A new study by Kering: the environmental footprint of consumer use and end of life of luxury products

Kering has launched the first major international survey to understand the Luxury consumer’s behavior around product use and end of life. As one of complex topics for sustainability in fashion and Luxury, the environmental impacts associated with these phases in a product’s life cycle are influenced by product care, product life span and product second life. These variants are directly linked to the day-to-day choices that an individual makes and how they treat their products. These choices include habits such as how often they wash or dry clean their clothing, which then determines a product’s energy consumption, water use, chemical and micro-fiber release into waterways. Another key impact driver is based on how an individual discards an item. These decisions could result in a piece of clothing or an accessory going direct to landfill, or alternatively, it could provide an extension of the product’s life through recycling or up-cycling, or even delivery to a secondary market for re-sell. Following its open-sourcing philosophy, Kering will share the results of the survey which will provide a deeper understanding around the different impacts that consumer choices can create and, ultimately, how the Luxury sector can help their clients reduce their own footprint.