The 2023 Sustainable Fashion Awards of the Italian Fashion Confederation (CNMI), held on the last weekend of Milan Fashion Week at the city’s Teatro alla Scala, recognized a number of luxury fashion houses and notable industry representatives in ten categories for their work in the field of sustainability.
While Italian luxury fashion house Gucci won the Ellen MacArthur Foundation Award for Circular Economy, French luxury group Kering won the Biodiversity and Water Award for its actions to protect, restore and regenerate biodiversity.
“In the world of fashion, our vision of a circular economy is one in which products are used more, are made to be reused, and are made from safe and recycled or renewable raw materials,” explains Andrew Morlet, executive director of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, in a press release.
Gucci receives Ellen MacArthur Foundation Award for Circular Economy
Gucci was recognized for its commitment to transforming its production model to create more responsible and circular luxury for the future as part of its “Denim Project”.
By partnering with the Regenagri-certified Algosur farm in Spain, Gucci’s project has set a high bar for incorporating regeneratively grown cotton into its denim collections. The brand also introduced a series of processes that allow garments to be reused, reprocessed and recycled to reduce waste and pollution through design.
“Building scalable collaborations is an important part of Gucci’s strategy and the ‘Denim Project’ is an example of combining the many strengths of the House’s supply chain partners and leveraging innovative technologies to enhance circular economy principles.” , Gucci CEO Jean-François Palus commented on the award.
Chloé and ACS Clothing are on the shortlist
Also shortlisted for the award were French luxury fashion house Chloé, a participant in the Jeans Redesign project, and Glasgow-based rental, returns and re-commerce company ACS Clothing, which is helping to drive industry-wide change by empowering brands and retailers to adopt circular models and keep clothes in use.
Chloé showed that it is possible to implement change at scale by converting 90 percent of its denim portfolio to circular design and using durable, traceable, safe and recycled materials in the garments. It received the Human Capital & Social Impact Award, which recognizes actors who take significant positive action to address, combat and potentially solve social injustice.
“We are pleased that the global fashion industry’s leaders – winner Gucci and finalists Chloé and ACS Clothing – are implementing these circular economy principles in their products and by redesigning entire business models,” adds Morlet.
Manteco wins Climate Action Award, Candiani Groundbreaker Award
Italian textile company Manteco received the Climate Action Award, given to fashion brands, delivery companies and organizations that have developed solutions to significantly reduce the industry’s greenhouse gas emissions.
The Groundbreaker Award honors innovative and unconventional solutions that mitigate the ecological and social impacts of the fashion industry. This award was given to the Italian denim manufacturer Candiani.
Valentino honored for Education of Excellence, Dolce & Gabbana for Arts and Crafts
Italian luxury fashion house Valentino was honored with the Education of Excellence Award for equipping those working in the fashion industry with technical know-how and thus promoting “Made in Italy”.
The Craft and Italian Artisanship Award is given to those who are committed to reusing existing materials and reviving decades-old manufacturing techniques, and are committed to preserving the tradition and craftsmanship of “Made in Italy”. This award went to the Italian luxury fashion house Dolce & Gabbana.
Ahluwalia receives Emerging Designers Award, Donnatella Versace Humanitarian Award
London-based label Ahluwahlia received the Bicester Collection Award for Emerging Designers, which recognizes the work of designers who develop innovative solutions, balancing the traditional elements of fashion with forward-thinking approaches that put sustainability at the heart.
Italian fashion designer Donatella Versace has been honored with the Humanitarian Award for Equity and Inclusivity, given to individuals who respect diversity, promote equity and practice inclusion.
The Visionary Award went to outgoing editor-in-chief of British Vogue Edward Enninful. The award honors “forward-looking, creative and innovative people who are changing the fashion system from within.”
“Transforming the fashion system will not happen overnight. But collaboration across the industry, from the design of future products to the processes, services, supply chains and business models that will deliver them and keep them in use, gives us hope that a circular economy can become the norm for fashion,” concluded Morlet.