Textile Exchange, a leader in driving sustainable practices in the fashion, apparel, and textile industry, has released its latest report titled Reimagining Growth Landscape Analysis. The comprehensive report examines the prevailing linear “take-make-waste” business model of the industry and calls for a fundamental shift away from unchecked resource consumption.
The report highlights that the industry’s current trajectory is incompatible with achieving key climate, nature, and human rights goals. It emphasizes the need to pivot from traditional interpretations of growth to models aligned with “regenerative economy” and “post-growth” principles. This shift is crucial not only to bring the industry back in line with the planet’s limits but also to ensure its resilience and mitigate future risks associated with supply chain instability, resource depletion, and incoming legislation.
The analysis provides actionable pathways for industry leaders to reimagine value creation beyond exponential increases in the extraction and production of new raw materials. It advocates for eliminating the use of virgin fossil-based synthetic materials and championing sustainably sourced renewable and closed-loop, textile-to-textile recycled feedstocks. The report also emphasizes the importance of designing durable, high-quality products and scaling circular business models, such as repair, rental, resale, and responsible take-back initiatives.
Textile Exchange calls for accelerated collaboration across the global fashion, apparel, and textile ecosystem to embed circularity, ethics, and sustainability into business strategies. By rejecting outdated paradigms and adopting practices that prioritize environmental stewardship and human well-being, the industry can align its growth with the planet’s finite limits while creating a more equitable future.
Sources:
[1] Reimagine growth landscape analysis
https://textileexchange.org/knowledge-center/reports/reimagining-growth-landscape-analysis/
