Sustainable Fibre and Circularity Support Under The European Clothing Action Plan

Situation

Peak Performance wanted support to develop evidence-based strategies to support the uptake of more sustainable fibres and, consequently, reduce the environmental impact of clothing being sold within the EU market.

Impact

Peak Performance reduced its collection’s average water footprint by 34 percent and its average CO2 footprint by 13 percent, as a result of the fibre strategy developed during European Clothing Action Plan.

Solutions

Being part of the ECAP project has increased our understanding of our fibre footprint, and helped us set clear goals and start tracking against them. We have a much clearer picture about what we need to do to convert unsustainable materials into better options.”

Åsa Andersson – Sustainability and Quality Manager, Peak Performance.

Situation

Peak Performance is a leading sports apparel brand with an ambitious sustainability agenda. The company took part in the European Clothing Action Plan, which aimed to adopt circular approaches to clothing in collaboration with 13 brands across Europe.

Peak Performance worked with Anthesis, in partnership with WRAP, on the area of sustainable fibres, to increase the uptake of environmentally sound materials and reduce negative impacts. Anthesis role was to support ECAP participants such as Peak Performance in developing evidence-based strategies to support the uptake of more sustainable fibres and, consequently, reduce the environmental impact of clothing being sold within the EU market.

Solution

Our experts followed a structured approach to provide support with the main interventions being:

  • Establishing a baseline fibre mix and footprint
  • Delivering an interactive strategy workshop
  • Outlining current fibre mix and associated environmental impacts
  • Raising awareness of sustainable fibre alternatives, innovations and trends
  • Initiating the development of a sustainable fibre strategy
  • Ongoing, bespoke support to enable implementation of the sustainable fibres strategy
  • Tracking progress through conducting midterm and endline footprint reports, assessing uptake and improvement potential of more sustainable fibres.

Impact

Between 2015 and 2019, Peak Performance reduced its collection’s average water footprint by 34 percent and its average CO2 footprint by 13 percent, as a result of the fibre strategy developed during European Clothing Action Plan.

In addition to the fibre strategy workshop and footprint reports, circular economy experts from Anthesis, in partnership with WRAP, also produced a report on bio-based materials in the apparel sector for Peak Performance. Some of the findings from this research provided inspiration for an Op-Ed in the renowned industry journal Apparel Insider.