Want to Improve Workers’ Well-Being? Redesign Their Uniforms to Be Smarter
April 9, 2024 – People take uniforms for granted. Whether they’re in the corporate, athletic, educational, healthcare…
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Sustainability is an important topic in all textile industries but is particularly front and center in the fashion industry. Consumers are taking fashion sustainability seriously, which forces brands to take it seriously, but there’s still so much work to do. At CELLIANT, we are constantly working on finding new ways to integrate our natural bioceramic infrared technology into more sustainable fabric options. It’s important to our brand partners and to their customers to know they are not only improving their well-being with infrared but also doing better for the planet.
With that in mind let’s look at the growing importance of sustainable fashion and then dive into five of the top trends we’re seeing brands capitalize on in order to deliver more sustainable fashion.
Sustainable fashion is trendy as consumers seek to align their dollars with their values, purchasing goods and services or supporting brands that allow them to feel positively about the choices they are making. With growing understanding of how consumer choice impacts the planet and the people on it in various ways, purchasing sustainable fashion makes consumers feel like they are contributing towards solutions.
To put into perspective just how rapidly sustainability is growing in importance for consumers across industries, let’s examine some related metrics. In 2022 90% of Gen X consumers said they would spend an extra 10% or more for sustainable products which is up from 34% in 2020. In fashion, a study by Bain & Company showed that “15% of fashion consumers are already highly concerned about sustainability and consistently make purchasing decisions to lower their impact. That percentage could increase to more than 50% in the coming years as more shoppers gravitate toward sustainable practices.”
Without question, sustainability is an issue that is important today but will be absolutely critical for fashion brands in the near future.
What brands understand that consumers may fail to realize, is that in order for a product to be truly sustainable, there are steps throughout the entire supply chain that must be taken. Developing a sustainable supply chain is not an overnight or simple process. However, there are several trends in sustainable fashion that are making it easier for brands to evolve in a more sustainable direction. Let’s take a look at some of these trends below.
Circular fashion is a considered fashion brand business model that takes into account all phases of a garment: the manufacturing, use, and end-of-life of a garment with a goal to ‘close the loop’—meaning materials never end up as waste. As defined by Good On You, circular fashion has the following key points:
Circular fashion is also gaining visibility for consumers, and accountability for brands, for example through the Circular Fashion Index from Kearney. 2023 marked their third annual report measuring the global fashion industry’s progress toward circularity and sustainability. The framework utilizes eight dimensions that impact the longevity of a garment to assess the circularity score, commending those who are excelling and providing feedback for improvement for those who are not. While these sustainability index frameworks can be flawed, they are reflective of a desire to quantify efforts being made and help guide consumers towards brands that match their values, as well as to hold accountable those who are not yet making efforts to follow trends in sustainable fashion.
Though many fashion brands are struggling to adapt to circularity, there are brands who are excelling including Patagonia, North Face and Levi’s, who we partnered with to create their +Energy Denim Line.
Another trend in sustainable fashion that is helping supply chains add in measures of sustainability throughout is the use of biodegradable materials. Biodegradable materials refers to using fabrics in fashion that will biodegrade safely once they have exceeded their useful life. This sustainability trend is critical because no matter the level of recycling and re-use we do for our garments, there will inevitably come a time when the garment is disposed of. When that garment is created with biodegradable materials, the impact of its disposal on people and the planet is much less than traditional fabrics that may await their fate in a landfill for years to come.
While CELLIANT is just an ingredient brand, and the end use of how it is ultimately incorporated into a garment is at the discretion of the brand partners we work with, we at least take pride in the fact that CELLIANT consists of all natural minerals that occur organically as part of the Earth’s ecosystem. We are also very pleased of our partnership with Kelheim Fibres to create our natural viscose product, CELLIANT Viscose. Kelheim’s viscose fibers are biodegradable, meaning they are capable of being completely broken down by microorganisms in the sea or the soil.
Digital printing is an innovation in fabric printing that is more sustainable than traditional printing methods. Digital printing uses less water and less energy, no harsh chemicals and is much easier to recycle. It also allows for more precise designs, eliminating fabric waste when it comes time to cutting. Digital printing is ideal for small batches, where it is more cost and time efficient (though it does have high up-front costs), making it a great choice for small, innovative fashion brands. As trends in sustainable fashion continue to become increasingly paramount, we look forward to the evolution of digital printing in more cost-effective and mass-scale ways.
Recycling and upcycling in fashion are two different sustainable fashion trends that are related, as they are both all about keeping garments out of landfills. Recycling fashion in a post-consumer sense means taking a garment completely apart for use in the production of a new garment instead of throwing it away. Brands also rely on pre-consumer recycling in taking fabric scraps and leftover materials and utilizing these to make new garments. A great example of recycling is our brand partner, Tecnica, and their ski boot recycling program.
Upcycling, on the other hand, means using the garment, or pieces of it, to create something else. Rather than recycling a pair of jeans, for example, they may get changed into denim shorts to create a new garment out of the existing one. Upcycling is a rapidly growing trend and plays a role in creating circular fashion. There are plenty of brands that have made upcycling their foundation.
Recycled fibers means using reclaimed materials to create new fibers that then produce new garments. Most recycled fibers are actually made from other recycled materials, like plastic bottles, as recycling old garments can be a difficult process due to their combination of different materials. Often, recycled fibers are not only beneficial in the sense that they are taking landfill-bound materials and doing something useful with them, but can require less volumes of land, water, energy and chemicals to produce as compared to their virgin material counterparts.
At CELLIANT, we constantly innovate and seek out partnerships to create more sustainable fabrics infused with our infrared technology. One key fabric type is rPET (recycled polyester). We offer CELLIANT with REPREVE which was recognized in the Spring Summer 2025 ISPO Textrends Awards in the Accelerated Eco category. We also offer an rPET fiber blend solution with Imbotex, the leading Italian manufacturer of natural, recycled and technological textile paddings, that was featured in The Woolmark Company’s Fall/Winter 2024-2025 digital trend resource library.
Of course, CELLIANT goes beyond fashion and apparel as our infrared technology makes a difference in a number of industries, including everything from mattresses and bedding to femtech to athletic tape and more. As we continue to innovate, we are similarly excited by all of the innovation occurring in the realm of sustainable fashion, recycled materials, eco-friendly clothing and more.
If you’d like to learn more about CELLIANT infrared wellness technology and our recycled or natural fiber options, we’d love to hear from you. Fill out the form below to get in touch with our team.
The difference between PET and rPET is that PET is polyester that has been created from new plastic, also called virgin polyester, while rPET is polyester that is created from recycled plastics.
Biodegradable materials in fashion means that the fibers and other material used to create a garment that will break down without leaving behind waste. This is important because if a product is not biodegradable it may contribute to waste management and landfill complications.
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