vehicles in last-mile delivery such as Walmart's partnership with Nuro.

To stay ahead of competition, retailers are looking to find the most efficient, cost-effective, and eco-friendly ways of operating their business.

This is something which chimes with consumer expectations, with around half saying they want brands to be innovative and smart.

Using our Work data set, we discovered that 40% of retail managers say improving efficiency and productivity is an important initiative for their company to drive growth next year.

This is their second highest priority behind cost cutting and highlights how technologies mentioned above will likely be in increased demand this year as retail managers attempt to do this.

Decathlon in Singapore is a great example of such technology adoption. The French retailer has equipped its stores with automated inventory management tools like RFID tags and a dedicated service counter to deliver efficient in-store pickup.

By optimizing back-of-shop efficiency alongside omnichannel retail, this brand is leading the way in the retail revolution.

This year will certainly prove to be an interesting one for the retail industry. As retailers learn to adopt new technology that helps them improve their store functions, CSR policies, social presence and back-of-shop efficiency; physical and online retail have every opportunity to thrive.

Influencer followers refers to any internet user that engages with influencers on social media.

Retail managers are defined as those who work in retail and have an executive, senior or departmental management role.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Retail Trends 2020: Global Retail Industry Trends - GlobalWebIndex

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Technology is revolutionizing the retail sector. Whether that's reimagining physical stores, changing consumer demands, rethinking brand marketing, or bolstering back-of-shop efficiency. Retailers who want to succeed need to reevaluate their current operations and adapt if they want to thrive.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Yesterday, we saw that brand advertising plays a considerable role in inspiring eco-consumerism, looking at results from a study carried out by GlobalWebIndex among 2,324 internet users in the UK and U.S.A.

Today, we dive into exactly what factors consumers want brands to provide, and which product categories attract the most product research.

Even for self-reported Eco-Conscious Consumers, some product categories take priority over others for researching their production.

For both men and women, household cleaning products and personal care products are researched the most, with food (61%) close behind.

With alcohol (21%) at the bottom of our list, we can see differences even among grocery products for what products consumers want to ensure are eco-conscious. Electronic devices (49%) are a more surprising inclusion to the top 5, which suggests that drawing on eco-friendly materials in marketing them can have an impact, as well as the usual feature-led tactics.

By looking at what Eco-Conscious Consumers want in their products, we can get an idea of the current concerns consumers have for the environment.

Beyond general concern, it's sustainability which motivates Eco-Conscious Consumers the most (74%), while being carbon-neutral (42%) is less of a priority.

Respondents to our survey place less importance on third-party certificates than general assurances about eco-conscious production, underscoring the opportunity for brands to take the initiative in their product messaging.

If we combine these two data points by forming audiences of those who research for each product category, we can unlock further insights about what consumers desire for those particular products.

Respondents who research clothes are more concerned about labour in the supply chain, whereas researchers of electronics are more concerned about the environmental effects of production. Perhaps the most revealing insight is that food researchers are the least concerned with affordability. The implication here is that Eco-Conscious Consumers are most happy to pay a premium for eco-friendly or ethically produced food.
Eco-Conscious Consumers are defined as internet users aged 16-64 who say that concern for the environment affects their day-to-day purchase behavior.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Eco-Conscious Consumers Keen on Sustainability - GlobalWebIndex

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Yesterday, we saw that brand advertising plays a considerable role in inspiring eco-consumerism, looking at results from a study carried out by GlobalWebIndex among 2,324 internet users in the UK and U.S.A. Today, we dive into exactly what factors consumers want brands to provide, and which product categories attract the most product research.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
It comes in red, mustard and black, in sizes 6 up to 16; the bandeau bodycon minidress, is, according to the online retailer Boohoo, "perfect for transitioning from day to play".

It is not so much the styling and colour, but the price of the £5 dress - reduced this week to just £4 - which attracts thousands of the thriving retailer's 5 million UK customers to add it to their online shopping bag, click and pay.

Products and prices like these have driven Boohoo's profits to a record £59.9m, bucking the trend of struggling high street fashion stores across the country.

Made in the UK, at factories in Leicester and Manchester, the £5 dress epitomises a fast fashion industry that pumps hundreds of new collections on to the market in short time at pocket money prices, with social media celebrity endorsement to boost high consumer demand. On average, such dresses and other products are discarded by consumers after five weeks.
Fast fashion is on the rampage, with the UK at the head of the charge
Missguided, an online rival to Boohoo, which also sources products from Leicester, took the low pricing even further this week by promoting a £1 bikini, which proved so popular with customers that the website crashed.

But behind the price tag there is an environmental and social cost not contained on the label of such products. "The hidden price tag is the cost people in the supply chain and the environment itself pays," said Sass Brown, a lecturer at the Manchester Fashion Institute. "The price is just too good to be true."

A report by MPs into the fashion industry put it bluntly: in terms of environmental degradation, the textile industry creates 1.2bn tonnes of CO 2 a year, more than international aviation and shipping combined, consumes lake-sized volumes of water, and creates chemical and plastic pollution - as much as 35% of microplastics found in the ocean come from synthetic clothing.

'Fast fashion' is a phrase coined to describe inexpensive clothing produced rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends. Critics say that the industry has a large carbon footprint, and creates water and air pollution. Clothes are often manufactured in poor working conditions.

Garments are manufactured cheaply, and are expected to have a short life. One in three young women, the biggest segment of consumers, consider garments worn once or twice to be old. UK consumers sent 300,000 tonnes of textiles to be burned or dumped in landfill in 2018.

Without rapid reform, the fashion industry - of which fast fashion is the dominant player - could be responsible for a quarter of the Earth's carbon budget by 2050.

Was this helpful?

Thank you for your feedback.

Socially, the booming fast fashion industry is often built on low wages paid to women working in factories abroad but also increasingly in the UK, in cities such as Manchester, Birmingham, London and Leicester. There is no evidence that factories in the Boohoo and Missguided supply chains pay illegal wages. However, some garment workers in Leicester are paid an average of £3 an hour - way under the national minimum wage - MPs heard in evidence.

MPs found that the Modern Slavery Act was not robust enough to stop wage exploitation at UK clothing factories. There was a lack of inspection or enforcement, allowing factories - none of which are unionised - to get away with paying illegal wages.

In the UK, we buy more clothes per person than any other country in Europe - five times what we bought in the 1980s, which creates 1.3m tonnes of waste each year, some 350,000 tonnes of which is dumped in landfill or incinerated.

The life cycle of a fast-fashion dress

Yet despite the overwhelming evidence gathered by the environmental audit committee (EAC), ministers this week rejected every recommendation for tackling abuses across the fashion industry, including a ban on incinerating or landfilling stock that can be recycled and a 1p charge on each garment to raise £35m a year for better clothing collection and sorting, a move supported by many in the industry.

Theresa May said in parliament the government already had measures in place, including a multimillion-pound grant scheme to help boost the recycling of textiles and plastic packaging.

But the response of the government was met with anger by many within the industry, where ethical fashion firms come up against others who produce at lower costs on the back of exploitative wage structures and environmentally damaging production models.

Phoebe English, the English fashion designer, said: "It is extremely alarming to see that our government has failed to grasp the true extent of the consequences of the fashion industry carrying on the way it is.

"It is a vastly damaging industry that has been spiralling unchecked for far too long. The Earth and the people on it are exploited and damaged at every single step of the chain, and this culminates with unimaginable mountains of unused excess stock or badly made broken waste clothing with nowhere to go other than landfill or incineration."

English said it was up to the industry to pull together to regulate itself and urgently put an end to bad practice.

But others are less sure that voluntary measures will tackle what they say is a systemic power imbalance between brands and manufacturers, which leads to worker exploitation, or address the enormous environmental footprint of their trade.

"The knowledge is out there. We know the scale of those impacts and we know what some of the solutions are," said Dr Mark Sumner, a lecturer in retail and fashion at the University of Leeds. "What we need is the government to come up with some clear policy, whether it's around legislation, or voluntary initiatives to incentivise a change of behaviour by brands."

With growing scrutiny of their business model, brands are beginning to promote an ethical face. This week Boohoo promoted its recycled brand For the Future, using fabrics made from synthetic waste saved from landfill.

"They are moving in the right direction, but this is a micro-percentage of their output," said Brown.

While Boohoo is promoting its "green" credentials, repeated attempts by the trade union Usdaw to talk to workers at its delivery centre in the UK about union rights are being rebuffed by the company.

Mary Creagh, the chair of the EAC, said: "If brands want to be ethical, they should start by allowing a trade union into their premises rather than barring the door."

Prof Nikolaus Hammer, associate professor in work and employment at Leicester University, carried out research into the fashion industry in Leicester, where he found employees working in appalling conditions, with no employment contracts, earning on average £3 an hour. It was the brands, he said, who held all the power over manufacturers to keep cutting their prices. "They will go to the manufacturer and say that person down the road can do it for 1p less, and they get the job," he said.

He doubted that any greening measures by brands could make them ethical and sustainable while still fulfilling the model of fast fashion.

"The fundamental problem with much of fast fashion is that its social and environmental costs are not taken into account. The environmental costs of materials and fabric are mostly offshored. The production that takes place in the UK often only pays half the legal minimum wage.

"So who is accountable for water and chemical pollution abroad, precarious work and employment, the undercutting of compliant manufacturers, the pollution from delivery and lack of recycling at home? Brands might find it difficult to make £5 fast fashion dresses and be socially and environmentally sustainable."

Carol Kane, the co-founder of Boohoo, told MPs the £5 dress was a "loss leader" drawing people to the website. She said the company employed three people in Manchester, three in Leicester, and 10 in China to carry out audits at their producer factories each month to ensure proper working practices.

Ways to take the environmental heat out of your fashion habit

Commit to wearing every piece 30 times. If we doubled the amount of time we kept clothes for, we would cut our fashion emissions by 44%.

Get smart about fibres. Cheap cotton and synthetics come with huge environmental footprints. Cotton uses unsustainable amounts of water and pesticide. Go for hemp blended with organic cotton and silk and lyocel/modal.

Treat cotton as a luxury fibre. Buy products certified as organic to be free of the pesticide burden and plan to keep them for years.

Wash clothes less often. The average laundry cycle releases hundreds of thousands of tiny fragments of plastic from synthetic fibres into waterways. Put jeans in the freezer and remove dirt when frozen. Fleeces have been shown to release the most plastic fibres.

Use a rental service. Peer-to-peer clothes and accessories rental services such as Hurrcollective.com and byrotation.co.uk aim to make use of some of the estimated £30bn worth of clothing left hanging in wardrobes. Other models include rent-the-runway, where membership gives you access to a number of pieces per month.

Delete shopping apps from your phone and swear off insta-shopping for fashion. Go shopping for clothes in a shop. Feel the fibre, interrogate the structure - especially the seams - and make sure it fits.

If dry cleaning is a must, use an eco-friendly process: conventional dry cleaning harms the soil, air and water. Use Johnson's GreenEarth system or a dedicated eco cleaner such as Blanc.

Additional reporting by Lucy Siegle Topics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The story of a £4 Boohoo dress: cheap clothes at a high cost

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
It comes in red, mustard and black, in sizes 6 up to 16; the bandeau bodycon minidress, is, according to the online retailer Boohoo, "perfect for transitioning from day to play".

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
H&M has incorporated eco-friendly practices in its operational strategy, but the fact remains that a fundamental tension exists between the enormous environmental footprint generated by its fast fashion business model and its aim to produce sustainable garments.

The meteoric rise of the global fast fashion industry has completely upended the two-season retail shopping experience, conditioning consumers to instead expect and demand the arrival of mass-produced, affordable, and on-trend pieces at increasingly shorter buying cycles. While the business model has afforded retailers with tremendous growth that outpaces that of traditional apparel players, top-line gains were realized at the expense of environmentally sound manufacturing practices. Already the second largest polluter of freshwater resources, the fashion industry is also responsible for the production of synthetic fibers that emit N2O, a gas 300 times more damaging than CO2 [1]. Fast fashion garments, in particular, "produce over 400% more carbon emissions per item per year than garments worn 50 times and kept for a full year." [1]

Amongst its peers, H&M was one of the first to integrate large-scale sustainability initiatives across its supply chain. Sustainability has played an increasingly critical role in H&M's operating model since 2011, when it launched its Conscious Collection, an annual collection produced with such eco-friendly materials as hemp, organic cotton, and recycled polyester [2]. To complement the main collection, an assortment of eco-friendly pieces under the Conscious brand were made available year-round. Other initiatives quickly followed. Launched in 2013, the Garment Collecting Program provides customers the option to recycle their old clothes and home textiles at an H&M store, regardless of the brand or condition [3]. In return, the customer is gifted with vouchers for use at H&M [3]. Over 12,300 tons of clothing was collected in FY2015 and H&M has, to-date, produced 1.3mm garments using recycled clothing from the program [4].

On paper, H&M appears to have made considerable strides in realizing its sustainability aims. By the end of fiscal year 2015, 78% of H&M stores operated on renewable electricity (up from 27% in FY2014), which slashed its own greenhouse gas emissions by 56% from 2014 [5]. Committed to maximizing its usage of sustainable fibers in order to transition to a 100% circular business model, H&M has shifted its reliance on organic cotton, organic wool, recycled polyester, and recycled wool [6].

Exhibit 1. H&M, Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2015

Water management has been another key area of focus for the company. Fashion is a water-intensive industry, particularly due to the amount of water necessary for cotton production and fabric dye processing [7]. To achieve its aim of global water stewardship, H&M required that its ~500 supplier factories with wet processes institute wastewater treatment measures, reduced the water used during treatment processes for its denim garments, and is on track to introduce water-efficient equipment across its value chain [8]. Already one of the world's largest users of organic cotton, the company has set an ambitious goal of sourcing its entire cotton supply from sustainable sources by 2020 [9].

Exhibit 2. H&M, Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2015

H&M has incorporated eco-friendly practices in its operational strategy, but the fact remains that a fundamental tension exists between the enormous environmental footprint generated by its fast fashion business model and its aim to produce sustainable garments. The retail giant currently operates more than 4,100 stores in 61 markets [10]. Armed with an aggressive expansion strategy, H&M plans to open an additional 425 new stores in three new markets in fiscal year 2016, as well as introduce one or two new brands in 2017 [10]. Incentivizing shoppers to trade in their old clothes for a store coupon helps to reduce textile waste on one hand, but it's also a clever marketing scheme that brings the consumer back into the store to make additional purchases, which ultimately broadens the company's environmental footprint. Moreover, several of H&M's key production markets in emerging economics have regulations in place that prevent the importation of used clothes and recycled materials currently comprise of only 1% of H&M's total material use [6]. Separately, current technological limitations permit only 20% of recycled fibers to be mixed into new garments without compromising quality [11]. Closed-loop recycling is possible for pure cotton, but not for cotton that has been "dyed, treated or blended with other materials." [11] For synthetic fibers, closed-loop recycling is far from commercially viable [11].
Word Count: 716
While H&M has made meaningful progress in achieving its mission of sustainability, it remains to be seen whether it can truly succeed in closing the loop for fashion or is simply employing greenwashing tactics to capitalize on the growing contingent of environmentally-conscious consumers.

[1] James Conca, "Making Climate Change Fashionable - The Garment Industry Takes On Global Warming," Forbes, December 3, 2015, http://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2015/12/03/making-climate-change-fashionable-the-garment-industry-takes-on-global-warming/#32482c17778a

[2] H&M, 2011 Annual Report, pg 10 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/en/Annual%20Report/Annual_Report_2011_P1_en.pdf

[3] http://www.hm.com/us/garment-collecting

[4] H&M, Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2015, pg 87 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/CSR/reports/2015%20Sustainability%20report/HM_SustainabilityReport_2015_final_FullReport.pdf

[5] H&M, 2015 Annual Report, pg 37 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/Annual%20Report/Annual%20Report%202015.pdf

[6] H&M, Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2015, pg 93 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/CSR/reports/2015%20Sustainability%20report/HM_SustainabilityReport_2015_final_FullReport.pdf

[7] H&M, Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2015, pg 99 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/CSR/reports/2015%20Sustainability%20report/HM_SustainabilityReport_2015_final_FullReport.pdf

[8] H&M, Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2015, pg 98 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/CSR/reports/2015%20Sustainability%20report/HM_SustainabilityReport_2015_final_FullReport.pdf

[9] H&M, 2015 Annual Report, pg 39 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/Annual%20Report/Annual%20Report%202015.pdf

[10] H&M, Nine-month report, pg 1 http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/en/cision/2016/09/1789234_en.pdf

[11] Jared T. Miller, "Fast Fashion is Creating An Environmental Crisis," Newsweek, September 1, 2016, http://www.newsweek.com/2016/09/09/old-clothes-fashion-waste-crisis-494824.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
H&M: Environmental Steward or Greenwashing Marketer? - Technology and Operations Management

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
H&M has incorporated eco-friendly practices in its operational strategy, but the fact remains that a fundamental tension exists between the enormous environmental footprint generated by its fast fashion business model and its aim to produce sustainable garments.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Here at WAMA, we use low impact dyes because they're the most eco-friendly dyeing method when considering both sustainability and practicality. You can find items like our hemp boxer briefs and hemp panties in three gorgeous shades made from low impact dyes: black, natural hemp, and my favorite, WAMA green.

You might have thought natural is always best when it comes to sustainable fashion, right? That's why we use natural, organic hemp fibers to make our underwear, after all. But not only are low impact dyes better for the environment than traditional dyes, they're even more sustainable than natural dyes when you take into account overall viability. Here's why.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Here at WAMA, we use low impact dyes because they're the most eco-friendly dyeing method when considering both sustainability and practicality. You can find items like our hemp boxer briefs and hemp panties in three gorgeous shades made from low impact dyes: black, natural hemp, and my favorite, WAMA green.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Organic cotton | Fashion and textiles | Soil Association

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Learn about the benefits of organic cotton for people and the planet, find out why organic saves water and join our campaign for more sustainable, ethical cotton clothing options on the high street.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Organic cotton | Fashion and textiles | Soil Association

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Learn about the benefits of organic cotton for people and the planet, find out why organic saves water and join our campaign for more sustainable, ethical cotton clothing options on the high street.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
We are part of major international initiatives to promote sustainable raw materials and fibres, helping to make their widespread use in the industry a reality.

To make fashion we need raw materials, such as cotton, viscose and polyester.

How those materials are sourced, where they come from and how they are processed has an impact on communities and the environment. That is why we are getting behind key international initiatives to promote sustainable raw materials and fibres.

We also provide special training on materials for many of our purchasing teams and key suppliers, raising awareness of the environmental, social and economic impacts of their choices, and encouraging the use of more sustainable materials. In 2025, 100% of the cotton, linen, viscose and polyester used in our products will be recycled or will have a more sustainable origin.

Cotton is our single most important raw material - but it is also a resource-hungry crop. As a result, Inditex is committed to moving towards more sustainable cotton production, such as organic, recycled and 'Better' cotton, and working with international initiatives to promote the sustainability of the cotton industry. 100% of our cotton will be sustainable (organic, BCI and recycled) in 2025.

Organic cotton is cultivated without fertilisers or chemical pesticides and its seeds are not genetically modified. Cultivating organic cotton uses 90% less water and 60% less energy than normal cotton, and reduces the environmental, social and economic impacts of traditional cotton production. We are already the world's fourth biggest consumer of organic cotton.

Recycled cotton uses around 80% less water than the conventional crop and has a much smaller environmental footprint. It can also be successfully combined with other fibres.

In 2020, we increased the use of sustainable cotton (organic, BCI and reclyed) by 91%.

We cooperate with the most relevant global initiatives to promote the sustainability of the cotton industry:

We are proud to be members of the Textile Exchange, a global non-profit organisation that promotes sustainability, particularly through organic cotton cultivation.

We work with the Better Cotton Initiative, a non-profit organisation that brings all stakeholders together to ensure cotton production improves the living conditions of its growers and is better for the environment. Better Cotton is grown according to the requirements of the initiative.

As a founding member of the Organic Cotton Accelerator initiative, we are encouraging the development of a prosperous organic cotton sector that benefits everyone from farmers to consumers.

Our financing of a number of agricultural projects in China and India promotes ecological techniques, the development of seed stock suitable for organic farming, the sustainable management of natural resources, and responsible use of pesticides and fertilisers. These projects not only contribute to better environmental outcomes, but improve living standards for producers and their families.

We also collaborate with Lenzing, the manufacturer of TENCEL™ Lyocell that is transforming our cotton waste into high-quality sustainable fibers. In this area, Refibra™ Lyocell stands out, a fiber created from recycled cotton and wood from sustainably managed forests that Zara sells in its Join Life collection.

Lyocell, viscose and other wood-based fibres

Lyocell, viscose and modal belong to a group of fibres made from cellulose pulp derived from wood.

Starting June 2020, and mandatory for the Winter Collection 2021 and for all products containing man made cellulosic fibers, Inditex will nominate those fiber producers that can demonstrate that they are addressing risk of sourcing from ancient and endangered forests. To achieve this, we have a strict Forest Products Policy, and have helped to found an initiative with the non-profit organisation Canopy and other retailers, to protect forests and find more sustainable options for the textile industry.

In 2023, our viscose will be 100% sustainable, in line with the target shared with Changing Markets' Roadmap Towards Responsible Viscose and Modal Fibre Manufacturing. And 100% of the linen we use in our garments will be sustainable linen in 2025.
Forest Products PolicyPDF, 210Kb
With our encouragement many of our fibre suppliers have adopted forest product policies aligned with our own, ensuring raw materials come from sustainably managed woods. We give preference to materials with a high proportion of recycled and post-consumer waste material, and encourage our suppliers to offer more of this type of product.

Lyocell can be mixed with many other fibres, including cotton and wool, and creates a strong, soft and versatile fabric that we use particularly in our denim, T-shirt and dress lines. The process to make TENCEL™ Lyocell -of which we sold 13 million garments last year- is particularly efficient, being made with cellulose fibres derived from the pulp of low-energy input, fast-growing, sustainably sourced trees.

Recycled polyester and polyamide

We are members of the Textile Exchange, which promotes recycled polyester and nylon as preferred fibres. The recycling process of these raw materials reduces the consumption of natural resources, including energy, oil and water, and significantly cuts down on waste to landfill. 100% of the polyester we use in our garments will be recycled polyester in 2025.

Our use of sustainable materials, in numbers:

In 2020, over 35% of our products were Join Life

In the last exercice, we increased the use of recycled materials by 250%

100% of the water and almost all chemicals can be recycled in the production of TENCEL™ Lyocell

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We are part of major international initiatives to promote sustainable raw materials and fibres, helping to make their widespread use in the industry a reality. To make fashion we need raw materials, such as cotton, viscose and polyester. How those materials are sourced, where they come from and how they are processed has an impact on communities and the environment.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
We are part of major international initiatives to promote sustainable raw materials and fibres, helping to make their widespread use in the industry a reality.

To make fashion we need raw materials, such as cotton, viscose and polyester.

How those materials are sourced, where they come from and how they are processed has an impact on communities and the environment. That is why we are getting behind key international initiatives to promote sustainable raw materials and fibres.

We also provide special training on materials for many of our purchasing teams and key suppliers, raising awareness of the environmental, social and economic impacts of their choices, and encouraging the use of more sustainable materials. In 2025, 100% of the cotton, linen, viscose and polyester used in our products will be recycled or will have a more sustainable origin.

Cotton is our single most important raw material - but it is also a resource-hungry crop. As a result, Inditex is committed to moving towards more sustainable cotton production, such as organic, recycled and 'Better' cotton, and working with international initiatives to promote the sustainability of the cotton industry. 100% of our cotton will be sustainable (organic, BCI and recycled) in 2025.

Organic cotton is cultivated without fertilisers or chemical pesticides and its seeds are not genetically modified. Cultivating organic cotton uses 90% less water and 60% less energy than normal cotton, and reduces the environmental, social and economic impacts of traditional cotton production. We are already the world's fourth biggest consumer of organic cotton.

Recycled cotton uses around 80% less water than the conventional crop and has a much smaller environmental footprint. It can also be successfully combined with other fibres.

In 2020, we increased the use of sustainable cotton (organic, BCI and reclyed) by 91%.

We cooperate with the most relevant global initiatives to promote the sustainability of the cotton industry:

We are proud to be members of the Textile Exchange, a global non-profit organisation that promotes sustainability, particularly through organic cotton cultivation.

We work with the Better Cotton Initiative, a non-profit organisation that brings all stakeholders together to ensure cotton production improves the living conditions of its growers and is better for the environment. Better Cotton is grown according to the requirements of the initiative.

As a founding member of the Organic Cotton Accelerator initiative, we are encouraging the development of a prosperous organic cotton sector that benefits everyone from farmers to consumers.

Our financing of a number of agricultural projects in China and India promotes ecological techniques, the development of seed stock suitable for organic farming, the sustainable management of natural resources, and responsible use of pesticides and fertilisers. These projects not only contribute to better environmental outcomes, but improve living standards for producers and their families.

We also collaborate with Lenzing, the manufacturer of TENCEL™ Lyocell that is transforming our cotton waste into high-quality sustainable fibers. In this area, Refibra™ Lyocell stands out, a fiber created from recycled cotton and wood from sustainably managed forests that Zara sells in its Join Life collection.

Lyocell, viscose and other wood-based fibres

Lyocell, viscose and modal belong to a group of fibres made from cellulose pulp derived from wood.

Starting June 2020, and mandatory for the Winter Collection 2021 and for all products containing man made cellulosic fibers, Inditex will nominate those fiber producers that can demonstrate that they are addressing risk of sourcing from ancient and endangered forests. To achieve this, we have a strict Forest Products Policy, and have helped to found an initiative with the non-profit organisation Canopy and other retailers, to protect forests and find more sustainable options for the textile industry.

In 2023, our viscose will be 100% sustainable, in line with the target shared with Changing Markets' Roadmap Towards Responsible Viscose and Modal Fibre Manufacturing. And 100% of the linen we use in our garments will be sustainable linen in 2025.
Forest Products PolicyPDF, 210Kb
With our encouragement many of our fibre suppliers have adopted forest product policies aligned with our own, ensuring raw materials come from sustainably managed woods. We give preference to materials with a high proportion of recycled and post-consumer waste material, and encourage our suppliers to offer more of this type of product.

Lyocell can be mixed with many other fibres, including cotton and wool, and creates a strong, soft and versatile fabric that we use particularly in our denim, T-shirt and dress lines. The process to make TENCEL™ Lyocell -of which we sold 13 million garments last year- is particularly efficient, being made with cellulose fibres derived from the pulp of low-energy input, fast-growing, sustainably sourced trees.

Recycled polyester and polyamide

We are members of the Textile Exchange, which promotes recycled polyester and nylon as preferred fibres. The recycling process of these raw materials reduces the consumption of natural resources, including energy, oil and water, and significantly cuts down on waste to landfill. 100% of the polyester we use in our garments will be recycled polyester in 2025.

Our use of sustainable materials, in numbers:

In 2020, over 35% of our products were Join Life

In the last exercice, we increased the use of recycled materials by 250%

100% of the water and almost all chemicals can be recycled in the production of TENCEL™ Lyocell

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We are part of major international initiatives to promote sustainable raw materials and fibres, helping to make their widespread use in the industry a reality. To make fashion we need raw materials, such as cotton, viscose and polyester. How those materials are sourced, where they come from and how they are processed has an impact on communities and the environment.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Organic and recycled cotton is slowly getting more popular. Sustainable clothing manufacturers replace conventionally grown cotton fabrics with organic or recycled materials. However, only one percent of all cotton grown is organic so there is still much to do. Cotton is the most used material in clothing manufacturing. So why is it so important to choose organic or recycled cotton?

Organic cotton growing has low impact on the environment

Conventionally grown cotton uses more insecticides than any other crop in the world. These toxins can be deadly for the farmers, the factory workers, us as consumers and the wildlife ecosystems. For example, these pesticides have been known to affect important bee colonies in the farm fields. In addition to chemicals, conventionally grown cotton uses intensive irrigation which means it´s one of the largest water users among agricultural crops.

Organic cotton is grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment. It doesn´t use GM seeds, pesticides, or chemical fertilizers. Organic production systems replenish and maintain soil fertility, use 71% less water and build biologically diverse agriculture. An organic farm produces 94% fewer carbon emissions than conventional.

Cottonseed oil is also used in food products such as cookies, chips, and vegetable oil and it is also fed to livestock. Using organic cotton seeds for products like these we can prevent getting toxic chemicals into our food system.

Cotton is most used but least recycled fabric, so choosing recycled cotton saves thousands of liters of water (one t-shirt saves 2700 liters) and reduces the harmful chemicals and energy used in production.

See our Collection of Sustainable Cotton.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Organic cotton clothing - Why is it Important to Choose Organic and Recycled Cotton?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Conventionally grown cotton uses more insecticides than any other crop in the world. These toxins can be deadly for the farmers, the factory workers, us as consumers and the wildlife ecosystems. Organic and recycled cotton is slowly getting more popular when clothing manufacturers replace conventionally grown cotton fabrics with organic or recycled materials.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Organic and recycled cotton is slowly getting more popular. Sustainable clothing manufacturers replace conventionally grown cotton fabrics with organic or recycled materials. However, only one percent of all cotton grown is organic so there is still much to do. Cotton is the most used material in clothing manufacturing. So why is it so important to choose organic or recycled cotton?

Organic cotton growing has low impact on the environment

Conventionally grown cotton uses more insecticides than any other crop in the world. These toxins can be deadly for the farmers, the factory workers, us as consumers and the wildlife ecosystems. For example, these pesticides have been known to affect important bee colonies in the farm fields. In addition to chemicals, conventionally grown cotton uses intensive irrigation which means it´s one of the largest water users among agricultural crops.

Organic cotton is grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment. It doesn´t use GM seeds, pesticides, or chemical fertilizers. Organic production systems replenish and maintain soil fertility, use 71% less water and build biologically diverse agriculture. An organic farm produces 94% fewer carbon emissions than conventional.

Cottonseed oil is also used in food products such as cookies, chips, and vegetable oil and it is also fed to livestock. Using organic cotton seeds for products like these we can prevent getting toxic chemicals into our food system.

Cotton is most used but least recycled fabric, so choosing recycled cotton saves thousands of liters of water (one t-shirt saves 2700 liters) and reduces the harmful chemicals and energy used in production.

See our Collection of Sustainable Cotton.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Organic cotton clothing - Why is it Important to Choose Organic and Recycled Cotton?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Conventionally grown cotton uses more insecticides than any other crop in the world. These toxins can be deadly for the farmers, the factory workers, us as consumers and the wildlife ecosystems. Organic and recycled cotton is slowly getting more popular when clothing manufacturers replace conventionally grown cotton fabrics with organic or recycled materials.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Organic and recycled cotton is slowly getting more popular. Sustainable clothing manufacturers replace conventionally grown cotton fabrics with organic or recycled materials. However, only one percent of all cotton grown is organic so there is still much to do. Cotton is the most used material in clothing manufacturing. So why is it so important to choose organic or recycled cotton?

Organic cotton growing has low impact on the environment

Conventionally grown cotton uses more insecticides than any other crop in the world. These toxins can be deadly for the farmers, the factory workers, us as consumers and the wildlife ecosystems. For example, these pesticides have been known to affect important bee colonies in the farm fields. In addition to chemicals, conventionally grown cotton uses intensive irrigation which means it´s one of the largest water users among agricultural crops.

Organic cotton is grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment. It doesn´t use GM seeds, pesticides, or chemical fertilizers. Organic production systems replenish and maintain soil fertility, use 71% less water and build biologically diverse agriculture. An organic farm produces 94% fewer carbon emissions than conventional.

Cottonseed oil is also used in food products such as cookies, chips, and vegetable oil and it is also fed to livestock. Using organic cotton seeds for products like these we can prevent getting toxic chemicals into our food system.

Cotton is most used but least recycled fabric, so choosing recycled cotton saves thousands of liters of water (one t-shirt saves 2700 liters) and reduces the harmful chemicals and energy used in production.

See our Collection of Sustainable Cotton.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Organic cotton clothing - Why is it Important to Choose Organic and Recycled Cotton?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Conventionally grown cotton uses more insecticides than any other crop in the world. These toxins can be deadly for the farmers, the factory workers, us as consumers and the wildlife ecosystems. Organic and recycled cotton is slowly getting more popular when clothing manufacturers replace conventionally grown cotton fabrics with organic or recycled materials.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The fashion system exists on a linear model: Clothing is produced, it's shipped to a store, it's purchased by a consumer, and eventually, it's discarded. Circularity is the solution, a concept that bends the straight line from product to consumer to landfill by designing clothes with their "end of life" in mind instead. The goal is to ensure as many "lives" as possible for a garment by using materials that can be broken down, recycled, and made into something else on a constant loop. That shift won't happen overnight, mostly because so much of what exists is made from synthetics and complicated blends, which are nearly impossible to recycle; the best bet for those pieces is the secondhand market. To get fashion on the road to true circularity, designers have to completely rethink the way they make their products, down to every stitch-starting now. Gucci is one of the first luxury houses to commit to a circular future, starting with its new capsule, Gucci Off the Grid, a unisex offering of sporty daywear and accessories made from organic, recycled, or bio-based materials. A persimmon GG-logo'd windbreaker, for instance, comes in Econyl, a regenerated nylon that can be infinitely recycled. Even the details we rarely consider were updated: The drawstring in the hood is made of recycled polyester, and the snaps on the pockets are recycled plastic. A pair of high-top sneakers has a similarly meticulous construction, with Econyl uppers, recycled steel eyelets, and organic cotton and viscose linings. The handbags feature the same Econyl material in bright citrus hues, plus metal- and chrome-free leather trims and recycled brass hardware. Every item will arrive in an FSC-certified recycled cardboard box and a recycled nylon dustbag. Figuring out all of these elements-and how the materials would work together-required deep collaboration across Gucci departments. "Working on this project was very interesting, because I would say my job [is], above all, experimentation," creative director Alessandro Michele tells Vogue. "I like to test myself on the most unlikely projects. This one was stimulating because I worked in close contact with the design office, the technicians, and the manufacturing researchers to reach a common goal. We realized we could produce something that was 100% in compliance with our desire to create using only recycled, regenerated, and sustainable materials, without forsaking quality, design, or performance," he continues. "The project has become a symbol for the new era." Off the Grid is part of a larger initiative called Gucci Circular Lines, which will focus on minimizing the brand's use of new raw materials and explore all manner of regenerated textiles. Maybe natural fibers like cotton and cashmere will be next, and in the near future, we might see actual garments and accessories be transformed into something new. That would be consistent with the strategy Kering, which owns Gucci, outlined last year at the Copenhagen Fashion Summit; its chief sustainability officer Marie-Claire Daveu said upcycling is "the future," and Gucci has taken quiet steps in that direction in recent years. Between 2018 and 2019, the brand reports it was able to save and repurpose 22 tons of leather scraps from its factories. Beyond educating its customers about Econyl and leather scraps, Gucci's major contribution will be influencing other designers-and other industries-to take climate change seriously and invest in circular models. It's an understatement to say that where Michele goes, others tend to follow; in this instance, a little imitation would be the best-case scenario. His broader vision is for a calmer, more conscious world in which fashion can exist in harmony with nature, a concept mirrored in his campaign starring Jane Fonda, King Princess, Lil Nas X, David Mayer de Rothschild, and Miyavi. They're photographed in a treehouse surrounded by skyscrapers, a vaguely surreal reminder that "our planet exists, even when it seems [like] it's not there, or it's far away." The concept came together before the pandemic, but it feels prescient now-especially for us New Yorkers. Shop the first Off the Grid collection now at gucci.com.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
"A Symbol for the New Era"-Gucci Off the Grid Is Alessandro Michele's First Step Toward Circularity

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Gucci is committing to a circular future, starting with Gucci Off the Grid, a unisex capsule of sporty daywear and accessories made from organic, recycled, or bio-based materials.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When meeting potential clients, we always have to ask the dreaded question: "What is your marketing budget?"

Typically we get a blank stare and a shrug...and that's okay! Unless you're a marketing expert, most people don't think about how much money goes into a steady marketing campaign.

A good marketing agency won't try and sell you on what you can't afford, but try and figure out what will work best for your situation. All companies are different and have individual needs, but we have figured out a simple way to get your business on the right track for planning your marketing budget. This post includes a template and process for allocating your marketing budget whatever your company size and revenue.

Now it's time to whip out that calculator and figure out your true marketing budget.

Calculating Revenue

One of the first steps to figuring out your marketing budget is to establish your total revenue.

Talk to your CFO, financial department, or accountant and figure out your gross revenue or estimated revenue.

Gross Revenue - Revenue received before any deductions or allowances, as for rent, cost of goods sold, taxes, etc.

Estimated Revenue - Amount of earnings projected for a given accounting period. This calculation can be important for a number of financial activities including estimating taxes due, budgeting, and issuing statements to shareholders and interested members of the public ( wisegeek).

For our marketing budget example, we will say that our company's gross revenue for this accounting period is $100,000.

Company Size

Are you a new up-and-coming company or an older, established company? Typically new companies are truly the ones that need to push their marketing. They are trying to establish their brand and gain loyal customers.

Established companies, while they should always be marketing, don't have to push as hard; customers know their name and will purchase without even giving it a second thought (think Kleenex).

For our example, let's say our company is an up-and-coming startup, have been around for about 2 years, and have 13 employees.

Marketing Budget Allocation

Marketing Budgets for New Companies

For those new companies, at least 12%-20% of your gross revenue should be allocated to marketing. That seems like a lot, doesn't it? Especially for a smaller company!

Well, think about it this way: You have this amazing new product or service - a major game-changer in your industry. But, no one is buying. Why? Well, probably because they have no idea it's even a real thing yet.

Word of mouth only does so much, and new companies need to take their business to the next step. Marketing should be a major focus of these young companies; not only does it bring in new customers and leads, but establishes your brand in the industry. Once your brand is established, you can definitely discuss bringing down your marketing budget.

If you're a startup, also check out:

Marketing Budgets for Established Companies

For established companies, at least, 6%-12% of your gross revenue should be allocated to marketing. But why so little compared to those little companies? As previously mentioned, established brands don't need to market as heavily. They have their loyal customers that really aren't going anywhere. While they still need to market, they certainly don't need to allocate as many resources as a small company.

For our example, our small company with a revenue of $100,000 has decided to allocate 15% of their gross revenue to marketing. By taking our revenue (100,000) and multiplying it by our marketing percentage (.15), we have come to a marketing budget of $15,000 for our accounting period.

See, math can sometimes be easy.

While there is no magical number for each and every company when it comes to setting a marketing budget, these percentages are a great starting point so your brand can get started on your marketing strategies.

Check out the full infographic below.

About the Author

Ryan Flannagan is the CEO and Founder of Nuanced Media. Ryan is passionate about thought leadership, experience sharing and collaboration in the digital space. He utilizes his in-depth market analysis capabilities and understanding of complex technologies to provide optimum service. He is well-known in the community for strong involvement, candor, and leadership, as well as for his commitment to generously contributing in-kind services to nonprofits.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to Calculate Your Marketing Budget [Infographic]

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When meeting potential clients, we always have to ask the dreaded question: "What is your marketing budget?" Typically we get a blank stare and a shrug...and that's okay! Unless you're a marketing expert, most people don't think about how much money goes into a steady marketing campaign.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What is the price for advertising in the London tube?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Answer (1 of 5): The price per panel is calculated per day and varies from station to station - and is linked to how busy the station is (footfall). It also depends on the format and size. Small paper boards inside carriages are the cheapest but generally paper has to be booked for 2 weeks and y...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Use our search to find the perfect space for your idea.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
moderate cancellation policy

A little about this space

If you're looking for space in Shoreditch it doesn't get much more centrally placed than this. Just behind the south side of Shoreditch High Street you'll find this multi-purpose warehouse. Often booked together, studio three offers an extension of studio four. This self contained space is perfect for pop-up retail and small-scale events.

7 days minimum booking

Amenities (3 available)

Home truths

There is a 20% discount off the hire rate for any bookings in December, January and February

Prices may vary dependent on length and times of tenancy.

Opening hours

Monday to Friday: 8:30 am - 10:00 pm

Weekend: 8:30 am - 10:00 pm

Space rules

There are compulsory additional costs for cleaning that will be charged on top of the rent for this space. Please discuss these in more detail at your viewing.

The price quoted is for full day hire 8:30am - 10pm.

You can ask for a date change instead of cancelling.

Can't find the perfect space?

Help me find space

How enquiries work

Send an enquiry with zero commitment

Get your own personal concierge

Easily manage legals & payment online

© 2013-2020 APPEAR HERE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Errors and omissions accepted. Terms & Privacy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
moderate cancellation policy A little about this space If you're looking for space in Shoreditch it doesn't get much more centrally placed than this. Just behind the south side of Shoreditch High Street you'll find this multi-purpose warehouse. Often booked together, studio three offers an extension of studio four.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
flexible cancellation policy

A little about this space

Covent Garden remains one of the city's most iconic and enduring destinations for shopping, dining and a show. Its cobbled streets are lined with rows of boutiques, you'll be inundated with shoppers looking to spend. This retail space for rent has been newly white-boxed, and is round the corner from plenty of hot restaurants openings, including Temper and Le Bab. View the 360 tour for this space.

14 days minimum booking

Discounts may apply when booking a week, a quarter, or more than a month.

Amenities (6 available)

Home truths

Slingsby Place is a new development that many shoppers don't know about yet so it can be a little quiet, but this is about to change with plenty of new store and restaurant openings in the area.

License details

Read more about our licenses in our FAQs

Opening hours

Monday: 9:00 am - 8:00 pm

Tuesday: 9:00 am - 8:00 pm

Wednesday: 9:00 am - 8:00 pm

Space rules

Check with the Landlord before decorating and renovating.

Window vinyls to be approved by the landlord in advance. No sample sale or sale/stock clearance signage.

No canvassing or touting allowed outside store or in nearby streets at any time.

Any local marketing or leafletting to be discussed and approved with the Landlord first.

Commissioning certs to be produced for any changes to electrics and new fittings.

All tenants must adhere to the rules set out in the Occupiers Guide for this property.

Can't find the perfect space?

Help me find space

How enquiries work

Send an enquiry with zero commitment

Get your own personal concierge

Easily manage legals & payment online

© 2013-2020 APPEAR HERE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Errors and omissions accepted. Terms & Privacy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
flexible cancellation policy A little about this space Covent Garden remains one of the city's most iconic and enduring destinations for shopping, dining and a show. Its cobbled streets are lined with rows of boutiques, you'll be inundated with shoppers looking to spend.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
flexible cancellation policy

A little about this space

Looking for an open, flexible retail space in central London? Look no further than Slingsby Place. Just moments from Covent Garden piazza, this two storey retail space has a lot to offer. Inside you'll find wooden parquet floors, white walls and high ceilings with industrial style pipework, and plenty of opportunity to make your mark. A large welcoming doorway leads directly from the pedestrianised walkway to a huge ground floor space, and a commanding staircase leading to a spacious upper level. Both floors have generous floor to ceiling windows, allowing in plenty of natural light. Slingsby Place is ideally located, right at the halfway point between Leicester Square and Covent Garden stations. This space is part of the urban dining and shopping oasis that is St Martin's Courtyard, which attracts a huge number of shoppers, tourists and diners each day.

19 days minimum booking

Discounts may apply when booking a week, a quarter, or more than a month.

Amenities (5 available)

Home truths

Any work on the building needs to be approved by the Landlord.

Feeling inspired by Burt's Bees fit-out? We can put you in touch with designers to help transform your brand identity into a physical experience. Take a look at the Additions page for the full range of services we offer to get your shop up and running. View the

Opening hours

Monday: 9:00 am - 8:00 pm

Tuesday: 9:00 am - 8:00 pm

Wednesday: 9:00 am - 8:00 pm

Space rules

Ground Floor: 1,186 sq ft.

1st Floor: 1,038 sq ft.

Window vinyls to be approved by the landlord in advance. No sample sale or sale/stock clearance signage.

No canvassing or touting allowed outside store or in nearby streets at any time.

Any local marketing or leafletting to be discussed and approved with the Landlord first.

Commissioning certs to be produced for any changes to electrics and new fittings.

Trading Hours:

Monday - 09:00 - 20:00
Tuesday - 09:00 - 20:00
Wednesday - 09:00 - 20:00
Thursday - 09:00 - 20:00
Friday - 09:00 - 20:00
Saturday - 09:00 - 20:00
Sunday - 12:00 - 18:00

All tenants must adhere to the rules set out in the Occupiers Guide for this property.

Can't find the perfect space?

Help me find space

How enquiries work

Send an enquiry with zero commitment

Get your own personal concierge

Easily manage legals & payment online

© 2013-2020 APPEAR HERE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Errors and omissions accepted. Terms & Privacy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Slingsby Place, Covent Garden - Retail space

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
flexible cancellation policy A little about this space Looking for an open, flexible retail space in central London? Look no further than Slingsby Place. Just moments from Covent Garden piazza, this two storey retail space has a lot to offer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
You'd be forgiven if recently you'd contemplated quitting your current job, in favour of a life of #gifted clothes, #sponsored beauty treatments and #blessed travels - i.e. the joyous perceived life of a social media influencer.

Of course, becoming one of Instagram's elite isn't as easy as slapping on a Hunza G bikini, snapping a selfie and watching the likes, comments and business opportunities come pouring in.

In fact, social media fame is, more often than not, extremely hard-fought. When ELLE UK spoke to the Godmother of modern influencing, co-founder of rewardStyle Amber Venz Box, she explained 'an influencer starting today needs to be pushing out original content three times a day at least across social media.'

Yeah, she said ' three times a day,' which means a whole lot of content creation, made much more difficult when you consider that most fledgling influencers also have a full time job to cope with.

Unlike ' ultra-influencers' (who range from Kim Kardashian to Chiara Ferragni), regular and micro-influencers cannot charge tens of thousands, let alone millions, for their #sponcon, so how much do they really make? And, more importantly, how many followers does someone need before they can start charging?

New research - carried out by Canterbury Christ Church University alongside communications software firm Vuelio - surveyed British-based bloggers and influencers over the course of 2018 and found out exactly how much they charged per post.

How Much Do British Influencers Really Make?

According to the UK Bloggers Survey 2019, most British-based bloggers (30 per cent) revealed that they charge between £100 and £250 per sponsored post, whilst the second-largest bracket of 27 per cent of influencers charged £100 per post.

Unlike this very large majority, there is a select group of social media stars who charge quite a bit more. In the £251-£500 bracket sits 11 per cent of influencers, whilst six per cent charge between £501-£1000 for their content. At the top of the pile sits a small but mighty 2 percent of influencers who are able to charge more than £1,000 for their sought-after content.

As we can see these numbers vary greatly within the blogging community, but before you start mentally adding up even £100 per post, it is worth noting the study also states, just 'over a quarter of all content published on a blog is compensated for in some way', meaning a majority of all content will still need to be created for free.

What Type Of Bloggers And Influencers Are The Most Popular?

Fashion and Beauty bloggers were among the 'supersectors', alongside Lifestyle, Food & Drink, Parenting and Travel.

However, whilst Lifestyle and then Parenting were the most popular blogging topics, Fashion saw the biggest 'decline in the number of bloggers choosing this as their topic.'

How Many Influencers Use It As Their Main Source Of Income?

Since 2016 there was a 17 per cent increase in those who wanted to monetise their blog, however, there has only been a 10 per cent increase in those whose blog is their current main source of income.

This means only 18 per cent of influencers are able to live off their social media and content creation business alone.

How Many Followers Do Influencers Need To Have Before They Are Compensated?

Perhaps surprisingly, there, 'is little difference between the size of blogs and the amount of content that is compensated for.' Whether bloggers have up to 1,00 followers or over 10,00 the type of compensation (paid post, free travel, gifts etc) may vary, but the amount of compensation does not.

In general, about 27 per cent of all content on a blog is compensated for in some way.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
how much do influencers get paid per post

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
how many followers do you need to have before you can charge

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
New Research Reveals Exactly How Much Influencers Get Paid Per Post

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
You'd be forgiven if recently you'd contemplated quitting your current job, in favour of a life of #gifted clothes, #sponsored beauty treatments and #blessed travels - i.e. the joyous perceived life of a social media influencer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The State of Influencer Marketing 2020: Benchmark Report

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Over 4000 Brands and Influencer Marketing Professionals were surveyed for the State of Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report, 2020. Download it for Free.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Facebook ads have long been the gold standard in social advertising, in part because Facebook allows brands to target incredibly niche markets, and has empowered marketers to get rapid insights into winning combinations of creative, audience, placement and other variables to optimize their campaigns.

That's according to Timothy Masek, senior growth strategist at marketing agency Ladder, who said Facebook's 2012 acquisition of the image sharing app-enabled Facebook to add Instagram as a simple placement option in the Facebook ads platform, which is precisely what marketers wanted.

"Since 2015, you can use a basic toggle in the Facebook Ads Manager platform to choose to show your ads on Instagram," Masek added.

As a result, Patrick Havey, social media manager at digital marketing agency Passion Digital, said it can be tempting to treat Instagram ads the same as Facebook ads.

"However, despite both now copying each other's features - The Great Storification, anyone? - users still engage with the platforms in different ways," he said.

And therein lie some opportunities for savvy marketers.

What's more, Havey noted that Instagram posts tend to get 10 times more engagement than Facebook posts on average.
Instagram engagement stats
"This gives you a unique opportunity to build trust and connect emotionally with your audiences in an uncluttered environment," he added.

Indeed, Nathan Mendenhall, director of social strategy at digital marketing agency That Agency, agreed Instagram is a high-engagement platform and is a great option for generating both brand awareness and site visits.

Instagram Ad Costs: How Much Does it Cost to Advertise on Instagram?

However, according to Keith Baumwald, founder of boutique consulting agency Leverag Consulting, online ad costs for Instagram ads are usually slightly higher than their Facebook counterparts.

"With highly targeted ads, you could be paying over $5 a CPM" (cost per thousand impressions) on Instagram, Baumwald said.

According to Masek, on the other hand, whenever Facebook tests a new ad feature, like a new creative type or a new audience type, it drops the CPM to make the feature more accessible and alluring to marketers.

"So while a typical CPM on Facebook Ads will be around the $10 mark today, it was closer to $5 on Instagram," Masek said. "Today, the gap is getting narrower and narrower. This meant that running ads on Instagram was immediately going to be more cost effective for marketers - in fact, twice as cost effective."

At the same time, Masek said as Instagram started rolling out ads, users were clicking on them at a much higher rate than they were on Facebook.

"Users have become accustomed to ads on their Facebook newsfeed and started clicking less on them - the same way the first banner ad on the web drove a 44% CTR and today's banners drive a 0.1% CTR," he added. "So when Instagram rolled out ads, not only were they cheaper, but the CTRs were through the roof."

For his part, Damon Gochneaur, founder of digital marketing agency Aspiro Agency, noted the average cost to advertise on Instagram can vary wildly depending on the type of ad, the audience targeted and the type of creative used.

"In general, single image ads will be the most expensive, with a carousel or multiple image ads generally performing better than single image ads," Gochneaur said. "Additionally, video ads will typically outperform both single image ads as well as carousel ads. In addition, the audience you're targeting will also have an effect on the cost of the ad."
Example of a video ad on Instagram from Netflix
"This [$5 CPM] is still much cheaper than pretty much any other channel for display ads, especially given the fact that you can target so effectively," Baumwald added. "That said, if you're in a highly competitive market, either because of your product or location, the costs can rise dramatically."

Here's a look at how advertisers can rein in those Instagram ad costs, no matter what market they are in.

1. Don't over-produce your ad content.

In part because users can't schedule posts on Instagram, Havey said candid-style posts perform well.

"If users feel like they're seeing something fresh and authentic, they're much more likely to engage and warm to your brand," he said. "User-generated content can work wonders and helps create a two-way relationship between brand and consumer."

Havey also noted the best social ads are those that appear native.

"Nobody enjoys seeing an ad stick out like sore thumb in their carefully curated Instagram lifestyle feed," he said. "As such, focusing on powerful visual storytelling and brand marketing, rather than trying to drive direct response, can often lead to better results."

Scott Bauer, marketing director at digital marketing firm Navigator Multimedia, said Instagram users have quickly learned how to identify ads versus followers, so advertisers should remember they may only get a second or two of a user's attention before he or she scrolls on.

"You'll find the highest ROI not necessarily in the lowest CPM, so I recommend creating content that is in line with your target audience and don't ask for the sale too soon," he said. "Instagram is very visual and you want to create top-funnel content to introduce your business/brand."

He added, "Too many advertisers treat Instagram like they do search ads and it's not the same context."

2. Build audiences with video.

Per Gochneaur, brands looking to lower Instagram ad costs should make slideshow-style videos from photo assets and use those video ads to target consumers that are top of the funnel and have no brand affinity.

"Video traffic is a lower acquisition cost and allows you to build audiences more affordably - the key phrase being 'build audiences'," he said. "Once you've driven traffic from the initial video ad, you'll then want to use remarketing mapped to a sales funnel in order to drive revenue and business growth from Instagram traffic."

3. Test your creative and audiences.

For his part, Masek said as users become more accustomed to Instagram ads and CPMs are tightening, marketers can increase their ad performance by testing.

"Facebook and Instagram reward the brands that serve relevant content to their users. The higher your CTR, the higher your relevance score and the lower your CPMs - that's how it works," he said.

"The way to make your ads relevant is to test different combinations of an audience, messaging and creative," he said. "Don't blast the same ad to everyone. Instead, pick five different audiences, set them up as separate as campaigns, and then create five different ads for each audience. Then, sit back, spend media budget and see how the world responds to your ads."

As a result, Masek said marketers might find one of those audiences is driving a 10x cheaper CPC, and that within that audience, one specific Instagram ad is driving a 5x higher CTR.

"Turn everything else off, and shift your budget to your winning combination. That's how you game the system," he added.

4. Optimize based on demographics.

Mendenhall noted that because Instagram Ads are launched through Facebook's advertising platform, marketers have access to the same type of data - and they should use it.

"We recommend taking a look at which demographic is generating the most expensive results and omitting them from targeting," he said. "If you check your data and see that men between the ages of 45-54 have a cost per click of $2.00, removing them from your targeting will help reduce your costs."

Baumwald agreed. "By segmenting your ads based on different criteria, it will quickly become clear which audiences have the lowest costs," Baumwald said.

Mendenhall also suggested starting an Instagram campaign with a select audience and adapting as costs rise.

"When you add/remove a targeting parameter and see the cost per result go down, make a note of that for the future," he said. "Continue tweaking as needed."

5. Mind your Relevance Score.

On a related note, Mendenhall pointed to Relevance Score, which is how Facebook judges the quality of an ad.

"This is based on creative, targeting and the results of your ad," he said. "The higher your Relevance Score, the more efficiently your budget will be used."

In addition, David Bosley, managing partner at digital marketing agency PBJ Marketing, said marketers who find they aren't getting impressions using the target CPA/CPL/CPI method can try taking the average of the suggested bid and doubling it.

"You likely will not pay that extremely high rate, but it will win you more auctions and, on average, you could still hit your target metrics," he said. "Give it a try - it doesn't work for everyone but when it does it yields incredible results."

6. Build out a campaign.

The ability to target the same users on Facebook and Instagram gives marketers a chance to build a campaign with multiple touch points without much trouble, Havey said.

"A social ad strategy that employs proper use of each platform can help take your audience from awareness to purchase to advocacy with ease if executed correctly," he added.

7. Create dedicated landing pages.

According to Baumwald, brands should also carefully consider what happens once consumers who click your Instagram ads actually land on a web page.

"Does the creative in the ad match what they see on the website? Are you making it easy for users to convert by following best practices?" he asked. " Better-converting landing pages make it much easier to absorb the costs of slightly more expensive Instagram campaigns. For a truly effective campaign, be sure to build out dedicated landing pages and don't send people to your homepage."

Bosley noted the most successful Instagram campaigns have mobile-friendly objectives, like brand awareness, app installs, lead gen and sending users to a mobile-friendly website that loads in three seconds or less.

8. Retarget.

Adding a tracking pixel to a website or app enables brands to easily retarget consumers who have visited their sites.

"Since these people will already be familiar with your brand, the advertising will be much more effective," Baumwald said. "The cost may be similar, but the number of people converting should be much higher."

He added one caveat: "This will be a much smaller audience you're targeting so it's important to change your creative on a regular basis so that your audience isn't seeing the same ads from you over and over again."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Much Do Instagram Ads Cost? Plus 8 Tips for Saving Money

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Instagram posts tend to get 10 times more engagement than Facebook posts on average. In this post, we look at how much Instagram ads cost, and dive into some ways you can make the most of your Instagram ad budget.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Quick answer: The average Instagram ads CPC (cost-per-click) is around $0.50 - $1.00.

You will pay more in highly competitive industries, e.g. apparel. Instagram ads cost can reach up to $3.00 per click. Read this article to see how to keep your costs low.

If you're reading this article, you're probably a marketer looking to advertise on Instagram. Truth is, there is no right or wrong answer to this question as your Instagram ads cost depends on 10+ different factors.

However, there are a few benchmarks that give you at least a little bit more insight into Instagram advertising cost.
In this chapter of our extensive Instagram Advertising Guide, we'll explore the answers to the following questions:

How much does it cost to advertise on Instagram?

How does the Instagram ad bidding work?

How to set your Instagram ad budgets and bids?

How to select the right ad delivery optimization method?

What's the best way to keep your Instagram ad costs low?

How Much Does it Cost to Advertise on Instagram?

One of the most burning questions of marketers interested in Instagram ads is the potential ROI - how much does a click or conversion cost on Instagram?
Let's see what different resources suggest.
When analyzing Instagram advertising costs in 2018, AdEspresso found that the average cost-per-click on Instagram is around $0.80.

On average Instagram ads cost-per-click is between $0.70 and $1.00.

However, there are many elements determining your Instagram ads' cost. For example, there's a difference in Instagram CPC prices for various age groups.

The highest CPC age groups are 18-24, 25-34, and 35-44-year-olds - the most valuable age groups when it comes to Instagram marketing.

Moreover, Facebook ads cost is higher for brands targeting women. (This may also be the case as less men use Instagram, so you won't get as many clicks from men)

One of the most burning questions of marketers interested in Instagram ads is the potential ROI - how much does a click or conversion cost on Instagram?

Compared to Facebook advertising costs, Instagram ads tend to be on the high end of the scale.
AdEspresso's 2016 analysis on tens of thousands of Facebook ads showed that Instagram is often the most expensive ad placement.
While the cost-per-click of Facebook Mobile newsfeed ads averaged at $0.35, the avg. CPC on Instagram was around $0.70.
After managing hundreds of Instagram ad campaigns, I've seen Instagram ads cost anywhere between $0.20 to $2 per click.
Tip: When thinking about your investment in Instagram marketing, think how much a conversion is worth to you and make sure that your campaigns has a positive ROI.

Instagram Ads Have a High ROI

According to Forrester, Instagram ads have the highest engagement rate of all digital ad placements. This means that sometimes, you could pay a little more for a click or 1,000 impressions and still come out as a winner.

A marketing report by Shopify revealed that Instagram users tend to spend the avg. of $65 per referred sale. In comparison, Facebook users only spend $55, and Twitter users $46.26.

Moreover, Instagram posts have quite a high conversion rate of 1.08%. Even though it's lower than Facebook (1.85%) it still surpasses Twitter (0.77%) or Pinterest (0.54%).

In fact, Instagram marketing is so beneficial to brands that the spending on this ad platform is steadily increasing.
According to eMarketer, Instagram ad sales are predicted to hit 2.8bn by 2017 (from $600M this year).
How to Get Higher Instagram Ads ROI

Instagram is part of Facebook's ad network, which means that very often you'll be combining the Instagram feed with other placements.

To get the maximum campaign ROI, use Facebook's automatic placements option (or a few selected placements), and use your Instagram campaign reports to see if it's a good place for showing your ads.
In my experience, Instagram ad costs are lower for B2C brands (companies selling consumer products).
For B2B brands, Instagram ad costs can be higher as people are not hanging out on Instagram looking to buy some business tools. Read more about marketing your SaaS or B2B products on Facebook.

If all the mentioned Instagram marketing costs and potential ROI sounded attractive to you, keep reading to learn how the Instagram ads bidding and budget setup works.

How Does Instagram Ad Bidding Work?
Instagram ad bidding works exactly like Facebook ad bidding. After all, both of these ad types are managed on the very same platform.
This means that when publishing an Instagram ad campaign, you'll be entering a worldwide auction for people's attention.
There are three factors that contribute to your advertising cost:

Your Facebook campaign's bid - The more you're willing to pay, the more Facebook will deliver your ads. If you're going to use automatic bids, there's a good chance you'll be just fine.

The relevance score - Your ads' relevance score will directly affect the cost of your ad results and how Facebook prioritizes their delivery in the bidding auction.

Estimated action rates - Facebook determines your "estimated action rates" (which are exactly what they sound like) by a number of different factors.

Basically, what this means is that in addition to a high ad bid, it's also important to create Instagram ads that are relevant and interesting for your target audience.
How to Set Up Your Instagram Ads Budget

You can customize your Instagram ad campaign's budget in the Budget & Schedule section, during the Instagram campaign setup process.
You can select between two types of ad budgets:
Daily budget: This is how much Facebook will spend on delivering your ads every day during your campaign's set dates.

Note that when setting a daily budget, you're setting an average. This means that Facebook will try to get you roughly your daily budget's worth of the results for every campaign day.

Lifetime budget: That's the amount you're willing to spend over the duration of your Instagram ad campaign.

Important! Once you've published your ad campaign, you won't be able to change the budget type, only the amounts you're willing to spend.

Selecting Your Instagram Ads' Delivery Optimization
Depending on the campaign objective you chose at the beginning of your Instagram ads setup process, you can select between several ad delivery options.
But what is this "ad delivery optimization" anyway?

Here's what Facebook says:
"Your optimization choice tells us what to value when delivering your ad. For example, you could tell us to show your ad to the people in your target audience most likely to click a link to your website (optimizing for link clicks) or to show it as many times as possible (optimizing for impressions)."Here's a quick breakdown of different delivery optimization methods:
Conversions - When optimizing for conversions, Facebook will deliver your ads to the people who are the most likely to convert.

Post Engagement - As you bid on Post Engagement, Facebook will show your Instagram ads to the people who might like, comment or share your ad or your promotion.

Impressions - Your ads will be delivered to as many people as many times as possible while staying within the limits of your advertising budget. There will be no optimization regarding who is more likely to engage with your ad.

Link Clicks - Facebook will deliver your ads to the people most likely to click on your ad. You will be charged every time someone clicks on your ad.

Daily Unique Reach - Facebook will deliver the ads in your ad set to people up to once per day. That's a good way to keep your ad frequency under control.

Brand Awareness - Facebook will serve your ads to the people who are most likely to be interested in your brand and offer. This could be an efficient way to acquire new Instagram followers.

Manual vs. Automatic Bidding

Setting up your ad campaign's budget and bidding in the Facebook Ads Manager can get quite confusing.

Especially if you look past the default settings and use some advanced options. One of these options is manual bidding.
So which one should you select: manual or automatic bidding?
Automatic bidding - use this bidding method if you don't know how much a result might cost. Facebook will find the best balance between keeping your advertising costs low while delivering enough results.

Manual bidding - This option lets you set a bid based on what a result/conversion is worth for you.

If you're just starting out, you should either use the automatic bidding or place your bid following Facebook's suggested bid.
Tip: You can use a manual bid that's on the low end of what Facebook's suggesting.
Always change the Facebook's pre-set manual bid in the custom bidding box. For example, if Facebook first suggests that you bid €3.50 per link click and the suggested bid range is (€0.70-€2.53), you can place a bid of €1.00 or even €0.71.

Pacing in Facebook Ad Delivery

You may not be aware of this, but whenever you optimize your ad delivery for Conversions, Facebook will give you two manual bidding options: Maximum and Average bid.
What's the difference between an Average and Maximum bid?
With Maximum bid, Facebook's algorithms won't deliver your ads if there's a risk that the cost per result will be higher than you bid.

As you set an Average bid, Facebook will use the Pacing method to optimize your ad delivery for optimal ROI.

Pacing explained by Smartly.io:
"Without pacing the ad set would spend the whole budget in the beginning of the day for more expensive ads and miss the better opportunities in the end of the day. The Pacing algorithm learns the optimal bid over time."Should you use a Maximum or Average bid?
If your goal is to maximize profit, select the Maximum bid. However, if you're willing to pay a little more per conversion but get a lot more of them, go with the Average bid.

How to Keep Your Instagram Ad Costs Low

1. Start With Automatic Bidding
If you haven't got much Instagram advertising experience, use the automatic Facebook ad bidding.
While it might be tempting to test different manual bidding options, you won't have any previous data telling you what's the average cost-per-result. This makes it highly likely that you'll either overbid or under-bid and get worse campaign results in the end.

If you MUST use a manual bid, check out Facebook's suggested bid and keep in mind the Instagram ad cost benchmarks mentioned in this article.

2. Optimize Your Instagram Ad Campaign for Conversions
Optimizing your ad campaigns for conversions is the best way to ensure that Facebook will auto-optimize your campaigns so that you'll get more anticipated results at a lower cost.
We've been impressed with Facebook's ability to deliver ads to the people actually most likely to convert. Their algoriths have grown to be super smart!

Read more: How to Set Facebook Advertising Goals for Ultimate Success

3. Set a Frequency Cap

When you optimize your Instagram ad delivery for Reach (available when the ad campaign's objective is set to Reach or Brand Awareness), you'll get the option of Frequency Capping.
Frequency cap lets you set a time interval at which an audience member can see your Instagram or Facebook ads.
By setting your Instagram promotion's Frequency Cap to 3-5 days, you'll ensure they won't get bored with seeing your ad too often.
If you want to learn more about Instagram and Facebook ads cost, read these guides: About Facebook's Ad Auction - The Official Guide
From 0 to Results. How to Set Up Low-Budget Facebook Campaigns
28 Facebook Advertising Hacks for Skyrocketing Results

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Instagram Ads Cost in 2020 - Complete Up-to-date Guide

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Quick answer: The average Instagram ads CPC (cost-per-click) is around $0.50 - $1.00. You will pay more in highly competitive industries, e.g. apparel. Instagram ads cost can reach up to $3.00 per click. Read this article to see how to keep your costs low.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The demographics of social media sites are starting to shift as new platforms begin to emerge and old ones lose prominence. And as Facebook and Twitter continue to tweak their algorithms to reward paid advertising, businesses are having a more difficult time getting organic exposure on these sites. All of this is leading many businesses to wonder if they should start casting their digital marketing nets a little wider. (Spoiler alert: most of them should.)

In Sept. 2015 #Instagram surpassed #Twitter in number of users, and has nearly 3x as many users today. #SMM Click To Tweet

In September 2015, Instagram surpassed Twitter in number of users, and has nearly three times as many users to this day. Those kinds of numbers are hard to ignore and this stunning growth is part of the reason that people are starting to eye Instagram as the next great place to market their business. So how do you know if it's right for you?

Instagram Marketing: Why It's Awesome

While we're firm believers that there's no one-size-fits all answer when it comes to social media marketing, there are a few general rules of thumb that you can use to decide if Instagram is a good fit for your business. But first, let's take look at a quick rundown of what makes Instagram marketing so great.

1. The Internet is officially mobile - and so is Instagram.

For years now the growing importance of mobile has been at the top of the list for every forecast of marketing trends - and we've finally reached the tipping point. As of 2018, the time spent on mobile media (57%) is significantly higher than that of desktop (43%). Mobile has long since ceased to be a mere trend. It has become the primary way that Internet users are accessing online content.

Source: StatCounter Global Stats - Platform Comparison Market Share

This gives Instagram marketing a huge advantage over competitors like Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Unlike the other major social media platforms, Instagram (and Snapchat, to its credit) was originally conceived as an app. Although the other social media heavyweights have invested heavily in their mobile apps, it's difficult (if not impossible) for a platform that was originally created for desktop to have an app that functions as seamlessly and intuitively as a platform that is native to mobile.

Just a quick side-by-side comparison of any of the major social media apps compared to the Instagram app makes this point abundantly clear. While other apps struggle with endless updates to integrate multiple pages and menus more elegantly, Instagram's simple, stripped-down interface makes it easy and intuitive for mobile users.

Now that mobile is the primary digital medium being used by consumers, it's likely that more emerging social media platforms will be mobile natives as well. While Instagram is perfectly positioned to take on new competition, the platforms that were originally conceived for desktops are going to feel increasing pressure. In short, if you're looking to invest in a social media strategy that will continue to have an impact over the long-term, Instagram should be a part of that strategy.

2. Your posts are more likely to be seen.

Ensuring that your posts are being seen has become particularly difficult on Facebook. Not only does Facebook allow users to have a high degree of control over the content that appears in their News Feed, but the Facebook algorithm automatically curates each profile's News Feed based on their connections and interactions. This means that if your followers don't immediately and consistently engage with your content, chances are they will stop seeing it.

To make things more difficult for marketers and business owners, as Facebook increasingly invests in its advertising services, business pages are finding it more and more difficult to reach their followers organically (i.e., for free). While Instagram has introduced ads on the platform, thus far there has been no indication that they intend to treat the content posted by business profiles any differently than they have in the past, making Instagram marketing still your best bet for getting your content in front of your audience.

3. Instagram leads the pack for engagement.

It's not enough to just be sharing your content - it needs to make an impact. Shares, likes, RTs, and +1's are all indicators of how engaged your audience is with your content. The more you have your follower's attention, the more opportunities there are to get your message out, build brand awareness, and engage in some killer PR. If leveraged correctly, these social signals can even pack a serious SEO punch. That's why engagement is the Holy Grail of social media marketing.

Instagram's clean, streamlined interface, judicious incorporation of ads and focus on visual content creates an intimate atmosphere that is optimal for social sharing. So it's no wonder why, when it comes to engagement, Instagram is the industry leader .

While the exact numbers can be hard to quantify, estimates suggest that Instagram users are four times more likely to like, comment, or share a brand's post than Facebook users and 30 times more likely than Twitter users.

Instagram users are 4 times more likely to like, comment, or share a brand's post than Facebook users. Click To Tweet

4. Businesses can brand themselves through visual storytelling.

Have you ever heard of an elevator pitch?

The general idea is this: you're the CEO of a startup or a salesperson trying to drum up new business, and all of sudden you find yourself in an elevator with exactly the investor or the contact that you'd like to do business with.

Basically, you have 30 - 90 seconds to tell this person what your company does and why they should want to work with you and you have to do it in a way that is interesting and compelling enough that the elevator ride ends with you getting a meeting and not an uncomfortable brush off. It's as tricky as it sounds.

It's also a great analogy for building your audience online, only instead of an investor, you're pitching Internet users, and instead of 90 seconds, you have two - maybe. This is where the visual storytelling aspects of Instagram marketing become a huge advantage. They say a picture is worth 1,000 words, and they're right. You could probably sum up why the company you work for is so cool in 1,000 words, but no one would stick around to read it. Or you could post a picture of your latest rooftop office party or your "workation" in Mexico and tell the same story in an instant.

How to Know If Your Business Should Be On Instagram

So you get that Instagram is awesome, but you're still not sold on the idea that it's right for your business. The truth is that despite the many advantages of Instagram marketing, it still doesn't necessarily make sense for every business. Here's a few rules of thumb that can help you know if it's time for your business to take the plunge:

Approximately 71% of Instagram's 400 million users are under the age of 35. #SMM Click To Tweet

Your target audience is young. Approximately 71% of Instagram's one billion users are under the age of 35. Compare this to Twitter (where 56% of users are over 30) and Facebook (where 64% of users are under 35). The truth is that it doesn't matter how great your product and your message are if you aren't using the right channels to reach your audience.

Your product is visually compelling. Instagram marketing is all about visuals. Maybe you're a travel agency that books luxury vacations or maybe you're a company that builds sweet custom bikes. Whoever you are, if you are selling something that people are going to want to see, you need to be on Instagram.

Your competitors are on Instagram. If you haven't yet, you should definitely check to see if your competitors are doing Instagram marketing. Even if you still think at this point that Instagram isn't right for your business, if your competitors are already there and developing a following, chances are that they know something you don't. Poke around in their profiles and try to figure out what it is, then get to work building a better version in your own profile.

If you think you can tell a visual story about your business - or you are trying to target a younger audience - Instagram needs to be part of your social media marketing strategy.

Are you ready to take the plunge with Instagram market, but looking to outsource social media? We've got a couple of pricing guides you might be interested in, both for professional social media marketing tools and small business social media marketing.

What do you think about Instagram marketing? Have any success stories to tell? Let us know in the comments section, or tweet us @Contentfac.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Is Instagram Marketing Right for Your Business?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The demographics of social media sites are starting to shift as new platforms begin to emerge and old ones lose prominence. And as Facebook and Twitter continue to tweak their algorithms to reward paid advertising, businesses are having a more difficult time getting organic exposure on these sites.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
If you have ever wished you were a fly on the wall to see what your competitors are up to, here's a bit of insight you might want to hear: There's a good chance they'll be investing more in social media ads.

According to a CMO report, social media advertising budgets are expected to almost double by 2023. There's a good reason for that. Last year, there was a 13% rise in people using social media. That's 3.196 billion people, and studies show that 70% of North Americans use social media. The interest in digital platforms continues to rise.

Reviewing the stats will help you discover the benefits of social media, and it's worth a few minutes of your time. Here are some impressive numbers to help you see that there's definitely value in social media advertising.

Who's Looking at Social Media?

When you consider who's looking at ads on social media, youth prevails. Did you know that 50% of Gen Z and 42% of millennials believe social is the most relevant place for ads? Although those over 37 years old still think TV is more relevant, they actually rank social media second. In all age groups, women choose social media more so than men, coming in at 35% and 27% respectively. Relevancy means people are listening to ads, instead of getting annoyed by them.

Customer Engagement is Big on Social

Social media platforms were built for people to engage with each other. It is not so different for your business. Due to its interactive nature, social media is the best channel to build a rapport with followers. You can get very personal by putting faces to names and improving your customer service efforts. Interacting and even selling on social allows you to make people feel special when you speak directly to them and enjoy a conversation based on their comments. It is an excellent opportunity to engage people directly with special offers, contests, and information shared only through your posts. That can lead to further engagement with new followers.

Of course, it all takes thought and planning to ensure your content is engaging to begin with. Relevant posts, videos, and images will gain positive reactions, which helps encourage engagement as well as sharing.

Although smaller companies might be turned off by the idea of using social media as an additional way for customers to communicate directly with your team, social media provides a real-time way to converse with customers. It allows you to publicly manage damage control for customer complaints or even major events that might negatively affect your business or worry your customers. Offering contact on social media can speed up service if you are responsive enough.

Social is Good for Customer Satisfaction

Everything adds to the customer experience. As already stated, social media provides a real-time way to answer questions for your customers. It improves relationships by allowing you to reply right away to their comments while creating real connections. Again, this might be a scary prospect, but it is the best way to show you care.

Social media also becomes a self-generating FAQ resource as common questions are answered in your feed. Social is a priceless way of finding the things that customers really want to know so that you can add it to your website with confidence. Instead of generating the same old FAQs you assume people will ask, you will have the actual questions that are popping up regularly in your feed.

Social media is also the best way to make announcements to counteract negative occurrences such as the need for a recall or to respond directly to negative press your business might receive. It allows you to take a proactive approach, so people know you are aware of issues and are acting on them quickly.

Special offers can also get to people more quickly via social media posts, which, in turn, creates more happy customers. You can encourage people to follow your social media to be privy to the best offers before the general public hears about them.

Last but not least, social media provides a venting channel that at first glance might be something that gives you pause. However, if you have people venting about an issue with your brand on social media you have a chance to publicly offer to make things better as opposed to channels where a bad review might be harder to address. This method is always preferred from a customer service point of view.

Build Brand Awareness Across Accounts

Brand awareness is always important for your online presence. Consider that 50% of U.S. consumers feel user-generated content, such as videos and images posted by happy buyers, is likely to influence their purchasing decisions through social media channels. Social media allows your brand to be brought into the light in an honest way, with real people standing behind your product and stating they love it.
Instagram
According to Instagram, business accounts represent a third of their top viewed Stories. Even more interesting, these Stories tend to receive messages from viewers one in five times, and 60% of Stories with video ads are viewed with the sound on. That is important as it means viewers are actually not just waiting for the ad to run its course; they're engaging with it.
Twitter
Twitter was developed to share information in digestible little bursts called tweets. Companies can greatly benefit from brand building on Twitter as 64% of users surveyed said they had discovered a new small to medium business through Twitter. Of that group, 78% said they had tweeted about that business, with 93.3% saying they were going to buy something from the companies they follow. These discoveries carry over to ads appearing in their feeds, with 73% finding ads informative, and 67% finding the ads non-intrusive and even relevant.
Snapchat
Some companies might overlook Snapchat as a potential advertising channel, yet according to tests conducted by Mediascience, video ads on Snapchat are twice as likely to gain attention than on Facebook and 1.3 times more than YouTube. These ads also double the intent to purchase compared to YouTube and television.
LinkedIn
If you are not convinced social media is a must because your customer base is businesses, LinkedIn comes to the rescue. LinkedIn is viewed as the platform to generate leads, according to DemandWave. LinkedIn is not just a job posting platform. People using LinkedIn are using it 15 times more to view content than they are to view jobs.
YouTube
YouTube was created specifically for sharing video. Paid YouTube ads receive 83% more attention compared to just 45% for television, and 95% of those ads are watched with the sound playing. When it comes to brand awareness, that lifts it by 1.6 times, with brand recall rising 1.4 times. YouTube reports that if a person watches an ad on their platform, people are 10 times more likely to visit the channel for that brand with the intent to view more videos.

More Brand Authority

Authority is different from brand awareness. To establish your business as an expert in your industry, you have to build brand authority. Posting on social media with relevant, educational, and authoritative information is the best way to show people that you know your stuff. It nurtures a positive image while offering a forum where customers and visitors can interact. That is especially important for answering questions and being responsive to both increase and demonstrate customer satisfaction.

Brand authority helps generate brand loyalty. In turn, it can provide free advertising for your business as people comment and like what you have to say or offer. This public interaction with customers shows you genuinely care about them and are customer focused. You also encourage customers to be more vocal and to help raise your profile in the minds of new followers.

According to the Social Media Examiner, consumers are reliant on social media when it comes to finding the products, companies, and services they will use. That alone shows the value of using social media to help establish brand authority. Marketing your knowledge about products and services requires traditional methods in hand with digital content. You can certainly use your website to build content, but it won't be enough for today's consumer or B2B customer.

Your website is like a silent partner that won't generate conversations. Although you can add a comment stream to your blog, social media allows you to gain conversations that followers will see and new followers will find. Social starts conversations publicly and develops the promotion of your products and services from people who have used and liked them. There's value in that feedback for you as well. You will find usable suggestions with ideas you might not have considered coming directly from the most important source: the people using your product or service.

As long as you are committed to remaining active and contributing content of value, you will continue to gain momentum. You also have to make sure you are speedy with responses to keep conversations going and especially to assuage potential negative comments to show you care about feedback both good and bad.

Becoming an authority in your industry on social media can also lead to collaboration opportunities across sectors. That includes influencers such as fashion mavens talking about your creative, trendy T-shirts on their posts, for example. This mutual fan club provides further exposure and seals the deal for your authority.

Social Gives Your SEO a Bump

If you are sick of hearing about SEO and are tempted to skip this section, don't! Social media is a very important tool to improve your SEO. It amplifies content across many channels. You can use your best existing content and incorporate it into your social media posts, giving you more bang for your buck.

Social media can influence bounce rates and also provide more inbound links, which search engines love. They can also increase the time spent on pages, another important stat. The longer people visit and engage on a page, the more search engines value you. You are also killing two birds with one stone by getting more mileage out of your blogs, which, in turn, drives traffic to your site.

Social media helps get your content shared, as well as liked. As you share more, you will also gain more brand authority and improve your reputation. All of these things work together to convince search engines that searchers have found your content worthy of review, which brings you up in the rankings.

The sharing aspect of social media also contributes to link building. It helps bring attention to your site, which can attract other influencers. If your content is on social media, it provides a way for influencers to find info on your website that they might like to link to. Those are the highest value links you can get, and it improves SEO. You can also get other websites linking to your content, adding diverse external links, which makes search engines view you as an authority.

Through social media channels, you will raise brand awareness, which increases brand-based searches. Brand-based searches always rank higher than non-branded searches because your name is a keyword in the search. Who else can the search engines possibly choose when the request is specific to your brand?

Social Media & Sales

If none of these facts have you convinced, consider it more in dollars and cents. In the first half of 2018, social media ad revenue generated $13.1 billion according to IAB's latest Internet Advertising Revenue Report. That is an increase of 38% over 2017. Companies would not be investing this much in an advertising method that was not providing them with results.

According to Sprout Social, just by a brand being available on social media to answer questions led 48% of consumers to make a purchase. As well, if there is a promotion or contest on social media, it can sway 46% of consumers to buy. Last but not least, 42% of consumers say that they can be converted based on educational content on social media.

Once all is said and done, social media at the least builds your brand and at the most translates into conversions and purchases. It's a win-win!

Learn how to create effective social media advertising campaigns with a Postgraduate Diploma in Digital Marketing. Download a brochure today!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Cost of Social Media Advertising: Where's the Value?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
If you have ever wished you were a fly on the wall to see what your competitors are up to, here's a bit of insight you might want to hear: There's a good chance they'll be investing more in social media ads. According to a CMO report, social media advertising budgets are expected to almost double by 2023.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
1. MINIMUM AD BUDGETS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA

With social media advertising, many networks require a minimum daily budget. This rate varies by platform, with some basing their required budget on the bid type, like impressions, clicks, likes, or views. Many, however, offer low minimum budgets.

Learn about the lowest possible ad spend across the most popular social media networks:

AVERAGE CPC FOR SOCIAL MEDIA ADS

With social media advertising, your business can use several bidding options, like cost-per-like (CPL) or cost-per-view (CPV). A universal bidding option, however, is cost-per-click or CPC. That's why many companies, when looking at the cost of social media advertising, research CPC first.

Use the table below to explore the average CPC for the social media platforms in your ad campaign:

AVERAGE CPM FOR SOCIAL MEDIA

The top social media networks also offer cost-per-thousand-impressions or CPM as a bidding option. With this bidding option, your company focuses on ad views rather than ad clicks. The average cost for CPM is generally higher because you're paying per 1000 impressions, versus a single click.

Get a breakdown of social media advertising costs by CPM in the table below:

Social media advertising costs by platform

While the leading social media networks all offer CPC and CPM, many also use several other bidding options. Twitter, for example, lets businesses use cost-per-follow or CPF, while LinkedIn includes cost-per-open or CPO.

Ready for an in-depth look at social media advertising costs by platform? Just select your platform:

Facebook advertising costs

With more than 1.4 billion daily active users, Facebook is a go-to advertising channel for any business. That's why many companies want to know how much Facebook advertising costs, so they can build a reasonable budget.

Below, you can see a breakdown of the average costs for advertising on Facebook:

Remember, these numbers are only averages.

Depending on your business and social media ad strategy, you may have a higher or lower budget. That's why it's helpful to use these numbers as a benchmark, rather than as a standard for your Facebook advertising costs.

FACEBOOK ADVERTISING: BIDDING OPTIONS

On Facebook, you can access four bidding options:

Cost-per-click (CPC): You only pay for your ad when someone clicks on it.

Cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM): You only pay for your ad when 1000 people see it.

Cost-per-like (CPL): You only pay for your ad when someone likes your business page.

Cost-per-action (CPA): You only pay for your ad when someone converts.

For the best results, most companies use CPC. While you can use the other bidding options, CPC offers the most cost-effective choice for achieving your goals. Even if you're looking to earn likes or conversions, social media specialists often recommend CPC.

Specialists recommend this bidding approach for a few reasons.

To start, CPC is one of the most cost-effective bidding strategies available. With CPL and CPA, your company can expect to pay more, without necessarily increasing the performance or results of your social media strategy. Impressions also rarely support long-term strategy goals, like follows or purchases.

When you advertise on Facebook, you can also select one of two bidding strategies:

Automatic bidding: Also known as lowest cost, automatic bidding allows Facebook to tweak your bidding strategy (without exceeding your monthly budget) to help your business earn the lowest possible cost per click or action.

Manual bidding: Also known as target cost, manual bidding provides your company complete control over your bidding strategy, which can help your team reach your preferred cost per click or action.

Depending on your experience, your business may start with automatic bidding versus manual bidding. If you partner with a social media advertising agency, like WebFX, we have the expertise to use either option and maximize its results.

FACEBOOK ADVERTISING: PROFESSIONAL MANAGEMENT

As more businesses invest in Facebook advertising, the platform becomes more competitive. That's why many companies partner with a social media advertising agency to develop, manage, and lead their ad strategy.

While every agency varies, leading providers (like WebFX) provide the following:

Ad account setup

Ad account optimization

Ad development and design

Advanced ad targeting

Facebook Pixel installation

Monthly reporting and analysis

Personal consultations

And more

We also provide your team access to MarketingCloudFX, our client-exclusive platform. With MarketingCloudFX, we make it easy for your business to review and share your campaign results. Plus, with the machine learning power of IBM Watson, you get unparalleled insights to advance your strategy.

Instagram advertising costs

With more than 500 million daily active users, as well as a higher engagement rate than Facebook users, Instagram provides businesses with a new channel for reaching consumers. That competitive advantage, however, results in higher ad costs.

For a quick summary of advertising costs on Instagram, check out the table below:

It's important to mention that while Facebook and Instagram share a similar monthly ad spend, your campaign performances can vary due to average costs for CPC and CPM. That's why, if Instagram performs well for your business, you may increase your monthly ad spend beyond the average.

INSTAGRAM ADVERTISING: BIDDING OPTIONS

Like Facebook, Instagram offers the following four bidding options:

Cost-per-click (CPC): You pay every time someone clicks on your ad.

Cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM): You pay every time 1000 people see your ad.

Cost-per-like (CPL): You pay every time someone likes your post.

Cost-per-action (CPA): You pay every time someone completes your desired action, like a purchase.

While companies can use any of the above bidding options, many choose CPC. In some cases, established brands (think Target, Starbucks, or Home Depot) use CPM to build awareness and keep their business top-of-mind.

INSTAGRAM ADVERTISING: PROFESSIONAL MANAGEMENT

Whether you're promoting your business on one or more social media networks, partnering with a professional team of social media specialists can help your company earn more from your social media ads.

If you decide to invest in management and advertising services for Instagram, choose an experienced agency with an excellent track record. WebFX, for example, offers more than 20 years of experience. Plus, we've published more than 165,000 social media posts for our clients.

In fact, we've generated more than $1.5 billion in revenue for our clients in the last five years.

While more experienced social media advertising agencies, like WebFX, provide their services at a higher rate, they also offer higher value. You receive a custom strategy backed by years of experience, which can improve the performance of your ads.

This kind of approach also helps your business achieve its marketing goals.

Your agency's role in your company's success is why settling for "cheap" social media advertising services is often a mistake. While these agencies offer an enticing price, they often fail to deliver on their promises, which hurts your company and your reputation.

That's why you need to go with a proven and trusted agency to maximize your online success.

YouTube advertising costs

Every day, people watch more than one billion hours of video on YouTube. For businesses, the popularity of YouTube offers a new way to reach consumers, especially users between the ages of 18 to 34, an age group that dominates the social media network.

Curious about how much it costs to advertise on YouTube? View the table below for more information:

YOUTUBE ADVERTISING: BIDDING OPTIONS

When your company advertises on YouTube, you have access to four bidding options:

Cost-per-click (CPC): With CPC, you pay when someone clicks on your YouTube ad.

Cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM): With CPM, you pay when 1000 people see your ad on YouTube.

Cost-per-view (CPV): With CPV, you pay when someone views your video ad for 30 seconds or until the end.

Cost-per-action (CPA): With CPA, you pay when a person takes the desired action, like visiting your site.

If you advertise on YouTube, many businesses have success with CPC, as well as CPV. With CPV, however, your team will need to create a video ad. While you can shoot an ad in-house, the best results come from a professional-grade video.

As the leading professional social media network (it features more than 590 million members), LinkedIn is a useful lead generation platform for business-to-business (B2B) organizations and companies looking for top talent.

Looking to use LinkedIn for your business? Here is an overview of LinkedIn advertising costs:

LINKEDIN ADVERTISING: BIDDING OPTIONS

When you advertise on LinkedIn, you can use three types of bids:

Cost-per-click (CPC): With CPC, you pay only when someone clicks on your LinkedIn ad.

Cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM): With CPM, you only pay when 1000 people see your LinkedIn ad.

Cost-per-send (CPS): With CPS, you pay every time you send a sponsored email to a user.

Cost-per-open (CPO): With CPO, you pay every time someone opens your sponsored email.

While many businesses focus their ad strategy on CPC, some do use CPS and CPO. If you're looking to recruit applicants, for example, CPS and CPO can help your business reach top candidates and fill the opening. For lead generation, however, CPC is a go-to choice.

LINKEDIN ADVERTISING: PROFESSIONAL MANAGEMENT

For many companies, advertising on LinkedIn is a new adventure, which is why it's helpful to partner with a social media advertising agency. With their experience, as well as advertising expertise, they can help your business build a campaign that allows you to hire top candidates, reach valuable leads, and more.

With a talented and award-winning team of more than 200 digital marketing specialists, WebFX removes the uncertainty, stress, and frustration that can come with advertising on social media. Plus, we partner you with a dedicated account manager, ensuring you always have a familiar point of contact.

That's why we've received more than 100 four- and five-star reviews from our clients.

Twitter advertising costs

Compared to social media networks like Facebook and LinkedIn, Twitter features a smaller user base. The social media platform has more than 255 million users, which is why many businesses use Twitter's advertising services.

For a complete look at how much advertising on Twitter costs, check out the table below:

TWITTER ADVERTISING: BIDDING OPTIONS

If you advertise on Twitter, you can access five different bidding options:

Cost-per-click (CPC): CPC allows you to pay for every click on your Twitter ad.

Cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM): CPM lets you pay for every 1000 impressions on your Twitter ad.

Cost-per-engagement (CPE): With CPE, you pay when someone interacts with your Twitter ad.

Cost-per-follow (CPF): With CPF, you pay when someone uses your ad to follow your business.

Cost-per-download (CPD): With, you pay when someone downloads something, like an app.

While CPC works well for businesses advertising on Twitter, CPE also offers value. When people engage with your ad and your company, whether by commenting or retweeting, it demonstrates the importance of your ad campaign.

You're moving people to act, which can lead to several benefits.

For example, that initial engagement can generate brand awareness. It can also result in future, organic interactions between your company and that user. As engagement increases, potential customers move through the buying funnel, which can result in a later purchase or new lead.

TWITTER ADVERTISING: PROFESSIONAL MANAGEMENT

While you can now exceed the 280-character limit on Twitter, that doesn't change the challenge that comes with advertising on the network. If you want a campaign that makes the most of your social media advertising costs, professional management services can help.

With the hands-on approach of our social media specialists, your company receives a campaign tailored to you. Plus, you have a consistent point-of-contact for chatting about your strategy, reviewing your results, and more.

Unlike other social media advertising agencies, WebFX provides you with a partnership. We invest ourselves in your success and measure our performance by your results, which is one reason why our client recommendation score is 488 percent higher than the industry average.

Pinterest advertising costs

Each month, a quarter of a billion people use Pinterest. For business-to-consumer (B2C) organizations, Pinterest offers a unique opportunity for reaching and engaging with their target market. It does, however, come with some higher advertising costs.

Learn more about advertising costs on Pinterest in the table below:

PINTEREST ADVERTISING: BIDDING OPTIONS

Pinterest offers two bidding options:

Cost-per-click (CPC): This bid strategy charges your company when someone clicks your Pinterest ad.

Cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM): This bid option charges your business when 1000 people see your Pinterest ad.

Due to the high average cost for impressions, it's cost-effective to use CPC. With CPC, you also ensure people interact with your ad and take notice of your pin, which may include a product, blog post, or another feature.

PINTEREST ADVERTISING: PROFESSIONAL MANAGEMENT

For many businesses, Pinterest is a new social media advertising channel. While you may feel comfortable with promoting your business on Facebook or Instagram, advertising on Pinterest poses new challenges and risks. It also requires more of your team's time.

WebFX can help your business use Pinterest to your advantage. With a custom strategy, plus data-driven decisions from our proprietary and client-exclusive software, MarketingCloudFX, we can generate brand awareness, engagement, and even sales from Pinterest for you.

All these actions can help your company experience real growth.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Much Does Social Media Advertising Cost in 2020?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
1. MINIMUM AD BUDGETS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA With social media advertising, many networks require a minimum daily budget. This rate varies by platform, with some basing their required budget on the bid type, like impressions, clicks, likes, or views. Many, however, offer low minimum budgets.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Transport & Outdoor Advertising News - Transport Media

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
For all the latest, news and reviews from the world of transport and Outdoor advertising brought to you by Transport Media.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Birth of Herbal Fab

Herbal Fab is run by two brothers Mr Prashant Balar and Mr Kunal Balar

We are both electronic engineers and started our careers in Electronics and IT Industry but left them soon to find some better satisfying path in life and joined our family business.

Our family business for generation has been involved in conventional cotton textiles since 1960 But seeing the unrepairable damage done by the hazardous chemicals used at each stage of conventional textile processing and a vision to make a change, a impact, led to the birth of Herbal fab

Mission
"There will be nothing left for the generations to come if we are not sustainable in what we do and a simple rule to be sustainable is to give back to nature what you take from it in the same form; if that is not possible then in a form that is still useful or at least not harmful"
About Herbal Fab

Herbal fab is certified by Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)

We offer GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) Certified dyed/printed fabrics in Organic cotton knits/wovens as per custom requirements.

In organic cotton, we do 6'S Count to 80'S Count in woven Fabrics & 30'S, 40'S Single jersey & Interlock in Knits fabrics.

We also offer other Eco-Friendly fabrics like Handspun (Handwoven fabric), Non Violent Silk/Peace Silk, Organic denim, Wood based fibres, Special Blended Fabrics.

Herbal fab fabrics find its use on wholesale basis to independent fabric retailers as well as product manufacturers ,Export Houses, Fashion designers in India and internationally

We thrive to become a One Stop Shop for all Eco friendly Textiles need.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Herbal Fab is run by two brothers Mr Prashant Balar and Mr Kunal Balar We are both electronic engineers and started our careers in Electronics and IT Industry but left them soon to find some better satisfying path in life and joined our family business.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The communications mix involves all the tools you use to communicate with your customers or potential customers. This could be through advertising, social media, product packaging, direct marketing, websites, events, exhibitions - the list goes on!
Successful campaigns consider all elements of the communications mix. To see even better results, you must effectively use all areas to create an integrated multi-channel or omni-channel campaign.

What's the difference between the marketing communications mix and the marketing mix?

They may both include mix in their names, and they do link together - but they are actually very different tools.

On one hand, the Marketing Mix is used to shape brand strategies through factors unique to each business (the 7 Ps - product, price, promotion, place, physical evidence, people and process).

On the other hand, the Communications Mix defines the ways you communicate with your customers, i.e. the tools you use.

Marketing communications tools

The promotional mix is made up of five elements, shown below:

1. Advertising (TV, radio, press, PPC)

Advertising covers all avenues where a business pays for their message to be broadcast.

In 1922, the first radio advertisement was aired in New York, promoting apartments in Jackson Heights. Video came next, but luckily, it didn't quite kill the radio star. Instead, it became its own highly effective advertising tool, working harmoniously alongside radio.

Television has mostly been confined to brands with deep pockets. However, with the digital age came more affordable online tools such as PPC and social media advertising.

Successful advertising campaigns can be emotive, creative, eye-catching, catchy, musical, or even intentionally annoying (anything to grab attention!)

2. Direct marketing & digital marketing (email, social media, gamification, etc)

The emergence of digital didn't just bring social media and online shopping. It also gave us a whole new way to do marketing. This way is significantly cheaper; and if done correctly can be even more effective than broadcasting to the masses through TV or radio.

One of the major benefits of direct marketing is its targeted approach. So, if you've done the best and most accurate market research on your customers, you'll know exactly who to target. It's also attractive to marketers because its results can be directly measured.

3. Public relations (PR)

Public relations turns brand messages into stories that appeal to the media and its target audiences. It amplifies news, strategies and campaigns to create a positive view of a company through partnerships with newspapers, journalists and other relevant organisations.

But not everything can be shared via PR. The idea is to separate the stories they think could be developed into an effective PR strategy. So, usually anything considered too 'salesy' is a no no. A great PR campaign revolves around a public interest, current event or trend that can be connected to a product, service or brand.

4. Personal selling

Personal selling is, you guessed it, selling through a person (usually in a face-to-face setting). This includes salespeople, representatives, brand ambassadors or even influencers.

Using their experience, specialist knowledge and communication skills, their aim is to inform and encourage customers to buy or try a product or service.

5. Sales promotion
Sale! 50% off selected lines!
Using various online and offline outlets, sales promotion creates limited time deals or promotions on products or services in order to increase short-term sales. It can include sales, coupons, contests, freebies, prizes and product samples.

When conducting a sales promotion, it's important to consider:

how much it costs and whether the volume of sales will make up for the lost revenue

whether it will build loyalty or just attract one-off purchasers

if the promotion fits with the brand's image

Loyalty cards are a more recent addition to the sales promotion sphere, adding important elements such as customer retention and brand loyalty. Discounts or special offers reward loyal and repeat purchasers. It's also a great way to gather valuable customer data on purchasing habits and behaviour.

Extras

Social media

A relatively new tool, and always expanding with 'the next big thing', social media has changed the way we communicate. As part of the Direct Marketing section of the communications mix, it can be used to advertise, retain and gain customers, gather feedback about products or services and as a customer service tool.

Sponsorship

Just about anything can be sponsored. Sponsorship is something you see a lot of with major brands and especially in sports. It is often used to get the attention of new communities and align with them.

Effective sponsorship as a marketing and communications tool requires detailed target audience research and setting clear objectives.

Product packaging

Packaging is an element which can be considered as part of the marketing mix as well as the communications mix. It's the last point of sale for the company, and the impact of packaging could set brands apart from their competitors.

Communicating effectively through packaging can include the visual design, what's written on the product, size and shape of the packaging, materials it's made from etc. All of these aspects could sway a customer to buy or not buy the item.

New variables/innovations

We have many more communications tools now than existed 10 years ago - or even 5 years. This is why it's really important to keep track of new innovations and releases that could become a fantastic way to communicate with your demographic. Some stick around for the long haul, and others end up more like one-hit wonders (what ever happened to Vine?!) - but it's still great to keep an eye out.

Examples include new social media platforms (networking, video, messaging), gaming platforms, forums, mobile apps and more!
We hope this blog post has helped you understand the communications mix and given a valuable insight into how these tools can complement your marketing campaigns.
Want to learn more? The communications mix and many other important marketing theories are taught in our CIM Marketing Courses. You will be supported by excellent and experienced tutors whilst receiving interactive learning materials to support your studies. Discover new ways to innovate in marketing and thrive in your career!

For more information on Professional Academy's Marketing Qualifications please download a Prospectus today.
If you would like help referencing this blog, check out our Harvard Referencing Blog.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
what is the marketing communications mix

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
what's the difference between the communications mix and the marketing mix

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
what are the elements of a communications mix

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Communications Mix | Professional Academy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The communications mix involves all the tools you use to communicate with your customers or potential customers. This could be through advertising, social media, product packaging, direct marketing, websites, events, exhibitions - the list goes on! Successful campaigns consider all elements of the communications mix.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Consumer Survey Report : Fashion Revolution

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We love fashion, but we don’t want our clothes to come at the cost of people or our planet.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
NEW YORK, Jan. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CGS, a global provider of business applications, enterprise learning and outsourcing services, today announced the findings from its 2019 Retail and Sustainability Survey. The results showed that more than two-thirds of the respondents consider sustainability when making a purchase and are willing to pay more for sustainable products. Despite being a relatively new buying group, Gen Z i shoppers make up some of the most conscious buyers, with 68 percent having made an eco-friendly purchase in the past year.

CGS surveyed over 1,000 U.S. individuals (ages 18-65+) on how sustainable products and business practices are driving their buying preferences. Despite price still being a big factor in purchasing decisions, consumers are putting an emphasis on sustainability, and are also increasingly focused on shopping with brands whose mission they care about.
Key findings from the survey include:
Buyers want sustainable products; and over one-third will pay 25% more for them
Across the U.S., businesses are taking action to implement more eco-friendly processes and products. For example, Patagonia developed Woolyester, a material that blends wool, polyester and nylon to use approximately 50 percent of waste materials. The reason for this eco-friendly trend? It is what consumers want. Nearly 70 percent of CGS survey respondents said that sustainability is at least "somewhat important" to them when making a purchase and 47 percent would pay more for a sustainable product.

Brands must revamp their strategies for cultivating customer loyalty
Brands are constantly looking for ways to retain customers - and with good reason. Studies have shown that customers that continue to support a brand over time will spend 67 percent more than new customers. But what's driving brand loyalty? According to CGS survey findings, consumers are most likely to return to a brand for the product's quality. However, the second highest reason consumers return to a brand is its sustainable/ethical business practices. Brand name and brand mission closely followed in third and fourth place, respectively. Consumers today must feel a connection to brands that goes beyond cost and easy availability to drive true loyalty.

Younger buyers are more eco-aware
While Gen Z is still a rising economic force, this generation is far more aware of the environmental effects of their purchasing decisions than their elders. The survey showed that Gen Z ranks ethical business/manufacturing as one of its top factors when purchasing, while the general public is more concerned about product price and availability. Yet, the general public is more likely to return to a brand based on the quality of the product, rather than sustainable practices. Additionally, more than 50 percent of Gen Z would be willing to pay more for a sustainable product, slightly higher than expressed by the general population (47.3%).

Sustainable apparel is only starting to become a priority
While recycling paper goods and plastics have risen in popularity since introduced in the 1970s, the EPA estimates that the average American throws away of clothing every year. The CGS survey found that only one-quarter of consumers care about sustainable apparel and footwear items, while almost half (42.5 percent) are concerned about eco-friendly paper goods. As fast fashion gains popularity, businesses and consumers need to be educated on eco-friendly apparel business practices to minimize apparel waste.

"Today's buyers are driven by more than price - they're looking for brands that align with their own values and needs," said Paul Magel, President, Business Applications division, CGS. "To create a loyal customer base, brands must be transparent about the materials and development behind their products. Our BlueCherry® software helps brands meet these demands and deliver on the promise of sustainability and transparency."

To view the full findings, see infographic.

CGS's BlueCherry® Enterprise Suite provides clients with a powerful, comprehensive set of tools to drive their fundamental business processes. It focuses on the needs of high-growth organizations operating in the consumer lifestyle products, retail and apparel industries. The BlueCherry Enterprise Suite's built-in capacity addresses the needs of all core management, planning, product development, manufacturing, logistics, finance and sales functions.
About CGS
For 35 years, CGS has enabled global enterprises, regional companies and government agencies to drive breakthrough performance through business applications, enterprise learning and outsourcing services. CGS is wholly focused on creating comprehensive solutions that meet clients' complex, multi-dimensional needs and support clients' most fundamental business activities. Headquartered in New York City, CGS has offices across North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. For more information, please visit www.cgsinc.com and follow us on Twitter at @CGSinc and @BlueCherryCGS and on

i For the purposes of this survey, Gen Z is defined as 18-24 (the older members of Gen Z with buying power)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
CGS Survey Reveals Sustainability Is Driving Demand and Customer Loyalty

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
NEW YORK, Jan. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CGS, a global provider of business applications, enterprise learning and outsourcing services, today announced the findings from its 2019 Retail and Sustainability Survey . The results showed that more than two-thirds of the respondents consider sustainability when making a purchase and are willing to pay more for sustainable products.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
NEW YORK, Jan. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CGS, a global provider of business applications, enterprise learning and outsourcing services, today announced the findings from its 2019 Retail and Sustainability Survey. The results showed that more than two-thirds of the respondents consider sustainability when making a purchase and are willing to pay more for sustainable products. Despite being a relatively new buying group, Gen Z i shoppers make up some of the most conscious buyers, with 68 percent having made an eco-friendly purchase in the past year.

CGS surveyed over 1,000 U.S. individuals (ages 18-65+) on how sustainable products and business practices are driving their buying preferences. Despite price still being a big factor in purchasing decisions, consumers are putting an emphasis on sustainability, and are also increasingly focused on shopping with brands whose mission they care about.
Key findings from the survey include:
Buyers want sustainable products; and over one-third will pay 25% more for them
Across the U.S., businesses are taking action to implement more eco-friendly processes and products. For example, Patagonia developed Woolyester, a material that blends wool, polyester and nylon to use approximately 50 percent of waste materials. The reason for this eco-friendly trend? It is what consumers want. Nearly 70 percent of CGS survey respondents said that sustainability is at least "somewhat important" to them when making a purchase and 47 percent would pay more for a sustainable product.

Brands must revamp their strategies for cultivating customer loyalty
Brands are constantly looking for ways to retain customers - and with good reason. Studies have shown that customers that continue to support a brand over time will spend 67 percent more than new customers. But what's driving brand loyalty? According to CGS survey findings, consumers are most likely to return to a brand for the product's quality. However, the second highest reason consumers return to a brand is its sustainable/ethical business practices. Brand name and brand mission closely followed in third and fourth place, respectively. Consumers today must feel a connection to brands that goes beyond cost and easy availability to drive true loyalty.

Younger buyers are more eco-aware
While Gen Z is still a rising economic force, this generation is far more aware of the environmental effects of their purchasing decisions than their elders. The survey showed that Gen Z ranks ethical business/manufacturing as one of its top factors when purchasing, while the general public is more concerned about product price and availability. Yet, the general public is more likely to return to a brand based on the quality of the product, rather than sustainable practices. Additionally, more than 50 percent of Gen Z would be willing to pay more for a sustainable product, slightly higher than expressed by the general population (47.3%).

Sustainable apparel is only starting to become a priority
While recycling paper goods and plastics have risen in popularity since introduced in the 1970s, the EPA estimates that the average American throws away of clothing every year. The CGS survey found that only one-quarter of consumers care about sustainable apparel and footwear items, while almost half (42.5 percent) are concerned about eco-friendly paper goods. As fast fashion gains popularity, businesses and consumers need to be educated on eco-friendly apparel business practices to minimize apparel waste.

"Today's buyers are driven by more than price - they're looking for brands that align with their own values and needs," said Paul Magel, President, Business Applications division, CGS. "To create a loyal customer base, brands must be transparent about the materials and development behind their products. Our BlueCherry® software helps brands meet these demands and deliver on the promise of sustainability and transparency."

To view the full findings, see infographic.

CGS's BlueCherry® Enterprise Suite provides clients with a powerful, comprehensive set of tools to drive their fundamental business processes. It focuses on the needs of high-growth organizations operating in the consumer lifestyle products, retail and apparel industries. The BlueCherry Enterprise Suite's built-in capacity addresses the needs of all core management, planning, product development, manufacturing, logistics, finance and sales functions.
About CGS
For 35 years, CGS has enabled global enterprises, regional companies and government agencies to drive breakthrough performance through business applications, enterprise learning and outsourcing services. CGS is wholly focused on creating comprehensive solutions that meet clients' complex, multi-dimensional needs and support clients' most fundamental business activities. Headquartered in New York City, CGS has offices across North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. For more information, please visit www.cgsinc.com and follow us on Twitter at @CGSinc and @BlueCherryCGS and on

i For the purposes of this survey, Gen Z is defined as 18-24 (the older members of Gen Z with buying power)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
CGS Survey Reveals Sustainability Is Driving Demand and Customer Loyalty

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
NEW YORK, Jan. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CGS, a global provider of business applications, enterprise learning and outsourcing services, today announced the findings from its 2019 Retail and Sustainability Survey . The results showed that more than two-thirds of the respondents consider sustainability when making a purchase and are willing to pay more for sustainable products.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
We're proudly born and designed in Melbourne using 100% Pima Cotton from Peru for our basics and core garments.

Our ambition is to provide you with top quality garments at affordable prices.

We do this by ensuring our Pima is 100% handpicked in Perú, picked directly from farm, to factory, then onto you.

We design and develop our ranges with quality and fit as our founding features.

Our basics have no boundaries. We create timeless pieces for people who have no time.

Pima cotton; A natural fibre with a luxurious touch and exceptional durability.

As you can guess this is why we chose Pima cotton for our garments. We wanted a fabric that was high quality and reliable - something you can buy tomorrow and wear again in 5 years!

Simple, yet classic we are your home for premium basics. Made from 100% natural cotton fibres we are a brand who favours quality over quantity. Designed in Melbourne, Australia we undertake the traditional method of design and development. We have taken the time to progress and perfect multiple silhouettes, to fit every body shape. We also, do not cut corners, ensuring all of our 100% Pima cotton garments have been created with love and care, starting from the cotton farm, right through to our interaction with you. Our transeasonal and luxiours fabric is one that will last you a life time, without the hefty price tag.

Our factories are made up of small teams of artisans, some of which we have worked with since the beginning. This means we are proactive in ensuring our factories practice safe and ethical procedures. We produce from farm to factory and we navigate the procedure with support from our Peruvian based office.

We appreciate that our consumers are sophisticated, on trend and also fashion conscious. Hence why we make the decision to use biodegradable bags for garments and shipping, recycled cardboard for our clothing tags and continue to strive to play our part in taking care of our planet.We are proud of our heritage, our workers and our journey from farm to factory. We promise you will not be disappointed.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We're proudly born and designed in Melbourne using 100% Pima Cotton from Peru for our basics and core garments. Our ambition is to provide you with top quality garments at affordable prices. We do this by ensuring our Pima is 100% handpicked in Perú, picked directly from farm, to factory, then onto you.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
If your life has been too hectic, burning the candle at both ends. If you feel the need of change and a chance to meet new friends.
If your view of your life's purpose is all too hazy, and you feel when you read the newspaper that the world has gone crazy -
Then hie you off to volunteer, do something to help someone else. It will give you a sense of worth.
Then your spirit will be lifted, a spark will return to life. And you'll head home from volunteering strengthened to meet your joys and strife.
~ inspired by a 1964 advert calling for volunteers to build a campground

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
environmental events calendar green sustainability volunteer opportunities global environmental events global

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
international day for biological diversity

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
international day of the world's indigenous people

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
international day for the preservation of the ozone layer

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Environmental Events-Global Eco Calendar of Sustainable Events

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
If your life has been too hectic, burning the candle at both ends. If you feel the need of change and a chance to meet new friends. If your view of your life's purpose is all too hazy, and you feel when you read the newspaper that the world has gone crazy - Then hie you off to volunteer, do something to help someone else.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Hughes Media Internet +44 (0) 1886 85 33 85 www.hughesmedia.co.uk

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The EAUC is the sustainability champion for universities and colleges in the UK.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Are you ready for what we have prepared for you? We have selected the 50 best sustainable and ethical fashion quotes. We know sustainability is not a new concept but truth to be told until recently there were not too many people voicing their care for it. Now things are different.

The fashion industry is the second-largest pollutant after Oil & Gas. This terrible fact is something that's often overlooked as we tend to think it is not possible to change the actual status quo. The clothes that we wear play an important role in the environment. The future generations are in our hands and it is our responsibility to make a move towards this ongoing situation.

As we are running out of time and resources, it is up to us- individuals and organizations- who genuinely care, to try and change the general mindset. We have the power to educate, influence, inspire and motivate others through powerful words and try to change their perspective.

Before you scroll away into the digital black hole, we would like to share some brilliant quotes from celebrities and designers on fast, ethical and sustainable fashion which surely is thought-provoking. Oh! And please free free to share them and tell us which one is your favorite! On the side of the blog, you have all social buttons to share the 50 quotes all at once and over every image, you have Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter buttons to share that image only. Happy sharing!!!

GREAT QUOTES ON ETHICAL AND SUSTAINABLE FASHION

1. "Fast fashion is not free. Someone somewhere is paying" -Lucy Siegle.

Lucy Siegle is a journalist that has been concerned for the fast fashion pace and how unsustainable the whole fashion cycle is. Her book "Fashion to die for" is eye-opening, to say the least. Next time you go to the mall and you find amazingly cheap deals, think of this. If it is not you paying the cost, someone is paying it for you. And that someone is the garment workers in producing countries that work under unsafe working conditions for very low pay.

2. "As consumers, we have so much power to change the world by just being careful in what we buy" -Emma Watson.

We can make a positive change by making informed choices. You are more powerful than what you think and don't only leave it in words. Act! Act now! As consumers, we have so much leverage. The single move of stop buying from the brands that are careless and buy from brands that are doing things the right way is how you cast your vote to what future you want to live in.

3."Buy less. Choose well. Make it last" -Vivienne Westwood.

At Chelsea Old Town Hall in October 2014 Westwood talked about free enterprise and the need to change our spending behavior and address the moral and natural issues of the fashion business. This is the philosophy behind Sustainable fashion and the Slow movement. Clothes are not disposable. Buy high-quality items that are built to last. Choose the styles that are true to your own style. Find your unique fashion voice. And take good care of your items so that they last longer.

4. "Clothes could have more meaning and longevity if we think less about owning the latest or cheapest thing and develop more of a relationship with the things we wear" -Elizabeth L. Cline.

If more of us got the lost skill of sewing and reconnected with the needleworkers and tailors in our community we could be our own fashion designers and always reinvent, personalize and totally feel the things we possess. If you don't have that skill, understand where the garment is coming from, what is the story behind, what was the inspiration of the designer... Garments deserve to tell beautiful stories.

5. "Fashion can be a universal player in protecting the planet" -Pharrell Williams- Musician and entrepreneur (National Geographic 2014)

This quote was also said by Simone Cipriani, an amazing man that created and manages the Ethical Fashion Initiative of the International Trade Centre, which is a joint agency of the United Nations and the WTO. Who said it first? It doesn't matter. This is a message that needs to be shared over and over.

Fashion plays a huge part in everybody's lives. You wear it every day and for some people, it's a status symbol or a statement of how much they have spent on clothes, or it's a means of expressing their identity and who they are. We express who we are and what are our values by what we choose to dress. So, what are your values? Is it money? Is it peace? or maybe Is it respect?

6. "Clothes are not going to change the world, the women who wear them will" -Anne Klein- Fashion designer.

She encourages women to embrace style but not to be defined by it. Find your own voice and share your message with the world.

7. "Cheap fashion is really far from that. It may be cheap in terms of the financial cost, but very expensive when it comes to the environment and the cost of human life" -Sass Brown- Fashion educator and author.

Sass also happened to be the first Dean of DIDI DXB. So, if you are in Dubai, love Design and Fashion, read her book. It is a must.

Two areas of the fast fashion industry cause great contamination. The first is mass production. Depleting and abusing natural resources with pesticides and dyes and harmful chemicals and low salaries to be able to produce a humungous amount of fashion items at ridiculous rates. The second happens when the lifecycle of the product finishes or the unsold items end up in landfill or burnt. So much effort for nothing. Cheap fashion is definitely not cheap at all. We are all paying for it.

8. "Realize the political power of your money and spend it with the brands you know are treating their workers and the environment in the best possible way" -Lily Cole- Model and entrepreneur (Harper's Bazaar 2014)

The message is that you are SUPER IMPORTANT. You are very powerful. And with great power comes great responsibility. Shop wisely. You can discover clothing that is both beneficial for the planet, for the workers and the society and that is just perfect for your style.

9. "There is no beauty in the finest cloth if it makes hunger and unhappiness" - Mahatma Gandhi.

Mahatma Gandhi was the first progressive figure on the planet, who made apparel and the production of a specific piece of material political. He stressed the moral inquiry of how things were created more than where they were delivered.

10. "When you wear vintage, you never have to worry about showing up in the same dress as someone else" - Jessica Alba.

So true! And there are some vintage pieces that are total pieces of art. They could be displayed in Museums.

11. "Don't be into trends. Don't make fashion own you, but you decide what you are, what you express by the way you dress and the way you live". -Gianni Versace- Fashion designer.

Through marketing, the fashion business tempts us to keep purchasing non stop new garments to stay in the loop of the most recent trends and have a feeling of belonging or coolness. Be aware that all those material wishes are a result of propaganda. It causes you to accept that your needs will only be fulfilled by buying their item. They make you feel out of trend and tempts you to purchase more clothes. Break free from the Trend slavery and follow your own style.

12. "Become an active citizen through your wardrobe". -Livia Firth- Founder and Creative Director of Eco-Age.

As new pieces come into our wardrobe consistently, other apparel winds up disposable. The toxic chemicals, dyes, and abuse of the natural resources utilized in garments terribly affect the Earth by degrading our soil, contaminating our air and hurting our wellbeing.

For things to change we need a lot of people doing small changes, better than a few people doing everything. No matter if it is not perfect, whatever you are helping with, it is greatly appreciated.

13. "Consumer demand can revolutionize the way fashion works as an industry. If everyone started to question the way we consume, we would see a radically different fashion paradigm". -Carry Somers, co-founder of Fashion Revolution (from Safia Minney's book 'Slow Fashion: aesthetic meets ethics')

14. "Care for your clothes like the good friends they are" -Joan Crawford.

15. "The fast-fashion business model is finite because the natural resources it uses will get scarcer and scarcer. If you want your company to be successful fifteen years from now, you have to address these issues today, even if your profits are a lot less as a result". -Livia Firth- Founder and Creative Director of Eco-Age.

16. "What if we started by slowing down and not consuming so much stuff, just because it's there and cheap and available. It's amazing how that process makes sense financially, it makes sense ethically, and it makes sense environmentally". -Andrew Morgan- Filmmaker and director.

17. "Ethical fashion is the recognition that there are human beings behind the clothes that we wear".

18. "Act as if what you're doing makes a difference. It does"-William James.

Because it does!

19. "Good design is a sustainable design". -Imran Amed- Founder and editor-in-chief of The Business of Fashion.

20."Fashion shouldn't cost the earth"- Environmental Audit Company.

21. "Cheap consumer products are sold to us as some grand achievement of globalization, but they've come at the price of middle-class jobs, craftsmanship and stable communities". -Elizabeth L. Cline- Author.

22. "As a designer, I like to work with fabrics that do not bleed. That is why I avoid all animal skins".-Stella McCartney- Fashion designer (Elle 2012).

23. "Demand quality not just in the products you buy, but in the life of the person who made it"-Orsola de Castro, designer and co-founder of Fashion Revolution.

Each time you spend cash on something, you're creating an impression about the sort of world you want to live in, so it's important to be cognizant about what that announcement is and make sure it is aligned with who we are and what we want.

24. "Waste isn't waste until we waste it" -Will.I.Am- Musician.

25. "No one wants to wear clothes that were made from someone's blood" -Amber Valetta- Model and entrepreneur (Vogue 2015).

Valletta is an environmentalist with an eye toward shaping up the industry, she explores fashion's impact on people and the environment.

26. "Buy what you need, love what you have".

27. "Your t-shirt should cost more than your coffee"

28. "Ethical should be the new normal".

29. "Why? Just because there is No Planet B" - Araceli Gallego, Founder of Goshopia.com.

30. "Every time you spend money, you´re casting a vote for the kind of world you want"-Anna Lappe.

31. "Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better"- Maya Angelou.

32. "Wear clothes that matter"- Solitaire Townsend.

33. "Fast fashion is like fast food. After the sugar rush, it just leaves a bad taste in your mouth"- Livia Firth.

34. "Call it eco-fashion if you like, I think it is just common sense"- Livia Firth.

35. "Sustainability is about the long run".

36. "The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it" -Robert Swan.

37. "Infinite growth of material consumption in a finite world is an impossibility".

38. "Ethics+ Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion" | Sustainable Fashion + Online = Goshopia = Go+ Shop+Utopia

39. "We carry the story of the people who made our clothes"- Ali Hewson.

40. "You are what you wear".

41. "There is no such thing as "away". When we throw anything away it must go somewhere"- Annie Leonard.

42. "The difference between style and fashion is quality"- Giorgio Armani.

43. "Sustainable Fashion is not a trend but the future"- Antonia Böhlke.

If we really want to have a future! This quote brings to my mind the students of the "Fridays for Future" Movement. We can do better and we should do it now.

44. "Green is the new black".

and the other version...

45. "Ethical is the new black".

We love both too much to choose only one quote. Whether green or ethical is your new must-have, we are happy to have you here.

46. "We only have two choices: do nothing or do something"- Tony Kirwan.

So? Move out of the sofa and act now! And if you are still in the sofa.. at least, share this message with your friends.

47. "I´m for style. Fashions change too quickly"- Coco Chanel.

Coco said it first and sorry! She is super right.

48. "No more fashion victims"- Katharine Hamnett.

From one side or from the other of the supply chain... No more.

49. "It is better to have fewer things of quality than too much expendable junk"- Rachel Zoe.

Word! We couldn't agree more Rachel!

50. "We can´t just consume our way to a more sustainable world"- Ecowarriorprincess.

We love her blog and everything she does. She is one of our favorite bloggers in the world!

Did you enjoy these sustainable and ethical fashion quotes?

Then help us share the word! Join Dubai Fashion News and many other websites sharing the love! On the left side of the blog, you have all the social share buttons. If you want to share only one quote, hover over the image and Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest icons will appear. Feel free to share and send to your friends, family, and colleagues. The message is too important to be kept to ourselves.

Thanks for being part of the solution!!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BEST 50 SUSTAINABLE AND ETHICAL FASHION QUOTES " Goshopia: Slow & Sustainable Fashion

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Are you ready for what we have prepared for you? We have selected the 50 best sustainable and ethical fashion quotes. We know sustainability is not a new concept but truth to be told until recently there were not too many people voicing their care for it. Now things are different.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The plastic bottles, straws and grocery bags that wash ashore on beaches are some of the most visible signs that society's intoxication with plastic is taking a toll on the environment. But scientists say there is another source of plastic pollution that is just as pervasive and even more difficult to clean up - and it's hiding in our clothes.

Most clothing contai ns synthetic fabrics such as polyester or nylon that are essentially constructed from thin plastic fibers. These fabrics have become fixtures in closets around the world because they are durable and cheap to make. Stretchy, sweat-wicking workout clothes, water-resistant rainwear and fleece sweaters are all made of synthetics - not to mention many T-shirts, dresses and jeans that contain a cotton-synthetic blend.

These tiny bits of plastic pose a daunting environmental challenge. As so-called microfibers shed off clothing, they eventually end up in the ocean, where they can be ingested by fish and other seafood that humans eat.

"This is the microplastic pollution that we don't talk about as much because it's unseen, but these microfibers are everywhere," said Sarah-Jeanne Royer, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California. "We've sampled them at the North Pole, in Antarctica, at the top of mountains and even at the bottom of the Mariana Trench - everywhere in the world."

Getting at the source

Most microfiber pollution occurs when people wash their clothes. A 2016 study by researchers at the University of Plymouth in the U.K. estimated that up to 700,000 microfibers could be released in a single load of laundry, roughly equivalent to the surface area of a pack of gum.

Royer said these microplastic particles - anything measuring 5 millimeters or smaller - bypass filters at wastewater treatment plants, which means they can end up in recycled "biosolids" that are used as fertilizer or they get pumped directly into waterways. And unlike plastic bottles or candy wrappers that can be picked up and disposed of, the spread of these tiny fibers is much more difficult to control.

"Once microplastics get into the environment, you can't sieve the entire ocean," said Emily Woglom, executive vice president of the Ocean Conservancy, a nonprofit environmental group based in Washington. "The focus has to be on doing as much as you can to prevent the waste in the first place."

Some in the apparel industry are heeding this call to action, with companies that specialize in outdoor gear, such as Patagonia, Mountain Equipment Co-op and Arc'teryx, leading the charge.

Patagonia, based in Ventura, California, worked with researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2014 to explore the extent of microfiber pollution. That research, which culminated in a study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology in 2016, examined microfiber shedding from four synthetic fleece Patagonia jackets and one from another brand.

The scientists found that when the garments were washed, an average of 1.17 grams of microfibers were released. The study also found that the amount of shedding was influenced by the type of washing machine used: Top-load machines saw seven times as many microfibers released compared to front-load washing machines. This was because front-load washing machines tend to use less water and the tumbling motions are less rigorous, according to Stephanie Karba, who co-authored the study as a graduate student at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and was subsequently hired by Patagonia as an environmental researcher in 2016.

Finding solutions

Patagonia shared these results with its customers in a 2016 blog post and recommended products that could be used in existing washing machines to collect some of the synthetic fibers from each load of laundry - akin to conventional lint traps. One such product is a reusable washing bag called "Guppyfriend," developed by a nonprofit organization called Stop! Micro Waste. Consumers can place their fleece jackets and other synthetics inside the Guppyfriend and then toss the bag, which retails for about $30, into the washing machine, where it collects some of the released microfibers.

In addition, Patagonia is working with its manufacturers and material suppliers to investigate ways to develop fabrics that lose fewer microfibers, Karba said. But so far, there's no perfect solution. While organic materials like cotton are biodegradable, growing cotton uses much more water than manufacturing synthetic fabrics, and it also requires land that can compete with food production.

"No matter what material you use, there will be some impact," Karba said. "If it's synthetic, we have to worry about microfiber pollution; for cotton, there will be some impact with water consumption; if it's wool, there are difficulties in terms of animal husbandry. That perfect bio-based, biodegradable, nonresource-extractive material is a unicorn in the apparel industry."

Another challenge is that the science of microfibers - and microplastic pollution in general - is a relatively new field, and there are still many unknowns.

"The research is so young that each study that comes out ends up answering one of 100 questions but then has 200 more questions that come up," said Royer, the Scripps researcher. "Other subjects in science have years or decades behind it, so it's hard to make conclusions right now."

The road ahead

One of the big unknowns is precisely how much microfiber pollution has already seeped into the environment.

The most commonly accepted estimate for the amount of plastic that ends up in the ocean each year is 8 million metric tons. Of that, microplastics are thought to make up an estimated 1.5 million tons, and a 2017 report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimated that about 35 percent of microplastics that enter the world's oceans comes from synthetic textiles. The next largest source of microplastics is the rubber shed from vehicle tires, with city dust, road markings, paint from ships, plastic pellets from manufacturing and personal care products making up the rest, according to the report.

Microplastics are of particular concern because they are small enough to be blown across landscapes by the wind or carried to different ocean depths by currents. This means they are virtually impossible to clean up, and these plastic particles could affect animals that unknowingly ingest them.

Studies have not only found small plastic fibers in the digestive tracts of whales and sharks, but also in a variety of fish and shellfish that people consume. Experts say there isn't enough scientific research yet to know whether these microplastics could affect human health when eaten.

But finding plastic in so many different environments, including in the food people eat, "can't be a good thing," said Michael O'Heaney, executive director of The Story of Stuff Project, an environmental nonprofit based in Berkeley, California.

He added that although public awareness about some forms of plastic pollution, such as straws and grocery bags, has successfully led to bans in some cities, microplastics will most likely be trickier to legislate against because of how pervasive they are.

"Once you start to peel away the easy stuff like disposable cups or straws or bags, then you start to get into the bigger problem of how plasticized our economy has become," O'Heaney said.

Woglom, of the Ocean Conservancy, said these challenges also present opportunities for innovation, whether the initiative comes from manufacturers, big corporations, environmental groups or consumers.

"The bottom line is that it's going to take a suite of different things to get at a complete solution," she said. "There isn't going to be just one thing to do. This is going to require all hands on deck."

Want more stories about the environment?

SIGN UP FOR THE MACH NEWSLETTER AND FOLLOW NBC NEWS MACH ON TWITTER, FACEBOOK, AND INSTAGRAM.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Your clothes are secretly polluting the environment. Here's why you should be concerned.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The plastic bottles, straws and grocery bags that wash ashore on beaches are some of the most visible signs that society's intoxication with plastic is taking a toll on the environment. But scientists say there is another source of plastic pollution that is just as pervasive and even more difficult to clean up - and it's hiding in our clothes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The plastic bottles, straws and grocery bags that wash ashore on beaches are some of the most visible signs that society's intoxication with plastic is taking a toll on the environment. But scientists say there is another source of plastic pollution that is just as pervasive and even more difficult to clean up - and it's hiding in our clothes.

Most clothing contai ns synthetic fabrics such as polyester or nylon that are essentially constructed from thin plastic fibers. These fabrics have become fixtures in closets around the world because they are durable and cheap to make. Stretchy, sweat-wicking workout clothes, water-resistant rainwear and fleece sweaters are all made of synthetics - not to mention many T-shirts, dresses and jeans that contain a cotton-synthetic blend.

These tiny bits of plastic pose a daunting environmental challenge. As so-called microfibers shed off clothing, they eventually end up in the ocean, where they can be ingested by fish and other seafood that humans eat.

"This is the microplastic pollution that we don't talk about as much because it's unseen, but these microfibers are everywhere," said Sarah-Jeanne Royer, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California. "We've sampled them at the North Pole, in Antarctica, at the top of mountains and even at the bottom of the Mariana Trench - everywhere in the world."

Getting at the source

Most microfiber pollution occurs when people wash their clothes. A 2016 study by researchers at the University of Plymouth in the U.K. estimated that up to 700,000 microfibers could be released in a single load of laundry, roughly equivalent to the surface area of a pack of gum.

Royer said these microplastic particles - anything measuring 5 millimeters or smaller - bypass filters at wastewater treatment plants, which means they can end up in recycled "biosolids" that are used as fertilizer or they get pumped directly into waterways. And unlike plastic bottles or candy wrappers that can be picked up and disposed of, the spread of these tiny fibers is much more difficult to control.

"Once microplastics get into the environment, you can't sieve the entire ocean," said Emily Woglom, executive vice president of the Ocean Conservancy, a nonprofit environmental group based in Washington. "The focus has to be on doing as much as you can to prevent the waste in the first place."

Some in the apparel industry are heeding this call to action, with companies that specialize in outdoor gear, such as Patagonia, Mountain Equipment Co-op and Arc'teryx, leading the charge.

Patagonia, based in Ventura, California, worked with researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2014 to explore the extent of microfiber pollution. That research, which culminated in a study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology in 2016, examined microfiber shedding from four synthetic fleece Patagonia jackets and one from another brand.

The scientists found that when the garments were washed, an average of 1.17 grams of microfibers were released. The study also found that the amount of shedding was influenced by the type of washing machine used: Top-load machines saw seven times as many microfibers released compared to front-load washing machines. This was because front-load washing machines tend to use less water and the tumbling motions are less rigorous, according to Stephanie Karba, who co-authored the study as a graduate student at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and was subsequently hired by Patagonia as an environmental researcher in 2016.

Finding solutions

Patagonia shared these results with its customers in a 2016 blog post and recommended products that could be used in existing washing machines to collect some of the synthetic fibers from each load of laundry - akin to conventional lint traps. One such product is a reusable washing bag called "Guppyfriend," developed by a nonprofit organization called Stop! Micro Waste. Consumers can place their fleece jackets and other synthetics inside the Guppyfriend and then toss the bag, which retails for about $30, into the washing machine, where it collects some of the released microfibers.

In addition, Patagonia is working with its manufacturers and material suppliers to investigate ways to develop fabrics that lose fewer microfibers, Karba said. But so far, there's no perfect solution. While organic materials like cotton are biodegradable, growing cotton uses much more water than manufacturing synthetic fabrics, and it also requires land that can compete with food production.

"No matter what material you use, there will be some impact," Karba said. "If it's synthetic, we have to worry about microfiber pollution; for cotton, there will be some impact with water consumption; if it's wool, there are difficulties in terms of animal husbandry. That perfect bio-based, biodegradable, nonresource-extractive material is a unicorn in the apparel industry."

Another challenge is that the science of microfibers - and microplastic pollution in general - is a relatively new field, and there are still many unknowns.

"The research is so young that each study that comes out ends up answering one of 100 questions but then has 200 more questions that come up," said Royer, the Scripps researcher. "Other subjects in science have years or decades behind it, so it's hard to make conclusions right now."

The road ahead

One of the big unknowns is precisely how much microfiber pollution has already seeped into the environment.

The most commonly accepted estimate for the amount of plastic that ends up in the ocean each year is 8 million metric tons. Of that, microplastics are thought to make up an estimated 1.5 million tons, and a 2017 report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimated that about 35 percent of microplastics that enter the world's oceans comes from synthetic textiles. The next largest source of microplastics is the rubber shed from vehicle tires, with city dust, road markings, paint from ships, plastic pellets from manufacturing and personal care products making up the rest, according to the report.

Microplastics are of particular concern because they are small enough to be blown across landscapes by the wind or carried to different ocean depths by currents. This means they are virtually impossible to clean up, and these plastic particles could affect animals that unknowingly ingest them.

Studies have not only found small plastic fibers in the digestive tracts of whales and sharks, but also in a variety of fish and shellfish that people consume. Experts say there isn't enough scientific research yet to know whether these microplastics could affect human health when eaten.

But finding plastic in so many different environments, including in the food people eat, "can't be a good thing," said Michael O'Heaney, executive director of The Story of Stuff Project, an environmental nonprofit based in Berkeley, California.

He added that although public awareness about some forms of plastic pollution, such as straws and grocery bags, has successfully led to bans in some cities, microplastics will most likely be trickier to legislate against because of how pervasive they are.

"Once you start to peel away the easy stuff like disposable cups or straws or bags, then you start to get into the bigger problem of how plasticized our economy has become," O'Heaney said.

Woglom, of the Ocean Conservancy, said these challenges also present opportunities for innovation, whether the initiative comes from manufacturers, big corporations, environmental groups or consumers.

"The bottom line is that it's going to take a suite of different things to get at a complete solution," she said. "There isn't going to be just one thing to do. This is going to require all hands on deck."

Want more stories about the environment?

SIGN UP FOR THE MACH NEWSLETTER AND FOLLOW NBC NEWS MACH ON TWITTER, FACEBOOK, AND INSTAGRAM.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Your clothes are secretly polluting the environment. Here's why you should be concerned.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The plastic bottles, straws and grocery bags that wash ashore on beaches are some of the most visible signs that society's intoxication with plastic is taking a toll on the environment. But scientists say there is another source of plastic pollution that is just as pervasive and even more difficult to clean up - and it's hiding in our clothes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
H&M's Conscious range is made from 100 per cent organic and recycled materials

The fashion industry has arguably grown into one of the world's most needlessly polluting, wasteful, energy-intensive and inefficient industries. Its supply chains are so fragmented, vast and distant that many retailers are unaware of how their fabrics are made, and who runs the factories that supply them. This dislocation is all the more concerning now that the life cycle of a garment is known to be far more environmentally damaging than previously assumed.

Microfibres shed from washing synthetic materials are estimated to account for 15 to 30 per cent of plastics found in the oceans, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Almost 65 per cent of all garments end up in landfill or are incinerated, releasing toxic chemicals as just 1 per cent are recycled, according to Wrap (Waste and Resources Action Programme). Global garment production, meanwhile, has doubled over the last 15 years, says the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, with supply vastly outstripping demand.

"The fashion supply chain, in all its discombobulated glory, is a problem in itself," says Orsola de Castro, co-founder of the transparency index Fashion Revolution. "It is as inefficient as it is opaque. It is designed to hide rather than proclaim."

Moving fashion production from home shores was the beginning of the end

This wasn't always the case. Less than 30 years ago, most luxury fashion brands in Europe owned the factories that made their clothes. Garments for Armani, Dolce & Gabbana and Bottega Veneta were made in northern Italy. England's textile industry thrived in Leicester, Manchester and Bradford. People could smell the leather tanneries, and see the factories and cotton mills. "The minute we moved the fashion industry from our shores, we lost touch," Ms de Castro says.

Corporate transparency is the first step towards raising universal standards across the industry and holding companies to account. It is impossible to police and prevent environmentally damaging processes if they are unknown, Fashion Revolution says. Its annual index ranks 150 fashion companies according to their public disclosure of sustainable policy and commitments, governance, traceability and remediation efforts. Encouragingly, this year industry-wide transparency has improved 5 per cent, but even so, only ten brands - adidas, Reebok, Puma, H&M, Esprit, Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy, C&A and Marks & Spencer - scored more than 50 out of 100.

Overcoming entrenched business processes and corporate norms is a challenge even for companies committed to reform. "If you imagine a large design house, there is no relationship between the design studio and the sourcing team - that in itself is indicative," says Ms de Castro.

Major fashion brands are moving towards sustainability

Several fashion companies are consulting with sustainable advisory firms, and investing research and development into alternative production methods and materials. In early-2018, adidas released a new sneaker line in collaboration with Parley for the Oceans that is made from fibres recycled from waste plastic. The luxury fashion conglomerate Kering has made commitments to cleaning its supply chain, by implementing the Natural Resources Defense Council-implemented Clean by Design programme across its brand suppliers.

Several fashion companies are consulting with sustainable advisory firms, and investing research and development into alternative production methods and materials

Sustainable ranges from high street brands, such as Zara's #JoinLife, H&M's Conscious and ASOS Africa, carry a slightly higher price point and take slightly longer to produce, but are traceable and use environmentally friendly fabrics and processes. Tellingly their designs also tend towards classic minimalism over current trends. These efforts represent a step in the right direction, Ms de Castro acknowledges, but she says such standards should be the norm across these multinationals.

For consumers concerned about their environmental impact, small and medium-sized fashion brands founded on sustainable business processes represent the best bet. Reformation and Everlane in the United States are entirely vertically integrated and made onshore, so waste is minimised and labour and environmental practices are above board. Others are nimble enough to provide closed-circle services, such as T-shirt company For Days which replaces stained or damaged T-shirts with recycled new ones.

Rolling ranges, produced onshore, could be the way forward

Jenny Houghton, founder of Fashion Enter, based in Haringey, London, provides support on running a sustainable business for young fashion brands. She maintains that retailers and factories "need to be joined at the hip and work as one". Like many of the industry's critics, Ms Houghton identifies its relentless season-driven focus as creating systemic inefficiencies, which are amplified if retailers buy in bulk from overseas. "Suppliers in China tend to want long production runs of 5,000, which require commitments of nine months ahead on production," she says.

Rolling ranges produced onshore, she believes, are the way forward. "A good buyer will squeeze the life out of a best-selling garment - changing the colour or print, adapting it for a specialty section such as 'petite' or 'maternity'. It is all about reaction to consumer demand," she adds. This approach favours smaller runs of 800 to 1,200 units compared with an average of 3,000, which is far more sustainable from environmental and business perspectives. "The retailer is not overbuying a style and therefore not contributing to landfill or discounting," says Ms Houghton.

Consumers need to take responsibility along with brands

The UK may have stringent labour regulations, but if enforcement is lacking malpractice thrives. Compliance tools, such as voluntary audit Fast Forward, forensically interrogate the legal, labour and ethical standards throughout a company's supply chain. Launched in 2016 by auditing company Complyer and used by the likes of ASOS, it follows all company transactions and tracks payments to staff.

Other technologies help companies to make ethical procurement decisions. Blockchain services offered by London-based Provenance enable companies to trace and certify their supply chain. Cloud-based system Galaxius t racks supply chain activity from fabric orders to garment delivery and enables performance-related pay calculations that can result in garment workers earning up to £17 an hour.

The fashion industry is changing, but people also need to take responsibility for their consumption choices. The average piece of clothing in the UK is kept for 3.3 years before it's discarded, according to Wrap. Sustainability campaigner Livia Firth invites consumers to consider whether they would wear an item at least 30 times before they commit to buying it. "We need to acknowledge that as consumers our wardrobes are part of the supply chain," Ms de Castro concurs.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Fashion procurement needs to start thinking sustainable

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The fashion industry has arguably grown into one of the world's most needlessly polluting, wasteful, energy-intensive and inefficient industries. Its supply chains are so fragmented, vast and distant that many retailers are unaware of how their fabrics are made, and who runs the factories that supply them.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Home > Journal > The environmental impact of the fast fashion industry

For many of us, fashion and clothing are an important part of life. The fast fashion industry has conditioned us to constantly feel the need to reinvent our style, follow new trends and buy new clothes. And constantly changing trends and cheap prices have boosted the production of clothing to massive levels.

On the other hand, climate change and sustainability are becoming increasingly important issues, as mass movements such as "Fridays for Future" show. The fast fashion industry is also reacting to these social changes and is trying to win buyers with green labels. But is this making any difference or is fast fashion still one of the dirtiest industries in the world? We took a closer look at the various stages in the fashion production cycles to get to the truth about the environmental impact of fast fashion - focused on:

In our conclusion we'll also outline a few suggestions for a more sustainable approach towards fashion.

Probably everyone knows this problem: Despite standing in front of an overflowing wardrobe, we still can't find anything to wear. Greenpeace found out that a staggering 40 % of our wardrobes is rarely or never worn. Due to constantly changing trends and new collections in the shops, our own clothes quickly go out of fashion and we get the impression that we need something new again. The offer of constantly new collections is huge: Between 2000 and 2014 the production of new clothing has doubled, and in 2014 for the first time the eye-watering mark of 100 billion newly produced garments was hit. This huge growth in the past two decades is partly due to big fashion chains that have increased their offering from two collections per year at that time to five or more. Fashion giant H&M even releases 12-16 collections per year and Zara also launches a new collection approximately every two weeks (equivalent to approximately 24 collections per year).
"The fashion industry incites us to buy more than we need"
Fast fashion retailers also continue to sell their collections for extremely low prices - and these questionable bargains are normalised and expected. Greenpeace estimates that 60 new pieces per year make their way into an average German wardrobe. However, these items are, by a long way, not used for as long as they were just a short time ago: clothes are now only worn for half as long as they were in 2002, and more than half of our wardrobe ends up in landfill within 3 years.

But it is not only the high consumption and huge production volume that are to blame for the negative impact the fashion industry has on the planet. The environmental impact begins with the cultivation of the materials used to make clothes - either natural fibers, chemical fibers or a mixture of both. But what exactly is so harmful about the processes involved?

Natural fibers

In the case of natural fibers, we speak of materials such as cotton, silk or wool. The most frequently processed natural fiber is cotton (used purely or most likely as a blend in 40 % of all clothing), which is grown in about 80 countries around the world. The main problem in the cultivation of cotton is the high water consumption used in cultivation. For example, 1 kg of conventional cotton needs about 11,000 liters of water. In addition, pesticides and insecticides are used in most cotton fields and two-thirds of the cotton grown is genetically modified. Cotton can also be grown more sustainably and without the use of pesticides: however, this "organic cotton" also consumes a lot of water and is sometimes harvested in developing countries under questionable working conditions. Read a previous article in our blog to find out more about the advantages and disadvantages of organic cotton.

Chemical fibers

60 % of clothing produced is made from synthetic materials - mainly polyester, polyamide (nylon and perlon), polyacrylic and elastane. The most commonly used synthetic material is polyester. Polyester consists of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), of which the basic materials are petroleum, hard coal, limestone and natural gas. The production of polyester alone requires 98 million tons of crude petroleum every year. This currently corresponds to about 1 % of the oil produced worldwide. And the trend is rising. If the fashion industry remains on this course, consumption could rise to 300 million tonnes of oil by 2050, and would be responsible for 26 % of human CO2 emissions by 2050. Currently this figure is 10%, which is more than all international flights and sea shipments together ( 5 %). Overall, the production of polyester (= 6 kg CO2 per T-Shirt) emits three times more CO2 than the production of cotton (= 2 kg CO2 per T-Shirt).

"The fashion industry is responsible for 10 % of the global CO2 emissions. This is more than the global air- shipping traffic combined"
Sources: Ellen Macarthur Foundation. (2017). A New Textiles Economy. & EEA Europa. (2016). "Luft und schiffsverkehr im Fokus".

Water pollution due to microplastics (during use)

But it is not only the production of chemical fibers that is harmful to the environment. Another problem of synthetic materials is that they are very difficult (or often impossible) to biodegrade. This has serious consequences for oceans and inland waters. The fashion industry is responsible for 35 % of the microplastics in the sea and is the main source of microplastics in the oceans. When polyester clothing is washed, tiny fibers are detached, which then end up as microplastics in the wastewater and consequently also in the rivers and oceans of the world. Since microplastics are not biodegradable, it becomes dangerous especially for animals. But microplastics are also increasingly problematic for humans. As long as animals absorb microplastics through their food, microplastics will also get into our food-system and thus into our bodies.
Source: IUCN. (2017). Primary Microplastics in the ocean. Water pollution due to chemicals (due to production)
The fashion industry is also responsible for polluting fresh water with chemicals because the chemicals that are used to dye textiles, end up in rivers as wastewater without any kind of filtering or recycling, especially in developing countries. The reason for this is that filter systems, which are designed to stop the chemicals, are often not used by production facilities in developing countries in order to save costs (often forced cost savings, as global fashion chains demand ridiculously low prices from their suppliers). Since many factories depend on their powerful customers, they have to take illegal risks, exploit nature and their work-force.

It goes without saying that these chemicals can also be life-threatening for animals, plants, and local communities.

Source: IntechOpen. (2017): Challenges and treatment of microplastics in water.

As mentioned earlier, the fashion industry now produces more than twice as much clothing as it did in 2000, and even though consumption has increased, not all garments that are produced find their way to buyers. What really happens to non-sold garments after they have left the stores is hard to find out and the fashion giants don't give much information about it. If you trust insiders, though, it would seem that every 5th piece is not sold. Apart from the sale in outlets and the recycling of filling materials, it is assumed that most of the clothes are burned. This would result in significant CO2 emissions. It's shocking to think that 80 % of all clothes sold end up in residual waste sooner or later. Only 1 % is fully recycled.

But what can you do to prevent or at least reduce the impact your fashion consumption has on the environment? Here are 7 suggestions to help you shop more sustainably. And more details on sustainable fashion habits can also be found here in one of our former blog posts.

Buy less

Check your wardrobe to see how many garments are in there that you hardly wear. If, like most people, there are plenty of items you don't wear then try to appreciate your old clothes again instead of following the latest trends.

Buy used

When going on a shopping spree, it is also worth visiting second-hand shops, flea markets or vintage online marketplaces. Here you often find great pieces that deserve a second chance. Not only that, you can often find higher-quality clothes that you couldn't otherwise afford.

Quality over quantity

If you want something completely new, you should invest in good quality and timeless classics so that your clothes last longer. Fair Fashion brands are especially suitable as their collections are typically better made and last longer than fast fashion (or even designer) products, as well as being ethically produced.

Cotton instead of polyester

When buying your clothes, pay attention to the fabric. One rule of thumb here: cotton is better than polyester! Cotton clothing is usually more environmentally-friendly as cotton is biodegradable. Cotton garments are also softer on your skin.

Fair Fashion instead of branded clothing

Fair Fashion often seems expensive compared to clothing from cheap chains. But if you compare their prices with global brands, prices are often similar. So, it is better to invest in sustainable clothing than in branded items, which are often produced in the same questionable conditions as clothing from fast fashion giants.

Wash less

Sometimes it is enough to air-out clothes or partially remove stains before putting them in the washing machine. Also, only wash when the machine is full and use bio detergent which does not pollute the waste water with chemicals.

Repair

Don't throw your clothes away immediately if they are broken, you can repair many defects yourself. But if you don't have the time or the skills, you can also take your clothes to your local tailor who should be able to repair most defects for a reasonable price.

Infographic: Environmental impact of the fast fashion industry

All information, at one glance: Download as PDF

What makes SANVT different?
In our company philosophy on the environment you will find information on how we try to minimize the problems described in this article and how we want to make a positive contribution to environmental protection. SANVT aims to want to encourage a "more gentle" approach to fashion and nature.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The environmental impact of the fast fashion industry | Infographic & Stats

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Home > Journal > The environmental impact of the fast fashion industry For many of us, fashion and clothing are an important part of life. The fast fashion industry has conditioned us to constantly feel the need to reinvent our style, follow new trends and buy new clothes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Clothes today are made from a wide range of different materials. Traditional materials such as cotton, linen and leather are still sourced from plants and animals. But most clothes are more likely to be made of materials and chemicals derived from fossil fuel-based crude oil.

There are nine major types of raw materials commonly used in clothing today.

Synthetic materials

The source of synthetic fibres and fabrics is the fossil fuel crude oil. It is estimated that 65% of all fibres used in t...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Clothes today are made from a wide range of different materials. Traditional materials such as cotton, linen and leather are still sourced from plants and animals. But most clothes are more likely to be made of materials and chemicals derived from fossil fuel-based crude oil.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Clothes today are made from a wide range of different materials. Traditional materials such as cotton, linen and leather are still sourced from plants and animals. But most clothes are more likely to be made of materials and chemicals derived from fossil fuel-based crude oil.

There are nine major types of raw materials commonly used in clothing today.

Synthetic materials

The source of synthetic fibres and fabrics is the fossil fuel crude oil. It is estimated that 65% of all fibres used in t...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Clothes today are made from a wide range of different materials. Traditional materials such as cotton, linen and leather are still sourced from plants and animals. But most clothes are more likely to be made of materials and chemicals derived from fossil fuel-based crude oil.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When talking about ethical and sustainable fashion, it's never long before the subject of cost comes up. It's understandable, as ethical fashion costs significantly more; posing a serious financial barrier to a huge amount of people. I'll discuss the social implications and the strand of privilege that is woven through the issue later in the month but today I'm sticking to the ins and outs of cost.

In terms of affordability, there's no question that ethical fashion often falls far behind the high street. A quick browse on the Primark website dug up a white stretch cami top that costs £1.80. Ethical brands simply can't compete with those margins. But why not? Just why is ethical fashion so much more? Why can you buy a dress from Topshop for £40 but would have to shell out over £100 if you went to the likes of Reformation? There's no single answer, so I'm going to break it down.

Fair Wages

When you're selling a camisole for £1.80, you're working with minuscule margins. Into their unit price, a brand needs to factor fabric, manufacturing, shipping, taxes and their own profit margin (not to mention all the other costs which aren't directly related to a garment such as marketing, rent and enormous yachts for CEOs to sun themselves on). These costs are all bundled in together; there's no separate budget for wages. So, when there's no more wiggle room left in the cost of cotton, for example, wages are squeezed even further. Simply put, you cannot sell a top for £1.80 and pay your factory workers a fair wage. The two notions are mutually exclusive.

Ethical brands generally operate fair wage policies, making such low prices a financial impossibility. Jenny Foust of the fair trade brand Eternal Creation talked me through their stance on the matter: "We absolutely believe our tailors should receive fair wages and work in a safe and inclusive work environment. Our tailors love what they do, are motivated to excel, and take great pride in their work. We have a team culture that fosters collaboration and respect. We provide healthcare; pay 50% of school fees for every child who has a parent at our tailoring centre; equip tailors with training and skill development; provide paid annual leave, annual bonuses, and on-site nursery care. All of these qualities that make a fair working environment add up in costs but we refuse to sacrifice them. Our workers are not a disposable asset."

Their sister company, Visible Clothing, provides a completely transparent breakdown of the cost of their shirts. Rather than squeezing wages to up their own margins, they feed a further 5% of the price back into the tailoring team's benefits on top of the £6 that goes directly towards their wages.

Jo Salter, founder of Where Does It Come From? tells a similar story. Her brand works closely with social enterprises to create high quality 'handwoven goods that can be traced right back to the cotton farm'. In order to make a difference to the workers' lives, they pay significantly more than they would if they were working with a mass production factory.

Jennifer Broom of ethical and carbon neutral-certified womenswear label brm also cited fair wages as a major factor in higher costs but for a somewhat different reason. Every piece the brand produces is handmade in the North East of England; a process that not only cuts down on fabric waste but is considerably time intensive. With no warp speed production line in place, prices must inevitably rise to offer the people spending hours making each piece a fair, living wage.

Fabric and Materials

While the likes of Primark can put in enormous bulk orders for thousands and thousands of metres of fabric, pushing the unit price or price per metre down, smaller brands or brands who are unwilling to create waste must order smaller batches at a higher price. In addition, the integrity of the fabric comes into play. Organic cotton, quality natural fibres and other ethical alternatives are much more costly than cheap fabrics which have a backstory riddled with exploitation of both people and the planet.

Anna Brindle runs Lost Shapes, a handcrafted, sustainable and fair trade clothing brand. She buys t-shirts, sweatshirts and vests from garment distributors and hand prints each one using safe, water based inks. In order to maintain her sustainable ethos, she can't simply buy from the lowest bidder. As she told me, "I only buy ethical garments - and by that I mean certified organic cotton or Tencel lyocell, which has been made in factories assessed and approved by the Fair Wear Foundation." Other considerations include sourcing from carbon neutral factories, using recycled fibres and paying a further premium into the Fair Share Scheme (the latter is another nod to fair wages).

Ethical, environmentally-friendly fabrics cost more to produce, more to buy wholesale and, inevitably, will cost a customer more when they purchase the end product.

Shipping

Shipping is another factor that comes down to dealing in smaller quantities. While a high street store orders in bulk, dealing with thousands or millions of units, an ethical brand that is committed to both quality over quantity and reducing waste is dealing with much smaller numbers. Tied in with shipping is import duty. As Jo Salter told me, it's calculated upon the price you pay for your goods so, as carefully crafted items or organic fabrics cost more to buy, they also cost more to import. Bulk orders drive the cost per unit down and cheaper to buy means cheaper to import, once again putting fast fashion at a financial advantage.

Anything Else?

Plenty, sadly. While the three issues above were the most prominent among the brands I interviewed, a plethora of other extra costs popped up. From exchange rates and chemical free ink to recycled paper for swing tags. An ethical business is a multi-faceted thing. It's not about just using organic fabric or only using recycled packaging, it takes a holistic approach to be truly ethical and it comes at a price.

How Can They Compete?

So, if fast fashion has the financial edge, how do ethical brands compete? Paula, founder of Sheer Apparel, suggests that it's all about communication: "We simply seek to engage and inform with our content on styling, fabrics, and exciting fashion start ups. We hope that encourages people over time to appreciate their clothes in a new way; to buy a little bit less and buy better. If someone isn't yet ready to buy from us, but finds what we write on a newly discovered ethical brand or why buying organic cotton has a positive social impact interesting, that's OK for us too."

This idea was echoed by the other brands, too. They set out to educate and to communicate a value beyond price. This approach, coupled with a dedication to total transparency, encourages loyalty and garners repeat sales, which are key to ethical sellers.

Yes, ethical fashion costs more and yes, as long as there are cheap alternatives, there's always someone, somewhere who will deem it too expensive. But each extra penny or pound represents an investment in the fair treatment of people, in the protection of our planet, in nurturing traditional craft. And anyway, am I even asking the right question? These higher prices aren't to account for wild extravagances, they're simply covering a living wage and environmentally responsible practices. So surely they're not high prices, just reasonable prices. And perhaps the real question is: 'why is fast fashion so cheap?'

T-shirts featured in the post and on the cover image are from the Lost Shapes x Tolly Dolly Posh collection. Keep up with all the money month posts.

Click here to subscribe to my mailing list and get fresh posts in your inbox every fortnight.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Cost Issue: Why Does Ethical Fashion Cost More?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When talking about ethical and sustainable fashion, it's never long before the subject of cost comes up. It's understandable, as ethical fashion costs significantly more; posing a serious financial barrier to a huge amount of people.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to use the 7Ps Marketing Mix? - Smart Insights

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The 7Ps marketing mix helps companies to review and define key issues that effect the marketing of its products and services and is often now referred to as the 7Ps framework for the digital marketing mix.

# data[].attributes.headline
How much does it cost to start a fashion brand

# data[].attributes.subject
How much does it cost to start a fashion brand

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Think you can launch a fashion brand with £500? I'm sorry to break this to you, but that amount of money might not even touch the sides!

We asked Make it British members to reveal how much it cost them to launch their brand and the results may surprise you...

I'm sure many of you have heard the Cambridge Satchel story - how it's founder Julie Deane launched a multi-million pound handbag brand with just £600 from her kitchen table? That story has a lot to answer for! Not a day goes by that I don't get a keen new business owner contacting me looking for a UK manufacturer that can help them get their brand off the ground with just a few pounds in their pocket.

Sorry to break your bubble, but you'll most likely need a five figure sum to start a fashion brand in the UK

We surveyed members of the Make it British Community and asked them how much it had cost them to get their brand off the ground. Over 50% of them had spent more than £15,000. That's just to launch - up to the point where the product can go on sale - you'll still need a buffer of cash to cover more stock and ongoing marketing and overheads.

The true cost will obviously depend on various factors - how many products you have in your range, what level of the market you're aiming at (luxury will cost more) and what the product type is. Luxury leathergoods will cost a lot more to launch than a casual T-shirt business for instance.

Rebecca Barton had over twenty years of design experience before she launched utility-inspired clothing brand Pajotten. In her case she says, " We spent about £8,000 but really could have done with double that. "

At the other end of the scale, Isabelle Ugochuckwu, founder of handbag brand Isabella Queen, said " Mine is a luxury brand and the costs involved in sampling, trade shows and showrooms in the first two years is almost £200,000! And I'm frugal. I could have easily well spent £500k if I had it "

How do these costs break down?

This is the cost involved in producing your samples.
It will include research and development, materials, manufacturing, and design costs (either your own or a designer you employ). Bear in mind that a manufacturers costs to produce a prototype will be higher than the normal production costs - often at least double. If you have any branded trims there will be mould charges too.
You may also have to pay a pattern cutter and someone to help with fitting.
Most importantly you'll need to produce some samples that can be used for trialling (to check that they are fit for purpose) and testing (which many retailers expect). Cut this stage out and you may end up with some disgruntled customers.

The cost to make your first batch of stock is very much dictated by what your manufacturers minimum order quantities are and the price of your garments. I'd always advise investing as little as possible in stock until you've tested out your idea.

The cost of your stock will comprise of the total cost of all of your materials, manufacturing and packaging.
Materials can include, but is not exclusive to: yarn, fabric or leather, hardware, components such as lining and stiffenings, trims and labels, and boxes and bags. Plus the shipping costs of any of the raw materials.

There's then your bulk production costs to take into account, which includes the cutting, making and finishing of the garments or accessories. And there's packing costs to be added in here too!
If you're making the product yourself then you'll probably have to invest heavily in machinery, but this will cut your manufacturing costs down.

Now let's consider the cost of getting your new brand out there in front of potential customers.
For a start, you'll need a good website - I can't emphasise enough how important this is. You'll also want to pay someone to design your branding, plus there's business cards and any other printed promotional material.

You also need good photography to show off your product in its best light. Zalina Denis, founder of womenswear label Zalinah White, offers this tip for designers based in London - "Photography services are expensive so opting for a Manchester-based photoshoot is another option to produce quality photographs and save money."

If you want to get your brand into retail stores, especially overseas, you may also need to budget for a sales person or distributor. Plus there's the cost of trade shows, which may be considerable if you're travelling abroad.

For raising brand awareness social media is a great tool, and mostly free for now. And for British-made brands, platforms like Instagram can really help you to tell the story behind the label. But with video starting to dominate these channels you may want to set aside some budget for producing a quality short film about your brand.

Finally you should think about PR, and how you might achieve press coverage for your new business. It's easy to spend thousands on a PR agency and the results can be varied to say the least. Sarah Watkinson-Yull, founder of Yull Shoes, offers this advice for designers starting out: " There are many things that you can learn yourself and do for free. No one will be better able to market your business other than yourself. Passion and enthusiasm sells! "

Whatever you do, don't try to skimp on the marketing. Otherwise you'll find that the stock that you've invested in just sits there gathering dust and you won't build up the cashflow needed to pay for your next collection.

Let's not forget some of the less exciting, but essential costs, of setting up a new brand - legal fees for contracts, trademarks and NDAs don't come cheap. And you may also want to have some form of insurance cover too.
Will you also need any staff to help you? And who is going to pick and pack the orders going out to customers?
You may also want to rent a studio space or workshop, and depending on your location that doesn't come cheap.

What if you don't have £15,000 in your back pocket?

If the above has frightened you somewhat, and you don't have that sort of cash to invest to get something off the ground, there are ways of raising money upfront to help.

One of the ways that I see many British brands launching these days is via crowd-funding platforms such as Kickstarter. It's not only a great way to raise initial cash but also to validate your idea and test the market.
But it's not without hard work, and you'll still need to drive potential customers to your crowd-funding page in some way. Brant Richards, co-founder of the Hebden Trouser Company says "We launched on Kickstarter for £1000 and two months of hard work. First year total marketing spend was circa £25k."

[clickToTweet tweet="Crowdfunding is a great way to raise the cash to launch a British-made fashion brand " quote="Crowdfunding is a great way to raise the cash to launch a British-made fashion brand "]

Is the cost of starting a fashion brand cheaper if you manufacturer overseas?

Given all of the above, I still think that launching a brand that is made here is going to be cheaper that making overseas. If you did that you'd also need to include additional costs such as flights to visit factories, International courier charges for samples, and possibly also an agent's fees to handle everything for you. Plus you'll have to invest in a lot more stock if MOQ's are higher. Heaven forbid the costs involved if there's been some miscommunication with the factory and everything has been made wrong!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How much does it cost to start a fashion brand made in Britain?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I'm sure many of you have heard the Cambridge Satchel story - how it's founder Julie Deane launched a multi-million pound handbag brand with just £600 from her kitchen table? That story has a lot to answer for!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Organic products were a luxury with little market to speak of when Ibrahim Abouleish founded Sekem, Egypt's first organic farm, in Cairo in 1977. The years Sekem spent honing sustainable cultivation practices paid off, though, in 1990, when it moved into growing organic cotton. Organic produce was entering mainstream Western stores then, and worldwide demand for all things organic began to surge.

There were other advantages to the organic approach as well: Sekem's farming techniques helped reclaim arable land from the Sahara, which had been spreading into the Nile delta. With them, the soil absorbed more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, decreasing greenhouse gases, and cotton crops needed 20% to 40% less water.

In the bargain, organic techniques lowered the farm's costs, improved average yields by almost 30%, and produced a raw cotton that was more elastic than its conventionally grown counterpart. So, far from being an expensive indulgence, organic cotton offered Sekem a business model that was more sustainable-not just environmentally but financially. In recent years that model has generated healthy revenue growth: From 2006 until the disruptions of the Arab Spring in 2011, the business posted 14% annual increases, and Sekem is now one of Egypt's largest organic food producers.

Rapidly developing economies are often portrayed as sustainability laggards-focused more on raising their citizens out of poverty than on protecting the environment. It's true that their regulatory bodies can be weak, hesitant to impose restrictions on newly liberalized markets, or resentful of pressure from industrialized nations. But the developed world has never had a monopoly on visionaries, as Sekem's story illustrates. And in markets where the pressures of resource depletion are felt most keenly, corporate sustainability efforts have become a wellspring of innovation.

That's what we found in 2010, when the Boston Consulting Group joined forces with the World Economic Forum to identify companies with the most effective sustainability practices in the developing world. The study involved reviews of more than 1,000 companies ranging in size from $25 million to $5 billion, from a wide array of markets and industry sectors, and included interviews with almost 200 executives. From the pool of companies studied, we identified more than a dozen "champions," whose sustainability practices were highly effective, innovative, and scalable.

Zhangzidao Fishery Group

Dalian, China, Organic fish farm
By creating a balanced ecosystem in which several species of sea life are cultivated together, Zhangzidao reduces the amount of fish food needed, avoids depleting seabeds, and lowers costs and increases total yields dramatically.

Florida Ice & Farm

San José, Costa Rica, Beverage bottler
This leading Central American company set-and met-the goal of becoming water-neutral in only four years.

Shree Cement

Beawar, India, Producer of cement and electricity
With savings from low-risk, high-return efforts to conserve electricity, Shree has funded increasingly sophisticated moves to reduce energy use and improve production efficiency.

Jain Irrigation Systems

Jalgaon, India, Maker of irrigation systems and wholesaler of produce By agreeing to buy some of its customers' unsold produce for a set price, this farm-equipment supplier helped small customers afford its water-saving devices.

New Britain Palm Oil

Mosa, Papua New Guinea, Producer of organic oils, sugars, and meat
New Britain's sustainable methods of agriculture have used 50% less pesticide while increasing yields 1.6% every year for the past 30 years.

2010 Revenue $470 million
2005-2009 Compound annual growth 30%
2009 EBITDA margins 34%

These organizations are located in countries across Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the South Pacific. Some pursue sustainability out of pragmatism, some out of idealism. But regardless of their motivation, they have consistently generated above-average growth rates and profit margins.

To make their environmental efforts pay off financially, these companies have, broadly speaking, followed one or more of three main approaches. First, many, like Sekem, took a long view, investing in initially more-expensive methods of sustainable operation that eventually led to dramatically lower costs and higher yields. Others have taken a bootstrap approach to conservation: They started with small changes to their processes that generated substantial cost savings, which they then used to fund advanced technologies that made production even more efficient. Last, some have spread their sustainability efforts to the operations of their customers and suppliers, in the process devising new business models that competitors find hard to emulate.

Collectively, these companies vividly demonstrate that trade-offs between economic development and environmentalism aren't necessary. Rather, the pursuit of sustainability can be a powerful path to reinvention for all businesses facing limits on their resources and their customers' buying power.

Taking a Systems Approach

It's hard for companies to recognize that sustainable production can be less expensive. That's in part because they have to fundamentally change the way they think about lowering costs, taking a leap of faith, as Sekem did, that initial investments made in more-costly materials and methods will lead to greater savings down the road. It may also require a willingness to buck conventional financial wisdom by focusing not on reducing the cost of each part but on increasing the efficiency of the system as a whole.

Zhangzidao Fishery Group, based in Dalian, China, is a good example. The group has adapted an ancient method that is now called integrated multitrophic aquaculture (IMTA). It's an approach analogous to companion planting: Rather than trying to maximize the production of a single species, gaining profits through economies of scale, as most traditional "ocean ranchers" do, Zhangzidao creates a balanced ecosystem of scallops, sea cucumbers, sea urchins, abalone, and other interlinked species.

Some species provide food for the others, so fewer have to be fed from external sources. In this way Zhangzidao reduces waste by converting fish by-products into harvestable crops. What's more, unlike single-species fish ranching, IMTA does not exhaust seabeds, eliminating the need to move cultivation from bed to bed to allow depleted areas to recover.

Zhangzidao has also adopted a simple practice called bottom sowing-similar to pruning-in which scallops are moved from overcrowded beds to more sparsely covered areas to increase growth rates, weights, and yields. Bottom sowing reduces disease and, like organic farming, creates a natural carbon sink that absorbs more greenhouse gas than it releases. And with the savings from its low-tech conservation efforts, the company has funded investments in cutting-edge technology for artificial reefs that foster marine life, for seaweed propagation, and for seafloor algae farms.

A focus on increasing profitability per unit of cultivation, rather than per species cultivated, has led to growth and profit levels that are nothing short of astounding. From 2005 to 2010, Zhangzidao sustained a compound annual growth rate of 40%, in an industry where the average is just 13%, as well as EBITDA margins of 31%.

Taking the Low-Tech Road

Unlike Western companies, which often try to mitigate the environmental damage done by their operations through costly retrofits or by underwriting the development of breakthrough technologies (think catalytic converters and smokestack scrubbers), many companies in emerging markets start small. They begin by conserving their most constrained resource with a series of minor adjustments to their operations.

Costa Rica's largest beverage bottler, Florida Ice & Farm, for instance, started by simply repairing water leaks in its production equipment in a timely fashion. In the Philippines, the Manila Water Company similarly focused initially on water lost to leaks or illegal taps of its pipes. Such savings are hardly trivial: From 1997 to 2010, the company recovered an amount of water equal to the supply from a medium-sized dam, which would have cost an estimated $750 million to build.

As low-cost moves reap larger and larger returns, businesses can expand conservation efforts to other parts of their operations. Eventually, savings can mount high enough to fund purchases of expensive technologies and R&D initiatives that many Western companies might have started with.

Shree Cement is a case in point. When it began operations, in 1985, Shree had no explicit plan to promote sustainability. Like many other Indian companies, it invested in a diesel-generating plant to protect itself from disruptions to the supply of electricity, which is unreliable in India. But unlike most of its competitors, it experimented with tweaks to production processes to decrease the amount of electricity it needed.

As small changes added up to significant savings, Shree's engineers widened the scope of their conservation, turning their attention to ways to reduce the use of the company's kilns. The kilns, which consumed large quantities of coal to generate high temperatures, produced a material called clinker, which was cooled and mixed with a few stabilizing ingredients to make cement. By replacing some of the clinker with waste coal slag and fly ash recycled from the kilns' operation, Shree's engineers could make a cement suitable for certain applications and save a lot of energy.

Eventually, Shree could afford to invest in more-sophisticated technologies, such as one that recycled the hot exhaust from the kiln to power a separate electrical plant. Finding that it could generate electricity much more efficiently than the local municipal power plant, Shree built larger, coal-fired plants, whose production more than covers the company's growing needs. Deregulation in India's power industry has made it possible for Shree to sell its excess electricity on the open market, which it generates at some of the lowest prices in the region.

A few of these improvements required major capital investments, but most involved just engineering work and a willingness to challenge conventional thinking. In total, they've cut expenses and emissions substantially. Shree produces a ton of cement using 9% less energy than the average Indian manufacturer and 15% less than the global average. Its cost-reduction efforts, so critical in a commodity industry, have helped the company outpace rivals and expand profitably. From 2005 to 2009, Shree's revenues grew five times faster than the global average for the cement industry. Today, Shree, which had 2009 revenues of $809 million and stunning EBITDA margins of 39% from 2005 to 2009, is one of the top five cement manufacturers in India.

Taking a Broader View

Impressive as the cost efficiencies are, more intriguing is the growth that companies in emerging markets have gained by extending their sustainability efforts to the operations of their customers. Companies are building unique business models by boosting customers' buying power and, in the process, creating interdependencies that are difficult for competitors to copy.

Consider Jain Irrigation Systems, in Jalgaon, India, which began as a supplier of irrigation systems for small farms. Farming in India has traditionally relied on monsoons, which recently have weakened. As water supplies have dried up, farmers have been going out of business. Some have even committed suicide in the face of mounting debt.

To help its customers, Jain Irrigation began adapting micro-irrigation systems to Indian conditions. It taught customers how to use them effectively through precision farming, which increases output by optimizing the balance between fertilizers, pesticides, water, and energy. In this way the farmers could use less water but still increase yields.

Most small farmers could not afford to purchase Jain Irrigation's systems without financing, however, and banks were reluctant to grant credit to illiterate villagers. So the company helped its customers apply for government subsidies. It also made a daring move into the wholesale agricultural commodities trade-promising to buy some of the crops its customers grew with its equipment at a set price and then reselling the produce. The guarantees in turn persuaded the banks to lend to the company's customers.

Jain Irrigation had no expertise as an agricultural wholesaler, and it could have faced a revolt from shareholders for straying so far from its core. Nevertheless, customizing its business model so radically to local needs has enabled the company to outperform other suppliers of irrigation systems. From 2006 to 2010, the company experienced compound annual revenue growth of 40% and EBITDA margins of 18%-both well over industry averages. Unlikely as it may seem, 20% of revenues now come from its agricultural wholesale business.

In Chile, Santiago-based Masisa is experimenting with a way to expand demand for its sustainably harvested wood. It has created a network of local carpenters to whom it gives training and special access both to its lumber and to Western customers willing to pay a premium for furniture made from it. Masisa aims to build demand for its products in remote, underdeveloped areas of the country, while giving the carpenters an incentive to use sustainable wood rather than buy from illegal cutters. Having started locally in 2009, Masisa has already replicated the model in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela.

In Brazil the natural-cosmetics company Natura has built a unique competitive advantage by forging a similar symbiotic relationship-not with its customers but with its suppliers. The company has worked with rural communities, local governments, and NGOs to develop ways to sustainably extract raw materials. In turn, it teaches those methods to its suppliers, thereby helping them create jobs and increase capabilities in their communities.

In an industry where offering a constant stream of new products is crucial, Natura can compete against large multinationals with a far smaller investment in R&D, thanks to its research partnerships. Products launched in the most recent two years account for a share of Natura's total revenue that is far higher than the industry norm. More than 50% of the 427 products the company launched from 2008 to 2010 were developed through its open innovation efforts.

The Rewards and Risks of Pioneering

It's remarkable how many companies in emerging markets chose, like Natura, to embark on sustainability efforts long before any imperative arose. (For more about the genesis of Natura's business model, see "The Growth Opportunity That Lies Next Door," HBR July-August 2012.) In the process they often gained important first-mover advantages as markets for environmentally friendly goods grew.

New Britain Palm Oil was decades ahead of its time when in 1963 it developed integrative pest management that introduced natural alternatives to some chemicals while increasing crop yields. New Britain also chose to avoid planting altogether on the peat lands and in the rain forests of the biologically diverse islands of Papua New Guinea. As it expanded in later years, it leased its fields and partnered with small farmers rather than buying land outright. As a result it helped reduce local poverty and built close ties with the community, which allowed it to avoid the kinds of conflict that have hindered development in other palm-oil-producing countries.

Over the years the company has created a completely traceable supply chain-something that is greatly valued by B2B customers who are willing to pay higher prices for sustainably sourced raw materials. This favorable position has helped New Britain maintain a muscular 30% annual growth rate in recent years and achieve 34% margins.

Florida Ice & Farm was also ahead of the curve when in 2008 it set the extraordinary goal of becoming water-neutral in just four years. It was reacting not to any immediate environmental threat, since water is abundant in its tropical location, but to public concerns. Traditionally, bottlers use large amounts of water in cleaning the bottles and in the heating and cooling phases of production, as well as in the drinks themselves.

Bringing the latest technology and process innovations to bear, the company reduced the amount of water it took to produce a liter of beverage from 12 to 4.9 liters. In 2009 the company's Pepsi bottling plant, which it had acquired two years earlier, became the world's most water-efficient, using just 2.2 liters of water per liter of beverage. To offset its remaining consumption, Florida Ice has piloted community conservation efforts and helped engineer improvements to the national water infrastructure.

Keeping employees focused on such ambitious goals can be a challenge for organizations. Florida Ice has addressed it by developing a balanced scorecard that includes nonfinancial metrics such as the number of community service hours that employees spend planting trees that protect watersheds. It ties the compensation of its CEO and all other executives to the firm's performance not only on financials but on environmental and social efforts, including those aimed at reducing binge drinking and the sugar content in soda. Moving toward a triple-bottom-line accounting system has not slowed the company's growth. The compound annual growth rate of 25% and EBITDA margins of 30% it saw from 2006 to 2010 were both twice the industry average.

In South Africa, food retailer Woolworths (no relation to the old U.S. five-and-dime) has instituted a similar balanced scorecard. Each business unit is rated on key "green" performance indicators, which are linked to compensation. Natura uses a carrot rather than a stick, training managers to identify socio-environmental challenges and turn them into business opportunities, and granting bonuses on the basis of environmental and social performance.Ready or not, we are moving to a world of scarce resources, in which companies will increasingly need to consider their total return not just on assets and equity but on resources. They will have to monitor how much water, soil, and other natural resources they consume, as well as the payback they get from them. Companies that fail to calculate this equation will find themselves at the mercy of price increases and volatility, regulation, and social pressures, while those that master it will enjoy competitive advantage and gain market share.

A version of this article appeared in the March 2013 issue of Harvard Business Review.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Organic products were a luxury with little market to speak of when Ibrahim Abouleish founded Sekem, Egypt's first organic farm, in Cairo in 1977. The years Sekem spent honing sustainable cultivation practices paid off, though, in 1990, when it moved into growing organic cotton.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Organic products were a luxury with little market to speak of when Ibrahim Abouleish founded Sekem, Egypt's first organic farm, in Cairo in 1977. The years Sekem spent honing sustainable cultivation practices paid off, though, in 1990, when it moved into growing organic cotton. Organic produce was entering mainstream Western stores then, and worldwide demand for all things organic began to surge.

There were other advantages to the organic approach as well: Sekem's farming techniques helped reclaim arable land from the Sahara, which had been spreading into the Nile delta. With them, the soil absorbed more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, decreasing greenhouse gases, and cotton crops needed 20% to 40% less water.

In the bargain, organic techniques lowered the farm's costs, improved average yields by almost 30%, and produced a raw cotton that was more elastic than its conventionally grown counterpart. So, far from being an expensive indulgence, organic cotton offered Sekem a business model that was more sustainable-not just environmentally but financially. In recent years that model has generated healthy revenue growth: From 2006 until the disruptions of the Arab Spring in 2011, the business posted 14% annual increases, and Sekem is now one of Egypt's largest organic food producers.

Rapidly developing economies are often portrayed as sustainability laggards-focused more on raising their citizens out of poverty than on protecting the environment. It's true that their regulatory bodies can be weak, hesitant to impose restrictions on newly liberalized markets, or resentful of pressure from industrialized nations. But the developed world has never had a monopoly on visionaries, as Sekem's story illustrates. And in markets where the pressures of resource depletion are felt most keenly, corporate sustainability efforts have become a wellspring of innovation.

That's what we found in 2010, when the Boston Consulting Group joined forces with the World Economic Forum to identify companies with the most effective sustainability practices in the developing world. The study involved reviews of more than 1,000 companies ranging in size from $25 million to $5 billion, from a wide array of markets and industry sectors, and included interviews with almost 200 executives. From the pool of companies studied, we identified more than a dozen "champions," whose sustainability practices were highly effective, innovative, and scalable.

Zhangzidao Fishery Group

Dalian, China, Organic fish farm
By creating a balanced ecosystem in which several species of sea life are cultivated together, Zhangzidao reduces the amount of fish food needed, avoids depleting seabeds, and lowers costs and increases total yields dramatically.

Florida Ice & Farm

San José, Costa Rica, Beverage bottler
This leading Central American company set-and met-the goal of becoming water-neutral in only four years.

Shree Cement

Beawar, India, Producer of cement and electricity
With savings from low-risk, high-return efforts to conserve electricity, Shree has funded increasingly sophisticated moves to reduce energy use and improve production efficiency.

Jain Irrigation Systems

Jalgaon, India, Maker of irrigation systems and wholesaler of produce By agreeing to buy some of its customers' unsold produce for a set price, this farm-equipment supplier helped small customers afford its water-saving devices.

New Britain Palm Oil

Mosa, Papua New Guinea, Producer of organic oils, sugars, and meat
New Britain's sustainable methods of agriculture have used 50% less pesticide while increasing yields 1.6% every year for the past 30 years.

2010 Revenue $470 million
2005-2009 Compound annual growth 30%
2009 EBITDA margins 34%

These organizations are located in countries across Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the South Pacific. Some pursue sustainability out of pragmatism, some out of idealism. But regardless of their motivation, they have consistently generated above-average growth rates and profit margins.

To make their environmental efforts pay off financially, these companies have, broadly speaking, followed one or more of three main approaches. First, many, like Sekem, took a long view, investing in initially more-expensive methods of sustainable operation that eventually led to dramatically lower costs and higher yields. Others have taken a bootstrap approach to conservation: They started with small changes to their processes that generated substantial cost savings, which they then used to fund advanced technologies that made production even more efficient. Last, some have spread their sustainability efforts to the operations of their customers and suppliers, in the process devising new business models that competitors find hard to emulate.

Collectively, these companies vividly demonstrate that trade-offs between economic development and environmentalism aren't necessary. Rather, the pursuit of sustainability can be a powerful path to reinvention for all businesses facing limits on their resources and their customers' buying power.

Taking a Systems Approach

It's hard for companies to recognize that sustainable production can be less expensive. That's in part because they have to fundamentally change the way they think about lowering costs, taking a leap of faith, as Sekem did, that initial investments made in more-costly materials and methods will lead to greater savings down the road. It may also require a willingness to buck conventional financial wisdom by focusing not on reducing the cost of each part but on increasing the efficiency of the system as a whole.

Zhangzidao Fishery Group, based in Dalian, China, is a good example. The group has adapted an ancient method that is now called integrated multitrophic aquaculture (IMTA). It's an approach analogous to companion planting: Rather than trying to maximize the production of a single species, gaining profits through economies of scale, as most traditional "ocean ranchers" do, Zhangzidao creates a balanced ecosystem of scallops, sea cucumbers, sea urchins, abalone, and other interlinked species.

Some species provide food for the others, so fewer have to be fed from external sources. In this way Zhangzidao reduces waste by converting fish by-products into harvestable crops. What's more, unlike single-species fish ranching, IMTA does not exhaust seabeds, eliminating the need to move cultivation from bed to bed to allow depleted areas to recover.

Zhangzidao has also adopted a simple practice called bottom sowing-similar to pruning-in which scallops are moved from overcrowded beds to more sparsely covered areas to increase growth rates, weights, and yields. Bottom sowing reduces disease and, like organic farming, creates a natural carbon sink that absorbs more greenhouse gas than it releases. And with the savings from its low-tech conservation efforts, the company has funded investments in cutting-edge technology for artificial reefs that foster marine life, for seaweed propagation, and for seafloor algae farms.

A focus on increasing profitability per unit of cultivation, rather than per species cultivated, has led to growth and profit levels that are nothing short of astounding. From 2005 to 2010, Zhangzidao sustained a compound annual growth rate of 40%, in an industry where the average is just 13%, as well as EBITDA margins of 31%.

Taking the Low-Tech Road

Unlike Western companies, which often try to mitigate the environmental damage done by their operations through costly retrofits or by underwriting the development of breakthrough technologies (think catalytic converters and smokestack scrubbers), many companies in emerging markets start small. They begin by conserving their most constrained resource with a series of minor adjustments to their operations.

Costa Rica's largest beverage bottler, Florida Ice & Farm, for instance, started by simply repairing water leaks in its production equipment in a timely fashion. In the Philippines, the Manila Water Company similarly focused initially on water lost to leaks or illegal taps of its pipes. Such savings are hardly trivial: From 1997 to 2010, the company recovered an amount of water equal to the supply from a medium-sized dam, which would have cost an estimated $750 million to build.

As low-cost moves reap larger and larger returns, businesses can expand conservation efforts to other parts of their operations. Eventually, savings can mount high enough to fund purchases of expensive technologies and R&D initiatives that many Western companies might have started with.

Shree Cement is a case in point. When it began operations, in 1985, Shree had no explicit plan to promote sustainability. Like many other Indian companies, it invested in a diesel-generating plant to protect itself from disruptions to the supply of electricity, which is unreliable in India. But unlike most of its competitors, it experimented with tweaks to production processes to decrease the amount of electricity it needed.

As small changes added up to significant savings, Shree's engineers widened the scope of their conservation, turning their attention to ways to reduce the use of the company's kilns. The kilns, which consumed large quantities of coal to generate high temperatures, produced a material called clinker, which was cooled and mixed with a few stabilizing ingredients to make cement. By replacing some of the clinker with waste coal slag and fly ash recycled from the kilns' operation, Shree's engineers could make a cement suitable for certain applications and save a lot of energy.

Eventually, Shree could afford to invest in more-sophisticated technologies, such as one that recycled the hot exhaust from the kiln to power a separate electrical plant. Finding that it could generate electricity much more efficiently than the local municipal power plant, Shree built larger, coal-fired plants, whose production more than covers the company's growing needs. Deregulation in India's power industry has made it possible for Shree to sell its excess electricity on the open market, which it generates at some of the lowest prices in the region.

A few of these improvements required major capital investments, but most involved just engineering work and a willingness to challenge conventional thinking. In total, they've cut expenses and emissions substantially. Shree produces a ton of cement using 9% less energy than the average Indian manufacturer and 15% less than the global average. Its cost-reduction efforts, so critical in a commodity industry, have helped the company outpace rivals and expand profitably. From 2005 to 2009, Shree's revenues grew five times faster than the global average for the cement industry. Today, Shree, which had 2009 revenues of $809 million and stunning EBITDA margins of 39% from 2005 to 2009, is one of the top five cement manufacturers in India.

Taking a Broader View

Impressive as the cost efficiencies are, more intriguing is the growth that companies in emerging markets have gained by extending their sustainability efforts to the operations of their customers. Companies are building unique business models by boosting customers' buying power and, in the process, creating interdependencies that are difficult for competitors to copy.

Consider Jain Irrigation Systems, in Jalgaon, India, which began as a supplier of irrigation systems for small farms. Farming in India has traditionally relied on monsoons, which recently have weakened. As water supplies have dried up, farmers have been going out of business. Some have even committed suicide in the face of mounting debt.

To help its customers, Jain Irrigation began adapting micro-irrigation systems to Indian conditions. It taught customers how to use them effectively through precision farming, which increases output by optimizing the balance between fertilizers, pesticides, water, and energy. In this way the farmers could use less water but still increase yields.

Most small farmers could not afford to purchase Jain Irrigation's systems without financing, however, and banks were reluctant to grant credit to illiterate villagers. So the company helped its customers apply for government subsidies. It also made a daring move into the wholesale agricultural commodities trade-promising to buy some of the crops its customers grew with its equipment at a set price and then reselling the produce. The guarantees in turn persuaded the banks to lend to the company's customers.

Jain Irrigation had no expertise as an agricultural wholesaler, and it could have faced a revolt from shareholders for straying so far from its core. Nevertheless, customizing its business model so radically to local needs has enabled the company to outperform other suppliers of irrigation systems. From 2006 to 2010, the company experienced compound annual revenue growth of 40% and EBITDA margins of 18%-both well over industry averages. Unlikely as it may seem, 20% of revenues now come from its agricultural wholesale business.

In Chile, Santiago-based Masisa is experimenting with a way to expand demand for its sustainably harvested wood. It has created a network of local carpenters to whom it gives training and special access both to its lumber and to Western customers willing to pay a premium for furniture made from it. Masisa aims to build demand for its products in remote, underdeveloped areas of the country, while giving the carpenters an incentive to use sustainable wood rather than buy from illegal cutters. Having started locally in 2009, Masisa has already replicated the model in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela.

In Brazil the natural-cosmetics company Natura has built a unique competitive advantage by forging a similar symbiotic relationship-not with its customers but with its suppliers. The company has worked with rural communities, local governments, and NGOs to develop ways to sustainably extract raw materials. In turn, it teaches those methods to its suppliers, thereby helping them create jobs and increase capabilities in their communities.

In an industry where offering a constant stream of new products is crucial, Natura can compete against large multinationals with a far smaller investment in R&D, thanks to its research partnerships. Products launched in the most recent two years account for a share of Natura's total revenue that is far higher than the industry norm. More than 50% of the 427 products the company launched from 2008 to 2010 were developed through its open innovation efforts.

The Rewards and Risks of Pioneering

It's remarkable how many companies in emerging markets chose, like Natura, to embark on sustainability efforts long before any imperative arose. (For more about the genesis of Natura's business model, see "The Growth Opportunity That Lies Next Door," HBR July-August 2012.) In the process they often gained important first-mover advantages as markets for environmentally friendly goods grew.

New Britain Palm Oil was decades ahead of its time when in 1963 it developed integrative pest management that introduced natural alternatives to some chemicals while increasing crop yields. New Britain also chose to avoid planting altogether on the peat lands and in the rain forests of the biologically diverse islands of Papua New Guinea. As it expanded in later years, it leased its fields and partnered with small farmers rather than buying land outright. As a result it helped reduce local poverty and built close ties with the community, which allowed it to avoid the kinds of conflict that have hindered development in other palm-oil-producing countries.

Over the years the company has created a completely traceable supply chain-something that is greatly valued by B2B customers who are willing to pay higher prices for sustainably sourced raw materials. This favorable position has helped New Britain maintain a muscular 30% annual growth rate in recent years and achieve 34% margins.

Florida Ice & Farm was also ahead of the curve when in 2008 it set the extraordinary goal of becoming water-neutral in just four years. It was reacting not to any immediate environmental threat, since water is abundant in its tropical location, but to public concerns. Traditionally, bottlers use large amounts of water in cleaning the bottles and in the heating and cooling phases of production, as well as in the drinks themselves.

Bringing the latest technology and process innovations to bear, the company reduced the amount of water it took to produce a liter of beverage from 12 to 4.9 liters. In 2009 the company's Pepsi bottling plant, which it had acquired two years earlier, became the world's most water-efficient, using just 2.2 liters of water per liter of beverage. To offset its remaining consumption, Florida Ice has piloted community conservation efforts and helped engineer improvements to the national water infrastructure.

Keeping employees focused on such ambitious goals can be a challenge for organizations. Florida Ice has addressed it by developing a balanced scorecard that includes nonfinancial metrics such as the number of community service hours that employees spend planting trees that protect watersheds. It ties the compensation of its CEO and all other executives to the firm's performance not only on financials but on environmental and social efforts, including those aimed at reducing binge drinking and the sugar content in soda. Moving toward a triple-bottom-line accounting system has not slowed the company's growth. The compound annual growth rate of 25% and EBITDA margins of 30% it saw from 2006 to 2010 were both twice the industry average.

In South Africa, food retailer Woolworths (no relation to the old U.S. five-and-dime) has instituted a similar balanced scorecard. Each business unit is rated on key "green" performance indicators, which are linked to compensation. Natura uses a carrot rather than a stick, training managers to identify socio-environmental challenges and turn them into business opportunities, and granting bonuses on the basis of environmental and social performance.Ready or not, we are moving to a world of scarce resources, in which companies will increasingly need to consider their total return not just on assets and equity but on resources. They will have to monitor how much water, soil, and other natural resources they consume, as well as the payback they get from them. Companies that fail to calculate this equation will find themselves at the mercy of price increases and volatility, regulation, and social pressures, while those that master it will enjoy competitive advantage and gain market share.

A version of this article appeared in the March 2013 issue of Harvard Business Review.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Organic products were a luxury with little market to speak of when Ibrahim Abouleish founded Sekem, Egypt's first organic farm, in Cairo in 1977. The years Sekem spent honing sustainable cultivation practices paid off, though, in 1990, when it moved into growing organic cotton.

# data[].attributes.headline
How sustainability can improve profit margin

# data[].attributes.subject
How sustainability can improve profit margin

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As the world comes to terms with climate change, sustainability is going to be a big part of entrepreneurial conversations. The good news for businesses? Research shows that companies making waves in the ecosphere are growing by 15% , while others are stagnating.

So if your company employees two people or 10,000, there are gains to be had by being more sustainable. Let's take a look at how sustainability will improve your profit margin.

It's great PR - and so much more

The modern consumer isn't stupid. More than ever, they're holding companies to account for their actions. We don't have to look far to see huge corporations being condemned for an unethical practice here or dodgy tweet there.

But simply not acting like a malignant dictator isn't enough - today's businesses need to show that they're doing . Research has shown that there is a $1 trillion opportunity for brands who can effectively communicate a sustainable message about their products.

CDP reports that, despite clear opportunities, 4 in 10 businesses fail to capture or report financial value from strong environmental performance. These missed chances will become more crucial as we go forward.

So we're now in the win-win position where good business is also great for the future of the planet. But before you go boasting about being green, you need to take action. Let's look at how you can do that.

Reduce your company's waste

A core tenet of sustainability is reducing waste, whether that's energy or materials. Sending less stuff to landfill, reusing what you have and making eco-friendly business decisions will all improve your profit margin.

Let's start with something simple: lights. The average halogen light bulb might be cheaper than an LED bulb upfront, but in the long-term it's a no-brainer. Expect to save over £175 per bulb in energy and replacement costs over an LED's lifetime.

And if your office has a water cooler, get rid of the plastic cups. The UK generates 4.9 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, and plastic cups (whether for coffee or water) make up a significant proportion. Not only do they end up in our oceans and countryside, but they also cost your company unnecessary cash. Provide glasses and mugs to slash your plastic outlay, and save some money in the meantime.

More and more companies are seeing the benefit of going paperless in 2018. Much of what we print is unnecessary, so it can be an easy switch for some. Instead of paper documents, send digital invoices to clients and keep backups of important files online. Use encrypted cloud software for added security.

Think long-term over short-term

Sustainability means thinking about the future, and it's good for business as well as the planet. Short-term cost cutting always leads to someone or something being neglected. It's about time we changed that.

If you're a business owner, you know the struggle of balancing the books. But choosing legacy over currency is always the best way to ensure long-term success. It's not easy, but hard times come to everyone. The ones who survive will be the ones who had the foresight to realise what the world will need in 10, 20 or 100 years.

And if you think environmental action will take decades to reap dividends, think again. The CDP study mentioned earlier reports that 64.7% of environmental initiatives pay back in 3 years or less, making positive action a no-brainer.

In a world that will see more (and more harrowing) climate change warnings in the coming years, investing in sustainability will be a wise move all round.

Consider your impact on human beings

Sustainability extends beyond reducing your carbon footprint. Social issues, from equal pay to working conditions, are at the heart of a strong sustainability policy. Think about all the stakeholders in your business - are they being treated with the respect they deserve?

From the employees in your office to those who make the paper in your printer, there are a lot of people to consider. Buying ethically-sourced office supplies and being loyal to your staff should be given equal - and considerable - weighting.

Believe it or not, treating people well has its perks. Beyond that warm inner glow, you'll receive serious PR points as well as staff loyalty when times are hard.

Think about the Triple Bottom Line

At Conscious Creatives, we don't just think about profit. We follow the principles of the Triple Bottom Line - People, Planet, Profit.

Every business decision we make must consider the potential impact on people and the planet - as well as the old measuring stick, profit. That means we don't chase short-term gain if it means we have to use environmentally-damaging methods. And if a financial move causes harm to human beings, we ditch it.

The old way of doing things is broken. Chasing profits at all costs doesn't work and it's putting the planet in jeopardy.

Moving to the Triple Bottom Line was the best business decision we ever made, and it's improved every aspect of our company's health. We highly recommend it, whether you're running a multinational operation or a small team affair.

If you want to chat and see how the Triple Bottom Line could help your company, get in touch .

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why sustainability will improve your profit margin - Conscious Creatives

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As the world comes to terms with climate change, sustainability is going to become a bigger cause of concern for businesses large and small. The good news? Your company could improve its profit margins with some sustainable changes. Here's how to boost your bottom line with some positive actions.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As the world comes to terms with climate change, sustainability is going to be a big part of entrepreneurial conversations. The good news for businesses? Research shows that companies making waves in the ecosphere are growing by 15% , while others are stagnating.

So if your company employees two people or 10,000, there are gains to be had by being more sustainable. Let's take a look at how sustainability will improve your profit margin.

It's great PR - and so much more

The modern consumer isn't stupid. More than ever, they're holding companies to account for their actions. We don't have to look far to see huge corporations being condemned for an unethical practice here or dodgy tweet there.

But simply not acting like a malignant dictator isn't enough - today's businesses need to show that they're doing . Research has shown that there is a $1 trillion opportunity for brands who can effectively communicate a sustainable message about their products.

CDP reports that, despite clear opportunities, 4 in 10 businesses fail to capture or report financial value from strong environmental performance. These missed chances will become more crucial as we go forward.

So we're now in the win-win position where good business is also great for the future of the planet. But before you go boasting about being green, you need to take action. Let's look at how you can do that.

Reduce your company's waste

A core tenet of sustainability is reducing waste, whether that's energy or materials. Sending less stuff to landfill, reusing what you have and making eco-friendly business decisions will all improve your profit margin.

Let's start with something simple: lights. The average halogen light bulb might be cheaper than an LED bulb upfront, but in the long-term it's a no-brainer. Expect to save over £175 per bulb in energy and replacement costs over an LED's lifetime.

And if your office has a water cooler, get rid of the plastic cups. The UK generates 4.9 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, and plastic cups (whether for coffee or water) make up a significant proportion. Not only do they end up in our oceans and countryside, but they also cost your company unnecessary cash. Provide glasses and mugs to slash your plastic outlay, and save some money in the meantime.

More and more companies are seeing the benefit of going paperless in 2018. Much of what we print is unnecessary, so it can be an easy switch for some. Instead of paper documents, send digital invoices to clients and keep backups of important files online. Use encrypted cloud software for added security.

Think long-term over short-term

Sustainability means thinking about the future, and it's good for business as well as the planet. Short-term cost cutting always leads to someone or something being neglected. It's about time we changed that.

If you're a business owner, you know the struggle of balancing the books. But choosing legacy over currency is always the best way to ensure long-term success. It's not easy, but hard times come to everyone. The ones who survive will be the ones who had the foresight to realise what the world will need in 10, 20 or 100 years.

And if you think environmental action will take decades to reap dividends, think again. The CDP study mentioned earlier reports that 64.7% of environmental initiatives pay back in 3 years or less, making positive action a no-brainer.

In a world that will see more (and more harrowing) climate change warnings in the coming years, investing in sustainability will be a wise move all round.

Consider your impact on human beings

Sustainability extends beyond reducing your carbon footprint. Social issues, from equal pay to working conditions, are at the heart of a strong sustainability policy. Think about all the stakeholders in your business - are they being treated with the respect they deserve?

From the employees in your office to those who make the paper in your printer, there are a lot of people to consider. Buying ethically-sourced office supplies and being loyal to your staff should be given equal - and considerable - weighting.

Believe it or not, treating people well has its perks. Beyond that warm inner glow, you'll receive serious PR points as well as staff loyalty when times are hard.

Think about the Triple Bottom Line

At Conscious Creatives, we don't just think about profit. We follow the principles of the Triple Bottom Line - People, Planet, Profit.

Every business decision we make must consider the potential impact on people and the planet - as well as the old measuring stick, profit. That means we don't chase short-term gain if it means we have to use environmentally-damaging methods. And if a financial move causes harm to human beings, we ditch it.

The old way of doing things is broken. Chasing profits at all costs doesn't work and it's putting the planet in jeopardy.

Moving to the Triple Bottom Line was the best business decision we ever made, and it's improved every aspect of our company's health. We highly recommend it, whether you're running a multinational operation or a small team affair.

If you want to chat and see how the Triple Bottom Line could help your company, get in touch .

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why sustainability will improve your profit margin - Conscious Creatives

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As the world comes to terms with climate change, sustainability is going to become a bigger cause of concern for businesses large and small. The good news? Your company could improve its profit margins with some sustainable changes. Here's how to boost your bottom line with some positive actions.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Entrepreneurs are always talking about budgeting. A good budget is one of the keys to growth and success, yet no one really tell us how to budget.

In plain words, it is a necessary evil.

By definition a budget is a journal of how much money you are bringing into your business and most importantly, how you are spending your money.

What is the philosophy behind creating a budget? Think about it this way... Can you really make money without knowing how to spend money?

The key to a budget is to have some amount of positive cash flow at the end of the time period.

Many businesses have multiple budgets for multiple time periods; to cover all the bases, you can set up a monthly, quarterly, and yearly budget. Or to start off just have a monthly budget and you can compile your history and records to create that into a quarterly and yearly template.

If you still favor the way of the dark ages, by all means create your budget on paper. However, you can also use any computer spreadsheet software (e.g. Excel, Numbers) or any accounting software (e.g. Quicken, Microsoft Money).

Step One: Know Your Financial Goals

The first thing to note is that you should know what your financial goals are for your business, how you want to achieve them, and the monetary value they will require.

This will shape a better budget because you can recognize the amount of money you will need in the future to really grow your business to where you want it to go. This doesn't have to be completely figured out or even set in stone. Your goals will change and your business activities will vary over time.

This is just a precautionary measure to ensure that your budgeting allocates for business ventures that can help grow you brand.

Step Two: Categorize your expenses.

Expenses fall under two categories: Fixed and variable expenses.

Fixed expenses are those that are relatively the same every month (mortgage, rent, utilities, bills, etc.); variable or flexible expenses can range drastically every month (fabric purchasing, showroom fees, event costs, etc.).

After these are categorized and listed, the numbers come into play. Your next three columns will show your "Budgeted" amount, actual amount, and the difference between the two.

To find out what your budgeted amount should be, you can research the costs linked to creating your own fashion line and take averages based on that information. Your actual amount is the amount you have spent on that category and the difference is the amount of dollar difference (or percentage) between the former two.

If you want to get super technical, you can even add in your semi-variable costs that are tied to the volume of your business, such thing as telecommunications and advertising.

The reasoning behind your difference column is to help clarify any potential opportunities or problems in your budget.

Once you can see and quantify the reasons for the differences between what you should be spending and what you have actually spent, you can work on making it better for next month. You never want to keep a stagnant budget, it can lead little growth in your business.

Step Three: Conquer your income.

Income will eventually lead to profit.

You will separate your income in the same way you categorized your expenses. The key here is that the bottom line of your budget requires a little math.

Your profit is your total income minus your total expenses. This will leave you with bottom line, your profit. This is where you can start allocating funds to BOTH savings and future business endeavors.

A savings column is important because you want to make sure you set aside some money in case of unforeseen circumstances (so you're not reaching for the credit card), especially in an industry as fickle as fashion.

You will need a budget if you are applying for a loan and to evaluate your cash flow management. You want to be able to monitor how much money is coming in and out of your business. Are your customers taking too long to pay you? If you can identity where your cash flow gaps are, the sooner you can start making changes for greater cash inflows. And remember to keep your personal finances separate from your brand.

Having a budget will help you plan ahead for the growth of your fashion business. You will be able to make more educated decisions on whether any upcoming investments or opportunities are right for you or your brand.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Ultimate Guide to Budgeting for Fashion Brands

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Entrepreneurs are always talking about budgeting. A good budget is one of the keys to growth and success, yet no one really tell us how to budget. In plain words, it is a necessary evil. By definition a budget is a journal of how much money you are bringing into your business and most importantly, how you are spending your money.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Total Visits 635.46K 9.85%

Avg. Visit Duration 00:08:24

Estimated Data Verify Your Website

Traffic Sources

Traffic Sources Find out which are the main sources of desktop traffic for motelrocks.com.
May 2020 analysis

On desktop

Get Full Comparison with SimilarWeb Pro

Outbrain has been using SimilarWeb for over a year and it's been instrumental for our ability to analyze our competitive environment, benchmark our performance, keep track of industry trends, and generate new leads.

Asaf Hochman, Senior Director of Product Marketing Outbrain

Benchmark yourself against your main competitors

Peek into the hidden marketing strategies of your competitors, across industries and countries

Keyword research made easy and based on actual traffic statistics

Discover new opportunities while reducing risk by learning from your competitor's mistakes

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Total Visits 635.46K 9.85% Avg. Visit Duration 00:08:24 Estimated Data Verify Your Website Traffic Sources Find out which are the main sources of desktop traffic for motelrocks.com.May 2020 analysis On desktop Get Full Comparison with SimilarWeb Pro Outbrain has been using SimilarWeb for over a year and it's been instrumental for our ability to analyze our competitive environment, benchmark our performance, keep track of industry trends, and generate new leads.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Total Visits 635.46K 9.85%

Avg. Visit Duration 00:08:24

Estimated Data Verify Your Website

Traffic Sources

Traffic Sources Find out which are the main sources of desktop traffic for motelrocks.com.
May 2020 analysis

On desktop

Get Full Comparison with SimilarWeb Pro

Outbrain has been using SimilarWeb for over a year and it's been instrumental for our ability to analyze our competitive environment, benchmark our performance, keep track of industry trends, and generate new leads.

Asaf Hochman, Senior Director of Product Marketing Outbrain

Benchmark yourself against your main competitors

Peek into the hidden marketing strategies of your competitors, across industries and countries

Keyword research made easy and based on actual traffic statistics

Discover new opportunities while reducing risk by learning from your competitor's mistakes

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Total Visits 635.46K 9.85% Avg. Visit Duration 00:08:24 Estimated Data Verify Your Website Traffic Sources Find out which are the main sources of desktop traffic for motelrocks.com.May 2020 analysis On desktop Get Full Comparison with SimilarWeb Pro Outbrain has been using SimilarWeb for over a year and it's been instrumental for our ability to analyze our competitive environment, benchmark our performance, keep track of industry trends, and generate new leads.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the last days of August, an influx of slender women to midtown Manhattan signals the onset of fashion week, the biannual round of catwalk shows. After passing on to London, Milan and then Paris, the prevailing sensibility coheres into an agreed style.

Only this season, the last of the decade, that sensibility may be about to evaporate. A summer of fire in the high Arctic and the Amazon was capped by something to celebrate; the arrival in New York harbour of the 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg after she crossed the Atlantic on an emissions-free yacht.

Her first duty, she said, was to join a climate protest ahead of the UN climate action summit in September. "We need to stand together and take action because otherwise it might be too late." She added: "It is insane that a 16-year-old would have to cross the Atlantic to take a stand ... The climate and ecological crisis is a global crisis and the biggest humanity has ever faced."

If anyone is in the mood to buy personal luxury goods, it would be surprising. Fashion, which has avoided environmental scrutiny, is faced with increasing consumer and regulatory pressure to improve its profile in a globalised market that is now said to generate €1.5 trillion annually.

Selling the dream of fashion and luxury while reassuring customers that it can be done without further damaging the planet is a tightrope walk. Over the past month, that tension between consumption and the climate crisis has reached the international stage.

Under the guidance of French president Emmanuel Macron at the recent G7 summit in Biarritz, 32 fashion companies signed a "fashion pact" to emphasise sustainability in the industry. They included some of the largest luxury brands in the market - Chanel, Ralph Lauren and Prada - as well as "fast fashion" producers, including H&M Group and Zara. Fast fashion retailers have come under fire from environmental campaigners for encouraging a market that sees around 300,000 tonnes of clothes dumped in UK landfills each year,

"We are taking our responsibility through collective action and common objectives," said François-Henri Pinault, chairman and chief executive of Kering, the French luxury-goods conglomerate that owns Balenciaga, Gucci, Alexander McQueen and Saint Laurent, among others. The so-called pact, though, is notably short of firm goals to reduce planet-heating emissions.

According to a United Nations study, the fashion industry is responsible for about 10% of all greenhouse gas emissions, 20% of all waste water, and consumes more energy than the airline and shipping industries combined.

The figures are disputed but the message is clear: fashion is a major polluter, and in an industry that depends on human desire for the new, questions hang over it like a dead weight.

Few believe that the French fashion houses would act if it were not for growing consumer pressure. Kering has been publishing an "environmental profit and loss" statement for its products since 2015; rival LVMH, the owner of Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, as well as a stake in Stella McCartney - the label famous for banishing fur and leather - has yet to follow suit.

But others have joined the rush to publish updated public sustainability reports. "The fashion industry was behind the curve on this, and it's playing catch-up to the way people feel," said Tim Blanks, a leading analyst at Business of Fashion. "Fashion brands are being held to account and developing an awareness and sense of consequence that it has been truly oblivious to."

The supermodel Amber Valletta says as much as she appreciated being told she looked good in this or that outfit, she often felt a disconnect between her job and the business. Around 15 years ago, she told the Observer, she "started to connect the dots with the environment and cheap labour".

Fashion, she claims, is an insular world with maybe a thousand people at the top of the industry: "We live in a fashion bubble, but it trickles down in ways we're not really conscious of. The reality is we're affecting a lot of people and the planet."

Fashion is responsible for 10% of greenhouse gas emissions and consumes more energy than airline and shipping combined

United Nations report

Valletta recently shelved a fashion line on the basis that it would just be adding to the amount of stuff available without coming up with an environmentally innovative way of doing it. "Something went wrong. We lost meaning in what we were doing, and people lost meaning between what they need and what they buy," she said. "The question is, how are we going to do things the right way? It's like we have to change the way we make things, sell things and wear things. Everything really."

She's currently planning a documentary looking at the underlying issues. "It's important that people at the top of the industry become the leaders of the change. In the past we fought for all sorts of causes. Now we have to fight for sustainability. Now we have to fight for the planet," she said.

To be truly sustainable, brands may have to consider producing less at a time when consumers want more. According to a report by the Global Fashion Agenda, any progress toward sustainability is actually decreasing - by as much as a third. Brands, it warned, have yet to solve the trade-off between growth and managing their environmental footprint.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

To be sustainable, brands have to consider producing less when consumers want more. Photograph: Mohammed Anwarul Kabir Choudhury/Alamy Stock

With clothing production expected to hit 102 million tonnes a year by 2030, sustainability efforts need to accelerate to avoid even more strain being placed on the world's resources.

Blanks, who helped chair this year's fashion sustainability summit in Copenhagen, said the issues are inclusivity and accountability: "If you are accountable, then you have a sense of cause and effect and it permeates everything you do. If you are inclusive, then you have to have respect for the environment."

"You shouldn't underestimate the work that's being done at different companies," says Pinault, who is trying to get companies to sign up to eliminating single-use plastics and accelerate the industry's transition to renewable energy. "The problem is that we're all working in our little corners, so despite our efforts, everything we do is completely offset by the growth," he added.

Kering itself, which has gone further than many to manage this equation, has seen its environmental scorecard (measured by air emissions, water pollution and land use) getting worse.

The emerging argument, it seems, is to buy less but buy better on the principle that consumers will treasure and reuse those clothes and get off the seasonal treadmill. "Couture is more sustainable in the sense that you're paying a lot of money for something that's produced to an incredibly high standard and there's no disposability written into it," Blanks said.

The recent Valentino haute couture show, he added, was so spectacular that it received a 10-minute standing ovation from an audience where some were moved to tears of joy:

"It's the ethos of the heirloom - the highest end of the market is where you see this ethos realised in a very real way."

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

The Valentino show that was part of Paris Fashion Week in July. Photograph: Peter White/Getty Images

Of course, haute couture is beyond the budget of most consumers, but the underlying principle - replace seasonal binge-shopping with clothes that express thoughtfulness and care - is the same. "It's much more fun because its about creativity and self-expression, and that's more challenging and rewarding," Blanks said.

This isn't new to environmentally conscious millennials - many have adopted Earth-saving circular economy resellers like DePop, Farfetch's Second Life and the RealReal en masse. In a season when the New York fashion emporium Barneys went bankrupt, the RealReal is valued at $2.39bn.

"Our focus on extending the life cycle of luxury and keeping pieces in circulation through resale offers a more sustainable way to shop luxury," said RealReal's Michael Groffenberger.

The company acts as a middleman for secondhand haute couture between buyers and sellers - so-called "authenticated luxury consignment". Groffenberger notes that 64% of its millennial sellers (or consignors) say that environmental impact is the key reason for using the service.

There are signs too, that the design community is beginning to wake up. Italy's Prada has said it wants to source all of its emblematic Nylon accessories from recycled materials, including ocean waste by the end of 2021. Giorgio Armani and Versace have both stopped the use of certain materials.

"We have years of talk but now change is at the forefront," said Orsola de Castro of Fashion Revolution, a group campaigning for greater industry transparency. De Castro credits the growing awareness to several events, including t he Rana Plaza disaster in Bangladesh in 2013, growing awareness of the environmental damage from microfibres, and the impact of British fashion house Burberry destroying £30m of stock to guard against conterfeits (the French government floated a plan earlier this year to outlaw the widespread practice of destroying unsold clothes and luxury goods).

"The negative impact of the fashion industry has reached its nadir and now consumers are beginning to ask the right questions," said De Castro.

Recently the UK protest group Extinction Rebellion announced plans to shut down London fashion week

A reaction against the excessive consumerism of fashion is taking shape: recently the UK protest group Extinction Rebellion announced plans to shut down London fashion week, which starts on 13 September. "In recognition of the existential threat that faces us, we ask the British Fashion Council to be the leaders the world needs now and to cancel London fashion week," the group wrote in a letter to the British Fashion Council. There is little hope of that happening, but in New York nine labels have so far refused to stage fashion shows at Hudson Yards, a vast development on the city's westside in protest against real estate developer Stephen Ross, who recently held a re-election fundraiser at his Hamptons home for climate-change denier Donald Trump .

Fashion is worth £32bn to the UK economy and Britons buy more garments than any other country in Europe. They also, it would seem, throw a lot away.

In protest at the 11 million items of clothing that end up in UK landfills each week, the model Stella Tennant and charity Oxfam recently launched their campaign against more than 50 million single-use items of clothing purchased by Britons this summer.

For their Second Hand September campaign, the pair are asking consumers to abstain from buying new clothes for 30 days, and shop, ideally, at Oxfam to raise money for its programmes.

As the Financial Times pointed out, the campaign comes "slap at the beginning of the show season".

Tennant points out that she's never been a seasonal shopper: "The things I loved 20 years ago I still love. The enemy is our insatiable desire for the new. We're human, and of course we love new things, and it's so exciting to see what these brilliant, creative designers have come up with.

"In terms of sustainability, we've become very indulgent in how much stuff we buy and then how much stuff we discard."

But that, she points out, is not a Valentino couture dress: "The skill and craftsmanship involved, and so many people making something so extraordinary ... it's difficult to get the balance right, and I'm not suggesting that should stop, but we need to be more thoughtful as consumers."

That sentiment is echoed by designers. New York-based designer Maria Cornejo, who has won several awards for sustainability, is currently involved in a collaboration with carmaker Hyundai to "upcycle" excess leather from car seats in her designs.

"Nobody is going to stop consuming, but it makes economic and environmental sense to reimagine materials that have had a prior life," she said. Unless you're buying a second-hand car, people only buy things because they desire them, not because it's politically correct, Cornejo reasons.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Activists from Extinction Rebellion wearing coats made of living grass protested outside London Fashion Week in February 2019. Photograph: NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images

If some companies are jumping on the bandwagon and "greenwashing" their products, that's better than taking no action at all, said Cornejo. "It's what has to happen because at least they're going in the right direction. It's the future. Everybody has to take some responsibility for what's going on."

That message even seems to be filtering through to the red carpet of showbusiness, where the habit of only wearing clothes once for photographs first started before it filtered down to Instagram, fast-fashion and the mass-market.

Fashion glossy US Vogue published a story titled Earth to A-Listers calling on movie stars to bring the sustainability issue to the red carpet during award season following the UN's "terrifying" climate report.

"Wouldn't it be powerful to see these same celebrities re-wearing gowns they've worn in the past -advocating against the throwaway culture that sees consumers toss away garments after a single use, like they do iced-coffee cups?" asked writer Nicole Phelps.

Model Michelle Hicks had her own take on red-carpet tyranny: "It became a rat race to wear the newest, coolest thing. You get photographed in it once and that's it. And that's bad."

This week Hicks is going to fashion editor and stylist Carine Roitfeld's Harper's Bazaar party in her own 20-year-old Galliano dress. "It's stunning, so why not wear it again? Why not recycle?"
Topics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Can fashion keep its cool ... and help save the planet?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In the last days of August, an influx of slender women to midtown Manhattan signals the onset of fashion week, the biannual round of catwalk shows. After passing on to London, Milan and then Paris, the prevailing sensibility coheres into an agreed style.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Clothing brands and retailers should pay a penny on every garment they sell to fund a £35m annual recycling scheme.

That's the view of MPs, who say "fast fashion" is a major contributor to greenhouse gases, water pollution, air pollution and over-use of water.

And they urge the government to force clothing manufacturers to pay more towards collecting and recycling the waste they create.

Green campaigners argue the MPs' recommendations are really quite tame.

They're calling for an end to what they regard as the over-consumption of clothes.

Why is it fashionable to fret about fashion?

The fashion industry creates jobs worldwide and is said to be worth £28bn to the UK economy - but it is estimated to produce as many greenhouse gases as all the planes flying in the world.

Libby Peake, from the think-tank Green Alliance, told BBC News: "One of the areas in which you could make a big difference in terms of your personal climate change impact is by reducing the amount of clothes you buy and keeping them for longer, then donating them to charity shops to keep them in the national wardrobe."

The clothing trade consumes vast volumes of fresh water and creates chemical and plastic pollution. Manmade fibres are found in the bellies of creatures in the deep ocean.

The Environmental Audit Committee is also concerned about the use of child labour, prison labour, forced labour and bonded labour in the manufacture of clothes.

What is the industry doing to improve?

Some progressive firms now offer vouchers to shoppers taking back used garments. Marks & Spencer is among the leaders with its "Plan A" (because there's no Plan B).

The Global Recycling Council commends other firms, including Adidas, which will use only recycled polyester in all shoes and clothing by 2024; and Bottletop, which collaborated with Mulberry to launch a luxury bag made entirely from up-cycled materials (pre-used goods given extra value).

But the MPs say they've received inadequate commitments from JD Sports, Sports Direct, Amazon UK and Boohoo.

Spokespeople for some of these firms say they've taken other positive measures that haven't been properly registered by the MPs.

The MPs' report says it is an open secret that some fast-fashion factories in places such as Leicester are not paying the minimum wage - and the same firms are selling clothes so cheaply that they are being treated as single-use items.

The MPs say in the UK we buy more clothes per person than any other country in Europe - and a glut of second-hand clothing is swamping the market and depressing prices for used textiles.

Less than 1% of material used to produce clothing is recycled into new garments at the end of its life.

What can be done?

The committee chair, Mary Creagh, said: "Fashion retailers should be forced to pay for the impact of their clothes when they're thrown away."

She said the government should end throwaway fashion by incentivising companies that offer sustainable designs and repair services.

"Children should be taught the joy of making and mending clothes in school," she told us.

"We've got to help teenagers get an emotional attachment to their clothes instead of just wearing them a couple of times, getting photographed for Instagram and then chucking them away.

"All consumers have got to accept they need to buy fewer clothes - then mend them if they're torn, or rent or share them."

The MPs conclude that a voluntary approach to improving the sustainability of the fashion industry is failing - with just 11 fashion retailers signed up to an agreement to reduce their water, waste and carbon footprints.

The committee says big retailers should be obliged by ministers to comply with high standards on the manufacture and recycling of clothing.

What does industry say?

Peter Andrews, from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), told us a growing number of stores were providing take-back schemes for unwanted clothes, and introducing stock made from recycled materials.

He didn't immediately reject the idea of a penny levy on clothes, and said retailers were willing to discuss how much of a role they should take in dealing with garments where they're thrown away.

He said: "The sustainability of fashion is a high priority for BRC members - the transparency they have shown and the level of engagement with the inquiry reflects that."

Sophie Gorton, an associate lecturer in textiles at Chelsea College, is a long-standing proponent of sustainable fashion.

She told us there were signs of hope that the industry was starting to change.

"For years we have asked the people who make textiles and yarn about the sustainability of their products and they just haven't wanted to know," she said.

"Now, suddenly, they're interested in what makes sustainable hemp or linen - they really want to think about it. It's a very exciting time."

Will the MPs' solve the fast fashion problem?

Clare Farrell, a member of the climate group Extinction Rebellion and also a fashion lecturer, says the committee is aiming at the wrong target.

She admits it's better to recycle clothing fibres than throw garments away, but she says the real problem is consumer capitalism: people are putting an intolerable strain on resources simply because they're buying too many clothes in the first place.

"We need a change in mindset," she told us. "Kids buy clothes, wear them a few times and then get rid of them. How do we tackle that? It's the nature of consumer capitalism and it's a very, very big problem for us all.

"Fashion is a big part of the economy, but we can't tackle the problems unless we admit that economy is killing us the way it's currently run."

Follow Roger on Twitter @rharrabin

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Call for '1p a garment' fast fashion charge

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Clothing brands and retailers should pay a penny on every garment they sell to fund a £35m annual recycling scheme. That's the view of MPs, who say "fast fashion" is a major contributor to greenhouse gases, water pollution, air pollution and over-use of water.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Clothing brands and retailers should pay a penny on every garment they sell to fund a £35m annual recycling scheme.

That's the view of MPs, who say "fast fashion" is a major contributor to greenhouse gases, water pollution, air pollution and over-use of water.

And they urge the government to force clothing manufacturers to pay more towards collecting and recycling the waste they create.

Green campaigners argue the MPs' recommendations are really quite tame.

They're calling for an end to what they regard as the over-consumption of clothes.

Why is it fashionable to fret about fashion?

The fashion industry creates jobs worldwide and is said to be worth £28bn to the UK economy - but it is estimated to produce as many greenhouse gases as all the planes flying in the world.

Libby Peake, from the think-tank Green Alliance, told BBC News: "One of the areas in which you could make a big difference in terms of your personal climate change impact is by reducing the amount of clothes you buy and keeping them for longer, then donating them to charity shops to keep them in the national wardrobe."

The clothing trade consumes vast volumes of fresh water and creates chemical and plastic pollution. Manmade fibres are found in the bellies of creatures in the deep ocean.

The Environmental Audit Committee is also concerned about the use of child labour, prison labour, forced labour and bonded labour in the manufacture of clothes.

What is the industry doing to improve?

Some progressive firms now offer vouchers to shoppers taking back used garments. Marks & Spencer is among the leaders with its "Plan A" (because there's no Plan B).

The Global Recycling Council commends other firms, including Adidas, which will use only recycled polyester in all shoes and clothing by 2024; and Bottletop, which collaborated with Mulberry to launch a luxury bag made entirely from up-cycled materials (pre-used goods given extra value).

But the MPs say they've received inadequate commitments from JD Sports, Sports Direct, Amazon UK and Boohoo.

Spokespeople for some of these firms say they've taken other positive measures that haven't been properly registered by the MPs.

The MPs' report says it is an open secret that some fast-fashion factories in places such as Leicester are not paying the minimum wage - and the same firms are selling clothes so cheaply that they are being treated as single-use items.

The MPs say in the UK we buy more clothes per person than any other country in Europe - and a glut of second-hand clothing is swamping the market and depressing prices for used textiles.

Less than 1% of material used to produce clothing is recycled into new garments at the end of its life.

What can be done?

The committee chair, Mary Creagh, said: "Fashion retailers should be forced to pay for the impact of their clothes when they're thrown away."

She said the government should end throwaway fashion by incentivising companies that offer sustainable designs and repair services.

"Children should be taught the joy of making and mending clothes in school," she told us.

"We've got to help teenagers get an emotional attachment to their clothes instead of just wearing them a couple of times, getting photographed for Instagram and then chucking them away.

"All consumers have got to accept they need to buy fewer clothes - then mend them if they're torn, or rent or share them."

The MPs conclude that a voluntary approach to improving the sustainability of the fashion industry is failing - with just 11 fashion retailers signed up to an agreement to reduce their water, waste and carbon footprints.

The committee says big retailers should be obliged by ministers to comply with high standards on the manufacture and recycling of clothing.

What does industry say?

Peter Andrews, from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), told us a growing number of stores were providing take-back schemes for unwanted clothes, and introducing stock made from recycled materials.

He didn't immediately reject the idea of a penny levy on clothes, and said retailers were willing to discuss how much of a role they should take in dealing with garments where they're thrown away.

He said: "The sustainability of fashion is a high priority for BRC members - the transparency they have shown and the level of engagement with the inquiry reflects that."

Sophie Gorton, an associate lecturer in textiles at Chelsea College, is a long-standing proponent of sustainable fashion.

She told us there were signs of hope that the industry was starting to change.

"For years we have asked the people who make textiles and yarn about the sustainability of their products and they just haven't wanted to know," she said.

"Now, suddenly, they're interested in what makes sustainable hemp or linen - they really want to think about it. It's a very exciting time."

Will the MPs' solve the fast fashion problem?

Clare Farrell, a member of the climate group Extinction Rebellion and also a fashion lecturer, says the committee is aiming at the wrong target.

She admits it's better to recycle clothing fibres than throw garments away, but she says the real problem is consumer capitalism: people are putting an intolerable strain on resources simply because they're buying too many clothes in the first place.

"We need a change in mindset," she told us. "Kids buy clothes, wear them a few times and then get rid of them. How do we tackle that? It's the nature of consumer capitalism and it's a very, very big problem for us all.

"Fashion is a big part of the economy, but we can't tackle the problems unless we admit that economy is killing us the way it's currently run."

Follow Roger on Twitter @rharrabin

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Call for '1p a garment' fast fashion charge

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Clothing brands and retailers should pay a penny on every garment they sell to fund a £35m annual recycling scheme. That's the view of MPs, who say "fast fashion" is a major contributor to greenhouse gases, water pollution, air pollution and over-use of water.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
With Greta Thunberg as their poster girl and Extinction Rebellion as their leading light, Generation Z is leading the charge against fast fashion, says Majbritt Rijs.
If we learnt anything from the latest edition of London Fashion Week, it is that the conversation is changing. From Roland Mouret's campaign against single-use clothes hangers - fashion's plastic straws! - to Miuccia Prada encouraging consumers to "think how they spend it", sustainability is hot news.

We already know the stark facts about fashion's role in the climate crisis, although, to date, research shows not all consumers are well-informed. Our latest survey found British consumers put the industry in fifth place when rating the most significant contributors to climate change, behind oil, aviation, transport and farming.

It has been widely reported that clothing production creates more emissions than aviation and shipping combined. It also consumes freshwater at voluminous rates and contributes to chemical and plastic pollution. Meanwhile, an EU report published earlier this year accused some fast fashion brands of cultivating an attitude that clothing is "almost disposable".

Netflix documentaries such as The True Cost and Extinction Rebellion's behaviour at LFW, with its much-publicised die-in and funeral for the event, are putting the issue firmly on the public agenda. Now it is time for the industry to put its money where its mouth is.

Not that work addressing fashion issues hasn't already begun. Millennial shoppers had already raised suspicions about the impact of fast fashion, not just on the environment but the people involved in their production. The UK government, meanwhile, has looked at solutions to tackle waste, such as placing 1p tax per item to avoid so much going to landfill. (That plan was rejected: the government said it believed "positive approaches" to dealing with waste textiles were preferable to imposing a ban on landfill. It is worth noting here that, according to the British Fashion Council, fashion contributes £32 billion to the UK economy and employs 890,000 people.)
Time for change
So, it is down to Gen Z to show brands that it is time to change, that excess has now become unfashionable and is not something this generation is willing to accept as it becomes the consumer group with the most significant spending power.

While Gen Z's deeply held environmental and social beliefs mark them out against previous consumer groups, it is not the only thing that makes them different. Their whole mindset is entirely new.

They love to shop and show it off on social media, despite their reservations about the fashion industry. But they are not big spenders; on the contrary, they are very price-conscious and like to save money.

Our survey highlights this contradictory nature of the younger generation. While 65% of British Gen Zers say price is vital to them when buying clothes, nearly 60% say they would pay 5% more for clothes that did not harm the environment.

Brands should be concerned that less than a quarter of this age group regard them as important. What this generation wants is transparency and authenticity - things they don't feel they always get now. Our survey showed that 40% of younger consumers find it hard to know if a brand is behaving ethically; more than a third want fashion brands to be more transparent.

Digital natives through and through, Gen Z is both well informed and sceptical and willing to do research into companies and brands before purchase. Raised in the age of the trust-crisis, they are attracted to brands that demonstrate honesty.
Brand loyalty is dead
Don't mistake this for brand loyalty, however. They live in a brave new world where that no longer exists. Gen Zers do not define themselves through the brands they buy; they are occupied instead with cultivating their personal brands on social.

They will deftly move on to the next brand that demonstrates those open and honest values they're looking for, particularly if the price point works for them. Any brand that does not meet their deeply held standards and beliefs should be prepared to face social media shaming.

We know Gen Z love to share and they do not hesitate to celebrate the good, or shame the bad. More than three-quarters of young Brits in our survey have shared stories about brands doing cynical, irresponsible or dishonest things.
Recycle, re-use
Recycling and reusing old clothing speaks to Generation Z's sensibilities. Thrift and second-hand shopping help to create a unique style or look that, in turn, can be used for their branding and social stories.

Initiatives such as using deadstock - unsold clothes from previous seasons - are also gaining traction, with designer Patrick McDowell, a leader of sustainable fashion, showing the way.

Younger generations are also questioning the need to own things at all, a Generation X obsession that is becoming increasingly outdated. The sharing economy is catching on with the rise of rental services: these range from MyWardrobe and Rent the Runway to peer-to-peer apps that help consumers access clothes while monetising their own wardrobes.

Gen Z is as unique as the style like to create, and their belief systems and behaviours are fresh and distinct from what has gone before. While socio-economic and political pressures are revolutionising the way we shop, the unconventional shopping habits of this generation might be the most transformative yet.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Fast fashion, sustainability and Gen Z | WARC

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
With Greta Thunberg as their poster girl and Extinction Rebellion as their leading light, Generation Z is leading the charge against fast fashion, says Majbritt Rijs. If we learnt anything from the latest edition of London Fashion Week, it is that the conversation is changing.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
With Greta Thunberg as their poster girl and Extinction Rebellion as their leading light, Generation Z is leading the charge against fast fashion, says Majbritt Rijs.
If we learnt anything from the latest edition of London Fashion Week, it is that the conversation is changing. From Roland Mouret's campaign against single-use clothes hangers - fashion's plastic straws! - to Miuccia Prada encouraging consumers to "think how they spend it", sustainability is hot news.

We already know the stark facts about fashion's role in the climate crisis, although, to date, research shows not all consumers are well-informed. Our latest survey found British consumers put the industry in fifth place when rating the most significant contributors to climate change, behind oil, aviation, transport and farming.

It has been widely reported that clothing production creates more emissions than aviation and shipping combined. It also consumes freshwater at voluminous rates and contributes to chemical and plastic pollution. Meanwhile, an EU report published earlier this year accused some fast fashion brands of cultivating an attitude that clothing is "almost disposable".

Netflix documentaries such as The True Cost and Extinction Rebellion's behaviour at LFW, with its much-publicised die-in and funeral for the event, are putting the issue firmly on the public agenda. Now it is time for the industry to put its money where its mouth is.

Not that work addressing fashion issues hasn't already begun. Millennial shoppers had already raised suspicions about the impact of fast fashion, not just on the environment but the people involved in their production. The UK government, meanwhile, has looked at solutions to tackle waste, such as placing 1p tax per item to avoid so much going to landfill. (That plan was rejected: the government said it believed "positive approaches" to dealing with waste textiles were preferable to imposing a ban on landfill. It is worth noting here that, according to the British Fashion Council, fashion contributes £32 billion to the UK economy and employs 890,000 people.)
Time for change
So, it is down to Gen Z to show brands that it is time to change, that excess has now become unfashionable and is not something this generation is willing to accept as it becomes the consumer group with the most significant spending power.

While Gen Z's deeply held environmental and social beliefs mark them out against previous consumer groups, it is not the only thing that makes them different. Their whole mindset is entirely new.

They love to shop and show it off on social media, despite their reservations about the fashion industry. But they are not big spenders; on the contrary, they are very price-conscious and like to save money.

Our survey highlights this contradictory nature of the younger generation. While 65% of British Gen Zers say price is vital to them when buying clothes, nearly 60% say they would pay 5% more for clothes that did not harm the environment.

Brands should be concerned that less than a quarter of this age group regard them as important. What this generation wants is transparency and authenticity - things they don't feel they always get now. Our survey showed that 40% of younger consumers find it hard to know if a brand is behaving ethically; more than a third want fashion brands to be more transparent.

Digital natives through and through, Gen Z is both well informed and sceptical and willing to do research into companies and brands before purchase. Raised in the age of the trust-crisis, they are attracted to brands that demonstrate honesty.
Brand loyalty is dead
Don't mistake this for brand loyalty, however. They live in a brave new world where that no longer exists. Gen Zers do not define themselves through the brands they buy; they are occupied instead with cultivating their personal brands on social.

They will deftly move on to the next brand that demonstrates those open and honest values they're looking for, particularly if the price point works for them. Any brand that does not meet their deeply held standards and beliefs should be prepared to face social media shaming.

We know Gen Z love to share and they do not hesitate to celebrate the good, or shame the bad. More than three-quarters of young Brits in our survey have shared stories about brands doing cynical, irresponsible or dishonest things.
Recycle, re-use
Recycling and reusing old clothing speaks to Generation Z's sensibilities. Thrift and second-hand shopping help to create a unique style or look that, in turn, can be used for their branding and social stories.

Initiatives such as using deadstock - unsold clothes from previous seasons - are also gaining traction, with designer Patrick McDowell, a leader of sustainable fashion, showing the way.

Younger generations are also questioning the need to own things at all, a Generation X obsession that is becoming increasingly outdated. The sharing economy is catching on with the rise of rental services: these range from MyWardrobe and Rent the Runway to peer-to-peer apps that help consumers access clothes while monetising their own wardrobes.

Gen Z is as unique as the style like to create, and their belief systems and behaviours are fresh and distinct from what has gone before. While socio-economic and political pressures are revolutionising the way we shop, the unconventional shopping habits of this generation might be the most transformative yet.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Fast fashion, sustainability and Gen Z | WARC

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
With Greta Thunberg as their poster girl and Extinction Rebellion as their leading light, Generation Z is leading the charge against fast fashion, says Majbritt Rijs. If we learnt anything from the latest edition of London Fashion Week, it is that the conversation is changing.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
GRETA THUNBERG, ECOLOGY ICON

There's no generation with as much at stake when it comes to the negative effects of climate change as Generation Z. Their future is tied to the planet and they are up to the task of protecting it. They know that ignoring the issue, whose consequences are increasingly tangible, is not an option. Keeping your eyes open and raising global awareness were aspects discussed by leader of this movement, Greta Thunberg, during her speech at the COP24 in December 2018 in Katowice (Poland).

"I will be 75 years old in 2078. If I have children, they might spend the day with me and ask me about you, and why you didn't do anything while there was still time to act. You say you love your children, but you are still robbing them of the future". This was the tough stance taken by this 15-year-old Swedish girl during her speech to politicians and entrepreneurs from all over the world. Her words inspired young people around the world and were the spark that lit the flame of Fridays For Future .

On 15 March 2018, Youth for the Climate, the digital platform created to coordinate these student protects, called a strike and meetings that united more than a million young people in 2,083 cities in 125 countries. The objective: To raise awareness of climate change in society and demand that governments act to counteract the effects.

UNITED NATIONS WARNINGS

Just two days before the strike called by the Youth for Climate Action, the United Nations Organisations issued an dire warning about the environmental crisis that humans are causing on the planet. A growing emergency situation, whose most obvious effect is global warning, is melting the polar ice caps and changing climate cycles. The crisis is already threatening other spheres of life, increasing the number of migrations for climate reasons and causing unprecedented damage to plant and animal life.

The sixth Global Environment Outlook, or GEO-6 report, was presented during the 4th United Nations Environment Assembly in Nairobi (Kenya). It was written by 250 scientists and experts from more than 70 countries and includes statements like these:

Air pollution now causes between 6 and 7 million premature deaths every year.

The temperature in the Arctic will increase by between 3 and 5 degrees centigrade between 2019 and 2050

Mitigating the effects of climate change will cost 22 billion dollars and the saving for health will total around 54.

YOUTH FOR CLIMATE ACTION

Generation Z has a mantra: it's time to act, and it has to be now. Young people's commitment to the environment is nothing new, and it has never been restricted solely and exclusively to organising marches and strikes. All you need to do is look back to see important projects and initiatives led by children and young people that have marked the beginning of a new stage in their communities:

In 2005, several hurricanes damaged the dunes on the beaches of the Bahamas and students from the Hope Town School mobilised their community to plant sand-resistant bushes. This was the birth of the Sandwatch movement. In 2011, when the hurricanes returned, the roots of these bushes anchored the dunes in place.

Students from the Lester Vaughan secondary school in Barbados produced 3,153 litres of biodiesel between 2005 and 2007 by collecting used vegetable oil in their communities. As well as raising awareness of biodiesel as an alternative fuel, they stopped the oil being disposed of in ways that would have harmed the environment.

The Ghana Bamboo Bikes project won an award from The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to encourage bike production with bamboo instead of steel. This initiative, as well as encouraging a non-contaminating method of transport, has succeeded in reducing the rate of unemployment among young people.

Amina Mohammed is the current Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations and is certain that youngsters will lead the fight against climate change. "I am asking young people to join this effort because we need them to defend and guide global climate change action and sustainable practices. Don't take this planet for granted. It's the only one we've got", she said during her visit to the Tshinghua University in Beijing (China) in November 2018.

Keys to understand Generation Z.
SEE INFOGRAPHIC: Keys to understand Generation Z [PDF]
ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN

Youngsters are the present of this movement, but the children are the future. When children become aware of the importance of reducing contaminating emissions, when they grow up their will be capable of helping to make this planet a better world. To make it happen, we need to explain what climate change is and educate them to mitigate its consequences. How can we do it?

Make up a story: It's easier for children to understand information when it is part of a story. Write an interesting bedtime story to tell the kids before they go to sleep.

Reward recycling: Recycling is simple, but it's difficult to get children accustomed to doing it. Think up a system whereby you reward them for doing it correctly.

Transforming waste into toys: Playing is an excellent way of learning. Create an activity that consists of building toys with unused packaging and give things a second life.

The best known example is that of Greta Thunberg, but she's not the only one. Numerous children and youngsters around the world are showing their commitment to protecting the environment every day thanks, in part, to the presence of educators who are teaching more about climate change in schools. That's how we heard about EducaClima twelve-year-old Diana Monteiro, a pupil at the Colegio Ciudad Escuela Muchachos de Madrid (Spain).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
role of youth in environmental protection

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Young people rise up against climate change

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Greta Thunberg is a global phenomenon who is inspiring young people to protest against climate change. And she isn't alone. Thousands of young men and women around the world are worried about their future and have joined the Fridays for Future initiative, which consists of Friday meetings to raise awareness about this global concern.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Will Covid-19 Permanently Affect Our Shopping Habits?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
“Cosy”, “craftsmanship” and “conscious” are the new retail buzzwords as the coronavirus pandemic continues

# data[].attributes.headline
How is Covid drawing attention to sustainable fashion

# data[].attributes.subject
How is Covid drawing attention to sustainable fashion

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
While 2019 was dubbed the 'Year of Sustainability', four months into the new decade and the impact of COVID-19 will define 2020. This doesn't mean retailers need to shelve their sustainability commitments. In fact, it's a time for the fashion industry to reflect on their processes, as well as the toll it takes on people and the planet.

We round up how the outbreak has spotlighted sustainability and the direction for a greener future post-pandemic.
Get in touch to see a demo on how EDITED data can transform your processes to help your category compete in the current state of the market.
1. Rethinking Fashion Weeks

Set to take place in June, Men's Fashion Week has been called off due to the current pandemic, with the Milan and Paris shows joining the Women's Fashion Week schedule in September. However, it still remains unpredictable as lockdown continues.

Fashion Week continuously came under fire pre-pandemic for its lack of eco-credentials as buyers and brands flew to four cities for two seasons a year.

A recent study from Zero to Market quantified the impact of travel, concluding that 241,000 tons of CO2 was produced during the 2018 shows - equivalent to the annual emissions of a small country. A combination of the above has forced the industry to reimagine what Fashion Week should look like.

Tokyo, Shanghai and Moscow have all made digital transitions, showcasing collections and shows online through live and pre-recorded media. With COVID-19 shedding light on climate change and sustainability, this could spark an overhaul of Fashion Week for the greener good.
Shanghai Fashion Week
* Took place over seven days with a mix of live shows and talks.

* Hosted by the online shopping platforms, Taobao and Tmall.

* Attracted 2.5 million users in the first three hours of streaming.

Shanghai Fashion Week

Moscow Fashion Week
* Extended due to the record-breaking views on the first day.

* Half a million users tuned in to the online streams and lectures.

* Mercedes-Benz partnered with TikTok for lectures.

Asomatav Spring 2020

What's next?
From virtual showrooms to digitally produced samples and campaigns, the shift to digital will extend to other processes across the supply chain to save buyers from traveling and reduce waste. Retailers should look to technology for sustainable solutions where possible, including becoming more creative on social platforms.
Got EDITED access? Log in to view the lookbooks and video presentations shown during the digital version of Tokyo Fashion Week.
2. Helping fast fashion slow down

According to the United Nations Alliance for Sustainable Fashion, the apparel industry accounts for 8% to 10% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. As coronavirus took hold, clear skies started to appear above the regions impacted the highest as people were mandated to stay inside. As factories shuttered in China at the start of the year, emissions fell by nearly 25%.

New product arrivals took a hit as brands experienced disruption to their supply chains. As each region surpassed 1,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, deliveries started to plummet. Looking at the top mass market retailers across the US and UK, new arrivals since the start of 2020 are down 11% YoY and continue to drop as cases rise.

While consumption of fast fashion is experiencing a much-needed slowdown, the closing of brick-and-mortar stores has led to canceled orders, which is negatively impacting more than 50 million international garment workers.

This has resulted in an uprising of organizations drawing attention to the situation. On April 3rd, nonprofit Remake launched the #PayUp petition, calling out some of the largest fashion brands who owe more than $3 billion in future orders to garment factories across Bangladesh, India, Myanmar and Cambodia. Companies such as Inditex, Marks & Spencer, Kiabi, PVH Corp. and Target have come forward and reportedly agreed to follow through their commitments to pay suppliers for orders already in production. Businesses need to maintain relationships with their suppliers and factory workers and support them during these challenging times.

Look to postpone orders and put a future action plan in place instead of canceling the deliveries of products already made. So factories won't be left holding onto goods they are unable to sell. With COVID-19 causing furloughs and layoffs across the industry, retailers that were transparent and took care of their workers across all aspects of their business will emerge the strongest.
What's next?
3. Shifting consumer mindsets

As consumers navigate this difficult period, it will lead to a change in mindsets and shopping behaviors. However, don't wait till after the fact to get on board. Now is the time to cultivate authentic relationships with your customers to build engagement and brand loyalty.

With physical stores closed and online deliveries delayed as retailers respond to COVID-19, consumers are adapting by living with less. Retailers should look to push capsule wardrobes, focusing on the concept of 'buy less, buy better.'

The demand for loungewear continues to rise as working from home becomes the new normal for many employees. Post-virus, consumers will seek out brands that they align with morally more than ever before, with an emphasis placed on conscious products. Eco-friendly loungewear is a fail-safe way to invest.

Wellbeing and self-care themes will take shape in the form of natural and organic products. From fresh produce to clothing, 'clean' and non-toxic materials and fibers will drive demand as health continues to be a top priority.
What's next?
4. Connect with nature

Customers who returned to nature-based activities was a key learning from the 2008 global recession. According to the Outdoor Industries Association, participation in backpacking, mountain biking and trail running showed double-digit increases in 2008. As people settle into self-isolation, consumers have a newfound appreciation for nature, highlighting the importance of outdoor apparel. Hopefully, this will place issues around the environment top of mind for customers and further propel retailers' sustainability efforts.

When quarantine lifts, retailers need to take this opportunity to promote holidaying locally to avoid added carbon emissions and overcrowding beaches.

Since summer getaways are pushed back till October, demand for swimwear will be building up. Sustainable swimwear has been an area of focus for some time and the content of your products will be of even greater importance when customers start traveling again. Use this time to rethink material alternatives to reduce microplastic waste, how to implement processes with a more positive environmental impact and ways to educate customers to best care for products.

Look to natural and biodegradable fabrics such as Natasha Tonic's hemp collection. For hitting the waves, take note of Ansea's wetsuits made from Yulex, a sustainably-grown plant-based alternative to neoprene, which requires 80% less CO2 emissions.

5. Repurposing deadstock fabrics
What's next?
Retailers worldwide have pivoted their manufacturing to focus on producing hospital gowns, as well as medical and non-medical face masks. This movement has led to businesses repurposing excess material and deadstock fabrics that would have otherwise ended up in landfill to create washable and reusable protective gear.

Sandro is making masks out of upcycled materials from previous collections. Since baseball season is canceled, Fanatics is using the pinstriped fabric typically used for the Yankees uniforms to make masks and gowns. We are seeing a 'buy one and give one' system operating where many retailers are donating masks to hospitals and essential workers with every purchase, alongside encouragement for customers to create and donate their own gowns and masks.

As businesses are in overdrive to produce masks, the idea of non-medical face masks have risen up as a permanent accessory has arisen. Already a mainstay item in Asian countries worn to protect others, face masks as a fashion statement is gaining momentum worldwide during the pandemic.

Businesses wanting to tap into this trend need to do so sustainably and sensitively without profiting off the current situation. Look to brands such as Armed Angles, which are creating fashionable masks made from 100% organic cotton and donating 2€ per sale to Médecins Sans Frontières to help fight the outbreak.
By Retail Analysts Ashley Graham & Kayla Marci

Enjoyed this report? Sign up to our weekly Insider Briefing for data-backed analysis delivered to your inbox.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
5 ways coronavirus is drawing attention to sustainable fashion | EDITED | The Retail Data Platform

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We round up how the outbreak has spotlighted sustainability and the direction for a greener future post-pandemic. Get in touch to see a demo on how EDITED data can transform your processes to help your category compete in the current state of the market. 1.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Have you ever bought something only to quickly decide you don't like it? Or maybe it starts to fall apart soon after you buy it? Do you feel like many of your clothes are no longer in style? Or have you ever found a crazy good deal on an item of clothing (I'm talking crazy good here like less than the price of a coffee)? I'm sure we've all experienced at least one of these scenarios. Unfortunately, these are all symptoms of the fast fashion industry. An industry that for many reasons, is socially and environmentally unsustainable. The fact is, the rate at which we are producing, consuming, and discarding clothing is putting a serious strain on the planet. Certainly, we won't be able to keep this up in the future without potentially irreversible consequences.

So what is fast fashion anyways?

The term 'fast fashion' is often defined as "an approach to the design, creation, and marketing of clothing fashions that emphasizes making fashion trends quickly and cheaply available to consumers." Emphasis on the quickly and cheaply part. Essentially, fast fashion brands produce clothes very quickly. This causes the consumer to constantly feel like they need more. They do this by keeping production costs low and advertising budgets large. For example, a fast fashion brand such as H&M or ZARA will use cheap labour, unsafe working conditions, and operate in countries with low environmental regulations. In doing so they can quickly produce high volumes of cheap clothes. Consumers then purchase these clothes for a low price.

Fast fashion comes at high social and environmental costs.

The industry is responsible for high carbon emissions, wastewater production, and large amounts of landfill waste. Fast fashion is second only to oil as the world's largest polluter.

The social costs are equally high. Unsafe working conditions are common. Garment factory workers often work extremely long hours with minimal pay. In addition, cases of mental, physical, and sexual abuse are frequent. All so we can buy that cute dress for 10.99 (or less) online.

Read more to learn the most shocking facts about the fast fashion industry. From production to consumption, to disposal.

The fast fashion industry produces ~1 billion garments annually.

Profits are around 3 trillion dollars per year. What impact does this large amount of production have on our environment? Production at this scale is pushing our natural systems to the absolute limit.

The fast fashion industry emits 1.2 billion tons of CO2 equivalent per year.

This is about 5% of global emissions. That's more than the emissions created by air travel and international shipping.

The fast fashion industry is responsible for producing 20% of global wastewater.

In 2015, the fast fashion industry created 92 million tons of wastewater. This results in the contamination of rivers, oceans, freshwater sources, and soil.

In 2015, the fast fashion industry used 80 billion cubic metres of freshwater.

The industry is one of the largest consumers of freshwater on the planet. To put this in perspective 80 billion cubic metres is enough to fill about 32000 Olympic size swimming pools.

Production of textiles uses about 3500 different chemicals.

The industry uses chemicals to produce, dye, coat, and soften fabrics. Many of these chemicals are harmful to humans and the environment. Through wastewater, chemicals used to produce clothing often end up in our waterways and oceans.

Cotton is one of the most resource-intensive crops out there.

In comparison to synthetic materials cotton may not actually be better for the planet. This crop uses large quantities of pesticides and fertilizers. Globally, we use about 11% of pesticides and 24% of insecticides on cotton crops. Currently, less than 1% of cotton crops are organic. On top of this cotton requires an enormous amount of water. Check out this informative video created by TEDed depicting the life cycle of cotton garments.

We make 63% of clothes from petrochemicals.

Petrochemical-derived materials include plastic polymers like nylon, rayon, viscose, and polyester. In 2016 the fast fashion industry used 21.3 million tons of polyester. That's a 157% increase from the year 2000. Projections show the use of synthetic fabrics will continue to increase.

The fast fashion industry produces 97% of our clothes overseas.

The industry exploits cheap labour in developing countries. Here, workers rights are often non-existent and environmental standards are low.

40 million people work in the garment industry today.

85% of these people are women. Mental, physical, and sexual abuse is common throughout the industry. In addition, fast fashion often employs children who work under the same poor conditions.

Dangerous working conditions exist for garment workers in the fast fashion industry.

Hazardous substances and unsafe production processes expose workers to dangerous conditions. Safety systems are limited or non-existent.

Does anyone remember the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza in Bangladesh? The collapse killed more than 1100 workers. This was the world's largest industrial disaster since 1984. Unfortunately, it's not a unique scenario. Other garment factories have caught fire or collapsed causing deaths to workers. We must address this ongoing issue.

Since 2005, the death toll in Bangladesh alone is 1800 workers.

According to the International Labour Rights Forum, factory fires and building collapses caused these deaths.

Long hours and low pay for workers

The fast fashion industry supports a system of poverty. In order to meet their basic needs, workers must work extremely long hours for minimal pay.

A few informative documentaries exist on the social injustices of the fast fashion industry. Check out The True Cost on Netflix or Fashion Factories Undercover on Youtube.

Fast fashion is predicted to increase ~60% by the year 2030.

At current production rates, the fast fashion industry is already socially and environmentally unsustainable. Representatives from the Copenhagen Fashion Summit admit that the predicted growth would risk destabilizing our natural systems to the point of irreversible damage.

Between 1992 and 2002 the time we keep our clothes decreased by 50%.

We buy 2X more clothes than we did just 15 years ago (2015 data).

Many people admit to having unused clothes in their closet. Often, we end up with many more clothes than we actually need. Since the 1980s, the statistics are even more shocking. We buy 400% more on average than we did at that time.

In 2014, the average North American bought 16kg (35lbs) of new clothes.

According to Greenpeace, that's equivalent to 64 T-shirts or 16 pairs of jeans. Who on earth needs 16 kilos of new clothes every year?? The global average in the same year was 5kg per person. By 2030, we expect the global average to increase to about 11-16kg/person/year. We simply don't need that many clothes.

New styles appear almost daily at major fast fashion retailers.

This is a major shift from the usual 4 seasons. For example, H&M receives new shipments to stores every second day. Therefore, if you went shopping multiple times in one week you would always find something new to buy. With large advertising budgets, these retailers make us feel like we need to buy new clothes often.

The fashion industry produced 92 million tons of waste in 2015 alone.

Textiles are one of the fastest growing sources of waste globally. As our consumption increases our environmental impact in the form of waste also increases.

85% of our old clothes end up in a landfill.

In North America, that equates to about 25 billion tons per year of textile waste. We use petrochemical-based materials, i.e. plastic polymers to produce a large portion of this waste. Just like other plastic materials, they do not biodegrade. Instead, they slowing break down into smaller and smaller pieces called microfibres.

The dyes and chemicals used to make these clothes also leach into the earth. This often causes contamination of water and soil.

Only about 1% of textile waste is truly recycled.

Recycling of textiles means breaking each garment down into its base fibres. Then, those fibres can be used to make new clothes. However, many of our clothes are made from blended fibres making recycling difficult.

Even recycling of cotton and wool is not as effective as we think. In reality, the process weakens and degrades the individual cotton or wool fibres. The bottom line is, with current technologies, recycling of textiles is way too expensive and time-consuming.

With current technologies, it would take 12 years to recycle what the fast fashion industry creates in 48 hours

Because of this, the recycling programs that some fast fashion companies have started to promote are not as effective as their advertisements suggest. These programs are a step in the right direction in terms of raising awareness of the costs of fast fashion. Unfortunately, these initiatives do a better job of greenwashing than providing an actual solution. These programs keep our consumer conscience clean. No aspect of the production or consumption side of the problem has to change. And us consumers can keep consuming at the rates that these large corporations want.

Many of these recycling programs also give discounts for donating old clothes. Effective incentives to take environmentally friendly actions are great when they actually result in positive change. In this case, there is no positive effect on the environment. The fact is, the clothes we donate cannot and are not all recycled. In truth, all these incentives do is encourage more consumption.

The clothing deficit myth keeps us thinking our used clothes are going to those in need.

We are often under the assumption that there is a large need for used clothing. The clothes we donate go to those in need, right? Well no. Some of our clothes do go to a second home. But the items that nobody wants are sold to a middleman. They downcycle the garments that are in the worst condition. Often insulation or cleaning rags are made from these materials. Finally, everything else is sold to developing countries.

Kenya alone buys 22 million dollars annually in used clothes from western nations.

But even here there's not enough demand for our old clothes. Second-hand retailers in developing countries find that the clothing is low quality and hard to sell. So what happens to all the clothes that can't be sold? They end up in a landfill. Chemicals, dyes, and toxins in this textile waste seep into the earth. This results in the contamination of freshwater sources and soil.

Finally, at the end of their life cycle, our old clothes pile up in the landfills of developing counties. Countries who often lack the infrastructure and budget to properly deal with this large amount of waste.

Fast fashion is a huge contributor to plastic pollution.

We make 60% of our clothing from synthetic material. Projections only expect this number to rise. Many say synthetic materials will make up 98% of our clothes in the not so distant future. Every garment we produce with synthetic materials will remain on earth long after we dispose of it. This creates a huge waste problem, especially when we consider the speed and scale of the fast fashion industry.

0.6 - 1.7 million tons of microfibres end up in the ocean every year (IUCN).

Have you heard the word microplastics before? When plastic materials break down they don't biodegrade and become part of nature again. Instead, they fragment into smaller and smaller pieces. When those pieces get to less than 5mm in diameter we call them microplastics. Often they are not even visible to the human eye. Microfibres are similar but come from the breakdown of synthetic clothing. Microfibres come off our synthetic clothes every time we wash them. Due to their small size, they are not filtered by waste management facilities. Eventually, microfibres enter our waterways and finally our oceans.

We don't fully understand the impact of microfibres on our health and the environment. However, we do know animals eat these microscopic fragments of plastic. Once consumed these fibres accumulate up the food chain. We call this process bioaccumulation. Animals at the top of the food chain will have the highest concentrations of contaminants such as microfibres. And guess who's at the top of the food chain? Humans. Many things we consume contain microscopic pieces of plastic. We've found microplastics in salt, fish for human consumption, and 90% of bottled water. Not surprisingly we've also found microplastic in the human stool (eww gross... sorry it's true though).

Further negative health effect may result from the accumulation of toxins. We know that microplastics are very good at binding to free floating chemicals and toxins. When animals consume microplastics they also consume these toxins.

Well, that's a whole lot of depressing facts, what can I do about it?

Good question! You can do lots! Check out the next blog post to find out exactly what actions you can take to help solve the issue of fast fashion.

Additional reading for all you nerds:

My facts come from the following sources. Read the full articles to learn more!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Fast Fashion Facts: What you need to know ~ 7Billion for 7Seas

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Have you ever bought something only to quickly decide you don't like it? Or maybe it starts to fall apart soon after you buy it? Do you feel like many of your clothes are no longer in style?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Home > Journal > The environmental impact of the fast fashion industry

For many of us, fashion and clothing are an important part of life. The fast fashion industry has conditioned us to constantly feel the need to reinvent our style, follow new trends and buy new clothes. And constantly changing trends and cheap prices have boosted the production of clothing to massive levels.

On the other hand, climate change and sustainability are becoming increasingly important issues, as mass movements such as "Fridays for Future" show. The fast fashion industry is also reacting to these social changes and is trying to win buyers with green labels. But is this making any difference or is fast fashion still one of the dirtiest industries in the world? We took a closer look at the various stages in the fashion production cycles to get to the truth about the environmental impact of fast fashion - focused on:

In our conclusion we'll also outline a few suggestions for a more sustainable approach towards fashion.

Probably everyone knows this problem: Despite standing in front of an overflowing wardrobe, we still can't find anything to wear. Greenpeace found out that a staggering 40 % of our wardrobes is rarely or never worn. Due to constantly changing trends and new collections in the shops, our own clothes quickly go out of fashion and we get the impression that we need something new again. The offer of constantly new collections is huge: Between 2000 and 2014 the production of new clothing has doubled, and in 2014 for the first time the eye-watering mark of 100 billion newly produced garments was hit. This huge growth in the past two decades is partly due to big fashion chains that have increased their offering from two collections per year at that time to five or more. Fashion giant H&M even releases 12-16 collections per year and Zara also launches a new collection approximately every two weeks (equivalent to approximately 24 collections per year).
"The fashion industry incites us to buy more than we need"
Fast fashion retailers also continue to sell their collections for extremely low prices - and these questionable bargains are normalised and expected. Greenpeace estimates that 60 new pieces per year make their way into an average German wardrobe. However, these items are, by a long way, not used for as long as they were just a short time ago: clothes are now only worn for half as long as they were in 2002, and more than half of our wardrobe ends up in landfill within 3 years.

But it is not only the high consumption and huge production volume that are to blame for the negative impact the fashion industry has on the planet. The environmental impact begins with the cultivation of the materials used to make clothes - either natural fibers, chemical fibers or a mixture of both. But what exactly is so harmful about the processes involved?

Natural fibers

In the case of natural fibers, we speak of materials such as cotton, silk or wool. The most frequently processed natural fiber is cotton (used purely or most likely as a blend in 40 % of all clothing), which is grown in about 80 countries around the world. The main problem in the cultivation of cotton is the high water consumption used in cultivation. For example, 1 kg of conventional cotton needs about 11,000 liters of water. In addition, pesticides and insecticides are used in most cotton fields and two-thirds of the cotton grown is genetically modified. Cotton can also be grown more sustainably and without the use of pesticides: however, this "organic cotton" also consumes a lot of water and is sometimes harvested in developing countries under questionable working conditions. Read a previous article in our blog to find out more about the advantages and disadvantages of organic cotton.

Chemical fibers

60 % of clothing produced is made from synthetic materials - mainly polyester, polyamide (nylon and perlon), polyacrylic and elastane. The most commonly used synthetic material is polyester. Polyester consists of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), of which the basic materials are petroleum, hard coal, limestone and natural gas. The production of polyester alone requires 98 million tons of crude petroleum every year. This currently corresponds to about 1 % of the oil produced worldwide. And the trend is rising. If the fashion industry remains on this course, consumption could rise to 300 million tonnes of oil by 2050, and would be responsible for 26 % of human CO2 emissions by 2050. Currently this figure is 10%, which is more than all international flights and sea shipments together ( 5 %). Overall, the production of polyester (= 6 kg CO2 per T-Shirt) emits three times more CO2 than the production of cotton (= 2 kg CO2 per T-Shirt).

"The fashion industry is responsible for 10 % of the global CO2 emissions. This is more than the global air- shipping traffic combined"
Sources: Ellen Macarthur Foundation. (2017). A New Textiles Economy. & EEA Europa. (2016). "Luft und schiffsverkehr im Fokus".

Water pollution due to microplastics (during use)

But it is not only the production of chemical fibers that is harmful to the environment. Another problem of synthetic materials is that they are very difficult (or often impossible) to biodegrade. This has serious consequences for oceans and inland waters. The fashion industry is responsible for 35 % of the microplastics in the sea and is the main source of microplastics in the oceans. When polyester clothing is washed, tiny fibers are detached, which then end up as microplastics in the wastewater and consequently also in the rivers and oceans of the world. Since microplastics are not biodegradable, it becomes dangerous especially for animals. But microplastics are also increasingly problematic for humans. As long as animals absorb microplastics through their food, microplastics will also get into our food-system and thus into our bodies.
Source: IUCN. (2017). Primary Microplastics in the ocean. Water pollution due to chemicals (due to production)
The fashion industry is also responsible for polluting fresh water with chemicals because the chemicals that are used to dye textiles, end up in rivers as wastewater without any kind of filtering or recycling, especially in developing countries. The reason for this is that filter systems, which are designed to stop the chemicals, are often not used by production facilities in developing countries in order to save costs (often forced cost savings, as global fashion chains demand ridiculously low prices from their suppliers). Since many factories depend on their powerful customers, they have to take illegal risks, exploit nature and their work-force.

It goes without saying that these chemicals can also be life-threatening for animals, plants, and local communities.

Source: IntechOpen. (2017): Challenges and treatment of microplastics in water.

As mentioned earlier, the fashion industry now produces more than twice as much clothing as it did in 2000, and even though consumption has increased, not all garments that are produced find their way to buyers. What really happens to non-sold garments after they have left the stores is hard to find out and the fashion giants don't give much information about it. If you trust insiders, though, it would seem that every 5th piece is not sold. Apart from the sale in outlets and the recycling of filling materials, it is assumed that most of the clothes are burned. This would result in significant CO2 emissions. It's shocking to think that 80 % of all clothes sold end up in residual waste sooner or later. Only 1 % is fully recycled.

But what can you do to prevent or at least reduce the impact your fashion consumption has on the environment? Here are 7 suggestions to help you shop more sustainably. And more details on sustainable fashion habits can also be found here in one of our former blog posts.

Buy less

Check your wardrobe to see how many garments are in there that you hardly wear. If, like most people, there are plenty of items you don't wear then try to appreciate your old clothes again instead of following the latest trends.

Buy used

When going on a shopping spree, it is also worth visiting second-hand shops, flea markets or vintage online marketplaces. Here you often find great pieces that deserve a second chance. Not only that, you can often find higher-quality clothes that you couldn't otherwise afford.

Quality over quantity

If you want something completely new, you should invest in good quality and timeless classics so that your clothes last longer. Fair Fashion brands are especially suitable as their collections are typically better made and last longer than fast fashion (or even designer) products, as well as being ethically produced.

Cotton instead of polyester

When buying your clothes, pay attention to the fabric. One rule of thumb here: cotton is better than polyester! Cotton clothing is usually more environmentally-friendly as cotton is biodegradable. Cotton garments are also softer on your skin.

Fair Fashion instead of branded clothing

Fair Fashion often seems expensive compared to clothing from cheap chains. But if you compare their prices with global brands, prices are often similar. So, it is better to invest in sustainable clothing than in branded items, which are often produced in the same questionable conditions as clothing from fast fashion giants.

Wash less

Sometimes it is enough to air-out clothes or partially remove stains before putting them in the washing machine. Also, only wash when the machine is full and use bio detergent which does not pollute the waste water with chemicals.

Repair

Don't throw your clothes away immediately if they are broken, you can repair many defects yourself. But if you don't have the time or the skills, you can also take your clothes to your local tailor who should be able to repair most defects for a reasonable price.

Infographic: Environmental impact of the fast fashion industry

All information, at one glance: Download as PDF

What makes SANVT different?
In our company philosophy on the environment you will find information on how we try to minimize the problems described in this article and how we want to make a positive contribution to environmental protection. SANVT aims to want to encourage a "more gentle" approach to fashion and nature.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The environmental impact of the fast fashion industry | Infographic & Stats

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Home > Journal > The environmental impact of the fast fashion industry For many of us, fashion and clothing are an important part of life. The fast fashion industry has conditioned us to constantly feel the need to reinvent our style, follow new trends and buy new clothes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the fashion industry, it's all about being 'on trend'. But what that means is changing.

Today's fashion consumers are finding, sharing, buying and researching brands in completely new ways.

Our research identifies 13% of internet users as fashionistas, meaning they have a strong interest in fashion, have purchased clothes in the last month and like to keep up with the latest fashions.

For retail brands targeting this complex group, reaching them means developing a deep understanding of everything from what they do, to how and why they do it. Here's what our latest research says.

Fashion lovers are keen to be brand advocates.
Proof points:

85% say expressing themselves is an important reason to use the internet.

They're 1.4 times more likely to want to stand out in a crowd.

As a group, fashionistas are image-focused.

They're outspoken and keen to express themselves and their views. Since they're also not afraid of standing out in a crowd, they're perfect recruits for brands looking to onboard brand advocates.

So what would entice this group to shout about a brand on their ever-important social media feeds?

Above all else, fashionistas can be encouraged to advocate a brand simply out of love for the brand, and feeling like they're a part of its journey.

Offer them transparency into your story and build personal relationships based on insider knowledge and exclusive access, and you should have eager, switched-on brand advocates.

Target female fashionistas - but don't forget their male counterparts.
Proof point:

67% of fashionistas are female, 33% are male.

When you hear the phrases "fashionista" or "fashion fan", male consumers may not instantly come to mind. But it would be a huge mistake to leave this audience behind.

Our data shows that a whole third of fashionistas are, in fact, male.

This means any brand looking to squeeze the most out of this audience would do well to include male consumers in their product range, advertising and relationship-building.

Broadcast TV is a crucial channel for brand discovery.
Proof point:

The fashion industry has been accused of being late to adopt new technology and invest in online efforts.

Our research shows that TV ads, seen as a traditional marketing channel, actually score highest among fashion lovers, with half saying it's their main source for discovering new brands, products or services.

In the same vein, 43% rely on word-of-mouth recommendations, meaning brands would do well to invest in their reputation and fan-building.

However, these "offline" brand discovery channels are closely followed by search engines, online ads and brand websites, underlining the importance of having a wholesome presence to be seen where fashion consumers are.

They love to communicate with brands via social media.
Proof points:

Fashionistas are 79% more likely to share a brand's post on social media.

1 in 5 upload photos/videos to brands' social pages.

It comes as no surprise that fashion lovers are keen social media users - they spend an average of 3 hours per day on social networks.

But they don't just spend this time mindlessly scrolling through their feeds; in fact, this audience is highly active on social.

Being 79% more likely to share a brand's social media posts presents a key opportunity.

By creating optimized content and having a well-developed presence on the platforms that matter, such as fashionistas' favorites YouTube, Facebook and Instagram, and top-indexing Snapchat, brands can encourage engagement from this group.

But that's not all; 1 in 5 fashionistas also upload their own photos and/or videos to their favorite brands' social network.

This means not only can brands with a strong, consumer-centric social presence benefit from this audience's eagerness for engagement, but also encourage user-generated content that will enrich their feeds.

Social commerce is on the rise.
Proof points:

Fashionistas are 49% more likely to use social media to research or discover products to buy.

They're nearly twice as likely to follow brands they're thinking of buying from.

16-34 fashionistas are 1.7 times more likely to be driven to purchase by 'buy' buttons on social.

Social commerce has struggled to take hold in the West, while enjoying rapid success in Asia in particular. But fashionistas are primed and ready to join the social commerce movement.

The insights speak for themselves. Social 'buy' buttons, famously difficult to nail down successfully, are attractive to this audience, who are also twice as likely to follow brands on social ahead of buying one of their products.

Being 49% more likely to use social for product discovery and research before making a purchase also presents an opportunity for brands to commercialize their social networks more than they may have done before - and to start experimenting with that 'buy' button.

Fashionistas primarily use mobile devices for online commerce.
Proof points:

Last month, 73% bought a product via mobile - 23% more than via PC/laptop.

1 in 4 sold a product via mobile, making them 25% more likely to do so.

They're 49% more likely to have used a mobile payment service, at 53%.

For this crowd, their mobile device is extremely important, and they use it for most of their online commerce behaviors.

They're 50% more likely to use their mobile to make a purchase than their PC or laptop, highlighting a desire to do their shopping on the go.

It naturally follows that they're more open than most to using mobile payment services to aid their speedy commerce; 53% did so last month.

With this in mind, retail brands looking to target this strong-minded bunch should ensure their mobile experience is on point, and their checkout process is quick and pain-free.

Reaching fashion consumers in 2019.

Fashionistas are always the first with the latest - and their online and brand behaviors are no different.

Our latest research reveals a group who know what they want and how they want it, eager to engage with brands and be part of their story.

This opens up a multitude of opportunities for retail brands to reach fashion consumers in 2019, encouraging meaningful and lasting brand-customer relationships on social media and beyond.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Consumer Marketing for the Fashion Industry in 2019 - GlobalWebIndex

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In the fashion industry, it's all about being 'on trend'. But what that means is changing. Today's fashion consumers are finding, sharing, buying and researching brands in completely new ways. Our research identifies 13% of internet users as fashionistas, meaning they have a strong interest in fashion, have purchased clothes in the last month and like to keep up with the latest fashions.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Technology is revolutionizing the retail sector. Whether that's reimagining physical stores, changing consumer demands, rethinking brand marketing, or bolstering back-of-shop efficiency.

Retailers who want to succeed need to reevaluate their current operations and adapt if they want to thrive. We broke down the 4 most important retail trends hitting the industry this year to see how they're going to do just that.

1. Online and offline retail are coming together.

In recent years, various media outlets have been suggesting that the humble retail store will soon fall victim to the unstoppable power of online retail commerce.

This is often coined the retail apocalypse. However, we've found that such claims may be exaggerated.

The high street is not the same as it once was. Businesses that are unable to adapt to the internet age are facing serious challenges.

For example, Toys 'R' Us and Mothercare are no longer regular shopping spots. And recently, one of the UK's biggest property funds, M&G, suspended its £2.5bn property portfolio blaming the retail downturn for its problems.

Our data found that the retail store is here to stay: 3 in 4 internet users in the U.S. and UK say shopping in-store is their preferred way of shopping for clothes. Interestingly, this figure doesn't even fall below 70% for the digitally-native Gen Z, illustrating how offline fashion has a truly cross-demographic appeal.

Consumers value the tangible connection that physical stores give them. They want to be able to feel, smell, and try the products they buy, which is one of the primary reasons why they keep coming back to stores.

Essentially, we're seeing a new kind of coexistence emerge, one where the offline and digital worlds work together and complement each other seamlessly. This is happening in two directions:

Online giants are investing in the physical retail space, e.g. Amazon's launch of Amazon Go.

While traditional retailers are developing their online presence, such as Walmart's acquisition of digitally-native, Eloquii.

In 2020, successful retailers will be those that focus on the customer experience rather than transactions.

Whether that's implementing immersive technology features like smart mirrors, or more practical elements like a cafe, transforming the in-store experience based on consumers' needs is increasingly important to not only drive traffic but to keep consumers engaged for longer.

Almost a quarter of in-store fashion buyers say they shop in-store because they enjoy the experience.

It's also pivotal that retailers actively promote this online and offline integration. We know from our data that online shoppers would be encouraged to shop in-store for a number of reasons, such as if they were able to order out-of-stock merchandize for delivery (26%) or pay without waiting in a queue (30%).

The process of online and offline integration is not just driven by consumer demand for omni-channel capabilities - increased efficiency for the retailer is also a major contributing factor. For example, by encouraging in-store pick up, retailers can have a much better understanding of localized consumer demand.

Not only does this improve Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) by reducing oversupply and subsequent waste; the reduction in last-mile delivery costs can be substantial.

Improvements to CSR are welcomed in any industry, but in retail, sustainability is of particular relevance.

2. Sustainability is more important than ever.

Globally, 64% of millennials and Gen Z try to buy natural or organic products.

In the past, buying sustainable products was often unaffordable for many; today, alternative eco-friendly products are much cheaper. This is especially true in consumption-based industries such as retail. They're no longer a show of status, they're simply just the right thing to do.

This is also a topic that touches a nerve, especially among younger generations. In fact, as much as half of Gen Zs in Europe and North America do not feel positive about the future of the environment.

And retailers are taking note.

For fashion retailer Timberland, sustainability is key to its purpose as a brand, and its overall identity.

In November last year, the company launched its first " purpose-led " flagship store in London. With real trees, a full-height living green wall, and natural elements throughout, the aim was to bring nature into the city and encourage customers to interact and explore the brand in a more physical way.

Not only is this an example of reimaging physical stores, but it shows how sustainability - as part of the experience - is key to that.

Consumers are more informed about the sustainable qualities of retail products, and they're also cautious of quantity. Responsible consumption has already developed in the food industry but the fear of living a wasteful life is starting to take effect in other industries too. When we asked U.S. and UK consumers which industries should hold themselves most accountable to having a better CSR policy, the food and pharmaceutical industries came out on top - with over half of respondents selecting these.

In comparison, only a third of respondents thought the fashion industry needed to be more accountable to having a better CSR policy.

Despite many fashion brands driving the sustainability agenda, it's clear the stigma surrounding policies in fast fashion is less ingrained in society than issues such as food waste. However, as movements propelled by Extinction Rebellion and Greta Thunberg build sustainability awareness, consumers will begin to demand more from retailers across the board.

We also can't ignore the fact that if current fast fashion policies continue, the retail industry could consume a quarter of the world's carbon budget by 2050.

Above all, consumer demands and expectations from retailers are changing. Our data shows that 48% of internet users want brands to be eco-friendly, rising to 52% for Gen Z.

Sustainability is increasingly becoming key to retail's long-term success and it's crucial that brands earn the loyalty of this young generation before it's too late.

3. Social media is a key part of the purchase journey.

Efficiently optimizing social media in the online purchase journey will be key to being profitable in the retail space in 2020. The most successful retailers will be able to make use of influencers to drive purchases, rather than just brand promotion.

Influencer marketing is most relevant to Gen Z because globally they're 34% more likely to find out about new brands and products through endorsements by celebrities or well-known individuals.

What's more, 3 in 10 Gen Z and millennials typically discover new brands through ads seen on social media. As Gen Z grows older and their spending power increases it's important that retailers are successful in engaging them.

A survey carried out using our custom research found that 48% of influencer followers ¹ in the U.S. and UK want influencers to be trustworthy, making this the number one desirable attribute.

By partnering with trusted influencers, that trust is reflected in the brand. Using the right influencers in brand campaigns can be a powerful way to convert followers into brand customers and may be more effective than traditional advertising methods, especially for younger generations.

Over 40% of internet users in the U.S. and UK use Instagram to engage with influencers - making it the most popular platform to do this. As Instagram is currently experimenting with in-app purchases, influencer partnerships are set to earn retailers some serious rewards.

4. Efficiency is changing retail from the inside out.

A final major retail trend is how new technology is changing the way in which vendors operate their supply chain and optimize their inventory.

The technological advancements driving this trend, include, but are not limited to: artificial intelligence; the Internet of Things; motorized robotic micro fulfilment warehouses such as TakeOff; blockchain in the supply chain such as Wholechain; and autonomous vehicles in last-mile delivery such as Walmart's partnership with Nuro.

To stay ahead of competition, retailers are looking to find the most efficient, cost-effective, and eco-friendly ways of operating their business.

This is something which chimes with consumer expectations, with around half saying they want brands to be innovative and smart.

Using our Work data set, we discovered that 40% of retail managers say improving efficiency and productivity is an important initiative for their company to drive growth next year.

This is their second highest priority behind cost cutting and highlights how technologies mentioned above will likely be in increased demand this year as retail managers attempt to do this.

Decathlon in Singapore is a great example of such technology adoption. The French retailer has equipped its stores with automated inventory management tools like RFID tags and a dedicated service counter to deliver efficient in-store pickup.

By optimizing back-of-shop efficiency alongside omnichannel retail, this brand is leading the way in the retail revolution.

This year will certainly prove to be an interesting one for the retail industry. As retailers learn to adopt new technology that helps them improve their store functions, CSR policies, social presence and back-of-shop efficiency; physical and online retail have every opportunity to thrive.

Influencer followers refers to any internet user that engages with influencers on social media.

Retail managers are defined as those who work in retail and have an executive, senior or departmental management role.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Retail Trends 2020: Global Retail Industry Trends - GlobalWebIndex

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Technology is revolutionizing the retail sector. Whether that's reimagining physical stores, changing consumer demands, rethinking brand marketing, or bolstering back-of-shop efficiency. Retailers who want to succeed need to reevaluate their current operations and adapt if they want to thrive.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Yesterday, we saw that brand advertising plays a considerable role in inspiring eco-consumerism, looking at results from a study carried out by GlobalWebIndex among 2,324 internet users in the UK and U.S.A.

Today, we dive into exactly what factors consumers want brands to provide, and which product categories attract the most product research.

Even for self-reported Eco-Conscious Consumers, some product categories take priority over others for researching their production.

For both men and women, household cleaning products and personal care products are researched the most, with food (61%) close behind.

With alcohol (21%) at the bottom of our list, we can see differences even among grocery products for what products consumers want to ensure are eco-conscious. Electronic devices (49%) are a more surprising inclusion to the top 5, which suggests that drawing on eco-friendly materials in marketing them can have an impact, as well as the usual feature-led tactics.

By looking at what Eco-Conscious Consumers want in their products, we can get an idea of the current concerns consumers have for the environment.

Beyond general concern, it's sustainability which motivates Eco-Conscious Consumers the most (74%), while being carbon-neutral (42%) is less of a priority.

Respondents to our survey place less importance on third-party certificates than general assurances about eco-conscious production, underscoring the opportunity for brands to take the initiative in their product messaging.

If we combine these two data points by forming audiences of those who research for each product category, we can unlock further insights about what consumers desire for those particular products.

Respondents who research clothes are more concerned about labour in the supply chain, whereas researchers of electronics are more concerned about the environmental effects of production. Perhaps the most revealing insight is that food researchers are the least concerned with affordability. The implication here is that Eco-Conscious Consumers are most happy to pay a premium for eco-friendly or ethically produced food.
Eco-Conscious Consumers are defined as internet users aged 16-64 who say that concern for the environment affects their day-to-day purchase behavior.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Eco-Conscious Consumers Keen on Sustainability - GlobalWebIndex

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Yesterday, we saw that brand advertising plays a considerable role in inspiring eco-consumerism, looking at results from a study carried out by GlobalWebIndex among 2,324 internet users in the UK and U.S.A. Today, we dive into exactly what factors consumers want brands to provide, and which product categories attract the most product research.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Environmental degradation is hitting the headlines lately. News articles and documentaries around rising seas, declining air quality and shrinking animal populations are more common than ever - and they're beginning to cut through.

A couple of moments stand out in particular. In Australia, it was the War on Waste TV program, while in the UK, David Attenborough's Blue Planet II series sparked a cultural shift around plastic consumption.

Sales of reusable coffee cups and water bottles took off, plastic straws were banned in many bars and restaurants, and brands like Evian and Coca-Cola promised packaging made from recycled materials.

The impulse to "go green" is clearly gaining momentum. According to a recent bespoke study we carried out in the UK and America:

Half of digital consumers say environmental concerns impact their purchasing decisions.

There's a difference between intention and action, but brands could miss out on a big group of consumers if their green credentials aren't up to scratch.

Millennials are leading the way.

From free-range meat to vegan skincare products, millennials are regularly considered to be the ones driving the sustainable movement with their lifestyle and behavioral changes.

Often coined the "Green Generation", many brands are starting to see the appeal and opportunity in these changes. UK sandwich chain Pret A Manger now has three all-vegetarian outlets, for example, while L'Oréal has unveiled its first vegan hair color range.

Our global data shows firm evidence for this. Millennials (aged 22-35) are more likely than any other generation to say that they would pay extra for eco-friendly or sustainable products.

Over 60% say this, compared to 55% of Gen X (aged 36-54) and just 46% of baby boomers (aged 55-64). Gen Z are hot on their heels, though, and figures for this generation are only likely to grow as its members' disposable income grows.

And it's important to note that if millennials are more conscious than ever about their purchases reflecting their beliefs and values, and Generation Z is close on their trail, a long-term change is most likely taking place.

Where does the responsibility lie?

As a society, we now have a level of understanding of the damage being done by our "throwaway" culture. But whose responsibility is it to initiate change?

The consumers we surveyed in the UK and U.S. admitted they felt most responsible for the future of the planet, but 52% believed responsibility lies with manufacturers or production bodies.

The responses we've seen so far from the biggest brands are a step in the right direction, but there are still huge amounts of consumer goods out there that rely excessively on plastic material.

This invariably means consumers are faced with less choice in their ambition to 'go green'.

We see evidence for this in our UK and U.S. data. Although high proportions choose reusable bags, bottles and recycle, just 34% of those surveyed actively avoid products that are harmful to the environment, like plastic straws or cutlery.

For brands, this represents an opportunity to focus on the solutions that can be made to our plastic problem.

Stainless steel straw producers Turtle Savers is one brand to emerge following the revolt against single-use plastics. As bars and restaurants began banning plastic straws, a lucrative gap in the market was left for them to capitalize on. Other brands need to follow suit and work to provide consumers with alternatives to plastic products.

CPG brands face the bulk of the pressure.

CPG brands, in particular, will face increasing pressure and expectation to initiate change. When determining the "greenness" of different product categories, consumers are most likely to research cleaning and personal care products.

In part, this could be down to the assumption that eco-friendly products are more natural and better for their health, which is also likely to be why food is highly researched.

62% of eco-conscious consumers in the UK and U.S. believe eco-friendly products are better for their health.

For household products, in particular, there's been a recent movement away from products that contain harsh chemicals following reports that many household products have toxic chemicals linked to health problems.

Unilever has been quick to capitalize on this trend and is reaping rewards as a result. Earlier this year, the company revealed that its 'sustainable living' brands grew faster than the rest of the business and delivered 70% of its turnover growth.

And for the first time in 20 years, it's decided to roll out a new personal care brand, Love Beauty and Planet - an eco-conscious brand that's vegan-friendly and uses bottles made from recycled plastics.

Ultimately, it's not just PR reasons why the biggest brands should be thinking green; there are financial gains to be had too.

Fast fashion could come under scrutiny soon.

With plastic waste currently at the center stage, it's logical that CPG brands experience most of the pressure at the moment. Consumers aren't as considerate when buying products from other categories, like electronics and travel, mainly because the environmental impact of these products hasn't had the same amount of publicity.

Less than half of eco-conscious consumers research clothes, shoes and bags before buying them.

In reality, the fashion industry, in particular the low-cost, high-volume fast-fashion retailers, is one of the biggest culprits. Water pollution, toxic chemical use and textile waste are just some of the costs to the environment that result from our love of fast fashion. But consumer awareness around the environmental impact of fashion is still relatively low.

It's easy to see how one documentary or news story could seriously shake up attitudes, just as it did with our reliance on plastic.

Sustainability is still yet to majorly hit the agendas of most fast-fashion brands. H&M talks about sustainability more than most others in the market, but there are plenty of other brands who are yet to join them.

What we know for sure is that the environment needs to be at the top of every business's agenda. Over the coming year, the pressure to be green is set to expand into new product categories, and brands need to start seeing this as an opportunity rather than an obstacle.

As we saw with Unilever, there are financial benefits to be had beyond just good PR. But to fully realize the true potential of the green market, businesses must help consumers change their behaviors.

And that requires removing the hurdles between would-be green consumers' intentions and actions.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Consumers Going Green: Everything You Need to Know

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Environmental degradation is hitting the headlines lately. News articles and documentaries around rising seas, declining air quality and shrinking animal populations are more common than ever - and they're beginning to cut through. A couple of moments stand out in particular.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Yesterday, we saw that brand advertising plays a considerable role in inspiring eco-consumerism, looking at results from a study carried out by GlobalWebIndex among 2,324 internet users in the UK and U.S.A.

Today, we dive into exactly what factors consumers want brands to provide, and which product categories attract the most product research.

Even for self-reported Eco-Conscious Consumers, some product categories take priority over others for researching their production.

For both men and women, household cleaning products and personal care products are researched the most, with food (61%) close behind.

With alcohol (21%) at the bottom of our list, we can see differences even among grocery products for what products consumers want to ensure are eco-conscious. Electronic devices (49%) are a more surprising inclusion to the top 5, which suggests that drawing on eco-friendly materials in marketing them can have an impact, as well as the usual feature-led tactics.

By looking at what Eco-Conscious Consumers want in their products, we can get an idea of the current concerns consumers have for the environment.

Beyond general concern, it's sustainability which motivates Eco-Conscious Consumers the most (74%), while being carbon-neutral (42%) is less of a priority.

Respondents to our survey place less importance on third-party certificates than general assurances about eco-conscious production, underscoring the opportunity for brands to take the initiative in their product messaging.

If we combine these two data points by forming audiences of those who research for each product category, we can unlock further insights about what consumers desire for those particular products.

Respondents who research clothes are more concerned about labour in the supply chain, whereas researchers of electronics are more concerned about the environmental effects of production. Perhaps the most revealing insight is that food researchers are the least concerned with affordability. The implication here is that Eco-Conscious Consumers are most happy to pay a premium for eco-friendly or ethically produced food.
Eco-Conscious Consumers are defined as internet users aged 16-64 who say that concern for the environment affects their day-to-day purchase behavior.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Eco-Conscious Consumers Keen on Sustainability - GlobalWebIndex

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Yesterday, we saw that brand advertising plays a considerable role in inspiring eco-consumerism, looking at results from a study carried out by GlobalWebIndex among 2,324 internet users in the UK and U.S.A. Today, we dive into exactly what factors consumers want brands to provide, and which product categories attract the most product research.