Sarah Kent

With efforts to avert climate crisis just limping along, the industry needs to brace for a harsh new reality.

As the Californian outerwear brand publishes its first ever sustainability progress report, its 50-year effort to model and promote a more climate-friendly form of capitalism is under threat.

The standards big brands rely on to back up their green claims are facing intense and unflattering scrutiny, Trump’s trade war is having far-reaching and destructive impacts on the lives of garment workers and what to watch ahead of the UN’s COP climate summit.

Some in the industry are becoming more vocal in suggesting that government, not brands, should be responsible for violations deep in the luxury supply chain and things are getting political.

Big luxury has deployed a tried and tested playbook to defuse the fallout from an ongoing sweatshop scandal, there’s been an unusual level of regulatory drama in Brussels and we’re giving up on the prospect of an Hermès handbag made from mushroom leather.

Europe is pushing ahead with moves to water down flagship sustainability rules in a bid to boost competitiveness, while Italian lawmakers are looking at ways to protect ‘Made in Italy’ from the fallout of a sweatshop scandal.

After a season of designer debuts, we’re looking at whether fashion has delivered on its great reset, as well as the other drama playing out in Paris: Shein’s plans to open its first physical stores. Then there’s the latest luxury sweatshop scandal, and also Taylor Swift.

The Vogue publisher said it has long-standing guidelines that prohibit the use of new animal fur in most editorial and advertising content. These have now been made public.

This week, Ralph Lauren dropped its net-zero emissions target, while pledging to stay the course on more concrete, near-term goals. Meanwhile, Brunello Cucinelli clapped back at short sellers and Vestiaire Collective is looking to play the carbon market.

The company said it would focus instead on more concrete, near-term goals to deliver measurable results and drive accountability. It has already achieved its current emissions-reduction target for 2030.

The company said it would focus instead on more concrete, near-term goals to deliver measurable results and drive accountability. It has already achieved its current emissions-reduction target for 2030.

The Italian cashmere label rejected allegations that it misled investors about its Russian business and discounting practices and confirmed it’s on target to grow sales 10 percent this year.

Efforts to establish a cleaner, kinder fashion sector are struggling, but it’s not clear what the answers are.

The ‘quiet luxury’ Italian cashmere label that’s still generating double-digit sales growth amid a sharp downturn in luxury demand has cast itself as the tortoise to the wider sector’s hare.

The sportswear giant has toned down communications around its sustainability efforts, replacing its glossy annual impact report with hard-to-find data sheets. Meanwhile, Rolex is cosying up to Trump and the EU’s push to clean up fashion waste is getting real.

Big brands are taking steps to shore up consumer confidence in their high-end positioning, after a series of sweatshop scandals contributed to a sense of ‘luxury ick.’

The Great Fashion Reset | How to Fix Luxury’s Trust Issues

The US is ending all tariff exemptions for low-priced packages, while India is grappling with hefty new duties for American shipments and Taylor Swift is doing the diamond industry’s marketing for it.

Failed efforts to agree a global treaty on plastics pollution point to emerging challenges for the fashion industry, while Swatch is the latest brand to face a backlash over a marketing campaign many consumers found racist.

An Italian union is seeking to hold Richemont legally accountable for alleged workers’ rights violations at a Montblanc supplier, as scandals linking brands like Dior, Armani, Valentino and Loro Piana to sweatshops draw more scrutiny to the sector’s sourcing practices.