A New Advancement for Sustainable Fashion: How We Can Learn Through Patagonia’s “Worn Wear” Initiative
Written by Brett Byers
Nearly 3.8 billion pounds of clothing are sent to landfills within the United States per year. That is over 80 pounds of clothing per American. The fashion industry is the second-largest water consumer on Earth and is responsible for eight to ten percent of overall global emissions, a figure projected to increase by 50% in 2030 (Earth.org 2023). The immense toll the fashion industry has on the environment is no new topic, and we are all aware of these daunting facts.
New sustainability practices to cut down on the overconsumption and waste of the fashion industry have been implemented for the past couple decades. However, one clothing brand’s initiative to reduce these effects and promote an environmentally-conscious movement has been a blueprint for the future of sustainability within the world of fashion.
Launched in 2012, “Worn Wear” is a long-running campaign produced by the clothing brand Patagonia to promote sustainability within fashion. It encourages consumers to purchase or trade-in used clothing, as well as repair clothing they already own rather than discarding it or buying new. With the purchasing of second-hand clothing becoming increasingly popular, due to a rise in thrifting and vintage stores, festivals, and more, this campaign has become incredibly relevant today.
The first advertisement campaign that Patagonia launched for this enterprise during Black Friday of November 2011. Featured in The New York Times, the advert was titled “Don’t Buy This Jacket,” and encouraged customers to consider the environmental effects of buying excessive new clothing. It advocated for consumers to purchase used Patagonia products rather than new. This began the initiative for Patagonia to push towards more environmentally-friendly practices, and promoted the idea for customers to “think before they buy.”
In 2012, shortly after the advert dropped, Patagonia officially launched the Worn Wear campaign with the rollout of several videos that highlighted the stories of dedicated customers and the gear they owned. From surfing the seas to climbing tall summits, these short videos, featured on Patagionia’s social media, shared the journeys of Patagonia owners and the gear they took with them. Further, they explain why they’d rather keep using and repairing these items rather than replacing them.
The series of videos was overall successful and inspirational to many, amassing hundreds of thousands of views across multiple platforms. Shortly after, the initiative expanded into clothing swaps, pop-ups, and global repair events. Additionally, an online resale shop separate from Patagonia’s online website was created, and a storefront in Chicago fully dedicated to selling and trading used gear. Patagonia stated that, “We’ve grown a lot, but our goal has always been the same: keep stuff in use longer and reduce our overall consumption” (2018).
Along with its campaign, Patagonia vowed to ensure that all of its labor and manufacturing is safe and sustainable. On their website, they state that they are conscious of their footprint, and thus take several actions in ensuring everything is manufactured environmentally-friendly. The brand states that they’ve built extensive environmental and animal welfare responsibility programs to guide how they make their materials and products under “safe, fair, legal, and humane working conditions.” Additionally, they share information about their facilities and suppliers across the supply chain in order to educate customers on where and how their clothes are made.
In particular, their website provides a detailed map of the locations of all the suppliers and facilities they work with within the country.
Equipped is a brief description of why they work with each supplier, highlighting the eco-friendly and fair labor practices that each facility abides by. In contrast to fast-fashion companies such as Shein and H&M, which don’t disclose or even attempt to conceal their manufacturing techniques, the transparency of Patagonia’s production is a refreshing step in the right direction to promoting sustainability and environmentally-conscious clothing manufacturing.
Further, their website aims to educate consumers on the fast fashion industry as a whole. They provide extensive descriptions of why they implement all of their practices, explaining that “apparel workers are among the lowest-paid employees in the world,” and that “the clothing industry is filled with many working in unsafe working conditions, low pay, and job discrimination.” By educating the masses on the harms of the fashion industry, the brand can provide more awareness on what consumers can do to prevent and minimize these damages.
Overall, “Worn Wear” has been an extremely successful movement promoting sustainability within the fashion industry. With climate change an ever-prevalent subject in the world, it is now more important than ever that we practice sustainable fashion and shop through ethical means. Not only does this initiative encourage consumers to be environmentally conscious and sustainable within the purchasing and wearing of clothes, but it also is a testament to challenge and encourage other fashion brands to follow these eco-friendly routes, promoting renewable clothing and discouraging fast-fashion practices.
Edited by Hana Razvi, Katherine Rubinstein, Sophia Buckholtz, Olivia Daly & Natalia Zeise
