Prada's Sustainable Journey
Dominik Bini Falconi
Independent Industrial Designer | Delivering Strategic, Innovative Design Solutions that Drive Business Growth and Brand Success | FRSA
Prada has been on a sustainable journey since 2013 when they released their first Sustainable report, highlighting their commitment to the environment and social responsibility. This laid the foundation for their actions, which took off in 2019 when they first published a dedicated policy for sustainability and joined the Valuable 500, an international coalition for transformative change leading to positive development. Prada committed to not only addressing sustainability but also striving to close the loop in their approach.
"As a luxury fashion house, we can do more and lead this change. It’s our responsibility to show that responsible behavior and a positive impact on the environment is possible.” (Bertelli, Head of Pradas Group for Sustainability)
The company has managed to shape its business model around sustainability to accelerate its response to complex challenges and legislation in the years to come, as well as boost the credibility and reputation of the brand. Prada has not only approached sustainability from a material and energy efficiency perspective, but as a holistic system that includes education, water management, water resourcing, biodiversity and animal welfare, science evolution, greenhouse emissions, and more.
The collective efforts are aimed at achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, which doesn't sound far-fetched, especially considering the numbers and results gained over the past 10 years. Their investment in brand equity, design, and innovation for sustainability has paid off, with over 20% year-over-year growth and recognition as one of the fastest-growing brands.
Now there have definitely been some interesting highlights in this report from material sourcing to packaging, energy efficiency, after-sale service, and sustainable finance:
Sustainable Materials:?The group has a strong focus on material sourcing, paying attention to every detail from location and quality to animal welfare. They've kept a significant portion of their raw materials (86%) and semi-manufacturing (88%) in Italy, outsourcing less than 10% to manufacturers outside of Europe.
Now if we talk about packaging, in 2022 Prada bought 5,339 tons of paper worldwide reaffirming their commitment to recyclable packaging meaning that according to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), they have reached 97% of recycled packaging, 8% more than in previous years.
Energy efficiency:?Prada has also made significant developments?in renewable energy, investing in and operating 16 photovoltaic plants achieving 52% of their self-produced electricity (2019).?
After-sale service: Prada has always invested in customer-centric experiences, focusing on their customer post-sale experience that includes repairs for all products and brands worldwide, upholding the belief that luxury products are meant to last. In the report, the group reaffirmed that durability and product life are fundamental parts of their sustainable strategy.
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Sustainable Finance: Prada is also the first luxury brand to have adopted a sustainable-linked loan, which is a financial instrument that allows the company to reduce its interest rates upon achieving quantitative targets in the sustainable field. This loan was signed by Credit Agricole Group in 2019, and a secondary loan was obtained from the Japanese Bank Mizuho.
Some of the goals they aim to achieve include:
Food For Thought...
Navigating through their latest report was mind-blowing. Some areas are embracing a different approach to circularity, showcasing that our understanding of sustainability needs to evolve. We must shift from a material-centric to a user-centric approach, meaning that sustainability should encompass all stakeholders, services, and products, fostering a system that nurtures circularity.
There is a tremendous opportunity to extend the scope of sustainability beyond material-focused products and integrate it into various sectors that contribute to a sustainable ecosystem. These sectors include education, finance, policy, and taxation, among others. Will we witness a rise in financial services offering sustainable incentives to meet the 2050 net-zero deadline? Are government policies alone sufficient to drive companies in this direction?
There is much to be discussed and much to be done..."
Designer and MSc in Transition, Innovation and Sustainable Environments.
1 年Some food for thought: Is it actually possible to talk about sustainability when we talk about high fashion, if this industry is going to keep on producing exclusive and overpriced pieces of clothing, thus putting the "repairing" and "sustainable materials" for access to a, clearly stated by the price of their clothes, high class. I haven't dive deep into their strategy, it would be interesting to know how are they considering the waste cities that have been created around the world thanks to the long-time fashion manufacturing processes, and of course how are they considering the people struggling from this problematic. So far it feel like a kind of strategy that focuses more on a green-washing of their brand and I consider this approach to deepen the gap between the social and the environmental aspect of sustainability, thus jeopardizing the systemic approach mostly needed when designing for sustainable environments.