We are committed to reducing waste across our own operations and supply chain. Where we do generate waste, we want as much as possible to be collected, sorted, and recycled.
Waste
The challenge
Waste is a significant global issue, with far-reaching implications for our environment and for people. Addressing it requires systemic solutions.
Our own operations and supply chain generate several types of waste, from product and packaging waste, to textile offcuts in the supply chain. If not managed properly, it can end up in places where it shouldn’t and harm the environment.
Customers need reliable systems to safely dispose of packaging or products. This means improving global waste management infrastructure, including better sorting and recycling technology. To build a system that works, companies, policy makers, recyclers and other stakeholders need to work together.
Our approach
In line with our environmental policy, we want to generate as little waste as possible. We also want to increase the share of waste that is reused or recycled and for no waste to end up in landfills,.
We are guided by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s circular economy principles and the European Union’s Waste Management Hierarchy. We prioritise actions towards the top of the pyramid, prioritising prevention and reuse before recycling.
To prevent and reduce waste, we design for durability and recyclability, align production with demand, use recycled materials and offer customers ways to prolong the life of their garments.
When we do generate waste, we treat it as a resource. We work with our partners to improve material collection, sorting, recycling and circulation. Through our joint venture, Looper Textile Co., we are improving textile sorting in Europe. As a founding partner of Syre, we are extending the life of used textiles and helping to increase the availability of textile-to-textile recycled polyester – a better alternative to PET-recycled polyester. Our garment collecting programme also helps to increase the reuse and recycling of textile waste.
We work with peers, experts and policy makers to encourage collective action and effective legislation. Advocating for policies that support an effective circular economy helps us achieve our goals for circularity and recycled materials.
Prioritised waste streams
Our waste management strategy focuses on product and packaging waste in our own operations, textiles collected from our customers, and textile cutting waste from product manufacturing.
Waste from our operations1
In our own operations, most waste comes from products that are returned as damaged or faulty, those damaged during transport or with a production fault, and from packaging.
We are removing unnecessary packaging, and reducing its size and weight. We are also replacing plastic with paper or cardboard to improve recyclability and increase packaging recycling rates.
Our priority is always to reuse products before recycling. If damaged or recalled products cannot be sold through our own channels or via partners, such as outlets, we prioritise donating them to charities. We may also sell them to sorting partners.
For some items, reuse or recycling is not always possible. There may be inadequate waste handling infrastructure or recycling technology for the product type, for example beauty products or ceramics. In cases where products are contaminated or considered harmful, we prioritise incineration for energy recovery.
Textile cutting waste in the supply chain
Textile cutting waste generated during production is a valuable resource. Our suppliers follow guidelines to ensure this waste is recovered and recycled where possible. We are also building a network of recyclers using the digital platform, Reverse Resources.
Textiles collected from customers
We were one of the first brands to launch a garment collecting programme in 2013 and since then we have received over 172,700 tonnes of textiles from customers. In early 2023, we launched Looper Textile Co., an independent joint venture with Remondis that provides local municipalities and retailers with solutions to extend the useful life of unwanted garments via reuse and recycling. We encourage our partners to sort products according to their condition, in line with the EU waste hierarchy, which prioritises reuse before recycling.
We have been collecting used textiles from our customers for over a decade. In 2024, customers dropped off over 17,000 tonnes of textiles at our collection points. We work with our partners to bring these products and materials back into the supply chain for reuse or recycling. This extends their life and reduces the amount of textile waste discarded in household waste.
1 Products discarded in our own operations (in stores or in distribution centres) are included here.. This includes textile products – garment and home –, accessories, hardware products, beauty and chemical (e.g. candles) products.
We publish our sustainability progress report annually. In this document, we set out our goals and the progress we’ve made in the previous year. Find the latest version here. More up to date information can be included on this page.
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