Weird Fish accelerates sustainability targets
Lifestyle clothing brand Weird Fish has brought forward its sustainability targets by a year due to more customers embracing its introduction of eco-friendly materials.
Since launching its The Only Way Is Ethics sustainability policy in 2019, the company said it has consistently exceeded its target for making its products more sustainable. This year, Weird Fish is already on track to hit its target of having 67% of products using eco-friendly alternatives, so has accelerated its original 2023 target of hitting 80% to 2022.
Weird Fish managing director John Stockton said: “When it comes to setting sustainability goals within a business, I believe one of the most important things is to be realistic. You can never expect such a fundamental change to happen overnight – any changes and innovations need to be carefully researched, tested, and their success measured to understand whether they actually do what they are supposed to do. We view every year as a ‘leap year’ and focus our attention on reaching challenging but obtainable targets.”
The company has saved the equivalent of 120,000 single-use plastic bags in stores following the introduction of grass paper bags in 2019. It has also swapped out standard cotton with organic cotton yarns whenever possible and widened its range of bamboo and Tencel fabrics. This year, Weird Fish has sold nearly a quarter of a million garments made from organic cotton instead of standard cotton, and had 30 times more sales of bamboo products in 2020 compared to 2019.
Stockton added: “Our sustainability efforts are still a work in progress, but we know that there is an increased appetite for more eco-friendly materials – both in products and their packaging. We don’t claim to be a 100% sustainable brand, and we’re transparent about that on our website. But by making small steps and constantly adapting along the way, I believe we’re making realistic changes that will last long-term and help make a difference.”
