IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i22p12681-d680535.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

From Fibre to Fashion: Understanding the Value of Sustainability in Global Cotton Textile and Apparel Value Chains

Author

Listed:
  • Zoe Mellick

    (Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice Faculty, School of Design, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane 4059, Australia)

  • Alice Payne

    (Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice Faculty, School of Design, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane 4059, Australia)

  • Laurie Buys

    (Health and Behavioural Sciences Faculty, Healthy Ageing Initiative, The University of Queensland, Brisbane 4072, Australia)

Abstract

Current sustainability frameworks and tools to assess and track social and environmental impacts of textile and apparel (such as life cycle analysis) along the chain, although important, provide a narrow focus on metrics (such as a reduction in inputs) or on economic value. This paper proposes a tailored method which combines value chain thinking with qualitative value mapping techniques to identify what sustainable value means and to whom, who benefits both in and beyond the chain (such as wider society, the environment, local communities), as well as opportunities to create sustainable value in the future. Results from interviews with stakeholders of a single connected cotton value chain demonstrate that this approach can identify sustainable value propositions specific to different actors in the chain, temperature-test whether stakeholders are willing to pay a premium price for sustainability efforts, and identify novel sustainable value opportunities that disrupt the chain. In addition to extending knowledge around sustainability in the textile and apparel industry, our contribution also lies in the development of a tailored tool which can be adapted and used for other value chains.

Suggested Citation

  • Zoe Mellick & Alice Payne & Laurie Buys, 2021. "From Fibre to Fashion: Understanding the Value of Sustainability in Global Cotton Textile and Apparel Value Chains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-21, November.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:22:p:12681-:d:680535
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/22/12681/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/22/12681/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Andrea Cardoni & Evgeniia Kiseleva & Paolo Taticchi, 2020. "In Search of Sustainable Value: A Structured Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-18, January.
    2. Caniato, Federico & Caridi, Maria & Crippa, Luca & Moretto, Antonella, 2012. "Environmental sustainability in fashion supply chains: An exploratory case based research," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(2), pages 659-670.
    3. World Commission on Environment and Development,, 1987. "Our Common Future," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780192820808.
    4. Rieple, Alison & Singh, Rajbir, 2010. "A value chain analysis of the organic cotton industry: The case of UK retailers and Indian suppliers," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 2292-2302, September.
    5. Yefei Yang & Han Han & Peter K. C. Lee, 2017. "An Exploratory Study of the Mechanism of Sustainable Value Creation in the Luxury Fashion Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-16, March.
    6. Bin Shen, 2014. "Sustainable Fashion Supply Chain: Lessons from H&M," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(9), pages 1-14, September.
    7. Anika Kozlowski & Cory Searcy & Michal Bardecki, 2015. "Corporate sustainability reporting in the apparel industry," International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 64(3), pages 377-397, March.
    8. Bin Shen & Qingying Li & Ciwei Dong & Patsy Perry, 2017. "Sustainability Issues in Textile and Apparel Supply Chains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-6, September.
    9. K. J. Watson & S. G. Wiedemann, 2019. "Review of Methodological Choices in LCA-Based Textile and Apparel Rating Tools: Key Issues and Recommendations Relating to Assessment of Fabrics Made From Natural Fibre Types," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-16, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kurniawati, 2023. "Sustainable Textile Practices by Integrated Viscose Rayon and Yarn Producers: An Empirical Study," GATR Journals jfbr210, Global Academy of Training and Research (GATR) Enterprise.
    2. Rhyllary Coelho e Silva & Ricardo de Siqueira Camargo & Gabriel da Silva Medina & Mariana Gatti & Eva Sevigne-Itoiz & Lorenzo Di Lucia & Onesmus N. Mwabonje, 2022. "Fashion Market Niches for Organic Agroforestry Cotton: Market Potential for Promoting Sustainable Supply Chains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-17, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sofia Garcia-Torres & Marta Rey-Garcia & Laura Albareda-Vivo, 2017. "Effective Disclosure in the Fast-Fashion Industry: from Sustainability Reporting to Action," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-27, December.
    2. Fung, Yi-Ning & Chan, Hau-Ling & Choi, Tsan-Ming & Liu, Rong, 2021. "Sustainable product development processes in fashion: Supply chains structures and classifications," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    3. Thorey S Thorisdottir & Lara Johannsdottir, 2020. "Corporate Social Responsibility Influencing Sustainability within the Fashion Industry. A Systematic Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-64, November.
    4. Shashi & Piera Centobelli & Roberto Cerchione & Amit Mittal, 2021. "Managing sustainability in luxury industry to pursue circular economy strategies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 432-462, January.
    5. Maria Fernanda Ortiz Dominguez & Yasser Ahmad Bhatti, 2022. "From Waste to Luxury Fashion at Elvis & Kresse: A Business Model for Sustainable and Social Innovation in the Circular Economy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-17, September.
    6. Elisa Arrigo, 2020. "Global Sourcing in Fast Fashion Retailers: Sourcing Locations and Sustainability Considerations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-22, January.
    7. Anupriya Desore & Sapna A. Narula, 2018. "An overview on corporate response towards sustainability issues in textile industry," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 20(4), pages 1439-1459, August.
    8. Jisoo Oh & Bongju Jeong, 2014. "Profit Analysis and Supply Chain Planning Model for Closed-Loop Supply Chain in Fashion Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(12), pages 1-30, December.
    9. Esther Oluwadamilola Olufemi Rotimi & Cheree Topple & John Hopkins, 2021. "Towards A Conceptual Framework of Sustainable Practices of Post-consumer Textile Waste at Garment End of Lifecycle: A Systematic Literature Review Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-18, March.
    10. Anupriya Sharma & Sapna A. Narula, 2020. "What motivates and inhibits Indian textile firms to embrace sustainability?," Asian Journal of Sustainability and Social Responsibility, Springer, vol. 5(1), pages 1-23, December.
    11. Hakan Karaosman & Gustavo Morales-Alonso & Alessandro Brun, 2016. "From a Systematic Literature Review to a Classification Framework: Sustainability Integration in Fashion Operations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-19, December.
    12. Abbate, Stefano & Centobelli, Piera & Cerchione, Roberto, 2023. "From Fast to Slow: An Exploratory Analysis of Circular Business Models in the Italian Apparel Industry," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    13. Jing Shao, 2019. "Sustainable consumption in China: New trends and research interests," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(8), pages 1507-1517, December.
    14. Juliane Peters & Ana Simaens, 2020. "Integrating Sustainability into Corporate Strategy: A Case Study of the Textile and Clothing Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-35, July.
    15. Cristina Luján-Ornelas & Leonor Patricia Güereca & María-Laura Franco-García & Michiel Heldeweg, 2020. "A Life Cycle Thinking Approach to Analyse Sustainability in the Textile Industry: A Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-19, December.
    16. Hakan Karaosman & Gustavo Morales-Alonso & Mercedes Grijalvo, 2015. "Consumers’ responses to CSR in a cross-cultural setting," Cogent Business & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 2(1), pages 1052916-105, December.
    17. Magdalena Zioło & Iwona Bąk & Anna Spoz, 2023. "Theoretical framework of sustainable value creation by companies. What do we know so far?," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(5), pages 2344-2361, September.
    18. Karaosman, Hakan & Perry, Patsy & Brun, Alessandro & Morales-Alonso, Gustavo, 2020. "Behind the runway: Extending sustainability in luxury fashion supply chains," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 652-663.
    19. Lin Wu & Nachiappan Subramanian & Muhammad D. Abdulrahman & Chang Liu & Kee-hung Lai & Kulwant S. Pawar, 2015. "The Impact of Integrated Practices of Lean, Green, and Social Management Systems on Firm Sustainability Performance—Evidence from Chinese Fashion Auto-Parts Suppliers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(4), pages 1-21, March.
    20. Tsan-Ming Choi & Yongjian Li, 2015. "Sustainability in Fashion Business Operations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(11), pages 1-7, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:22:p:12681-:d:680535. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.