#FORTHEFUTURE

We’re on a journey to a more sustainable future. We know the problems. We’re putting into action the solutions. We aim to educate and inspire change to reduce the impact of fashion.

As a business we are growing rapidly. We rely on strong relationships with our suppliers to provide our customers with on trend products at a great price. We’ve been building our team who work with our suppliers in the UK and further afield to make sure that we all have a clear map of all the factories producing our clothes and that our standards are followed to protect the workers in those factories and the quality of the clothes they produce.

On the 15th September, we ran our first meet the makers event, opening the doors to three of our suppliers in leicester. We welcomed members of the public, local government officials, journalists and members of our boohoo family to see behind the scenes and witness the great work we are doing.

We use a test and repeat approach. Production runs are small and we only order more of the products our customers like. This means that we don’t over order or hold excess stock which helps to reduces our waste.

Take a look at what happened during the tours.

What is it?

Polyester is made from a synthetic plastic fibre made from PET (the most common plastic in the world!). It’s the most widely used fibre in the clothing industry because it is really versatile, doesn’t wrinkle much and dries quickly - it is also very good value. It’s produced by melting the plastic and pushing it through tiny holes. The polyester threads are spun and woven into a material.

What are the problems with polyester?

Polyester is derived from crude oil and relies on a lot of energy to produce it. While it requires less water to make than most natural fibres, it does require water for cooling. The other concern with polyester is the end of life, because it is derived from plastic it takes many many years to break down. There are also concerns with microfibre release.

What we are doing?

We’ve started replacing conventional polyester with certified recycled polyester. This is usually produced from recycled plastic bottles. This certainly isn’t perfect, but it has a lower environmental impact. Some recycled polyester manufacturers are making their fibres from ocean plastics. This is something we want to work with our suppliers on. We are members of the microfibre consortium and are collaborating with other brands and retailers with the aim to provide solutions to microfibre release.

Find out more about more materials goals here.

What is it?

Cotton is a natural fibre derived from cotton plants. The fluffy fibre is picked and spun into thread. Once woven into material, it is light, breathable, easy to work, and easy to wear. This is why it’s so popular.

What are the problems with cotton production?

Traditional cotton production takes up a lot of land, uses a lot of water and is often grown in countries that are facing severe water stress. Farmers often use chemically intensive insecticides and artificial fertilisers that pollute the land and nearby waterbodies.

What are we doing?

Alternatives to traditional cotton are organic cotton, better cotton initiative cotton, recycled cotton and REEL (Responsible Environment Enhanced Livelihoods) cotton. Our buying teams are working with suppliers to use these alternatives.

We’re proud to announce our partnership with CottonConnect to produce more sustainable cotton and good business practices. The CottonConnect partnership will allow us to produce REEL cotton:
• Responsible
• Environment
• Enhanced
• Livelihoods

We will be working alongside farmers to educate them about the benefits of more sustainable production methods.

We also include products sourced through Better Cotton™ under this branding. Better Cotton is sourced through a system of Mass Balance and is not physically traceable to products, however, farmers directly benefit from the Better Cotton Program thanks to our sourcing of Better Cotton. To qualify for the READY FOR THE FUTURE strapline and icons, products sourced as Better Cotton must contain at least 50% cotton.

A staple in everybody’s wardrobe, you will struggle to find someone without at least one pair of jeans. Unfortunately, this fashion essential has a damaging impact on the planet.

What are we doing?

Just one pair of jeans can require up to 10,850 litres of water to produce, including growing the cotton and the intensive dyeing and treatment processes.

By 2025 all of our cotton products will be sourced using one of our more sustainable cotton options like Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) or through our partnership with CottonConnect.

Educate

Human induced climate change is the increase in average world temperatures caused by humans using oil, gas and coal for their homes, factories and transport. Burning of these fuels releases greenhouse gases. The most common one is carbon dioxide. We’re already seeing the impact of climate change with droughts, floods, tropical storms and wildfires happening more and more frequently.

Evaluate

Carbon dioxide is emitted at every step of the clothing journey including fabric production, garment manufacture, transport, washing garments and at the end of their life. The more clothes that are produced the more emissions are released.

Execute

We have set ourselves science based targets which mean that we are committed to reduce the emissions relative to our growth in line with what the scientists say we need to do to stop catastrophic and long-term effects.

In our own operations we have taken great strides like moving to renewable energy contracts in all our offices and distribution centres and even installing solar panels to produce our own electricity. But we are not stopping there...

Our biggest emissions across what is known as our ‘value chain’ come from the production of our clothes, the transport of our clothes and the energy used in marketing. These are known as hotspots and where we are focusing our efforts.

Switching the materials we use for our clothes is an important step we are taking. We’re also working with our top suppliers to understand their energy use and see how this can be reduced and switched to renewable.

Check out our sustainable highlight on Instagram for hacks and more inspiring content.

‘Energy-saving mode’ Switch

We’ve introduced a new switch onsite, with just one click you can reduce the energy used by the site or app.

Whether you’re on site or app, just flip the switch! On site, we'll dim the screen throughout and remove images where possible for a lighter, faster experience. On app, you will enable dark mode at all times, use images with smaller file sizes and disable certain app features!

Hire Street

Hirestreet is the UK’s leading rental service. Worry-free rental fashion. As part of boohoo’s partnership with Hire Street, Boohoo by Kourtney Kardashian selected products are available to rent on this site in a range of sizes (pieces on Hirestreet get rented 20 times on average!) This is a great option for customers that love the pieces but want to reduce their impact on the environment by renting them rather than purchasing. This means they can be worn again and again by a range of people and the impact of clothing is reduced.

Tree Nation

Together, with our reforestation partner, Tree-Nation, we’re giving you the opportunity to give back by planting a tree. Tree-Nation works globally to plant new trees. We’re proud to join forces and help make a positive impact. While this doesn't solve the problem that fashion has on the planet, it's a step in the right direction.

How it works:

Upload a photo to Instagram using the hashtag, #boohoobykourtneykardashian on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter and we will plant a tree.

In collaboration with Global Fashion Exchange and its founder, Patrick Duffy.

Did you know that every piece of clothing we have in our wardrobe has an environmental impact? Whether it be in the production and dyeing of the fabric, transport, washing or at the end of its useful life.

So buy the pieces you love and wear them again and again, look after them carefully and when you don’t love them anymore think about re-selling them, sharing them or swapping them.

This kit is designed to help you look after your clothes so they keep looking fabulous for longer!