Brands like Lenzing and Eileen Fisher are working toward goals like zero waste, clean water and sanitation. Lenzing’s goal by 2030 is to reduce emissions by 50 per cent and to be net zero by 2050. The company works with retailers and brands to support their own sustainability goals and educate consumers about them. Fiber producer Lenzing is the maker of Tencel. Eileen Fisher’s vision includes supply chain transparency, supporting regenerative agriculture and circularity. Consumers can bring used clothing to an Eileen Fisher store where it is cleaned and resold at lower prices if it is in good condition, chopped up and recycled, or used in wall installations. Eileen Fisher is a women’s clothing retailer.

Ambitious sustainability goals in the textile industry are being reached through partnerships between retailers, suppliers and other stakeholders. Because not every company can afford to maintain a large sustainability department, a way out is for companies – and competitors – to work together. In November 2018, a signed UN charter detailed how the fashion industry, whose practices have been criticized as environmentally detrimental, can reduce emissions by 30 per cent by 2030. The fashion industry sees it as an obligation, after inspiring consumer consumption, to now encourage consumers to reuse and recycle, in that order.