If the fashion world wants to have less of an impact on the planet, the best solution would be to produce less. But well-known brands still seem to think sales can keep ticking up as usual.
Global fashion chains are starting to talk about a radical overhaul of the clothing business. Hennes & Mauritz Chief Executive Helena Helmersson told climate-action group Race to Zero last month that there needs to be a “different approach to how fashion is designed, made and used.” The boss of Zalando , Europe’s biggest online clothing retailer, said in a recent interview with the Financial Times that “fast fashion”—where clothes are made and sold cheaply in huge numbers only to be disposed of after a handful of wears—must be abandoned within a decade.