CATEGORIES
CATEGORIESThe next evolution of an important outdoor industry partnership recently has been formalized as the Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) and Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) partner to ensure broad adoption of the Higg Index. This benchmark for manufacturers sets standards for internal practices (verifiable by third parties), with over 175 companies and organizations now part of SAC.
The driving force? The outdoor industry is aware of consumers’ desire for sustainable products that harmonize with their outdoor lifestyle – and the future of the places where we play. And has been the driving force for more than a decade.
The challenge is producing sustainable outdoor apparel and products that truly match these values, manufactured in an affordable manner in either the U.S. or overseas. These products exist, and more global brands are coming to terms with their customers’ willingness to pay for them.
Yet, as with the natural and organic foods markets, there’s been caterwauling and confusion over labeling. As in, what “sustainable” clothing really means and who should be allowed to claim it on hang tags. Outdoor industry thought leaders saw the need for a common definition, taking tangible steps back in 2007 with the formation of the Sustainability Working Group.
The OIA Sustainability Working Group utilizes a pre-competitive, collaborative working group model. Its first project was to lead creation of the original "Eco Index” tool, launched in summer 2010, which brands employ to assess supply chain impacts in the industry. The Higg Index follows from this groundbreaking work.
According to Outdoor Industry Association’s Director of Sustainable Business Innovation Beth Jensen in a recent interview with Active Junky, “the intent has always been to ultimately make this information consumer-facing as well. An important and related question the outdoor clothing industry has been asking is, how can this Higg Index information be most effectively conveyed to consumers? Do they need another label or score? How do we strike the right balance of transparency vs. too much information?”
To date, 53 outdoor industry brands have Higg.org accounts with 43 Brand Modules in progress or completed, and 21 Brand Modules posted. “This builds on years of partnership between Outdoor Industry Association, and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. Outdoor Industry Association played a critical role in the collaborative building of the Higg Index. We look forward to seeing OIA, along with fellow SAC members, lead on demonstrating meaningful sustainability improvement through the Higg Index,” said Jason Kibbey, CEO of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition.
The OIA Higg Index Adoption Campaign will also be a focus of the sustainability meetings and events at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, August 1-6, 2016 in Salt Lake City, UT. Learn more about the Sustainability Insights Conference and Sustainability Working Group meetings at ORSM at outdoorindustry.org and apparelcoalition.org.
Based in Boulder, Colorado with offices in Washington, D.C., Outdoor Industry Association is the leading trade association for the outdoor industry, serving more than 1,200 manufacturer, supplier, sales rep and retailer members through its focus on trade, recreation policy, sustainable business, market and consumer insights, and industry trends
