Selfridges x The Future Laboratory - Project Earth
type - features
Features
category - design
category - society
category - sustainability
sector - health & wellness
As we consider the future of retail in the inter-Covid, climate emergency era, London’s foremost department store Selfridges is launching a new sustainability initiative, Project Earth, which will explore how to positively transform the state of retail by 2025
Building on Selfridges’ sustainability initiatives of the past 10 years, Project Earth comprises three key areas of focus. Firstly, it will address the materials used in products, secondly repair and resell models for fashion and luxury goods, and finally how to inspire mindset shifts among its customers and employees.
‘Project Earth is not only our bold, new commitment to stretching environmental targets, it is about imagining new ways to do business within the next five years,’ says Alannah Weston, group chairman at Selfridges.
The Project Earth launch will also be supported by a programme of events, with talks, takeovers and screenings tackling topics from ethical consumerism to sustainable beauty. Selfridges will team up with more than 300 brand partners, from the Woodland Trust and WWF to The Future Laboratory.
Together with The Future Laboratory, Selfridges will consider the rise of Immaterial Fashion and how it can be positioned as a sustainable option for consumers, and part of a long-term strategic change for fashion and luxury brands. The Future Laboratory will host a takeover of Selfridges’ Instagram on 8 October 2020 to discuss the future potential of virtual fashion and the end of product ownership.
Chris Sanderson, Chief Creative Officer at The Future Laboratory, comments: ‘We’re so excited to be working with Selfridges once again on an initiative that casts a spotlight on how both retailers and consumers need to share the burden of responsibility for shopping in a sustainable and environmentally aware fashion. 'Covid-19 has had a huge impact on the way we shop, but has also made us all aware just how fragile some of our global networks are and how we are all so intricately connected. We’re going to be sharing our latest research and analysis on how the shift towards fashion rental is moving into the volume fast fashion market, and how designers are looking at the next generation of fabrics, textiles and designs that are more environmentally conscious, carbon neutral (or even positive) and the importance of being focused on delivering collections that have sustainability and a concern for the planet at their heart.’
For more on innovations, actions and future forecasts about sustainability and retail – from by-product beauty to circular store design – explore the dedicated sustainability vertical on The Future Laboratory’s trends intelligence platform LS:N Global.
‘Covid-19 has had a huge impact on the way we shop, but has also made us all aware just how fragile some of our global networks are and how we are all so intricately connected.’
Chris Sanderson, co-founder, The Future Laboratory
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