LOS ANGELES — December 4, 2019 — Yesterday, GUESS announced that it has joined the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Make Fashion Circular initiative, an initiative to redesign the future of fashion.
Specifically, GUESS has committed to develop denim according to the initiative’s Jeans Redesign Guidelines, which tackle the issues of waste and pollution associated with denim production. The guidelines establish minimum requirements for durability, material health, recyclability, and traceability.
“The Ellen MacArthur Foundation is leading the way in rethinking fashion design, and GUESS is thrilled to be a part of this transformation. The Jeans Redesign Program challenges us to revisit how we make denim — and GUESS welcomes this challenge! At GUESS, we are proud of the progress we have made to produce more environmentally sustainable products, and our partnership with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation is another step towards our quest to make this world a better place,” said Carlos Alberini, CEO, GUESS
“GUESS has been synonymous with denim culture throughout its history — and by joining the Jeans Redesign they are helping to shape the industry’s future. We are delighted to be working with them to create jeans that last longer, that can be remade into new jeans at the end of their use, and are made in ways which are better for the environment and the people that make them,” said Francois Souchet, Make Fashion Circular lead at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.
GUESS is partnering with students at its local fashion university, the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) in Los Angeles, to develop the initial Jeans Redesign concept. This is a continuation of the company’s ongoing sustainability partnership with the university. The FIDM program has educated more than 250 students and employees combined since 2016.
“The GUESS-sponsored sustainability class at FIDM has opened the eyes for so many of our young designers. Through the GUESS program, we have trained our students on zero waste design, sustainable materials and product lifecycle, and sustainability’s role within the business of fashion. The Jeans Redesign partnership with GUESS is an exciting opportunity for our students to stay on the cutting edge of design; we are excited to give our students this opportunity to solve real world challenges when it comes to fashion and sustainability,” said Amanda Starling, chair, Special Projects, FIDM
This is the latest effort GUESS has made towards fulfilling its commitment to sustainability education and promoting fashion circularity, the idea that clothing should be continuously reused, reworn and recycled. The progress the company has made on these commitments — in addition to its larger sustainability plan — is detailed in its latest sustainability report, available at sustainability.guess.com.
Posted December 5, 2019
Source: GUESS? Inc.
