French President Emmanuel Macron is using Kering SA Chief Executive Officer Francois-Henri Pinault’s help to lead a global fashion industry sustainability drive, seeking to reduce its environmental footprint by urging brands brands to commit to progress on issues like ocean health, biodiversity and climate change during this summer’s G7 summit in Biarritz. Specific targets could include eliminating disposable plastics within three years or converting to renewable energy sources by 2030, Pinault told at a Copenhagen conference. Paris-based Kering SA owns luxury labels like Gucci, Saint Laurent and Balenciaga.
France also floated a plan to outlaw the widespread practice of destroying unsold clothes and luxury goods, with Deputy Ecology Minister Brune Poirson saying at the conference that the practice will be banned in France. Luxury labels mostly prefer to burn unsold items or bury them in landfills rather than risk damage to their image when their items are spotted in discount counters. Growing concern over the fashion industry’s harmful impact on the environment has led to some brands banning the use of materials like fur or deploying new materials like mushroom leather for handbags.
LVMH, which owns Louis Vuitton and Dior, recently announced a partnership with UNESCO on protecting key ecosystems for supporting the luxury industry, like the habitat of black bees whose honey is used in its Guerlain skincare products.
