From the moment we entered the halls of the Salt Palace (the convention center in Salt Lake City, Utah) and saw a giant inflatable mammoth hanging from the ceiling, until the moment we ended our day with a beer courtesy of Teva, we knew this was a different kind of conference. Don’t be fooled though, work is definitely being done at the Outdoor Retailer show. Almost every brand in the industry had a booth at this summer’s event. Retailers as large as REI and as small as Mountain Tools were in attendance, with many buyers making the entire year’s purchase at the show. As this was our first time attending Outdoor Retailer, we wanted to give our overall impressions, highlight trends within the industry, and talk a bit about corporate sustainability.

We’ve written about some of the products earlier in the week. Here’s a recap:

Patagonia finally released the P26 hiking boot it created for the Backpack Magazine Zero Impact challenge. We had a chance to speak with company co-founder and president Demetri “Coup” Coupounas about GoLite’s sustainability efforts, and see the new Tier 1 backpacks made in part from recycled materials. After wandering over to Lafuma/Millet, we saw their recycled packs and eco-friendly un-dyed climbing rope. Then, up on the second level of the Merrell booth, we learned what happened to the company’s NADA concept–we’ll give you a hint, it isn’t gone.

cause no unnecessary harm

What we haven’t yet mentioned is that there were plenty of companies who either had no sustainability initiatives, or did not articulate any to us during our time at Outdoor Retailer. When we spoke with the marketing manager of one prominent outdoor company, we were stunned at how little this representative could tell us about his company’s sustainability efforts. As he was searching for something to talk about, he told us that (and we’re paraphrasing) companies are just expected to be sustainable these days.

Forgive us if we won’t make that assumption. Even among those companies with strong sustainability initiatives, there is doubt about consumer dedication to environmentalism. As Coupounas, told us, “The great mass of consumers does not want to sacrifice performance or pay more for sustainable.”

And that might be the real take-away from Outdoor Retailer: Companies don’t yet feel that the payoff is there to be as sustainable as possible. After all, they are in the business of selling outdoor products, not saving the planet.

Even Patagonia, widely believed by consumers to be one of the most sustainable outdoor companies has a mission statement that acknowledges the fact that the current method of production causes harm to the environment. Patagonia representative Jessica Clayton explained their philosophy, “Make the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, and use business to inspire and implement a solution to the environmental crisis.”

In Patagonia’s mission statement the “cause no unnecessary harm” part is present because in order to make a product, some harm has to happen. These are companies that make outdoor products (mostly great products that we enjoy using), and at the end of the day they’re trying to sell you a jacket, or a shoe, or backpack.

One of the issues preventing companies from implementing greater sustainability initiatives is cost. Many of these companies are publicly held, and are therefore beholden to investors, to meeting margins, and to increasing the share price.

“We’re all in this business because we love the outdoors. The challenge in front of us is how to run a business, and do right by the environment,” said Bill Inman of Merrell when asked why companies in the industry don’t do more to be sustainable.

Together, Inman and Coupounas have captured the general business sentiment on sustainability efforts not only within their own industry, but also in that of the greater business community. Companies feel that the realities of the marketplace are such that they cannot afford to produce completely sustainable products. There are very few brands with customers who are willing and able to pay a premium for, and value, 100 percent green gear.

low hanging fruit: recycled plastics

However, our overall impression is that companies are, by and large, embracing sustainability in both product development and corporate initiatives. Perhaps there is a realization, even if just peripherally, that extracting resources from the earth to produce goods that are quickly consumed then buried in landfills is not a business practice that can continue forever.

We’re encouraged by what seemed to be a widespread use of recycled polyester or nylon in products at many booths. Now that the quality of these recycled materials is equal to that of virgin, many companies are spending the extra money to incorporate them into their offerings. We fully expect this trend to continue, especially as the prices for these recycled materials decreases.

Of course, sustainability isn’t limited to carbon footprints or just about using recycled materials. We keep asking what about the water, what about the pollution from dyeing apparel? Only a few brands are taking this question into consideration. Of course, it’s something all of us in the industry should look at given that the textile industry is a major water user and polluter.

In January when we return to Salt Lake City for the winter iteration of Outdoor Retailer, we hope to sit with many of these same companies to discuss just how to produce the best quality apparel, and minimize its environmental impact. After all, what good is outdoor apparel if there’s nowhere left to use it.

In our third post on the Outdoor Retailer show, we’re highlighting Lafuma Group and its latest products and sustainability efforts. The group oversees a handful of brands, including two on display at the show in Salt Lake City: Lafuma and Millet.

Lafuma is a long-time French producer of multi-purpose outdoor gear for hiking, camping, and miscellaneous other uses. Some years back, the company opened its North American headquarters in Colorado in the hopes of expanding its presence in the U.S. market. Millet is the group’s climbing brand, and it produces equipment, apparel, and accessories. Both companies had new products and initiatives to share with us.

Lisa Koker, marketing manager for Lafuma North America, told us about some of the company’s latest sustainability efforts. Its French headquarters recently added a new solar roof and an “eco-café” serving organic produce to employees. On the product front, the company is using recycled polyester and nylon in many of its new backpacks (a trend among companies we spoke with at Outdoor Retailer). Lafuma has been working on a product rating system called the Pure Leaf project, which is meant to gauge the environmental impact of a product – though it’s a more consumer-oriented initiative than the GoLite Index we wrote about in our last post.

Millet, like its sister brand Lafuma, also has created the Beyond 25 backpack, partially built with recycled material. Although the companies may have shared materials for pack production, Millet was displaying one product not found at the Lafuma booth – partially dyed climbing rope. Given their reduced environmental impact, partially dyed or un-dyed products aren’t as common as one might expect. There was only one other company we spoke with using un-dyed materials (we’ll cover that in our next post). A Millet representative told us the company tested a completely un-dyed version of the climbing rope, but that it had performed poorly in focus groups. The partially dyed rope, however, is still an improvement over a traditional rope, environmentally speaking.

“By not dyeing the rope we save 66 percent of the energy,” said Stephane Arnauld, export manager for Millet.

The company also operates a rope reclamation program in Europe, an initiative Millet may expand to the U.S. So far, 180,000 meters of rope have been collected. In addition, Millet produces three climbing products that are made from industrial waste (though they were not featured at Outdoor Retailer).

Millet representatives told us the company’s approach to sustainability is to focus on “low-impact” rather than on recycling. And while that may be true, we expected a bit more information on sustainability from representatives of a company that supposedly has a long history of environmentalism.

We took the time to review Lafuma Group’s 2009 sustainability report, and there is quite a bit of information about recycling old products and using recycled materials in new products. Under the “industry” section of the report, the company includes a breakdown of its internal carbon footprint assessment. Raw material and finished product purchasing accounted for 85 percent of emissions, while freight only represented 5.9 percent. With the vast majority of its carbon footprint represented by raw materials purchasing, we’re betting the company will increase its use of low-impact and recycled materials in the future. We’ll check back with company representatives in the future to see if that’s the case,

A growing number of big brands are instituting recycling programs, then highlighting those efforts in corporate sustainability reports (CSRs) and to consumers. The programs are important for the environment and for retailers. But they also are important steps toward creating a closed-loop recycling future–where new goods are produced from recycled materials, then recycled again.

The following are examples of recent recycling initiatives:

• Target plans to add recycling centers to all of its 1,740 stores. The centers will accept aluminum, glass, and plastic containers, plus plastic bags, MP3 players, cell phones, and printer ink cartridges. The retailer has faced pressure to match the sustainability efforts of competitor Wal-Mart in an ongoing battle of eco one-upsmanship.
• Electronics giant Best Buy is kicking off a new recycling goal to collect one billion pounds of electronics and appliances. The program, which began April 22 (Earth Day), invites consumers to “Recycle It On.” Best Buy officials believe the company will meet the billion-pound goal over the next few years. The program does have certain restrictions. For instance, only three items can be brought in for recycling per person, per day.
• The three largest U.S. wireless phone companies (Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint) have stepped up their recycling programs for mobile phones.
• Specialty grocer Whole Foods, which already provides customers with standard recycling bins, is expanding its program in many stores to also collect corks and #5 plastics for recycling.
• Marks & Spencer, in its updated Plan A program, unveiled a clothing recycling effort–something not commonly found beyond thrift shops and the Salvation Army.  The company plans to help its customers recycle 20 million garments.

Some of the more ardent green activists believe all products should be either biodegradable or recyclable. They want the government to impose restrictions that would prevent the production and sale of items that cannot be disposed of “properly.” Such draconian measures are unrealistic, but those environmentalists are well-intentioned. They want to see complete recycling of all goods.

We too would like to see all goods recycled in a closed-loop system. As technology and economics pave the way for more extensive recycling, we will move closer to a closed-loop reality. In the meantime, the recent surge in recycling programs could be an indication that we’re heading in that direction.

Companies with new recycling programs have an opportunity to demonstrate to consumers that retail outlets can have dual roles: as recycling collection centers as well as places to buy new goods.

Two reasons companies pursue recycling efforts are:

1. It looks good. Companies can boost their environmental credentials and strengthen their brands by highlighting recycling programs for consumers. Recycling is almost universally recognized and associated with good environmental behavior.
2. It brings people into their stores. Like coupons or loss-leaders, recycling programs can attract customers–something vital to all retailers.

Recycling programs at retail centers will increase the amount of goods that are recycled, but those programs alone will not get us to a closed-loop future. Like those ardent environmentalists, more producers of goods should focus on “end of life” (EOL) disposal strategies. We’ve done that with our ecobanner display product, and many companies are beginning to design products with recyclable materials and EOL in mind. The more ubiquitous recycling becomes, and the more companies focus on designing products for EOL, the closer we’ll move to a closed-loop future.

Which other organizations are implementing recycling programs? Share visions of recycling’s future in our comments below.

Marks & Spencer (M&S), the British retailing giant known for selling up-market foods in addition to clothing, announced last month plans to become a sustainable leader in the retail market. The company has updated its Plan A program (originally launched in 2007) to reflect this new goal.

Sir Stuart Rose, chairman of Marks & Spencer, outlined the company’s long term goal in a recent press release:

We’ve now set ourselves the ambitious target of becoming the world’s most sustainable retailer by 2015, so that we lead the way in making a positive contribution to the environment and society across everything we do and everything we sell.

M&S plans to dive deep into its supply chain to alter textile production and sourcing. The company has a stated goal of reducing energy use at these facilities by 10 percent. It plans to accomplish that in part by:

• installing energy efficient lighting
• improving insulation
• optimizing temperature controls

In its Plan A document, M&S identified ways to improve its clothing division. Those include:

• Helping customers increase the number of garments they recycle from 2 to 20 million
• Working with suppliers and factories to reduce waste within the supply chain
• Rigorously managing the raw materials and natural resources used to make products
• Paying workers in developing countries a “living-wage” (although M&S didn’t specify what constitutes a living-wage)

Better water management is another featured goal. The company hopes to be 25 percent more water efficient by 2015, and to increase in-store efficiency by 30 percent. To accomplish this, M&S has brought in partners such as the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) to help better understand its corporate water footprint.

The WWF helped M&S identify four key areas along its supply chain where water use could be improved–cotton production, farming, food manufacturing, and dye-houses. In the case of dye-houses, the company plans to create three “eco” dye-houses, and then replicate the most efficient of those processes throughout its supply base.

Dye-houses and traditional textile manufacturers are a large part of the water waste and pollution problem. Redesigning those facilities and using the best water management practices would hopefully help change the culture of pollution in the developing world’s textile industry – and do so without sacrificing profits. After all, while these initiatives may be kinder to the environment, Plan A also needs to offer an overall improvement in profitability.

So far, it appears M&S is on the right track. The company has saved £50 million this year, and it believes bigger savings will come from further execution of Plan A.

Part of what we found compelling about the company’s Plan A program is that executives are being offered incentives to complete goals. We believe that it’s not enough to declare an environmental goal – companies must also inspire employees to get onboard. Providing rewards is a tried and true method, and one that more companies should implement alongside the incentives traditionally awarded for expanding the business or reducing costs. M&S has a long way to go before becoming the world’s greenest retailer, but Plan A might trigger the thorough supply-chain examination needed to get them there.

photo credit: Marks & Spencer

Just a quick post this Friday evening as the Colorep/Transprint team is behind-the-scenes at the fall 2010 ready-to-wear New York Fashion Week with Jeffrey Costello and Robert Tagliapietra. And just like the SS2010 show, the boys from Brooklyn have maximized the unique design applications AirDye® technology makes possible and put out a stunning eco-friendly fall collection.

Jeffery took his camera underwater to capture the opalescence from the underside of a stingray and that became the  inspiration for this collection. But the pieces are far from feeling cold–the shimmering images of the sea are contrasted with warm, rich tones of deep rose with shimmering copper, gold, and plum. Each piece, be it a jacket, skirt, or dress is dramatically draped and emphasizes the contrasting colors.

Via Twitter, Faith Cummings said, “Color palette at Costello is so warm and perfect. I almost feel heat radiating from the clothes.”

playing up the contrasts

The collection has contrasting color palettes as well as contrasting fabrics. Costello Tagliapietra alternate between a soft jersey and a heavier more structured fabric. Typically for the bolero jackets, they’d need to be double-faced to achieve the contrasting colors, but with AirDye, Jeffery and Robert are able to achieve just the look they want with a single piece of fabric–much more sustainable. As Bonnie Julian, vice president of design for Transprint, puts it, “Using AirDye you can dye one side of the fabric one color and the other side can be completely different. Thus allowing the beauty of the cut, flow, and drape of the fabric to be completely in the hands of the designers. You lose that control when you have to use two pieces of fabric.”

Speaking of sustainability, the average piece in this fall 2010 ready-to-wear collection uses about four and a half yards of fabric. By using AirDye, each item saves between 350 and 450 gallons of water over traditional dye and decoration methods.

Naturally, we’ll have lots more photos and feedback soon. But here’s a quick tour of some other photos posted via Twitter:

photo credit: jezebeljenna – large photo