Cui Yi Xu

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PEOPLE

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The people pillar accentuates the significance of customers, colleagues, and other businesses. It explores ethical labor practices, featuring fair wages and humane working conditions, along with adhering to customer requirements. This pillar supports the substantial increase in diversity and inclusion amongst the fashion industry, promoting equal opportunities for people of all backgrounds. Numerous brands implement these concepts, aiming to target a diverse demographic, with their focus currently on Gen Z.

Gen Z, born between 1995 and 2010, constitutes a demographic that has had extensive exposure to the internet and social media, leading to a significant dependency on these platforms in their daily routines. This is evident in their shopping habits, dating preferences, and online connections, making a large portion of this generation trend-oriented, especially with the widely popular social media app TikTok. Their loyalties appear to lie with ethical brands, emphasised by their desire to address conflicts and improve the world, along with valuing individualistic expressions which can be seen through distinctive clothing choices, intending to stand out rather than conforming.

To appeal to Gen Z, businesses are likely to market their products through TikTok and Instagram, where they’re more prone to buying goods due to the ease in accessibility along with exposure, as they comprise of TikTok’s 60% of users out of the 1 billion. Gen Z also value brands that incorporate sustainable practices, along with those that are known to advocate inclusivity. They are highly unlikely to support brands that endorse discrimination such as racism or homophobia, as communicated in figure 1.

Figure 1. Graph demonstrating the differences between generations regarding joining shared causes, and graph on the right showing the percentage in which Gen Z will stop buying brands that are racist or homophobic.

This may lead to brands being open and truthful about their values, as seen with Dove, a company that has implemented tangible measures to promote inclusivity in beauty for women of all backgrounds, through delineating women as they are with zero digital distortion, along with including different ages, sizes, ethnicities, hair colour, type, and style, reflecting the population’s diversity. This message was conveyed through TV commercials, magazine features, talk shows, and an online global conversation. For more than 15 years, the Dove Self-Esteem Project has provided body confidence and self-esteem education to over 60 million young individuals, establishing itself as the largest provider of such education, via collaboration with recognized specialists in body image and leading universities to create education tools grounded in evidence.

For brands to thrive within the industry, key people skills such as active listening, strong communication, and integrity are a small selection required. Active listening involves understanding a colleagues or consumers wants and needs to effectively problem solve, accompanied with clear communication to deliver fulfilling results.

REFERENCES

Celebre, A. and Waggoner Denton, A. (2014). The good, the bad, and the ugly of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty | Magazine issue 2/2014 – Issue 19 | In-Mind. [online] In-mind.org. Available at: https://www.in-mind.org/article/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-of-the-dove-campaign-for-real-beauty.

Dove (2018). The ‘Dove Real Beauty Pledge’. [online] Dove UK. Available at: https://www.dove.com/uk/stories/about-dove/dove-real-beauty-pledge.html.

‌McKinsey (2023). What is Gen Z? | McKinsey. [online] www.mckinsey.com. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/what-is-gen-z.

Smith, J. (n.d.). The 20 People Skills You Need To Succeed At Work. [online] Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/11/15/the-20-people-skills-you-need-to-succeed-at-work/?sh=11792cac3216 [Accessed 18 Oct. 2023].

Wood, S. (2013). Generation Z as Consumers: Trends and Innovation. [online] Available at: https://archive.iei.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/GenZConsumers.pdf.

www.mckinsey.com. (n.d.). Generation Z characteristics and its implications for companies | McKinsey. [online] Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/true-gen-generation-z-and-its-implications-for-companies#/.

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PLANET

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Planet, one of the four main pillars of fashion business school, is defined as prioritizing products that are sustainably sourced, produced and transported.

The development of sustainable products can be achieved in regard to the concept of circular economy, defined as the cyclical use of resources and measurement against specific indicators, such as preservation of materials, functions, components, products, and embodied energy. Due to the various ideas of circular economy such as reusing, recycling, and refurbishing of existing materials, an extended life cycle for clothing can be attained, ergo reducing waste, and increasing further value of items, working in harmony with the planet. This model specialises in tackling the grave disadvantages of planned obsolescence, where products are designed with an excessive amount of readily available, cheap materials, intended to have a limited lifespan so consumers are encouraged to purchase them again.

Figure 1. Diagram demonstrating the process of circular economy.

Implementing circular economy is crucial for the enrichment of the environment, as it reduces the speed in the decline of natural resources, landscape, and habitat disruption to diminish biodiversity loss. Further support for the advantages of this model includes a decrease in the overall annual emissions of greenhouse gases, as per the European Environment Agency, which states industrial procedures and product utilization contribute to 9.10% of greenhouse gas emissions within the EU, whereas waste management constitutes 3.32%.

The growth of the world’s population is directly proportional to the demand for raw materials, causing a diminishing lack of finite supplies and therefore challenging the act of sustainability, as it may compromise the needs of future generations due to the requirement of fulfilling the demands of the present. However, sustainability in relation to fashion can be supported through seeking alternative strategies in the early production stages, either through manual intervention or computer software. These have assisted in minimising the environmental ramifications of the production and use of a garment, along with complimenting their use within the industry, with examples of tools and models known as the EcoMetrics/calculator, the Kering Environmental Profit and Loss tool, and the Higg Index. The utilization of these tools allows for measurements of the environmental impacts of different textiles and processes, accompanied with authorising brands, designers, and retailers to measure, and evaluate their sustainability performance. Despite a small number suggesting that sustainability may restrict innovation, it may further provide a new foundation for responsible yet brilliantly creative ideas, reinforcing the UN SDG Responsible Consumption and Production.

REFERENCES:

European Parliament (2015). Circular economy: definition, importance and benefits | News | European Parliament. [online] www.europarl.europa.eu. Available at: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/headlines/economy/20151201STO05603/circular-economy-definition-importance-and-benefits#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20circular%20economy.

‌Gwilt, A 2020, A Practical Guide to Sustainable Fashion, Bloomsbury Publishing USA, London. Available from: ProQuest Ebook Central. [7 October 2023].

Moraga, G., Huysveld, S., Mathieux, F., Blengini, G.A., Alaerts, L., Van Acker, K., de Meester, S. and Dewulf, J. (2019). Circular economy indicators: What do they measure? Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 146(1), pp.452–461. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.03.045.

Sabatini, N. et al. (2023) Fashion communication in the digital age: Proceedings of the factum 23 conference, Pisa, Italy, 2023. Cham, Switzerland: Springer.

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FC4D7017-C4E2-417F-904C-C566CEF96729

Favourite Cosmetics Brand

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Kiehl’s, an American brand featuring cosmetic, pharmaceutical, herbal, and medicinal concepts, was founded by John Kiehl in 1851. The brand features an everlasting tradition of ’try before you buy,’ a principle that has been expressed all throughout time through generous samples, along with proud listing of ingredients on labels, even before it was mandated by the US government. One of their best selling products, the Centella Facial Cleanser, is specially formulated for sensitive skin with Centella Asiatica, known to soothe the skin, leaving it cleansed and comforted. With its dual use formula, it showcases convenience in being able to be rinsed off with water or wiped away with a cotton pad. It is non-comedogenic, along with being alcohol and fragrance free, supporting a range of skin types in strengthening the skin barrier.

References:

(No date) Centella Sensitive Facial Cleanser | Face Skincare | Kiehl’s UK. Available at: https://www.kiehls.co.uk/skin-care/centella-sensitive-facial-cleanser/WW0063KIE.html (Accessed: 29 September 2023). 


(No date) Learn about Kiehl’s pharmacy heritage | Kiehl’s UK. Available at: https://www.kiehls.co.uk/world-of-kiehls/heritage.html (Accessed: 29 September 2023). 

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